Nouns are words that refer to an entity, quality, state, action, or concept.
0
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3answers
185 views
For people, can you say “a British” like you can say “an Australian”?
According to Wiktionary, you can't use "a British" to refer to individual British people, though you can use it to refer to a race of people as a whole, but you can use "an Australian", and this ...
0
votes
1answer
68 views
Meaning of “pitches add up” [closed]
I would like to know the meaning of the phrase "pitch adds up" as it appears in this phrase from an article in Fast Company:
None of [the applications] fit the bill, and the pitches add up ...
4
votes
1answer
98 views
“Work” vs. “working” (noun)
What are the differences between work and working when used as nouns?
For example:
Advocates claim that work/working brings a lot of benefits for young people.
Which one is correct? I have ...
0
votes
1answer
65 views
What can “Think flow” mean? [closed]
I'm investigating a Tom'n'Jerry sketch for cartoonists, containing basic graphics and tips how to draw the characters right. Unfortunately I don't have a digital version.
So the problem is with the ...
8
votes
5answers
135 views
What is the noun for “committable”?
I am coding a program and want to raise a signal whenever the data of a form is in a state that allows it to be committed to a storage.
signal committabilityChanged();
However, I don't find the ...
1
vote
4answers
242 views
“The efforts involved” vs. “the effort involved”
…this we are doing proactively in order to have a better understanding at coming up with an estimate in case you want to know the effort involved.
Should I go with "efforts" or "effort" in the ...
16
votes
3answers
1k views
Why does “corn” mean “maize” in American English?
I keep hearing "corn" as a synonym of "maize". This is widely popularized worldwide by popcorn. However, this is American English! In British English, "corn" can mean any type of "grain", especially ...
2
votes
1answer
135 views
Is “an archives” a grammatically correct phrase? If so, is it an exception or are there others like it?
A friend recently posted a photo he took of a sign at the LBJ presidential library that used the word "archives" as a singular noun. According to a Smithsonian Institution Archives blog post, this is ...
0
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3answers
152 views
Can we use “liaison” casually?
Then there was the Mad Russian, who made her laugh and behaved
impossibly badly and proposed to her daily. Some other shorter-lived
liaisons, now forgotten. Then Henry.
— William Nicholson, ...
5
votes
2answers
269 views
More natural noun for someone who you chat with [duplicate]
I'm looking for a noun, that people would use naturally while refering to a person who they chat with – in the context of online chat. Imagine that you are looking for someone you could chat with. How ...
0
votes
3answers
130 views
Why police used as singular in this link?
With reference to this question Collective noun "police" — singular or plural? and as per my understanding Police is always plural. But I got shocked after seeing police used as singular ...
3
votes
2answers
138 views
OED Appeals: Antedatings of “party animal”
The OED has made a public appeal for help in tracing the history of some English words, including:
party animal
noun earlier than 1982
When the OED added its entry for party animal, ...
1
vote
4answers
377 views
“Particulate” vs. “particle”
What’s the difference between particulate and particle?
Should it be diesel particulates or diesel particles, and why?
Could you provide three or more examples where it should use particulate rather ...
1
vote
1answer
219 views
plural of compound nouns [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the plural form of “iPad 2”?
When can an adjective be postposed?
I'm curious particularly with iPod Touch and iPad Mini
The plural would be iPod Touches and ...
1
vote
1answer
223 views
“Reward” vs. “award” vs. “prize” [closed]
Got the following from this link.
Award (n): a recognition of a personal achievement, e.g. a scholarship for winning a science fair, a plaque for volunteering 100 hours of community service
...
2
votes
2answers
216 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?
10
votes
3answers
316 views
Where did the practice of using apostrophes for possessive nouns but not pronouns originate?
Where did the practice of using apostrophes for possessive nouns but not pronouns originate?
For example, possessive nouns (both proper and common) are written with a apostrophe before the final s:
...
-1
votes
4answers
96 views
Hypernym for the products from trees
I want to know a hypernym I can use to call products from trees. For example, mangoes, coconuts, oranges, bananas.
I want to use this word in a context like below sentences.
Mangoes are .... ...
3
votes
3answers
246 views
“Suggestion” vs. “proposal”
I am currently writing my thesis concerned with the analysis and design of data visualizations. For certain use cases my thesis suggests certain visual interpretations (to which I generally refer as ...
2
votes
4answers
276 views
”Demand in/on/for something”
I am not sure whether to use in, on, or for after the word demand in the following sentence:
The continuing demand on high-quality software that is reusable and
easy to maintain and modify after ...
2
votes
3answers
700 views
What's another word for Guinea Pig, i.e. when you call someone a “test dummy”?
If someone is being used to test a new product or idea, they can be called a "guinea pig" (because Guinea Pigs are usually used by medical labs for testing).
What is another term that would carry the ...
-1
votes
5answers
78 views
Alternative for “seats” in expressions such as “40% of the total seats are reserved for students of backward cast”
All of the leading educational institutes have 60% of their seats reserved for students of backward castes. It is a fairly common expression and a sad fact in India.
What would be an alternative to ...
0
votes
2answers
76 views
“He knows his counterparts in each branch”
Can I use the word counterpart this way:
He knows his counterparts in each branch.
The context is that he works as the marketing manager in one of the company branches. And the counterparts ...
2
votes
3answers
156 views
What's the difference between “rigor” and “rigorousness”?
What's the difference between rigor and rigorousness?
Which should I use in the following?
Rigorousness and clarity are not synonymous in pedagogy.
2
votes
3answers
88 views
“Tipster” in real estate terms
I'm trying to figure out what somebody is called who gives you (or someone else) a tip on real estate brokerage.
