Tagged Questions
1
vote
1answer
51 views
Word for unverified confidence without ambition
I'm looking for a word or phrase to describe the condition of someone who is fairly certain he could do _______ if he were to set his mind to it, but who has absolutely no intention of ever doing so.
...
0
votes
2answers
51 views
Word meaning “to choose or take something as one's own”
I was having a conversation with an agent of an Internet service provider and the reason I called them was because I'm confused about a plan they have that is very similar to the one I currently have ...
2
votes
4answers
422 views
Single word for “inhale using your mouth with force or power”
I want to express the following: "Inhale using your mouth with force or power". It does not sound good to me. Is there any single word or a good phrase to express this?
1
vote
2answers
81 views
Word for describing the emotion of helping someone
I am looking for a word which describes the emotion that one experiences on helping someone (friend, colleague, family, stranger). This helping out is not in the context of charity, but more of as ...
0
votes
4answers
184 views
A word to express “removing some parts of history from history books by authorities”
In some countries some parts of history books of students have been removed by authorities of the time. For example, it has happened for Achaemenid Empire (a part of ancient Iran history) 2 years ago ...
2
votes
3answers
121 views
Is there a word which describes the experience of not being able to comprehend new sensory input?
Is there a word which describes the experience of not being able to comprehend new sensory input?
Specifically, I am trying to find a word which describes my experience whenever I listen to a new ...
2
votes
1answer
109 views
Does a truism need to be true to be a truism?
I frequently hear people quoting widely-used idioms or proverbs as if they are fact, simply because they are used frequently by many people. For example, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away."
Can ...
2
votes
6answers
89 views
What is a term that means “to force into a particular form”?
I'm looking for a term that describes "forcing into a particular form", "forcing into looking like something else", or even "forcefully fitting into a category"
Ex:
"We (word) the ...
2
votes
5answers
115 views
Expression for “resource paralysis” - can't do anything because you have too much?
Is there any word, expression or proverb for the condition or state where you can't do anything because you have too much? I have heard a professor of English refer to this as "resource paralysis" ...
2
votes
1answer
95 views
An event that occurs only once
What do you call an event that occurs only once in its environment?
For instance, birth and death are two events that occur only once in the lifetime of a living thing.
I am looking for a word or ...
-2
votes
2answers
68 views
Is there a word for the desire to care for an injured or vulnerable person or animal? [closed]
Specifically, I'm looking for a word or phrase that captures the feeling of wanting someone to need you to care for them, and feeling guilty that the desire implies that you want the other person to ...
2
votes
4answers
135 views
Is there a word for when a problem's understood complexity grows exponentially as you work on it?
Example:
Hey Joe, can you fix simple problem A?
Sure, Sally, no problem! After all it's simple, right?
But A is then found to have dependent sub-problems B and C; B to have dependent ...
8
votes
5answers
238 views
Is there a word/expression that would correspond to something like “self-distance”?
In Swedish there is a term called självdistans, which would be directly translated to "self-distance", which means possessing a certain objectivity towards yourself, to be ego-less or not taking ...
7
votes
4answers
310 views
What is the English equivalent to the Japanese word 学者バカ, “Scholar’s fool”?
I’m interested in the words “instant omniscience,” which Calvin Trillin, a former editor for Time magazine, used in a New Yorker magazine article (March 20) entitled "Time Edit":
“There were some ...
2
votes
2answers
94 views
Is there a single word or a phrase that can be used to denote either Before or After? [duplicate]
I am looking for a word that does not refer to now, but can refer to either before or after. In case of phrases, the lesser the words, the better is.
It is to name a Java class file whose basic task ...
7
votes
2answers
398 views
People who sell their virginity for money
I'm Vietnamese and I'm writing an essay about prostitution. I want to ask the word to express properly the people who sell their virginity for money. In Vietnamese, we use a phrase literally means ...
