Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange |
- Why is "purchase" pronounced the same as a verb and as a noun, unlike other words such as increase?
- Meaning of “this food has a bite to it”
- Can the semicolon be used in this sentence? Or a comma?
- He turned up one night stone broke in Medellín [closed]
- I am familiar with the expression "early days" - but what does "early doors" mean?
- What is the demonym for a person from Gouda?
- What does it mean to "put on one's face"?
- Use of word "n****rheads" in the context [closed]
- What is the tense of "would become" in "if you exercised, you would become healthy" [closed]
- Is a number written in roman numerals a roman numeral, or is each of its digits a roman numeral?
- Word or phrase to describe a person's taste in media and entertainment?
- By or with - machines and tools
- Is there a word for a 'letter that should not be opened until after a specified date?'
- Is there a term for obsessive drive to use foreign words?
- Noun + Gerund Structure Differences [closed]
- What is a label that can be applied to this stoic quote about banquets?
- Can I use "instead" without "of"? [closed]
- English has one of the most complicated grapheme-to-phoneme correspondences. (Garrod & Daneman, 2004) ) Why are English words are so hard to spell? [closed]
- breakage vs breaking in "X denotes the spontaneous breakage/breaking of rotational symmetry"
- If one presidential term is four years, how do you say two terms in terms of years? Two four years's?
- What is a word or phrase for something that, though it ought to be unbelievable, you can believe is actually true?
- Fewer/less than a dozen (people)
- What is/are the word(s) for the overwhelming feeling of relief?
- Which noun was referred to after comma?
- Is the word 'parameterizable' an incorrect variation of 'parametric'?
- Easy and hard are at opposite ends of the scale. What is in the middle?
- Including units of a measure in a range
- "If" vs "Only if" vs "If and only if"
| Why is "purchase" pronounced the same as a verb and as a noun, unlike other words such as increase? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 02:48 PM PST Many words which can act as a noun and a verb pronounce differently in the different parts of speech. As a verb, the stress in on the second syllable, while as a noun, the first, such as INcrease (noun) vs inCREASE (verb). However, purchase always has the stress on the first syllable. English has many exceptions. |
| Meaning of “this food has a bite to it” Posted: 21 Nov 2021 11:40 AM PST If I say "I prefer my steak/burger to have a bite to it", I'm referring to it having enough thickness or density. Is this a proper usage of the word "bite"? My wife says she's always heard the word used this way too. I looked at several websites for definitions/uses of the word, and found nothing like the usage I'm thinking of. |
| Can the semicolon be used in this sentence? Or a comma? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 08:57 AM PST
I read that semicolon can be used in a sentence where there are 2 or more different phrases but with the same subject. But the implementation confuses me and need help understanding it. You can find the full para in the image (it's only a few lines) https://i.stack.imgur.com/9af6i.jpg |
| He turned up one night stone broke in Medellín [closed] Posted: 21 Nov 2021 09:14 AM PST
This is an excerpt from Roberto Bolaño's 'The Return', a short story, I just want to understand the meaning of the sentence in bold. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you. |
| I am familiar with the expression "early days" - but what does "early doors" mean? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 09:02 AM PST I saw this answer regarding "early days" in a related question, Meaning of "Early days I know but may help.":
Why, then, do people say "early doors"? How can a door be early? |
| What is the demonym for a person from Gouda? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 02:33 PM PST In Dutch the demonym for a person from Gouda is Gouwenaar. What is the demonym for that person in English. |
| What does it mean to "put on one's face"? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 07:03 AM PST In the movie "Hook", there is a scene where a lady with lots of make-up says something along these lines to other ladies of similar looks:
Up until that moment, I had always assumed that "putting on one's face" refers to putting makeup on it. But now I'm unsure. Maybe it actually refers to "putting on a show for somebody", such as acting all surprised/fawning over somebody who wants to feel important? It seems like it would be utterly impossible for the ladies to "put on makeup" in less than a few seconds between her saying it and the captain arriving there, so this leads me to believe that it has nothing to do with makeup after all, and more about the expression of one's face. I tried Wiktionary on "putting on one's face" before asking here. |
| Use of word "n****rheads" in the context [closed] Posted: 21 Nov 2021 07:41 AM PST An excerpt from Jack London's To build a Fire.
What is meaning of niggerheads here? The text was written around 1900. |
| What is the tense of "would become" in "if you exercised, you would become healthy" [closed] Posted: 21 Nov 2021 06:22 AM PST Is this some combination of past and future tenses? |
| Is a number written in roman numerals a roman numeral, or is each of its digits a roman numeral? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 12:11 PM PST Say I've got "VIII". How do I refer to that? Is it "a roman numeral", is it "roman numerals", because a single roman numeral is one digit, or is it something else, like "roman number"? |
| Word or phrase to describe a person's taste in media and entertainment? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 04:26 AM PST I am looking for a word that encompasses a person's taste in a wide variety of media and entertainment, including but not limited to movies, shows, music, musicians, actors, and anime. Sample Sentence:
The best I've come up with is "taste in media" and "media preference".
