Tagged Questions
1
vote
1answer
47 views
“Which Allow me” or “Which Allows me”?
Context: "My work requires me to be at different areas for different events which allow me to learn ..."
Do I use "allows" or "allow"? Can you provide me the rules/situations in choosing which one to ...
2
votes
2answers
189 views
Not only X but also Y are (is?)
At first glance, sentence 1 below seems more correct because there are two subjects. However, something seems more natural about sentence 2. Maybe there is something abbreviated, elliptical, or ...
-2
votes
2answers
109 views
Is a bare infinitive acceptable as the object of a verb? [duplicate]
I came upon the phrase, "writing helps develop a child analytically thinking." Is this grammatically correct? Is it OK to use just develop instead of to develop?
1
vote
2answers
84 views
“help achieve” usage (verb licensing) [duplicate]
When I was taught English (as a foreign language) I was told that there are two ways of putting verbs together:
learn to play (to + infinitive)
quit smoking (gerund)
Some verbs require one way and ...
-4
votes
2answers
112 views
X Shared Y's Something [closed]
I was looking up information about popes and then I found this:
found here
Pope Julius III (1550–1555) was alleged to have had a long affair with Innocenzo Ciocchi del Monte. The Venetian ...
0
votes
2answers
149 views
“Let him wait” or “Keep him waiting” or “Make him wait” [closed]
There is someone I do not want to see. What can I say to my assistant:
Let him wait.
Keep him waiting.
Make him wait.
What is the difference among these?
1
vote
1answer
148 views
'Has found' versus 'found' [duplicate]
When would one say "she has found her keys" as opposed to "she found her keys"? Are they equivalent, or at least partially equivalent? I'm not a native speaker and have been unable to find a pattern ...
1
vote
2answers
228 views
None have showed up? Huh? [duplicate]
Has the language really changed this much in twenty years? "None of your students have showed up" - a sentence supplied by this very website as a proper one - seems wrong on two counts to me.
Twenty ...
1
vote
1answer
156 views
“Need to” as an English Modal
In my studies of both theoretical and applied English linguistics, we studied English modals more than once. So a question came up on this site earlier today. I explained that "need to" is a modal. ...
3
votes
2answers
166 views
Why is “I refuse running” wrong?
I got into a discussion with another user in the comments section of this question. We disagreed over the following phrases:
I refuse running.
I decline running.
To me, they are both ...
9
votes
5answers
243 views
Can the verb “wonder” simply take an object?
In this question, the questioner states
I wonder the origin of the word.
Can wonder take a simple object like that? Or should it be wonder about or wonder at or something similar (or something ...
2
votes
2answers
221 views
In the sentence “My house is down the street”, which word does the adverb “down” modify?
My house is down the street.
Does the adverb down modify is, or street?
3
votes
3answers
119 views
Can “process” be used as an intransitive verb?
I am currently spending some time creating a (partial) Liferay translation for the Greek language, and I came upon this original English message text:
Your request processed successfully.
Can ...
4
votes
1answer
511 views
Generalised rule for verb usage in simple present tense using participle
I'm doing a school exercise where I have to give an explanation of the underlined (or in this case bold) verb usage in given sentences, following this format:
I was waiting.
past continuous ...
2
votes
3answers
2k views
“How long have you [had/been having] this?” - Cont. or Simple?
I'm studying Present Perfect tenses at the moment and have been wondering what tense should I use in this example:
How long have you [had/been having] this thing?
So I know that in some cases ...
0
votes
1answer
119 views
Proper usage of plural/singular verb [closed]
I wanted to ask, which of these two is correct. I would be grateful for your answer.
People’s lives is involved.
Or
People’s lives are involved.
2nd is grammatically correct, I think.
2
votes
3answers
177 views
give a lift to or without “to”?
Reading a text I have seen the following:
A man and two girls he gave a lift to.
But doesn't this mean that I can say "give a lift to"?
What about this:
I gave my friend a lift.
