Adjectives are words, or phrases naming an attribute, added to or grammatically related to a noun to modify or describe it.
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Adjective for “terrified yet calm and capable”
What is an adjective to describe the duality of a first responder (such as an EMT responding to a terrorist attack) who is terrified for the wounded, yet simultaneously calm, detached, and capable ...
0
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1answer
122 views
Are these sentences in the “Christian Science Monitor” acceptable English these days? [closed]
This is from a Christian Science Monitor story on Nancy Pelosi's decision to stay on as House Minority Leader. The first report I saw in the Washington Post had only one questionable sentence, but ...
1
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1answer
146 views
How to identify adjectives [closed]
I’m revisiting/studying about adjectives in “Adjectives” at Capital Community College Guide to Grammar and Writing. First I learn that articles are adjectives, but then there follows a paragraph in ...
1
vote
1answer
97 views
What is the adjective for “sent down” or “descend”?
The only word I found is descendant but this is often used for people, and I want to use the word for objects. Is there an adjective or alternative I can use if I want to say sent down, brought down ...
0
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0answers
58 views
How to use the word “cynical” [closed]
If somebody doesn't trust people or trusts them only after a very long time that proves them trustworthy, can we call this person cynical?
And if somebody is interested in a person just for benefits ...
5
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5answers
394 views
Is this an objective complement or adjective phrase?
In ‘catch me off guard’, is the ‘off guard’ an objective complement or adjective phrase that modifies ‘me’?
My Great Uncle Algie kept trying to catch me off guard and force some magic out of me ...
0
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1answer
99 views
Is this an absolute phrase?
In the following example, is more full picture a kind of absolute phrase?
He has given us a lot, more full picture of dinosaurs of the East Coast.
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1answer
113 views
Adverb of “gullible” [closed]
What is the adverb form of gullible? I tried using gullibly but it apparently isn't a word. Is it one of those adjectives that simply don't have an adequate adverb?
3
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1answer
313 views
Use of comparative degree when no comparison is being done
I have studied in my academics that we can use comparative degree when comparison is being done. But today I came across use of comparative degree without any comparison. Is it correct to use ...
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2answers
184 views
Meaning of “Irish true”
This is a sign from a pub. I would expect it to read “Irish truth” or “true Irish”. Why is “Irish true” used?
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3answers
1k views
“Extensible” vs. “extendible”
Where does the adjective form extensible come from and does it connote anything different than extendible? What's the difference, if any, between the two?
0
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3answers
238 views
Synonym for “aforementioned” without the past-tense connotation [closed]
Is there a word that can be used when discussing something and wanting to refer to it in the manner of "the aforementioned", but without the temporal aspect making it sound like you've moved on and ...
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3answers
435 views
“Aforementioned” vs. “aforesaid”
I'm writing a paper. In it, I have the following sentence.
The ________ principle has two discrepancies.
I am considering using either "aforementioned" or "aforesaid". How are the meaning of the ...
3
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2answers
439 views
Why is “desperacy” not an English word?
I know one says an act of desperation, but I've heard desperacy much more than I've ever heard desperation, it's like I've almost never heard desperation.
Why exactly was desperation preferred over ...
14
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4answers
796 views
How productive is the prefix “un-”?
Is it possible to use un- with new words such as sit, sleep, sad? I'm currently seeing many words (in programming) which use "un-" in the meaning of undoing something.
For example, is it possible to ...
4
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6answers
508 views
Euphemism for “non-useful”
I was just about to tell someone how something "wouldn't really be much useful" if they leave it the way it is — which is like a much more polite version of useless, but I just couldn't find the word. ...
2
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3answers
121 views
“Broad surface” or “large surface” [closed]
When comparing the total surface area of (geometrical) bodies, can I describe it as "large surface" (or "largest") or, as an editor suggested, do I have to use "broad surface"?
Edit:
Example ...
4
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3answers
162 views
“A different one” when we have 3 objects - other/another? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Can “another” be used with plural nouns provided periods or measurements don’t count?
Here is the context (found in a forum for learners of English)
WAITRESS: Do you ...
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1answer
157 views
“Embarassed” vs. “ashamed” [closed]
Is there any difference between the words embarrassed and ashamed? If so, could you provide some examples of usage?
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0answers
79 views
What does “intestine enemy” mean? [closed]
I’m particularly curious about the usage in Calvin’s commentary of Hebrews:
...at the same time we are carrying on war with sin, our intestine enemy.
However, here are some other examples.
3
votes
7answers
778 views
Word that means that someone is too powerful
More specifically, if they have the power to wiretap your communications, powerful as in power, not as in strength.
A _____ [powerful] person who holds a menacingly huge amount of power who makes ...
1
vote
5answers
504 views
What is the difference between “stiff” and “rigid”?
Could an object be stiff but not rigid or vice versa?
When is each one used?
And what is the opposite of each of them?
1
vote
5answers
390 views
“Minimum changes” or “minimal changes”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Maximum” vs. “maximal”
Having altered the original text as little as possible, what is the correct way to name the changes? Is it minimum changes or minimal changes?
...
0
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4answers
286 views
What is the correct word to describe a turn or a bend — “hard”, “sharp”, “heavy”…?
If there is a very sharp turn or detour or bend — in a piece of plastic, for example, — what is the correct word to describe it (hard, sharp, heavy...)?
1
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3answers
114 views
1D vs. one-dimensional vs. 1-dimensional?
In much of the scientific literature, the words 1D, one-dimensional, 1-dimensional, and 1-D occur frequently. Which of these is the best practice? Are there general principles for deciding which is ...
4
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5answers
386 views
The word “dear” in public speech
I am a member of a Toastmaster club in the Czech republic where people work on their public speaking skills. It is a usual to open a speech by
Dear fellow Toastmasters, dear guests,...
