This tag is about how the grammar works: different grammatical usages, how they can be used, or what they mean.
0
votes
4answers
94 views
Using “you” and “your” as a representation for yourself and everyone in general
Example sentence:
"I love when your dog just lets you sit there to pet them. You don’t necessarily know if they are enjoying it, but they love you enough to just sit there with you for a bit."
Is ...
1
vote
2answers
200 views
starting a sentence with 'when reading …'
Is it possible and good English to start a sentence with 'When reading...'?
Exactly it's about the following one:
When reading your offer it seemed to me as if this position is made for me.
bg,
...
0
votes
3answers
142 views
Usage of “Which” and “What” [duplicate]
Which is your most favourite subject in school ?
What is your most favourite subject in school ?
Which one is acceptable? If both are acceptable, do they have any difference in meaning?
1
vote
1answer
128 views
Difference in naming between consulting and consultants
I have a domain research for a company and since English is not my first language I was wondering about the difference between e.g.
Boston Consulting and Boston Consultants
My guess is that the ...
-1
votes
2answers
81 views
Defective Passage [closed]
Could this small passage be defective in some way:
book
KENT SAW Helen at each evening meal, but otherwise only the spotless kitchen remained as a clue that another person shared the house.
...
-1
votes
2answers
132 views
Is the phrase grammatically correct?
Said phrase is "He thought himself a simple man." I'm wondering if the sentence is grammatically correct, and if not, a better sentence.
4
votes
1answer
202 views
“Whom of which”, a valid expression?
I recently encountered this expression and I'm pretty much stumped. People seem to be using it in place of "who". Example:
[...] they were developed by non-medical professionals whom of which have ...
0
votes
3answers
387 views
Please, do also… or Please also
How should this sentence be phrased?
Please, do also visit this house.
Please also visit this house.
It seems like that the answer might be dependening on the actual context, however, in that case, ...
-1
votes
1answer
57 views
Possessive Ambiguity: sharing a house [closed]
Could this:
Jason shared Michael's house.
be an acceptable shortened version of this:
Jason shared Michael's house with Michael.
?
-1
votes
3answers
326 views
My Thoughts Exactly [closed]
Let's say someone said something I agree with. To express approval, dictionaries say this is standard English:
My sentiments exactly.
Could I use the following as well?
My feelings ...
1
vote
2answers
87 views
when can you substitute 's for is
What is the rule that you have to follow to be able to use 's instead of is?
For example, you can say Jill's very happy, but you can't say However happy Jill's I'd still like to tell her another ...
-1
votes
1answer
140 views
How does the word “that” function in this sentence?
It's the last sentence of the 6th paragraph from an article at yale.edu.
In fact, as population grew, another pattern of human history emerged that of overpopulation, which led, unfortunately, to ...
0
votes
1answer
59 views
Pluralization of nouns left out with conjunction
Can a repeated noun be left out in a conjunction? The particular example I am thinking of is a sentence that starts:
Element A and element B....
Which I would shorten as:
Element A and B...
...
-6
votes
1answer
65 views
“Bongo is screaming”: is “screaming” an adjective? [closed]
If I say, "Bongo is screaming", would screaming be an adjective?
2
votes
2answers
117 views
Can there ever be such a thing as “proper grammar” knowing that languages change over time? [duplicate]
Who decides what is "proper grammar"? Who decides when to make changes when the grammar of the people change, and why is it important to follow "proper grammar" if languages change so often?
Edit: to ...
-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?
11
votes
3answers
298 views
Strange grammar in Dracula
There is a place in Bram Stoker’s Dracula where I can’t quite parse the grammar:
8 May. — I began to fear as I wrote in this book that I was getting too
diffuse. But now I am glad that I went ...
8
votes
3answers
314 views
Is this contraction of 'there is' acceptable to native speakers of English?
In the Slate article, The Curse of “You May Also Like”, the following sentence has a contraction of there is that doesn't sit well with my ear for American or British English. I wonder whether any of ...
-1
votes
1answer
199 views
Two questions about question tag
I want to ask about two sentences, and what would be the correct way to form a question:
It's very important that we eat healthy food, ...........?
Which would be the correct question tag: ...
0
votes
1answer
235 views
What's the Best English word for 6 months in this group: daily, weekly, quarterly, 6 months, yearly? [duplicate]
While writing programs, I need to create a drop down for setting periods, like daily, weekly, monthly, etc. Using one year as a time frame. This question is driven by lack of a better word. I've had ...
3
votes
3answers
132 views
What tense should be used when looking at an old photo?
Commenting on a photo which was taken a few years back:
Question:
Is this you?
Should I reply:
Yes, this is a few years back.
or:
Yes, this was a few years back.
Which of the ...
-2
votes
1answer
68 views
Do I believe the sky above or I do believe the sky above
I’m Brazilian and I have a doubt. Why in Enya’s song “Caribbean Blue” does she say:
So the world goes round and round
With all you ever knew
They say the sky high above
Is Caribbean blue
...
7
votes
2answers
180 views
Meaning of sentence
In a recent quiz there was a question:
A man coming out of the backdoor of his house which is facing east...
Now in this scenario whether Should I consider 'the house is facing east,' or
'the ...
-4
votes
1answer
104 views
What should be done for making this sentence more clear? [closed]
"About the scenario, there are insert transactions on every 3 seconds. In a busy day, about 3000 rows for big table, another 100 for medium table and around 30 for small table."
There is a question ...
-3
votes
1answer
144 views
use “past participle” instead of “ing” [closed]
How long had they been sleeping-when he woke them up?
The more correct sentence should be "How long had they been slept-when he woke them up?"
because they had ended their sleep after he woke them ...