8
votes
2answers
105 views
Is there a name for uncertain memories?
I only know of confabulation, which is a related but distinct process of bringing together fact with misremembered things.
Is there an accepted name for memories of which, for example, the person ...
2
votes
2answers
160 views
What category name covers things that are designed to stand on the floor?
How to name a category of tall objects that are designed to stand on the floor as opposed to standing on a table? The tabletop objects are shorter than the freestanding objects and I cannot use ...
11
votes
3answers
667 views
First appearance of a ghost after a person's death
In the ballet Giselle, the title character dies at the end of Act 1.
One wouldn't generally describe her ghostly presence in Act 2 as the result of a resurrection, because that implies that her ...
2
votes
2answers
96 views
Denying own statement
Is there a word of phrase for someone who denies their own statement?
It’s like when somebody snitches and then denies having done so.
1
vote
1answer
130 views
What do you call a statement like “How to perform a change of ownership” [closed]
What do you call a statement similar to the following?
"How to perform a change of ownership"
I wish to request user input by asking a question such as:
"Please enter your title in the ...
6
votes
7answers
338 views
Idiom/word/saying request: Accepting a situation out of desperation
How can I say for example:
Individual retailers run out of business when a big fish came to town. So they had accepted that they cannot compete and closed their stores.
In the novel To Kill A ...
0
votes
1answer
223 views
What's the word for a word that suddenly becomes famous?
What's the right word for a word that suddenly becomes famous?
I know buzzword. Are there any similar words or common phrases, like shot up word?
My specific context is that I am looking for some ...
3
votes
8answers
243 views
A word or phrase for “temporarily not working”
Is there a word or phrase for temporarily not working since one has gone on vacation?
I thought out of work could be used but that means unemployed or having lost one's job
EDIT
I am looking for a ...
2
votes
4answers
277 views
How to describe the various ways in which one can experience something?
I'm looking for a word that means "The various manners in which one is able to enjoy, gain fulfillment from, and/or experience a given activity."
For example, you could say "The <filler noun> ...
4
votes
3answers
430 views
Is word 'request' by itself as polite form of asking for something?
Is there a difference in the degree of politeness between saying 'I request that you...' and 'Could you, please, ...'? I realize that I could say 'I kindly request...' or 'I would like to kindly ...
-1
votes
5answers
117 views
What is the word/reference for a paranoid reluctance to answer something because of bandwagoning superstition?
Let's say there's a large group of people who are under a negative influence but are forced to keep quiet about the fact or they may face brutal consequences.
My idea comes from the book "Watership ...
1
vote
4answers
137 views
Somebody who is kind, yet hard, but fair
A person who speaks kindly. Sometimes she might be hard, but fair.
What is an adjective to describe such person?
2
votes
5answers
126 views
Description of physical labor
Looking for a phrase that means putting your back or muscle into a task, like rowing. Is there another word for "it", as in "put your back into it"---is there another way to say it, such as "leaning ...
2
votes
4answers
172 views
Ruining something for someone else (spoils of war?)
Lately I've been thinking of a saying that describes the following:
Ruining something for someone else, for the sole purpose of it not being useful any more to the other party, even though you do ...
7
votes
3answers
240 views
Word or phrase for premeditated act of self defense
Consider a scenario where a person is forced to act and attack a person who they consider to be a threat even though there has been no display of such threat. I am talking about sensing danger and ...
40
votes
11answers
2k views
Is there a term which covers ATM cards, credit cards, and debit cards?
I work in accommodation for international travelers, and people can pay with various kinds of cards:
In some countries such as USA, credit cards are very common, but debit cards are not so common.
...
1
vote
3answers
1k views
How do you say “hands-on experience” with this technology to an interviewer?
Generally, I would tell an interviewer that I have "hands-on experience" with this technology, by which I mean that my experience in this field is very limited, but quite efficient and knowledgeable.
...
