Tagged Questions
2
votes
1answer
83 views
“To go so far as to” — suitable for academic writing?
Is using the phrase "to go so far as to" in an academic context (e.g. in an article in humanities journal) acceptable?
New Example:
I do not know why Mister X went so far as to assert that Mister ...
-2
votes
0answers
77 views
“Fit one's needs” vs. “suit one's needs” vs. “meet one's needs”
In a formal letter, which verb should I choose?
The programme perfectly suits my needs.
The programme perfectly fits my needs.
The programme perfectly meets my needs.
-1
votes
1answer
85 views
In formal writing, is there any difference between “couple” and “some”?
For example in a résumé, are
Experience in a couple of rendering tools
and
Experience in some rendering tools
the same from the point of view of formality?
-1
votes
1answer
83 views
“At step” or “in step”
When I searched I found many usages of both "in step" and "at step". For example, Google returns:
"at each step" — about 55,000,000 results
"in each step" — about 45,000,000 results
But which one ...
2
votes
2answers
125 views
Is the word “dorm” acceptable in a thesis?
I'm writing a thesis about students living in dormitories and I would like to know if a dorm is an acceptable expression for a dormitory?
I don't live in GB nor in USA and the thesis is neither ...
0
votes
3answers
127 views
Is “setup” an acceptable noun in formal writing?
I'm editing a draft of a scientific paper which repeatedly uses the word "setup" to refer to the, well, experimental setup.
Example:
The dimensions of the setup are 250 mm × 250 mm × 50 mm.
...
-2
votes
2answers
122 views
What is the difference between “nudge” and “push” [closed]
I am trying to nudge them towards a practical solution.
What does nudge imply here? Can't we just use something like push?
Is the word outdated or still in use?
I'm not trying to avoid using ...
2
votes
2answers
53 views
How to write that I used a graphic from another source and modified it? [closed]
I'm writing a thesis in English (I'm from Germany) in which I'll use a graphic from a book that I modified just a little bit. How do write it correctly?
see [source], slightly modified.
...
1
vote
1answer
226 views
Is “Fellow” informal? If yes, what's a formal equivalent?
In this article I read that:
Fellow – Avoid using "fellow" when you mean "a person." Calling someone a fellow is more formal than calling him or her a dude, but "fellow" is still a colloquialism.
...
0
votes
1answer
586 views
Prepositions: “upon” vs. “after”
Despite having heard enough times already that upon is an archaic version of the on preposition, I'm still struggling to thoroughly understand its meaning and usage.
In the quoted sentence, ...
7
votes
5answers
278 views
Is “huge” slightly informal?
Is "huge" slightly informal?
In the following sentence,
First, some people insist that Japan doesn’t need to adopt [an]
austerity policy because it has a huge amount of assets at home and
...
0
votes
2answers
816 views
Formal alternative for “suck” [closed]
What is a more decent/formal alternative for the word suck? I want to use it in the context of being bad at something.
To be precise, I want to translate "To suck less at a job every day" to formal ...
-1
votes
1answer
39 views
discreetness, secrecy
Is paraphrasing:
I expect you to keep this subject secret from people it does not concern.
as
I'm expecting discreetness concerning this subject.
a correct use of that word? How else would ...
9
votes
3answers
294 views
Is “get” (in the sense of “become/make”) appropriate for formal writing?
Is the use of "get + adjective/participle" appropriate for formal writing (for example, scientific papers)? I am thinking of usages analogous to
get fat
get inflated
get sick
where the meaning ...
2
votes
3answers
3k views
1st or 3rd person in CV/résumé? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is it normal in English to talk about oneself in the third person in these cases?
I’m currently preparing my CV in English. I’m not a native English speaker, and I ...
1
vote
2answers
177 views
“Institution”, “body” or “organ”
I'm a non-native speaker active in a labor union that does not use English internally. The union has a representative assembly (made up of representatives of branches), whose existence is mandated by ...
7
votes
3answers
1k views
Is “embiggen” considered a formal or slang word?
If my memory serves me correctly, I first encountered the word embiggen a year or so ago. I thought it seemed odd, but in context, the meaning was quite obvious.
Since that time I've seen this word ...
2
votes
2answers
281 views
Addressing Professors: Between Dr. and a hard place
Early in my (academic) life, I was told that it is appropriate to address a faculty as Professor only when he/she possesses the full Professorial rank and I would be better off addressing Assistant ...
0
votes
3answers
250 views
How common is “What happened?” when asking people to repeat what they said? How long has this been in common usage?
For several years, I have heard most young people and some adults use the phrase What happened? when they do not hear what is spoken. It appears to be used where previously several other phrases were ...