I gave a ...
5
votes
1answer
350 views
plural noun/singular verb and vice versa [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
None as plural indefinite pronoun
In my work I am often exposed to sentences written by nonnative speakers of English.
I often come across sentences with a singular noun ...
1
vote
4answers
124 views
Is it proper to use “would” here?
I'd like to say something like: I'm going to change the code in the future, according to this requirement.
Here is my version:
This code would need to be modified to satisfy this requirement...
I ...
1
vote
2answers
2k views
“Proceed to doing something” or “Proceed to do something”
This may be a very easy question to many of you and may not deserve to be here. But it has been bothering me for a long time..
Should I add ing behind the verb after proceed to just like how it ...
-2
votes
2answers
523 views
“Became” vs “become”
I'm not sure about the verb tense I should use here:
Run this definition so that the previous changes become/became visible.
I think the correct one is Present Simple but it sounds better with ...
3
votes
2answers
677 views
What meaning of “get” is in the “get paid” phrase?
Get has a lot of meanings in English, but which one is used in phrase get paid? Get is often used for describing a change of state, similarly to become. But does get paid fall into this case? From ...
0
votes
0answers
80 views
Why “you are” and not “you is”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Did English ever have a formal version of “you”?
Why is it "you are human" and not "you is human"?
Isn't "you" singular?
6
votes
2answers
1k views
Inversion in “only [adverb] have they”
I have seen this construction quite often:
Online ads have been around since the dawn of the Web, but only in
recent years have they become the rapturous life dream of Silicon
Valley.
What ...
4
votes
3answers
133 views
Is “remains” in “Xenophobia remains in our society” a linking or intransitive verb?
Yet another grammar question.
I know that 'remains' can be a linking verb in many contexts, but I'm undecided on whether it is linking in the sentence "Xenophobia remains in our society".
I feel ...
7
votes
2answers
459 views
Are there specific rules to build expressions with or without articles?
In English, there are lots of expressions built using articles like:
at the station
to the cinema
play the piano
have breakfast (no article)
take a bath
take a shower
Are there specific rules or ...
2
votes
3answers
293 views
In the sentence “Go for a kayak” is “kayak” a verb or a noun?
I thought it would be a verb considering it is being used in place of "ride in a kayak". However if 'a' is a indefinite article, doesn't it have to refer to a noun? Would that make the word 'kayak' a ...
1
vote
0answers
116 views
“Try not to” vs “try to not” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Order of “not” with infinitive
When negating verbs that are commonly followed by the infinitive, is there a difference in meaning between placing the "not" ...
2
votes
5answers
539 views
“A classmate and I was” vs “A classmate and I were”
I'm writing a resume right now targeted towards a specific company. My girlfriend (a classmate) and I were (see, I don't know if that's the right word, hence this question!) the first from our school ...
0
votes
2answers
120 views
The use of “have”: “have a map on it” and “have a colony in the country”
I would like to know about the use of "have" combined with prepositional phrases.
(ex.1) The table has a map on it.
Example 1 can be paraphrased as "there is a map on the table". In this case, ...
2
votes
1answer
527 views
Is “he plays the piano” stative or dynamic?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stative_verbs:
The same verb may act as stative or dynamic. An English phrase like
"he plays the piano" may be either stative or dynamic, according to
context.
...
8
votes
2answers
13k views
How to use “to + V-ing”?
I saw some scenarios that used the structure "to + V-ing", such as the following:
Looking forward to hearing.
Disposed to using few words.
I would like to apply what I learned in school to helping ...
1
vote
1answer
563 views
Why is “doing” used here instead of “to do”?
I have read this question: “I like to do (be) something” vs “I like doing (being) something” and I get (although the answer could not be applied to my example) that using "to do" means in general I ...
3
votes
3answers
968 views
Use 'got' instead of 'was'? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Why is “to get” sometimes used where “to be” could be used?
Sometimes I hear people say things like this:
I just got robbed.
