This tag is for questions related to definitions and nuances of meaning of a word or phrase.
1
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1answer
26 views
usage of “Made for”
eg. I would've made for a bad lawyer.
conveying the meaning that if I had been a lawyed, I would have been a bad one.
is it correct usage?
-1
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2answers
38 views
“Concision” vs. “conciseness”
Is there any difference in the meaning between concision and conciseness? Is one preferred over the other?
My friend claims that concision is more correct.
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1answer
36 views
Which of these is longest? Eternal - Ever - Forever - Infinite -?
I'm guessing they all pretty much mean the same thing, but is there a word for the longest amount of time?
3
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2answers
46 views
The proper usage of “putative”?
I'm trying to write the sentence,
Lower-grade soldiers made up two-thirds of the putative high quality army.
My original sentence was:
Lower-grade soldiers made up two-thirds of what was ...
2
votes
1answer
40 views
Is 'quantitate' a synonym for 'quantify' or just a misnomer?
I have always used quantify, but have been encountering quantitate more and more in scientific literature. Is quantitate a "valid" verb and a synonym for quantify? Otherwise is there a subtle ...
1
vote
1answer
46 views
Correct pronunciation of the word “Mature”?
I need to know the correct pronunciation of the word "mature". Is it məˈtʃʊr, məˈtjʊə(r) or məˈtʊr? And which one is mostly used, across the globe.
0
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0answers
46 views
Connotation of the word “sprezzatura ”
According to Wikipedia, sprezzatura means
a certain nonchalance, so as to conceal all art and make whatever one does or says appear to be without effort and almost without any thought about it.
...
1
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2answers
36 views
What is the meaning of “down-level”
What does the word down-level mean?
I read an article here and it says:
But the versions for some browsers (like IE 10) aren't within those
ranges any more. Therefore, ASP.NET sees them as ...
2
votes
0answers
45 views
For ever and forever [closed]
What is the difference between the meaning and usage of for ever and forever in British English? From what I could gather from my online research,
forever means :
(also for ever) for all ...
-3
votes
2answers
111 views
“A plough makes a furrow in the ground” [closed]
Engaged in a conversation/discussion about spiritual life, a master said:
A plough makes a furrow in the ground.
My original question: What is its implicit meaning exactly? That master, a native ...
0
votes
0answers
29 views
Meaning of “at all” in a positive sentence [closed]
I can't find the meaning of "at all" in this sentence:
"It's because of them that I made it back to you at all."
Does it mean "even" or maybe "barely"?
And is it a new usage and only correct because ...
6
votes
1answer
80 views
Expressions in Tim Minchin's “Angry (Feet)”
I'm having a little trouble with matching some of the lyrics of Tim Minchin's "Angry (Feet)" to the reactions to them of the audience. This makes me suspect I'm missing some of the semantic layers. ...
0
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0answers
59 views
What does “though” mean in these sentences?
I knew these are American English sentences, and they are informal. However, I would like to know what exactly it means, or it simply means nothing, and people merely want to add something unnecessary ...
0
votes
1answer
37 views
Meaning of “How'd you know?”: “would”, “did”, or “do”?
Does the question "How'd you know" mean:
How do you know?
How did you know?
How would you?
1
vote
0answers
67 views
What does 'trout-shouldered' mean?
In an episode of the television show Archer one character refers to another as being "trout-shouldered."
“This pathetic, trout-shouldered excuse for a boom operator is Chet Manly."
What might this ...
-1
votes
4answers
70 views
Understanding sentences with double-negation [duplicate]
How should the following sentence be understood?
"There isn't no happiness".
a) meaning: There IS some happiness . (Because the two negations cancel each other out)
b) meaning: There is ...
0
votes
1answer
36 views
What's the meaning of “what am I to do” [closed]
Is "what am I to do" be commonly used in daily lives?
Also what do following sentences imply?
What should I do the next?
What am I to do the next?
Please.
0
votes
2answers
36 views
Which one of these words is more suitable for “having” or “accomplishing”?
I want to express the achievement of a goal such as "Buying a car", or "Learning a Skill".
Can I say:
"I obtained a new car."
or
"I obtained piano playing skill."
Is there a word better than ...
3
votes
3answers
72 views
Is a ship's biscuit a biscuit or a cake?
Cakes go hard when they are stale. Biscuits go soft when they are stale.
So, what about a ship's biscuit?
6
votes
2answers
84 views
Chuffed - happy or unhappy?
I was looking into the word chuffed this morning, and came across this:-
chuffed 1 /tʃʌft/
adjective British Informal.
delighted; pleased; satisfied.
Origin: 1855–60; see chuff2 , ...
0
votes
1answer
45 views
What does this sentence mean: “Cologne, with its seven and seventy evil savors, was a posy-bed to it.”?
This is a sentence from a book I'm translating, the one before that is "The first thing I met was a regiment of the vilest odors that ever assaulted the human nose, and took it by storm." So, what is ...
5
votes
4answers
229 views
Expression: Bag of hammers
I know that there's a film with this title, but is it also a common English expression with stable meaning?
1
vote
1answer
109 views
I can't make heads or tails of this paragraph. It's a complex pun. (Warning: mildly “bad language” and urban lingo.)
Here it is:
It's your brother's MR. T PUPPET, which of course is kept in the apartment with a sense of profound humorous irony. But as usual with your BRO's exploits, this is no ordinary irony, or ...
1
vote
1answer
43 views
What does “consign” mean in this example?
I am reading the following definition of commit
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commit
1c. to consign or record for preservation. Example: commit it to memory
Now I am trying to ...
0
votes
1answer
48 views
past tense of contrive [closed]
So I am looking up the meaning of 'contrive' in google using:
define contrive
And it says:
Verb
1. Create or bring about (an object or a situation) by deliberate use of skill and artifice.
2. ...