I've Googled (and Bing'ed ;)) along and found translations like "whistleblower" or ...
4
votes
3answers
258 views
Usage of the word “demise”
Is it appropriate to use demise in the following sentence:
it is with deep sympathy that we announce the sad demise of ...
It sounds archaic and I was not sure whether it was used correctly. How ...
0
votes
2answers
128 views
Hypernym for “day”, “month”, “week”, “year”
I would like to know if there is a single-word hypernym for day, month, week and year.
1
vote
1answer
89 views
Retire Vs Retirement
I am confused between the two:
My father is due to retire/retirement in a few months and is restless.
According to my understanding, retire sounds more appropriate. But I am not sure. Could ...
4
votes
2answers
135 views
Using the word 'kind' for a category
I found on englishplus (accessed on 23 Dec 2012) that the phrase 'kind of animal' refers to a category of animal.
If you are using an expression like kind of, sort of, type of, or variety of, ...
3
votes
2answers
160 views
What is the correct term for “mince pies”? [closed]
I have always called mince pies filled with fruit just that: mince pies. However, lately I have been seeing many different variations of this: fruit mince pies, mince fruit tarts, and even mincemeat ...
10
votes
1answer
400 views
Etymology of “history” and why the “hi-” prefix?
According to Etymonline, history comes from the same root as story. If they are from the same word, where does hi- come from? Is it just because of the English habit of taking names from other ...
2
votes
4answers
158 views
“Dabbler”, without the negative connotation
According to dictionary, a dabbler is "an amateur who engages in an activity without serious intentions and who pretends to have knowledge".
I want a word that means a person genuinely interested in ...
3
votes
1answer
101 views
Is “bulwarker” an acceptable word?
I'm well aware that bulwark refers to something used as a fortification or a defense. However, I was wondering if the word bulwarker is an acceptable word to use in English.
I know it's possible to ...
5
votes
2answers
171 views
Has “mother” become politically incorrect?
Has mother become politically incorrect? The word mom now seems to have replaced mother throughout popular news articles.
Is there some reason besides political correctness, which until now has ...
3
votes
5answers
412 views
Right word to describe “people working together”?
Please consider the below sentence:
Dean Shrivastava and his __ of twenty faculty members took care of the classes.
Which word of the below fits best into the above blank?
a. Gang
b. Team
...
25
votes
12answers
1k views
What is a verb for “illusion”?
What is a verb for illusion? I want to use it in a sentence like the following:
The optical effect [illudes] my perception of its real shape.
But illude does not exist. But I cannot find illude ...
10
votes
12answers
1k views
Is there a single noun in English for “jerry-rigged”?
"Gambiarra" in Brazilian Portuguese means a device, solution, or means to an end made impromptu, usually in a sloppy way and lacking care. I was wondering if there was a single word in English for ...
1
vote
1answer
142 views
What is the correct name for 'soda'? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Which is correct: “soda” or “pop”?
Is it correct to say soda, or is it pop, or is it soda pop?
My friend and I are going back and forth: he says soda is "Soda ash" ...
6
votes
10answers
1k views
A more formal word for “tech-savvy”, relating to IT technologists in particular
Good morning. I'm struggling with formalizing this sentence:
Online password managers are popular among tech-savvies.
This is too casual--I would like a better word for tech-savvies, preferably ...
2
votes
2answers
134 views
Difference between “presidentship” and “presidency”
What's the difference between presidentship and presidency? Please give examples to show the difference.
1
vote
1answer
107 views
I was able to hear the sound/noise from here?
Given this question:
Dude the rock band was awesome.
Which one of sound or noise is correct here?
Yes, I know — I was able to hear the concert’s noise from my balcony.
Yes, I know — ...
7
votes
7answers
969 views
Word for “person that I supervise”
What is the best word to refer to the person that I (directly) supervise, in the context of a corporate workplace? The closest I can think of is employee, but that doesn't directly convey a direct ...
1
vote
3answers
102 views
What's the noun for an animal's personality?
When you describe a cat or dog's personality, what's the noun for it? "My cat has this personality of ..." just sounds wrong.
0
votes
1answer
176 views
One word for “short trip”
Is there any one word for "short/small trip/tour"?
Or relatively similar word?
3
votes
5answers
194 views
Alternative to “minuend” and “subtrahend”
In math, I just learned that when performing subtraction, the terms for each number are as follows:
minuend − subtrahend = difference
I have never heard of minuend and subtrahend before, and I'm ...
-1
votes
4answers
220 views
The plural of “conch”? [closed]
There is a lengthy thread on the pronunciation of "conch" however I am curious about the plural form "conches." I've noticed that it can be found as "conchs" as well, but "conches" appears to be the ...
3
votes
1answer
320 views
Forming occupational nouns: Why do you say “butcher” and not “butchian” or “butchor”?
Question: Occupational nouns (butcher, sailor, musician, etc.) have various suffixes in English (er, or, ee, ant, etc.). Is there a set of rules to form occupational nouns from the verbs or their ...
3
votes
1answer
53 views
switch genders or gender?
Recently I read an article on Wired.com "Apple Hires Hacker Who Helped Save Windows From Security Hell", http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2012/12/apple-hires-hacker/
Here is a sentence I'm kind ...
2
votes
4answers
301 views
Is it common to use “grocery” as a verb?
My favorite NY-Times columnist Maureen Dowd who consistently supplies me the material for posting questions in EL&U site begins today’s (December 8) article titled “A Lost Civilization” with the ...
0
votes
2answers
193 views
Is there a difference between “brainstorming” and “mindstorming”? [closed]
Some people use brainstorming, others use mindstorming. I could not find the difference between the two words.