(Personally I would rather say 'I was ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
“when would” vs “when will”
I'm trying to ask a question about the future. So which form of the verb "will" should I use?
So, when will it be there?
So, when would it be there?
2
votes
2answers
486 views
”See/wonder if +(a negative)” vs. “See/wonder if + (a positive)”
I’ve asked a similar question about ‘wonder if’ before, but I’ll give it a second try to learn more about a difference in nuance between a negative clause and a positive one.
Just look at these ...
1
vote
0answers
564 views
Why is it “This is he” rather than “This is him”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicates:
Should I use a nominative or accusative pronoun when making comparisons (e.g. “I run faster than _”)?
“Me” versus “I”
I've been ...
5
votes
2answers
264 views
How can you make “to be” explicit and simple in this future conditional sentence?
I can say "Jerry's been a bad pussycat this morning" or "Hey, Jerry, you be a good pussycat now" or "Jerry's been active all morning so he's being a good pussycat now". All these involve the use of ...
4
votes
3answers
294 views
Is “lay” in this sentence in the correct tense?
I'm making a description for an app, this strikes me as a bit awkward for some reason:
"I wanted to create an app that lay somewhere between an ecosystem and a musical instrument."
Is the word ...
6
votes
1answer
2k views
Past tense of 'to output': output or outputted?
According to Wikipedia, the past tense (and past participle) of the verb to output is either output or outputted. Are these two forms entirely interchangeable? Or do they have certain nuance in ...
12
votes
3answers
422 views
Unusual verb form: “While the parcels were bringing down and displaying”
In Jane Austen's 1815 novel Emma, she writes (Volume 2, Chapter 6):
They went in; and while the sleek, well-tied parcels of 'Men's Beavers' and 'York Tan' were bringing down and displaying on the ...
4
votes
3answers
2k views
“Elaborate” as a transitive verb?
It is common to speak of "elaborating on (or upon) a topic." However, I have been told that this is appropriate only when some explanation has already been given; if no information is yet known, then ...
5
votes
2answers
381 views
What do you call a verb which accepts 2 nouns?
In English, there are intransitive verbs which can't used with a noun, or aren't being used with a noun (eg. listen, die, ...), and transitive verbs which can be (eg. almost all of them).
However, ...
2
votes
2answers
2k views
Should it (always) be “contact me” or (sometimes) “contact with me”?
I think it should always be "contact me" as contact is a transitive verb and should be followed by an object. But could someone clarifies? Is "contact with me" correct usage in some context?
-2
votes
1answer
17k views
“if it were possible” vs “if it was possible” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“If I was” or “If I were”. Which is more common, and which is correct?
" If it were possible, and it were possible to do..."
that sounds wrong, ...
9
votes
5answers
19k views
“I use to”, or “I used to”
Which is the correct way of saying the following sentence (if there is a correct version)?
"I use to be a hitman"
"I used to be a hitman"
I've read the 2nd recently in a book, but was sure it ...
1
vote
2answers
155 views
Is there any nuance in ‘I was kind’ when it means ‘I treated her kindly”?
"But I was patient. I wrote back. I was sympathetic, I was kind. Ginny simply loved me. No one’s ever understood me like you, Tom …. I’m so glad I’ve got this diary to confide in …. It’s like ...
1
vote
5answers
6k views
Can I use “I have asked something”
I wonder whether “ask” can be used as verb in past or present perfect tense. I used “I have asked something from somebody” in email, but this sentence sounds a little weird to me. So I want to check ...
12
votes
4answers
260 views
“Be” as an action rather than a state
I've heard, on rare occasion, a subtle differentiation between be as a state (to passively embody) and be as an action (to actively embody). The latter form often occurs in parallel with do to add ...
3
votes
2answers
625 views
Using multiple verbs with multiple nouns
In a sentence which uses multiple verbs and multiple nouns, is there a way to logically show which verb corresponds to which noun(s)?
E.g.
1. I like to buy and eat fish and chips.
(Both ...