It is a ...
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3answers
242 views
“Intended” vs. “intentional”
I'm reading an article about intention recognition in computing areas and somehow robotics. I came across this sentence:
This problem has been discussed as the difference between “intended and ...
0
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2answers
83 views
A “black, full beard” or a “full, black” one? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the rule for adjective order?
This is from the Hound of the Baskervilles , where in Chapter 5, one of the characters is referred to as having "a black, full ...
3
votes
3answers
230 views
Is “five-yearly” an acceptable usage of an adverb of manner in British English?
Today's BBC News web page has this headline:
New era of five-yearly doctor checks starts
There's a word that means "five-yearly": quinquennial. It's probably too long for headline writers and ...
3
votes
3answers
214 views
What does “vampiric” mean in this context? [closed]
In Sam Harris's blog he writes
Most of us have been around this block often enough to know that many
“former atheists”—like Francis Collins—spent so long on the brink of
faith, and yearned for ...
0
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2answers
177 views
“Boys bicycle” vs. “boy's bicycle” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
User’s Guide vs Users’ Guide
When describing, for example, a bicycle for boys as "a boys bicycle", should it be "boy's" or "boys"? The phrase is not implying ownership ...
2
votes
4answers
158 views
Is “more infrequently” acceptable?
Recently a friend of mine, a native British English speaker, said:
.... more infrequently...
I asked him, why not 'less frequently,' and he said that would sound weird and that his version was ...
4
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2answers
714 views
What is the difference between the adjectives “live” and “alive”?
What is the difference between "live" and "alive"? When would I better use the first and when the latter?
EDIT
Say, there are several players actively participating in a game and some others are ...
3
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4answers
159 views
Appropriate word for non-regular procedure
One can think of a routine or common procedure to be applied (here it is in case of technical sequence of operations) on any system.
When some exception occurs - the common/ normal routine is NOT ...
5
votes
2answers
88 views
What is the hypernym for “next” and “previous”?
I'm looking for an umbrella term for "next" and "previous" so that I don't have to call my programming methods "NextPrevious".
Is there a hypernym for the two?
2
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2answers
98 views
US English — “primary grains being produced” vs. “major cereals being produced”
I am correcting a Spanish-to-English translation that states,
The primary grains being produced in the world are maize, wheat, rice, barley, sorghum and oats.
I would prefer to use cereals ...
2
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1answer
296 views
What is the difference between 'framework curriculum' and 'curricular framework'?
I know that curricular is an adjective and curriculum a noun, but are they both used in exactly the same meaning? Or are there some differences concerning what they imply or apply to? Being a ...
13
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9answers
998 views
Simple English for “filling hunger”
I'm looking for a (preferably) one-word term to describe a meal that's filling.
I'd like to avoid ambiguity with the substance put inside cakes, also called filling.
Satiating appears to be too ...
3
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2answers
187 views
Can the phrase “be necessary to” only be used on people?
My teacher told me that the phrase be necessary to can be used only on people. For example,
Something is necessary to someone.
Assuming she is correct, then this following sentence, the one I ...
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4answers
205 views
What is the correct usage of “imperative”?
Consider the statement:
The drought we have suffered this year makes it all the more imperative to wisely use the stock of food we have.
Is this a correct usage of the word imperative? What may ...
4
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4answers
221 views
Word for “cinema with a single screen”?
I usually say multiplex for a cinema with more screens. What word can I use to refer to a cinema with a single screen? Monoplex? Singleplex?
Is there a word other than single-screen to describe a ...
0
votes
1answer
68 views
Meaning of “this is a routine chapter” [closed]
Does "this is a routine chapter" mean that there is no creativity in this chapter?
Context:
This is a routine chapter. There is almost nothing creative here. I just
generalize theorems about ...
32
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5answers
3k views
Is “the girls are want to gossip” correct?
Is this the correct use and placement of want?
The girls in the office are want to gossip.
Does anyone have a reference citing this use?
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1answer
128 views
What is “Pop art blue”? [closed]
"Across the hills in the pop art blue"
Could I understand "blue" as sadness, depression, like "Across the hills in the sadness of the pop art" or something like that? How can I understand it?
This ...
4
votes
5answers
1k views
What is the word for the opposite of “preferred”?
Non-preferred sounds clunky to me and words like alternative, I feel, don't convey the sense of "the set of things I really don't like".
Edit: Perhaps the context will help. In this version, I've ...
1
vote
1answer
593 views
What is the difference between “left/right side” and “left/right-hand side”?
This question arose in the context of referring to locations in a figure, e.g.:
A dot is added to the left(-hand) side of the diagram.
What is the difference in meaning (if there is one)? What ...
7
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6answers
547 views
Word for “non-unpleasant”?
What would be the expression to describe making something "not unpleasant"/"less unpleasant"? Specifically, not making it pleasant (adding comforts) but minimizing the expected discomforts.
Let's ...
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2answers
420 views
Adjectives to describe the word “questions” [closed]
I'm writing an ad for yoghurt. It's about telling the truth about the consumer's new favourite flavour. I would like to say,
You'll need to answer some _____ questions.
They're personal ...
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1answer
168 views
Meaning of “permanent crop” [closed]
I came across the phrase "permanent crop" in The World Factbook, in a description of land use. What does it mean?
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2answers
624 views
What does “adorkable” mean? How popular is this word? To what kind of objects and occasions can I apply “adorkable”?
I happened to find the paperback book titled Adorkable, by Sarra Manning, on the GoodReads site.
There is no entry for adorkable in the Cambridge, Oxford or Merriam-Webster dictionaries, or in ...