Is there any other word or short phrase to describe a person's taste in media? |
| By or with - machines and tools Posted: 21 Nov 2021 04:04 AM PST I'd like to know which preposition should be used with machines such as "dug by/with excavator(s)", "moved by/with crane(s)". I tried a Google search in the "co.uk" segment, but the usage varies from site to site. If "by" is better than "with", why? We say "dig with a shovel", and not "by". |
| Is there a word for a 'letter that should not be opened until after a specified date?' Posted: 21 Nov 2021 03:02 PM PST I'm looking for a word that could be used for a letter that should only be opened after a specified date or time. For example a letter written for an 18th birthday, the letter could be written years before but shouldn't be opened until the individuals 18th birthday. There's an example in the TV series 'Dark'. Michael Kahnwald writes "Do not open before November 4, 10:13 P.M." on the envelope of a suicide note. Ideas: I don't think 'testament' is correct, taken form 'Last will and testament' a legal document read on a persons death. It might just be that there is no name for this as all letters are opened in the future? |
| Is there a term for obsessive drive to use foreign words? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 09:24 AM PST I am looking for a term that describes someone's perpetual impulse to put in a foreign or exotic word instead of plainer or more habitual turns of phrase in one's daily speaking practice. This term needs to have a derogatory or pejorative shade of meaning. Neologophilia is the only viable option I have been able to come up with so far. Any other suggestions would be welcome, particularly with examples from actual usage or written sources. |
| Noun + Gerund Structure Differences [closed] Posted: 21 Nov 2021 05:10 AM PST Just need your insights on the sentences that really boggle my mind. The first sentence below is an excerpt taken from the following article:
The question I have is how to make any distinction on noun + gerund structures. It is so obvious on the aforementioned excerpt that the effect of smoking on "bone healing" I acknowledge and understand that. However, the following one I reckon comes with the same noun + gerund structure but in a different fashion.
Here what we have is "a mind (which is) wandering", not "mind wandering" similar to the "bone structure" Or the following one:
I reckon a similar notion applies here. "People (who are coming) here are filling gaps in the labour market, not taking jobs British people could do" I would really appreciate it if you could shed light on the ways to discern the difference that can help me understand. |
| What is a label that can be applied to this stoic quote about banquets? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 05:53 AM PST "Remember that you ought to behave in life as you would at a banquet. As something is being passed around it comes to you; stretch out your hand, take a portion of it politely. It passes on; do not detain it. Or it has not come to you yet; do not project your desire to meet it, but wait until it comes in front of you. So act toward children, so toward a wife, so toward office, so toward wealth." I see this concept coming up a lot in my life, and whenever I want to explain it someone, I can't just recite it, so usually I say something like "Be patient", but there is something about this phrase that dosen't capture all the meaning encapsulated in the original quote. |
| Can I use "instead" without "of"? [closed] Posted: 21 Nov 2021 08:29 AM PST Grammarly says no, but I don't trust Grammarly. I was trying to use it in a paragraph for Fahrenheit 451, saying
Wouldn't this work when you consider the definition of 'stead', since I'm trying to say that 'nothing' is making you forget instead of making you think? I suppose it's just backwards, but it seems correct. |
| Posted: 21 Nov 2021 02:23 PM PST This question is frequently asked in other places but not here. |
| breakage vs breaking in "X denotes the spontaneous breakage/breaking of rotational symmetry" Posted: 21 Nov 2021 08:05 AM PST In the sentence " X denotes the spontaneous breakage/breaking of rotational symmetry.", which is the best word to use in its context? |
| Posted: 21 Nov 2021 07:16 AM PST If one presidential term is four years, how do you say two terms in terms of years? Two four years's? Two four years doesn't make a lot of sense but two four years's sounds weird. |
| Posted: 21 Nov 2021 03:00 PM PST An example would be President Trump's tweets where when you're told about them your first instinct is to believe that can't possibly have been tweeted. But you nevertheless accept that it probably did happen.
|
| Fewer/less than a dozen (people) Posted: 21 Nov 2021 11:04 AM PST
A dozen is semantically plural ("twelve") yet it is grammatically singular, so which form is correct fewer/less than a dozen? Secondly, what about Fewer/less than a dozen people?
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| What is/are the word(s) for the overwhelming feeling of relief? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 05:01 AM PST I am describing in a college app essay the feeling I felt when I finally did not experience overwhelming anxiety when presenting in front of the class. I have only felt this way when presenting topics surrounding math and science. I need a word that encapsulates the feeling of utter relief. One example of this could be when someone finds out their loved one is not going to die. The cold, unrelenting grip of worry is released from the shoulders and lungs and that overwhelming sense of relief is felt. The lightness of the shoulders. The newfound ease of breath. What is a good word that encapsulates this? |
| Which noun was referred to after comma? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 07:07 AM PST I am reading a paragraph in English. English is obviously not my first language. I like to confirm my understanding of a sentence. This is the sentence.
In the sentence, "moving the sun to the center of the solar system and ....." refers to "replacement" not "the old Ptolemaic astronomy". Am I right? Could you tell me which one it is referring to? |
| Is the word 'parameterizable' an incorrect variation of 'parametric'? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 08:54 AM PST In other words, are all these uses incorrect? |
| Easy and hard are at opposite ends of the scale. What is in the middle? Posted: 21 Nov 2021 05:40 AM PST "This is easy." "This is ___." <— what goes there? "This is hard." |
| Including units of a measure in a range Posted: 21 Nov 2021 06:46 AM PST When specifying a range of values that have a unit of measure associated with them, what is the best practice for where to include the unit of measure?
Or
And how would this apply when using metric prefixes?
Or
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| "If" vs "Only if" vs "If and only if" Posted: 21 Nov 2021 09:58 AM PST |
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