3
votes
4answers
324 views
Word for a male that prefers female companions (no slang such as “pimp”)
I am looking for a word describing a man who has a lot of female friends, and who prefers female friends.
I was "Wikipedia surfing" (going through Wikipedia pages and clicking on links found within ...
3
votes
1answer
143 views
A word for a person who is made a villain by their circumstances, not necessarily by their actions
I was watching the movie Leon: The Professional. The protagonist, Leon, is a hitman — not somebody we traditionally sympathize with. The antagonist is a crooked DEA agent, pretty despicable ...
0
votes
5answers
882 views
What do you call a person who always has a pleasant smile on his face?
What do you call a person who always has a pleasant smile on his face. Is there anything better than calling him a "Pleasing personality"?
0
votes
2answers
108 views
Is there any word for the upper inner part of a sock?
I was about to answer a question on this thread, and I wanted to refer to the inner upper part of a sock. Something like this:
Put a small label inside the inner upper part of your socks.
But ...
0
votes
3answers
212 views
Suitable word or phrase to replace 'unique' when something is almost unique?
I have this sentence as part of an abstract
Verification of space weather forecasts presents some unique challenges compared with other types of forecasts.
I go on to detail briefly what those ...
1
vote
8answers
215 views
Term that means adaptation to a suboptimal situation
If you are not only accepting a situation that is not what you wanted, but are taking steps to adapt to that situation, is there a word/phrase that describes this?
Neither "resignation" or ...
7
votes
8answers
198 views
Word/phrase for something that succeeds in first attempt
You are a creator. You are fearless. Though you lack expertise at the moment, your work has the ability to be decent most of the time. You tinker, you fail. You keep failing and start seeing the ...
9
votes
13answers
732 views
Word or phrase for 'a much hyped discovery which later turns out to be insignificant or of no value'
In the company where I worked before, the team of specialists which handled customer dissatisfaction issues often came up with seemingly brilliant solutions which would initially appear to be key ...
-1
votes
3answers
179 views
A term to describe “thinking something bad is good”
Let's say someone has an idea that he/she thinks is really good, but in reality it is actually not a very good idea. How can I describe this kind of mentality?
0
votes
2answers
373 views
Word to describe a company's brand, products and services
I'm trying to find a word or phrase that sums up a company's brand, products and services. I'm thinking something along the lines of "company initiatives," but that doesn't seem to sum up the three.
-3
votes
2answers
82 views
Minimum amount of time a job needs to wait before executing again [closed]
I am looking for a single word or a phrase for the minimum amount of time a job or task needs to wait before executing again.
-1
votes
6answers
545 views
How to describe students who don't study hard
I want to describe a situation here:
The students who study hard usually get better grade, but in contrast the students who didn't study hard usually get poor grade.
However, I don't want to ...
-1
votes
3answers
91 views
Saying that some action is optional
I am trying to find phrase or word which would properly cover following statement:
You can bring back the book tomorrow if you like, and if not it is fine.
I am trying to find a way to same that ...
0
votes
1answer
60 views
Word to mean the specific component part of a honeycomb?
In the context of a math paper, I want to talk about the individual hexagonal parts of a honeycomb. "cells" can be ambiguous and "hexagonal prisms" is technically incorrect (the back of the cavity is ...
0
votes
2answers
84 views
Redeeming, sort of. Need a better word!
My site has a feature where users can buy, or they can obtain a code that will allow someone else to buy it for them.
The part of the page that lets the buyer input the code and gift the item to the ...
-1
votes
3answers
575 views
A word or phrase for “someone who learns from their mistakes” [closed]
What would be a word or short phrase for "someone who learns from their mistakes"?
I thought of insightful, but am not satisfied with it.
2
votes
3answers
334 views
Word or phrase to describe an activity that is “used to pass time”
Aside from pastime, what is a word or phrase that can be used to describe an activity that is not pleasurable and used only as a diversion while letting time pass?
