Saturday, November 27, 2021

Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange

Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange

Is "You're not" or "You aren't" better for contraction usage of "You are not"?

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 11:05 AM PST

Basically the title; is it better to use "You're not" or "You aren't" in place of "You are not" in formal writing?

why is this sentence wrong "it was happened yesterday" [migrated]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 10:46 AM PST

I am not exactly sure why this sentence wrong? I think it's supposed to be "it happened yesterday"

Why 'Principal' is an 'authenticated user'

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 11:11 AM PST

Many computer systems, related to authorization and permissions uses word 'principal' as term to describe 'user' or 'member'.

I can't get connotation here. Principal is a 'school boss', or 'body of the credit', etc. Why user (entity to get permission) is named 'principal'?

Example of use, if someone is not familiar with IT:

In IAM [Identity and Access Management, f.e. in Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform], permission to access a resource isn't granted directly to the end user. Instead, permissions are grouped into roles, and roles are granted to authenticated principals. (In the past, IAM often referred to principals as members. Some APIs still use this term.)

What's the origin of this meaning (the user)? What it should reference to in the mind of the reader?

Her face, a revolving door, swings open and shut, open and shut

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 08:31 AM PST

First her ears hear; they open. Then her eyes can see; they open. Her face, a revolving door, swings open and shut, open and shut. She no longer sleeps at night; it's too hard to breathe after four breast-implant operations. She drops, like rain down a window, collapsing in fatigue, breathing through her mouth, and even exhaustion seems miraculous.

The above lines are from 'The Coming Flood', a short story by Andres Barba. What does the line in bold mean?

What's the difference between "I shouldn't have done that" and "I really shouldn't have done that?" [migrated]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 08:31 AM PST

I would like to know to what emphasis the word "really" puts in the below sentence?

I really shouldn't have done that.

Mass vs weight, refering to property of a human body [closed]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 08:33 AM PST

If you want to ask a person what is their body mass or weight in kg or pounds, what is the proper thing to ask?

Options:

  1. What is your mass?
  2. What is your weight?
  3. How much do you weigh?
  4. What is the mass of your body?
  5. What is the weight of your body?

context: academic environment, doctors appointment

Condition is indicative of age, or age is indicative of condition [closed]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 06:51 AM PST

As part of a volunteering job I have been listing antiques on eBay.

If the condition of an item is what one would expect from a used item of a particular age my manager thinks I should write

condition is indicative of age

in the item's description. I believe the reader already has an idea of the age and would want to know the condition, therefore I have been writing

age is indicative of condition.

In other items I describe the condition, but not the age.

Indicative of means indicates, which is synonymous with implies. If the age is known and the condition is unknown, then age implying condition would give the condition.

Searching online though, every antique product I come accross specifies "condition indicative of age"; "Age indicative of condition" yields nothing.

Please enlighten me as to where I'm going wrong.

Top 2 university or Top 2 universities? [closed]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 06:02 AM PST

I'm confused about when to use "top 2 university" or "top 2 universities". Both seems fine depending on the context but is there a professional explanation as to when I should use the first one instead of the second one?

Using hyphens in compound adjectives which talk about a range

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 06:59 AM PST

Which of these punctuations is correct? A) The drug is most promising for three-to-fifteen-year-old children. B) The drug is most promising for three- to fifteen-year-old children. I know that the rule for punctuating compound modifiers demands hyphens between all the words in a modifier (as in A), but I am pretty sure I have seen such modifiers punctuated like B a few times. Sadly, searches on the internet and grammar books (such as Practical English Usage) do not discuss this specific construction (i.e., talking about a range of numbers). Thanks

What do you think is more important to have, a computer or a cell phone? Explain your opinion. Use at least three sentences. Is my work ok? Thanks [closed]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 01:02 AM PST

I think computers are so important since they are extremely accurate, quick, and capable of doing a wide range of jobs. I use my computer to study, relax, to do assignments. I can learn photoshop, Microsoft office on my laptop, but I can't learn them on my phone. Computers have a big screen so I can look at everything clear. I usually use my computer and I love it.

Can you share some expressions/technics that are always used in you interview plz? [closed]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 12:38 AM PST

I am in great need of English expressions&technics in my college interviews. PLZ help me!!!!!!!

Word for explaining something cruelly

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 05:58 AM PST

I'm looking for something to describe speech that is something along the lines of cruel, menacing, tormenting, and dripping with malicious meaning. But not quite outright threatening, i.e. not "I'm gonna kill you", but more:

"You'll be the scapegoat for this and there's nothing you can do about it," the villain _________.

What is the meaning of 'bear' in this context? [closed]

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 12:32 AM PST

"The year which has passed… has not, indeed, been marked by any of those striking discoveries which at once revolutionise, so to speak, the department of science on which they bear"

Is there a better phrase for something that is new/inspiring?