2
votes
2answers
73 views
frontend, what does frontend mean? [closed]
front means ahead, infront , forward
end means last point, finishing point,
but what does FRONTEND mean?
for example engineering design is clear to me, but "frontend engineering design" what exactly ...
0
votes
0answers
55 views
What does “I” really mean? [closed]
When we refer to a human being by "I"/"you"/"he"/"she"/"Mary", what do we really mean? The more I think about it, the more confused I get. Do we mean living body or emotional/psychological world or ...
5
votes
3answers
105 views
If , as John Lawler says, orthography is not part of language, how can these commas interfere with today's discussion about gun control? [duplicate]
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
I read an interesting article on The New York ...
1
vote
2answers
75 views
What's the meaning of “Gets me every time”?
I've heard people say this several times, in response to a funny video they watched,
Gets me every time.
This time I see this response the person put a laughing emoticon at the end. Does it ...
0
votes
0answers
64 views
What does “not above” mean? [closed]
I want to know what does exactly "not above" mean?
I've searched all website on the net but still nothing
I've seen that in following sentence
You're not above murder
Someone help please
thanks
...
0
votes
0answers
71 views
What does 'What kind of mischief are you up to?' mean?
One of my US users asked the following questions when she got information about my resignation from my manager.
What is this rumor I hear? What kind of mischief are you up to?
I am not sure ...
1
vote
1answer
49 views
“A tool to do” vs. “a tool that does” vs. “a tool for doing”
I'm the curator of the Open Web Platform Daily Digest link. In the "Tools" section of each daily I write entries in this format:
tool_name, tool_description
For example:
hapi, a server framework ...
0
votes
2answers
129 views
Is using “eager beaver” completely benign? [closed]
Person A uses the phrase "eager beaver" to mean an enthusiastic person. Person B chuckles. Basically my question boils down to who the weirdo is, so to speak:
A, because "eager beaver" is outdated ...
18
votes
5answers
483 views
“Infer” vs. “imply” — can “infer” imply “imply”?
Okay that's a crazy title, but bear with me. Got into a good natured discussion with someone on another stack exchange site, and I was "correcting" him on the use of infer vs. imply.
(The ...
24
votes
3answers
1k views
What kind of noun is a picture?
I'm not sure of the right place to ask this, but I got confused trying to understand how the computer will interpret the sentence:
This is my picture.
In actual sense, the real owner of the ...
-1
votes
4answers
130 views
Does “neighbor” really mean “he who lives close”?
I thought that's what it means, but Dictionary.com says that it can also mean
One's fellow human being: to be generous toward one's less fortunate neighbors.
A person who shows kindliness or ...
-1
votes
1answer
86 views
Meaning of 'take it to the hoes'
I came across the following sentence:
You can just take it to the hoes on Broadway if you need to get your freak on.
And not only can I not understand the phrase 'take it to the hoes' but I also ...
1
vote
2answers
78 views
What's the origin of the figure of speech “call the shots”?
I'm well aware that when someone says "he's the one who calls the shots" it means that that person is the one in charge, the one who takes all the relevant decisions.
But what's the origin of this ...
0
votes
3answers
60 views
'Oldest' for age vs. length of time
This discussion arose around the statement
"PersonX was my oldest high-school friend"
The intention was to refer to length of time known (roughly the opposite of 'most recent') as opposed to meaning ...
1
vote
1answer
64 views
Beating them “with my gloves on”
This is a comment made on a discussion on a roadrage incident,
Anyone attacks me in traffic while I'm on my bike, I'm beating the f-ck out of them with my gloves on.
What does he mean by "with ...
2
votes
4answers
207 views
“In a while” vs. “for a while”
I recently got a message that says
Haven't heard anything from you in a while.
I always thought that the right way to say this would be to use for insdead of in. Are both versions correct? ...
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votes
2answers
52 views
What is the meaning of “knobbie”
What is the meaning of the word “knobbie”
from Words and phrases http://www.wordandphrase.info/
-2
votes
1answer
33 views
What is the meaning of “barinyas”
Quotation from Anarchism and Other Essays
She was outraged by the terrible treatment to which the female servants were subjected: maltreated and exploited by their BARINYAS, they fell to the tender ...
0
votes
2answers
90 views
Meaning and usage of the swear word pronounced /ˈkʰʌnt/? [closed]
I’ve been hearing the word cunt used several times now. What kind of situations do you usually use this word, and what sort of person does this swear word usually describe?
1
vote
1answer
45 views
What is the meaning of the expression “to be operated on”? [closed]
What is the meaning of the expression "to be operated on"? Could you give me some useful example for its use?
0
votes
1answer
64 views
“Questioned” or “asked”?
What is the difference between questioned and asked?
I asked him how are you?
I questioned him how are you?
Will the two sentences have a different meaning if I use questioned instead ...
2
votes
1answer
68 views
Does exaggeration imply intent to misrepresent?
I've looked up a few definitions (Oxford, M-W, dictionary.com), but none make it explicit.
E.g., (one I made up)
"When professional tennis players were asked to rate the fitness of professional ...
-3
votes
0answers
39 views
What does “spend one less thing” mean? [closed]
I am reading the programming contest analysis and come across with the words.
"Having an energy E joules, we spend one less joule on the activity."
I don't understand the meaning. Does it mean spend ...
2
votes
1answer
50 views
What are “shrewd turns”?
In John Webster's play, The Duchess of Malfi, Antonio says of the Duke:
He never pays debts unless they be shrewd turns,
And those he will confess that he doth owe.
I really don't understand ...
0
votes
0answers
44 views
What would you call a follower who leads? [closed]
I am highly sure there would be a term for this. If anyone could find any words with such a definition or that relate to my topic question please reply.