4
votes
1answer
75 views
Fall Hard For Something
I am trying to find the right definition of "hard" in this piece of writing:
newspaper
Looking for a tranquil hideaway after years as a paparazzi magnet, Mr. Frazier bought the single-level ...
-3
votes
1answer
135 views
When do we use “to” as an infinitive marker? [closed]
In these two sentences:
I look forward to get.
I look forward to getting it.
Why is the first sentence incorrect? When do we use to as an infinitive marker?
-5
votes
1answer
55 views
The Meaning And The Difference Between We Gotta Do Verses We Get To Do [closed]
I want to know the meaning and the difference between :-
We Gotta Do V/S We Get To Do
FYI:- Someone said to me we believe :-
We gotta do whereas we get to do
Please explain the ...
0
votes
2answers
200 views
Future Passive Progressive? [duplicate]
Does some future passive progressive tense exist, such as:
He will be being interviewed by police."
as a counterpart to the past passive progressive tense, such as:
He was being ...
0
votes
1answer
89 views
Which of the following are gramatically correct when describing people's speech?
"I like horse," screams Hendry.
"I like horse," scream Hendry.
"I like horse," Hendry screams
"I like horse," Hendry screamed (why used past tense)
Say you are writing a story about people talking ...
0
votes
2answers
120 views
Can “kitchen” be used as an adjective? eg: Mother painted the kitchen wall [closed]
My little sister was to identify the adjective in this sentence:
"Mother painted the kitchen wall purple and green".
I understand how kitchen can be an adjective as in kitchen sink, but I'm not sure ...
1
vote
1answer
127 views
'by mistakenly, he dropped it' is it grammatically correct?
Can I use both words 'by mistakenly' together? I feel that either I can put it as ' by mistake' or as' mistakenly' but not together.
-5
votes
1answer
81 views
Singular vs Plural [closed]
I saw something like "Kinds of Art" "why is orange juice good for you" when I was surfing the internet.My question is why they don't have "the" in front nor have "s" behind?
2
votes
2answers
120 views
What is the difference between “skilled” and “skillful”?
What is the difference between skilled and skillful? When can I use one, when can I used the other?
He is skilled/skillful.
He is a skilled/skillful musician.
(Anything else?)
From the ...
5
votes
3answers
159 views
Which is correct: “on two weeks” or “in two weeks”?
In below sentence it's mentioned "on two weeks":
They'll quite happily squander a whole year's savings on two weeks in the sun.
whereas so far I learned to speak in this way:
They'll ...
-1
votes
1answer
197 views
Can I say “Very welcome to talk to you”?
Scenario:
A friend wants to talk with me about something that makes her sad, but she's busy at the moment and wants talk later. I want to express that I'll be pleased to listen to her. Can I say: ...
-4
votes
1answer
71 views
“Pending Review” Usage [closed]
Some definition of "pending" in a dictionary reads:
while waiting for (something)
So, for a generic sentence "X pending Y", "X" must be either an activity or a state. So this sentence is ...
4
votes
8answers
237 views
What's a word for “stopping a habit”? [duplicate]
What is a suitable word for stopping doing something that had already became part of our habit, like drinking wine or to stop drinking beer?
I had a computer dictionary and the word that comes out is ...
1
vote
2answers
101 views
“as much as” vs. “as much as is”"
In a textbook, I read this sentence:
Stretch your arms as much as is comfortable for you.
But can you say it without the is?
Stretch your arms as much as comfortable for you.
Is there any ...
3
votes
2answers
160 views
Is “Who is he?” ok when we don’t know the sex?
Suppose I see someone coming whose gender is unknown; how should I ask who the approaching person is? Should I say “Who is he?”
1
vote
3answers
66 views
Is this a proper use of a semicolon and the word “whom”?
PCAs are usually assigned to an individual with a physical, mental, behavioral, or emotional handicap; whom they work with throughout the year.
Is this sentence grammatically correct? I know ...
1
vote
0answers
140 views
Guide to English Articles [closed]
I'm looking for a full and complete guide to English articles like THE, A, AN, (none).
Can anyone recommend me something like that? I'd like to finally learn this and never make a mistake again. ...
-1
votes
1answer
56 views
“created at” or “created in”
I'm making a program and I need to label a "creation date" field. I'm not sure whether to write
Created in __
or
Created at __
0
votes
3answers
304 views
General rules for identifying conditional sentences?
I am trying to identify the subject and object in the following sentence:
Come to me, and I'll give you a fight you'll never forget
At first, it appeared as if whenever a conjunction appears ...
3
votes
4answers
497 views
“When I'm sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead”
In "How I met your mother" TV series, there is a character Barney Stinson, who is the author of this semi-popular quote:
When I'm sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. [sic!]
Obviously, ...
4
votes
2answers
188 views
could versus be able
Let me start by saying what is written in grammar books on this issue and after that I will put my question. (Take heed that this usage of "could" ONLY refers to the past and ONLY to affirmative ...
-2
votes
1answer
48 views
Incentive Structure Biased [closed]
Can nonhuman things have bias?
Politicians are subject to an incentive structure biased toward the adoption of projects and programs with highly visible immediate benefits and well-hidden costs.
...
-1
votes
2answers
278 views
The Present Perfect vs The Past Tense in English [closed]
Would you agree that the present perfect is used more than the past tense by native speakers to emphasize the situation at hand? Some languages, like Arabic and Japanese, use the simple past much ...
3
votes
2answers
136 views
“when” + conditional sentence + tense
1: She said she would do it when she came home.
2: She said she would do it when she comes home.
Which is correct, and why?
