Recent Questions - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange |
- Why are developers called 'developers'? [closed]
- What are the rules for inclusiveness of a range end?
- The function definition [closed]
- Hypernym for "business card", "resume", "cv", "portfolio"
- What Greek preposition is in “exorcism”, “ek” or “ex”?
- What is the origin of "playing into someone's hands"?
- Is there a term to describe words with opposites of the same form?
- Is the definite article required in front of the noun that is followed by a "that ..." specifier?
- How to construct a compound sentence using "champion" as a verb? [closed]
- Is there a comma needed in this sentence, and if so, why? [migrated]
- Why can you say “not only will I” but not “not only I will”?
- What is the correct term for all the forms and derivatives of a root word?
- Word to describe things used in a board game
- "Work within a country" vs "Work in a country"
- Term or phrase similar to ghost town but without remaining structures
- Does the antecedent of ‘you’ shift in Labouchère’s poem “The Brown Man’s Burden”?
- Are probable and possible scenarios the same? [closed]
- Usage of comma and parallel verbs in this sentence
- Amn’t - where does it occur in the US?
- Type of usage/ term
- Cultural Backlash Meaning
- Meaning of "Cut my legs out from under me"?
- "Webpages" or "Web Pages"?
- A word for making an event more likely or less likely
- What does "unwarranted conclusion" mean?
- Use of "to" with no verb at the end of a sentence in reference to the previous sentence
- Word that means "characters" but that also applies to animals?
- "should say that" vs "should have said that"
- Why is the "J" in San Jacinto pronounced like an English "J" instead of an "H" in Texas?
| Why are developers called 'developers'? [closed] Posted: 27 Mar 2022 06:39 AM PDT tl;drWhy are 'developers' called developers? Is there any meaning I don't know in the terminology 'develop'? Long versionBefore I start, I have no idea which community would be proper for this question, so I'll appreciate for any suggestion. Anyway, as you might noticed, I'm not used to English. So, the word 'develop' is something that making better or advanced as I know. However, people who make software, or applications are also called 'developers' (not only 'programmers' or 'engineers'). It makes sense in the point of view that they make the software they made better, but this is not limited only for the software. Is there any other meaning which I didn't know in 'develop'? |
| What are the rules for inclusiveness of a range end? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 06:11 AM PDT
Do ranges follow rules, or do we always have to learn what is meant by its context? Is there some patter, or rule-of-thumb, that can be applied? |
| The function definition [closed] Posted: 27 Mar 2022 03:44 AM PDT The word function consists of an action verb and a measurable noun. A function identifies or answers the question of what it does? The verb answers the question, "What does it do?" I am confused about what is the difference between the two questions: What it does? VS What does it do? The Source: https://www.value-eng.org/resource/resmgr/certification/vm_dictionary.pdf
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| Hypernym for "business card", "resume", "cv", "portfolio" Posted: 27 Mar 2022 03:11 AM PDT I need a single word/hypernym that will describe
This word will describe information about a person. Such as name, title, contact. I am thinking the word could be something like |
| What Greek preposition is in “exorcism”, “ek” or “ex”? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 04:12 AM PDT I realize this may not be typical for this forum, but I have seen the term translated to English in another post. I find exorcism explained with "ek" with the verb "horkizo"
But elwhere I often see the term explained by "Ex"+ "horkizo", "ex" meaning "out of ". Are these just two types of spelling for the same preposition? |
| What is the origin of "playing into someone's hands"? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 06:44 AM PDT Quote:
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk Lexico defines the expression as
Did the expression originally refer to a game? And how does something play into another person's hands? |
| Is there a term to describe words with opposites of the same form? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 02:22 AM PDT By "words with opposites of the same form", I mean word pairs such as:
and so forth. Is there a term to describe such pairs? |
| Is the definite article required in front of the noun that is followed by a "that ..." specifier? Posted: 26 Mar 2022 06:38 PM PDT In the following sentence, is the definite article "the" required in front of the noun describing a group whose scope is narrowed by a subsequent description?
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| How to construct a compound sentence using "champion" as a verb? [closed] Posted: 26 Mar 2022 03:02 PM PDT I want to write a sentence with the following structure:
My question is whether the [by] in bold is required or not? For example, should I write:
or
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| Is there a comma needed in this sentence, and if so, why? [migrated] Posted: 26 Mar 2022 02:06 PM PDT The sentence in question: "I met with a psychologist to see if I was on the autism spectrum but they told me that I was not."