4
votes
5answers
362 views
What's a more formal name for a “third” party?
Two parties are trying to resolve some dispute that involves interest of both. Sometimes it's hard for them to reach an agreement on a fair basis. This is typically when another party who has no ...
4
votes
4answers
338 views
When proper usage impedes communication
This question may be moderated as unanswerable, but I am interested in opinions.
Take this scenario: Most people I know will improperly correct "The ball belongs to John and me." to "The ball belongs ...
1
vote
5answers
3k views
More formal way to say “just in case”
I thought "provisionally" was what I was looking for, as in:
"As a provisional measure, I'd like someone with Volkswagen Corporate to follow up with me next week."
What I really mean is:
"Just in ...
5
votes
3answers
768 views
Appropriate use of “app” vs “application”
Can app serve as an accepted abbreviation for application in formal contexts? Is there some context where app is more accepted (for example, when talking about mobile applications)?
3
votes
2answers
301 views
Is “grab” an informal way of saying “learn”?
I am writing to someone who is a sort of respectful person and I wanted to form a sentence such as below and I am wondering if using grab instead of learn or get is informal and looks odd.
I'd ...
2
votes
3answers
204 views
What is the difference between “an essay on something” and “an essay in something”?
In most cases you write "an essay on something" but recently I came across some "essays in something"
Is there a difference in meaning? Is the "in" more formal?
1
vote
2answers
534 views
Is “a lot of” used generally in English, or is it colloquial?
I find a lot of people in Holland think 'a lot of' is too colloquial for use in academic work.
Is that the case?
2
votes
3answers
10k views
Is it appropriate to use 'eagerly' while ending a formal e-mail
Nowadays, I always use the below phrase when I am ending a formal e-mail;
I eagerly await for your response.
Regards,
I've seen this phrase somewhere, kind-of a formal e-mail and I am using ...
1
vote
4answers
654 views
“Certificate of residence” vs. “certificate of residency”
Certificate of residence vs. certificate of residency — which one to use, when and why? Please quote a reputable source.
3
votes
3answers
256 views
What are the guidelines for usage of “will” and “is/are going to”?
I use them interchangeably, however I'd like to know when one is better or more appropriate than the other.
2
votes
2answers
1k views
Is “whatsoever” a formal word in written English?
The authors make no mention whatsoever about...
Is this sentence appropriate for formal writing?
12
votes
6answers
2k views
Is there an informal way to describe a woman that can not have a baby?
"Infertile"; "fruitless"? How would you describe such a woman in an informal talk to your friend?
3
votes
4answers
1k views
Is using “have” better than using “got” in the following sentence?
Take a gander at the following two versions of the same sentence:
"I got an mp4 video file"
vs.
"I have an mp4 video file"
Someone 'corrected' me by changing the first form to the second ...
20
votes
9answers
23k views
Using “dear”, “darling”, or “honey” to address a friend
As far as I know dear, darling, and honey are commonly used between lovers, but I suppose there are more words like that. What else is commonly used?
Which of these can be used to address a ...
36
votes
5answers
2k views
Is “data” considered singular or plural?
Related to this question and this question.
My non-native English speaking friend just asked me:
Data is ...
or
Data are ...
I said both but that's because I've been desensitized from ...
11
votes
6answers
771 views
“Toward” or “towards” – what would a native speaker use?
In this question we learn that toward and towards are interchangeable, but that the former is somewhat more typical of U.S. English and the latter of British English, although there is some indication ...
6
votes
2answers
518 views
Use “whom” in emails?
Assume for a moment that an author does know how to use whom correctly. In an email (specifically), does using whom correctly make the author sound stuffy and formal, or would you say that in email, ...
9
votes
7answers
2k views
How do you decide which phrase to use when asking people to repeat what they said?
There are many different ways to ask people to repeat what they have just said. For example:
Huh?
What?
Sorry?
Pardon?
What's that?
Say that again, please
I beg your pardon?
I've ordered them ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
“So long as” vs. “as long as”
Which phrase is more formal — "so long as" or "as long as"?
Example:
So long as Google Voice allows free long distance in North America, I will use it.
As long as Google Voice allows free ...
16
votes
6answers
9k views
Which is correct: “prefer X to Y” or “prefer X over Y”?
Many say that "prefer X to Y" has a more formal ring to it than "prefer X over Y". Are there any dialects where you wouldn't use "prefer X to Y" in colloquial speech at all? Conversely, are there any ...
30
votes
3answers
2k views
Alternatives to “and/or”?
As a programmer, I have no problem with seeing or using "and/or" in technical documentation. For example,
I can upvote an answer that satisfies me and/or mark it as accepted.
That's perfectly ...