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 12:26 AM PST

I am new to English StackExchange so please let me know if there's anything to be aware of.

I'm looking for a better word or phrase that can describe something that is new/inspiring/ - specifically, something that lets me see a new aspect of matters.

How could I compare two figures

Posted: 26 Nov 2021 10:06 PM PST

Say there's a leading board for revenues.

  • Company A: $10m
  • Company B: $5m
  • Company C: $2m

I want to emphasize that the "top" is twice as high as the "second":

The revenue for company A is twice as high as that for the second place.

Is this sentence correct? If not, what would be a natural way to say it?

Why no double "v" in "river" or "quiver"?

Posted: 26 Nov 2021 10:28 PM PST

After googling around for a while, I was unable to see anything that explained either causality or history/etymology for the single "v" in either "river" (why not "rivver"?) or "quiver". After all, "flivver" is a (somewhat archaic) word for "car".

Verb for attending a lecture without registering

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 07:35 AM PST

In other words, going to a lecture at university that you didn't pay for.

I clearly remember there was a specific verb for that.

Single word for one who enjoys something?

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 01:46 AM PST

What is a single word for one who enjoys something?

I am not a movie critic but an 'enjoyer' of good movies.

Across (covering all area/part of)

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 08:59 AM PST

Harry moved his head over on the pillow. In the bed to his right lay Hermione. Moonlight was falling across her bed.

My research : According to various dictionaries, the defintion of "across" varies:

  1. Covering whole area of something.
  2. Covering parts (but not whole) of area.

Is there any rule to figure which defintition should be used in what context, for example in this context?

Usage of AND for multiple times in a single statement

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 12:03 AM PST

Peak voltage, peak current, average voltage, and average current are four different things. Can I write them in the following way? I am confused with the usage of AND in this case.

Peak and average voltage and current analysis can be done using a Picoscope.

What is the name for a video that is shown as a preamble to an interview on a talk show?

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 10:01 AM PST

In TV talk shows, what is the name for a video clip that is shown as a preamble to an interview? I am working in the Netherlands, where they call this an 'instart'.

Complication about using present perfect tense with other tenses

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 11:04 AM PST

Since English is my foreign language, I always run into some unforeseen complication when describing daily activities I have just done in my daily journal. That is, I often use present perfect sentences with present, present perfect continuous, and past simple sentences in order to be specific about the time frame as much as possible. This mixture always confuses me and made me feel less confident when I want to be specific about the time frame. So I would like to know if these sample texts are grammatically correct and sound natural:

  1. I have cleared the table, since the food was so dry that I could not finish it. [Present Perfect + Past Simple]
  2. I have changed my pants, because the weather has been getting hotter this morning. [Present Perfect + Present Perfect Continuous]
  3. I decided to take this course, because it is important for my future career. [Past Simple + Present Simple]
  4. I decided to take this course, because it was important for my future career. [Past Simple + Past Simple]

Any advice is appreciated.

Cultural Backlash Meaning

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 03:04 AM PST

Backlash being strong public reaction against something, what exactly is cultural backlash? Googling it is not that helpful.

I was reading an article that contains the sentence:

The cultural backlash to America's financial system in the wake of the Great Recession brought the topic of widening inequality into the mainstream. Ten years after the crisis, income and wealth inequality between the top 1% and the rest of the country are both still rising.
—"US inequality sparked second Gilded Age and revealed defining struggle", Business Insider

continue [through] to

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 04:08 AM PST

I'm wondering what contribution the word "through" makes to the following sentence:

The trend continued [through] to April.

How does the above differ from the following?

The trend continued to April.

The trend continued until April.

I'd appreciate your help.

Use of "to" with no verb at the end of a sentence in reference to the previous sentence

Posted: 26 Nov 2021 11:00 PM PST

Consider:

She told him to break it up.

He didn't want to.

I know it means he didn't want to break it up, but how does one explain the use of to in the second sentence? I understand what's left out, and I get it re: the ellipsis—but I don't understand why to is there at all.

Couldn't one simply say He didn't want and leave it at that?

Is "be my guests" correctly used in the following case?

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 02:35 AM PST

Speaker A: We want to ask you some questions. If you don't mind, of course.

Speaker B: [He opens the door of his house] Sure, be my guests.

Is the idiom being used correctly? If not, what would be a better alternative?

Agreement after disjunctive compound subject_"My brother or one of my sisters" — singular or plural?

Posted: 27 Nov 2021 08:52 AM PST

Should I use 'was' or 'were' in this example?

I was always delighted when my brother or one of my sisters was/were asked to do them.
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