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| Why can you say “not only will I” but not “not only I will”? Posted: 26 Mar 2022 07:24 PM PDT Given:
Why does sentence (2) sound so terribly wrong? Why is sentence (1) grammatical and sentence (2) ungrammatical? Please explain why this strange ordering restriction of subject and auxiliary verb applies here. In contrast, the ordering restriction in (1)/(2) does not seem to apply to any of these versions, where the verb is fine to follow the subject once you've moved not only around a bit in the sentence:
If you switched I will to Will I in any of (3), (4), or (5), the result would now not be grammatical the way it is in (1). Why makes (1) so special? |
| What is the correct term for all the forms and derivatives of a root word? Posted: 26 Mar 2022 02:29 PM PDT I want to make a comprehensive word list, and I want to refer to that list using the accurate terminology. In my list I want all the forms, extensions, derivatives, etc of each word. I am using the word "forms" but is that right? For instance "glass" is a root word.... Some forms are "glassed", "glasses", "glassy", "glassiest", "glassier", "glassing", "glazing", and probably more... And "blue" is a root word and some forms are "blueness", "bluish", "blued", "bluing", "blues", "bluesy" and more, but not necessarily "bluegrass" or all the other words containing that sequence of four letters. (Those may be distinct root words, with their own derivative forms). Is there a term for all the derivations of a root? I am having a hard time even searching the web for what I want because I don't know the word! Is it "derivations", "derivatives", "morphs", or something? P.S. it is for a software project involving random words in a security system. |
| Word to describe things used in a board game Posted: 27 Mar 2022 05:36 AM PDT I was writing about a board game earlier and I initially mistranslated the Spanish word material, which in this refers to everything needed to play the game (cards, the board, the counters, the die...) for the English word material, before I realized that in this context they do not mean the same. What would be the most appropriate English word for this use? I'm thinking equipment or maybe attire, but I'd appreciate your suggestions. Example phrase:
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| "Work within a country" vs "Work in a country" Posted: 27 Mar 2022 06:25 AM PDT I am editing an academic text. Although my instinct was to follow the original, I am unsure whether there was any reason to use the following suggestion: Original: "X is an organization that has worked in over seventy countries in the past X years." Suggested Edit: "X is an organization that has worked within over seventy countries in the past X years." |
| Term or phrase similar to ghost town but without remaining structures Posted: 26 Mar 2022 04:00 PM PDT I'm a local historian and I was wondering what the term might be for former railroad communities/mill towns with no remaining structures? I realize ghost town is the wrong term because they have no remaining buildings or architecture. Thanks in advance! |
| Does the antecedent of ‘you’ shift in Labouchère’s poem “The Brown Man’s Burden”? Posted: 26 Mar 2022 01:52 PM PDT I was reading Henry Labouchère's poem "The Brown Man's Burden" first published in 1899. I was a little confused because at one point the antecedent for ye/you appears to switch from the white men to the brown men (meaning the Philippine natives). For example, in the poem's second stanza,
Here, the second-person ye pronoun seems to be referring to the natives (the brown men), while the third-person possessive pronoun his in his hate seems now to refer to the white men. However, in all other parts of the poem, the second-person you seems to refer to the white men not to the brown ones, as in the poem's opening couplet reading:
Please let me know whether I am analyzing the intended antecedents of these pronouns correctly here. |
| Are probable and possible scenarios the same? [closed] Posted: 26 Mar 2022 12:40 PM PDT When someone says "If X happens then Y may/can happen" what does he mean? He means what are the possible scenarios or the probable scenarios? Should we use may or can interchangeable in such sentences? |
| Usage of comma and parallel verbs in this sentence Posted: 27 Mar 2022 12:03 AM PDT
My first question is about the Comma in the third bracket before and. The rule of the Comma before and is:
Source: Using a Comma before "And" But The second question is about maintaining the parallel verbs which are Source: Using Parallel Verbs |
| Amn’t - where does it occur in the US? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 05:46 AM PDT We moved to CA from Norfolk, VA as children. Our parents and grandparents are college educated yet we four all said "amn't," to the shock of our CA neighbors. We no longer say it but I wondered why we all said this in 1967? All I can find in an online search is that they use it in Ireland and Scotland. Note: My second and third generation Irish parents from Boston and St. Louis did not use it. Is it common in southern Virginia? |
| Posted: 26 Mar 2022 05:07 PM PDT His features contort with obvious pain as he tells his story, his memories of Caroline clearly something he holds precious. What makes the bolded section dependent? What's it missing to form a clause. Is it a type of supplemental clause.? |
| Posted: 27 Mar 2022 05:03 AM PDT 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:
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| Meaning of "Cut my legs out from under me"? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 06:25 AM PDT I would like to know the exact meaning of this phrase "cut my legs out from under me". I've been searching for it everywhere, but until now I've only come across the definition of "cut the ground from under somebody's feet". And I know it is not the same. Though, I've heard on some TV shows people saying "cut my legs out from under me". |
| Posted: 26 Mar 2022 09:16 PM PDT Sometimes I found it written as "WebPages" and sometimes it is "Web Pages" .. I'm confused should it be written as one word or two words ?! |
| A word for making an event more likely or less likely Posted: 27 Mar 2022 06:25 AM PDT In discussions of probability we often find ourselves saying that we can make an event more likely or less likely. It feels wordy, like there should be a single word for that. I don't mean "preclude" or "necessitate." I mean a change of probability that doesn't reach 0% or 100%. For example, we might say:
What goes in that bracketed space? Not "rarify," which means something else; and not "preclude," which we can never seem to accomplish. |
| What does "unwarranted conclusion" mean? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 04:13 AM PDT What does "unwarranted conclusion" mean in a context that especially is related to a scientific survey? Apparently it means that drawing a conclusion without taking into account whole variables or factors that impact the conclusion. However, I could not find a source explaining the term well. |
| Use of "to" with no verb at the end of a sentence in reference to the previous sentence Posted: 27 Mar 2022 12:05 AM PDT Consider:
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? |
| Word that means "characters" but that also applies to animals? Posted: 26 Mar 2022 10:15 PM PDT The definition of character:
Is there a similar word but that also includes animals? Example sentence:
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| "should say that" vs "should have said that" Posted: 26 Mar 2022 10:02 PM PDT Example 1: It was odd (that) you should say that Example 2: It was odd (that) you should have said that I don't understand what the putative should implies when it's constructed with the present perfect, as in example 2. I can't tell the differences between the two. |
| Why is the "J" in San Jacinto pronounced like an English "J" instead of an "H" in Texas? Posted: 27 Mar 2022 03:14 AM PDT Many Spanish words taken into English have a "J" sounding like "H", but San Jacinto follows a different rule:
Why is San Jacinto not pronounced San Hacinto in English? The languagehat article mentioned in comments shows that the J in Jacinto is under attack in Texas, but it doesn't explain why Texans don't pronounce Jacinto like every other Spanish J word. |
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