The interpretation tag has no wiki summary.
0
votes
1answer
58 views
How should this be read? [closed]
We all know that you do not belong here, have no idea what you are talking about, and can't actually script.
Should this be interpreted as
We all know that you do not belong here
You ...
2
votes
2answers
66 views
What does the author mean by “door culture” in this context?
What does the author mean by "door culture" in this context? First-order effects I take to be a metaphor with economics. However, I don't understand how to translate my understanding of "first-order ...
0
votes
0answers
39 views
Is the English correct? What's the best translation or interpretation? [duplicate]
I'm reading a technical IT document that can be found here.
So, the question is, in the phrasebelow:
A challenge password
is it correct write "a" instead of "an"? Why?
What is its' best ...
0
votes
3answers
74 views
Literally vs. figuratively: how literally is literally? [closed]
I'm sensitive to the fact that in light of recent events, the example discussed in this question may be unsettling to some. For that, I apologize, but I cannot think of an effective alternative.
In ...
-3
votes
1answer
17k views
What does “mother father gentleman” mean? [closed]
How should I interpret the phrase "mother father gentleman" in a recently popularized song entitled gentleman? What is the purpose of describing gentleman with mother and father? Is this just a slang ...
1
vote
1answer
170 views
Rhetorical analysis — compare? [closed]
Can someone please explain similarities and differences between rhetorical analysis and close reading?
1
vote
2answers
81 views
Kiwi Power Green - is that more Kiwi “Power Green” or more “Kiwi Power” Green?
Recently my wife bought a piece of toddler swimwear for our little ones. A crisp, flashy neon green cute little piece of garment that had a label on which the color name was written: "KIWI POWER ...
0
votes
2answers
94 views
Interpretation of paragraph in Homer's Iliad Book II [56] translated by Samuel Butler
I'm having some problem understanding the phrase "but do you others go about among the host and prevent their doing so" in the context of the following paragraph:
The dream then vanished and I ...
1
vote
1answer
67 views
On the interpretation of “walked to the station at 9 o'clock” [closed]
I want to confirm what a book says. It says:
I went to the station at 9 o'clock.
I walked to the station at 9 o'clock.
Sentence (1) has the following two meaning:
a. I left for the station at 9 ...
1
vote
1answer
179 views
Can someone please explain the following passage from Milton's Paradise Lost?
I understand all the words, but not quite the meaning of the following passage, from Milton's Paradise Lost, Book I:
635 For me be witness all the host of heaven,
636 If counsels different, or ...
3
votes
1answer
724 views
Interpretation of “The biggest thing to happen to iPhone since iPhone”
When I read the phrase
The biggest thing to happen to iPhone since iPhone
I interpreted it to imply that the first occurrence of iPhone happened to itself -- that is,
the first iPhone ...
2
votes
2answers
152 views
Failed Experiment? [closed]
Is it proper to use the phrase "failed experiment" at all? And if so, should it refer exclusively to experiments that had some ineluctable flaw in the process of their implementation or can it also ...
3
votes
1answer
465 views
What does “I'll kill that cat” in the play Dinner for One mean?
In the play Dinner for One, James the butler says, "I'll kill that cat," at time 14:05. What does this mean? Is he referring to the tiger rug which keeps tripping him, or is it a saying or ...
3
votes
2answers
117 views
How to interpret “…the disinfectant burnt her inside out, of course”
A character in a play is talking about how a girl committed suicide by swallowing strong disinfectant, but it's "burnt her inside out" that I'm questioning.
It may be possible to interpret it in both ...
1
vote
3answers
442 views
Is “gilded” usually associated with gold as an element or as a colour?
I know that gilded means
covered or highlighted with gold or something of a golden color
So it can be associated both with gold as a chemical element or just the colour.
Some situations might ...
3
votes
3answers
579 views
Divided by half - meaning
If someone says "Fifteen divided by half", I would interpret that literally to mean 15/0.5, or 30. However, I usually see it interpreted as 15/2, or 7.5.
Which interpretation is correct?
0
votes
0answers
134 views
Do people truly notice ellipses in computer applications? [closed]
Following a question on user experience stack exchange which discussed the ellipsis in the context of computer applications, I was asked whether there's any research indicating that users actually ...
3
votes
4answers
277 views
Is cruel standard use as a noun in poetry? Are there terms for non-standard English specifically in regard to use in poetry?
I hope this question isn't off-topic.
I heard a madrigal with the following verse which bothers me somewhat, grammatically.
Cruel, wilt thou persever?
Peace to leave ever?
Peace shalt thou have and ...
8
votes
2answers
158 views
A question of interpretation: single word parenthesis
To my mind this:
Entity foo varies seemingly at random.
is semantically equivalent to this:
Entity foo varies, seemingly, at random.
However, is this necessarily the case? What ...
1
vote
2answers
234 views
Could “extraordinary few exceptions” be correct?
In his 1991 book, historian J.B. Russel writes:
with extraordinary few exceptions no educated person ... believed that the earth was flat
Should extraordinary be an adverb, or could this ...
6
votes
6answers
672 views
The word 'not' often doesn't mean total negation in mathematical sense?
Consider the following conversations:
X1: I paid $10 for that hamburger.
Y1: That's not cheap!
X2: I pay $1 for broadband Internet access.
Y2: That's cheap!
X3: I paid $1 for a hot ...
