A sentence is a set of words that is complete in itself, typically containing a subject and predicate.
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60 views
Is a match for any Englishman in Polynesia, let alone foreigners"--with a sour glance at the German [closed]
I am reading this story here :-
http://www.readbookonline.net/readOnLine/22488/
Not getting the meaning of the following sentence, if anyone could please help.
"Ay," said Robertson, the trading ...
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2answers
272 views
What is the meaning of “one of those shilling in the slot affairs”?
In A Taste Of Honey by Shelagh Delaney I found this:
(She wanders around the room searching for fire.) "Where!" she says. She can never see anything till she falls over it. Now where's it got to? ...
2
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2answers
144 views
Meaning of “stop for something”
Q. Did the customers stop for narrow selection of food?
A. The customers stopped for wider selection of food.
Does it mean the customers just ignored or didn't shop for food?
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1answer
77 views
Can or can’t the Three Mile Island meltdown be described as a farce in “tragedy / farce” rhetoric?
There was the following sentence in the Time Magazine article (Mar. 25, 2011) titled “The Real Cost of U.S. Nuclear Power.”:
“When Karl Marx wrote that history unfolds first as tragedy, then as ...
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1answer
194 views
Meaning of 'jumps across' in sentence [closed]
The sentence is,
The English teacher jumps across the room with a large stick.
Does it mean the English teacher really jumped from one position to another position?
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4answers
392 views
What is the “, gerund” sentence called, and how can I improve it?
I'm proofreading a friend's paper, and she often creates sentences of the form:
Sentence, gerund-phrase
Examples:
Consumers may question the legitimacy of producer actions, determining
their ...
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3answers
104 views
Clarification of list grouping
I'm editing some engineering documentation in Australia, and I'd like to say:
The tests shall: 1) verify connectivity, 2) test (performance and endurance) by ...
The tests shall verify ...
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2answers
3k views
“So much”, “too much”, “a lot” and “very much”
Are the following sentences correct? Do they all mean the same thing?
She talks so much.
She talks too much.
She talks a lot.
She talks very much.
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2answers
459 views
Beginning sentences with a needless “So”. How did this scourge become so popular? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When did the word “so” begin to be used to start a sentence?
Garbage/stuff words
So many folks begin some narrative with "So". I see it everywhere ...
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0answers
46 views
I appreciate your correcting [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When is a gerund supposed to be preceded by a possessive pronoun?
Recently we had a discussion with my friend about the sentence I appreciate your correcting.
For me, ...
2
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1answer
272 views
Proper usage of the semicolon [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Any examples of where a full-stop can't replace a semi-colon?
"I stepped outside to check the rain; it calmed down."
or
"I stepped outside to check the rain. It ...
2
votes
1answer
211 views
Is just “no.” a valid sentence? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Shortest complete sentence in English
I seem to remember (back in the day) being taught sentences must have an object and an action and that the shortest possible was ...
3
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3answers
626 views
“Already” at the beginning of a sentence
Is it considered good form to use the word already at the beginning of a sentence? For instance:
Already in 1930, certain people were watching television in their homes.
I have seen it used in ...
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2answers
238 views
Is “as long as” grammatically correct?
I would like to know whether following sentence is correct:
The battery does not last for as long as it says on the label
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1answer
951 views
It will take a while until/before the change takes an effect
Which is correct or sounds better to you?
It will take a while until the change takes an effect.
It will take a while before the change takes an effect.
Thank you
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1answer
384 views
“I give nothing to no-one” or “I do not give anything to anyone”
I have a bit of an issue with negations. Are the following correct?
I do not give anything to anyone //I guess this is correct
I give nothing to no-one //can I say that?
Generally, is it the same ...
5
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4answers
572 views
Attributive and predicative position of an adjective
I have some difficulty understanding the position of adjectives.
In English I have to put the adjective before the referred name (e.g., I'm an Italian man).
In some languages (as Italian or Ancient ...
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2answers
1k views
Is it allowed to mix tenses in one sentence? [closed]
I have always wondered whether it is allowed to mix tenses in one sentence in english(- and in my native language, danish), which can be quite embarrassing, when the need arises!?
Examples:
...
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1answer
274 views
What is the proper placement of parentheses? [closed]
Does it make a difference if the item in the parentheses is a single word or a full sentence? In the middle of a sentence, or at the end? Does the sentence in the parentheses get its own punctuation ...
1
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2answers
158 views
What is a clear and precise way to describe a plan to build a system based on a particular COTS product?
I am writing an experience report about a recent technology consulting engagement. The intended audience is not necessarily familiar with consulting, the bidding process, or even particularly ...
2
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1answer
252 views
What does the following sentence mean [ From The Invisible Man , Ch 1 ]
I'm a little confused by the following sentence. I know all the nouns here, but I don't understand the phrase "a turn them bandages"
What a turn them bandages did give me, to be sure!
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2answers
258 views
What does “The man that once did sell the lion’s skin While the beast liv’d was killed with hunting him” mean?
I came across the following sentence in the context of four professional men discussing a plot to retrieve their lost $1 million, swindled from them by a nouveau riche American banker in Jeffery ...
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3answers
55 views
I can see us agreeing on many points “in the article” or “from the article”?
I want to provide a reader with a link to an article and say that we would agree on a lot of points therein. What's the best way to state that and which one in the below versions is correct?
I can ...
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1answer
211 views
How should I understand the word “bound” in this sentence? [closed]
The following is an excerpt from the book 100 Greatest Science Discoveries of All Time by Kendall Haven.
Charles Darwin entered Cambridge University in 1827 to become a
priest, but switched to ...
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1answer
261 views
Is the sentence “As though Bill Donohue didn’t have enough to be cranky about” self-complete?
I’m a regular reader of New York Times columnist, Maureen Dowd’s column, which provides me with lot of input of contemporary English expressions that I cannot learn from ordinary English text books ...
2
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2answers
821 views
Is “Just because X doesn't mean Y” a grammatical sentence? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Sentence Construction: “Just Because … Does Not Mean”
“just because… doesn't mean…”
I'm wondering if "Just because X doesn't mean Y" is a grammatical ...
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3answers
481 views
Is it a good idea to begin a sentence with a number or a variable name?
Is it acceptable to have the following sentences in formal writing?
2.5 years have already been completed.
or
n shows the number of something.
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3answers
134 views
Microsoft Word Complains me this phrase is wrong - Is it right?
A programming craftsman having hands on knowledge in Web development
(Including user interaction), Software Development Life cycle, and
database programming
How should the sentence be formed ...
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2answers
191 views
Meaning of “sniped in” [closed]
What is the meaning of sniped in? Can I use it in the following sentence to replace bought?
John has bought/sniped in a new BMW.
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3answers
338 views
What does the line, “The foreign 3 Idiots , 1911, a China-backed war docudrama starring Jackie Chan, bombed. Go figure: India 1, China 0” mean?
Time magazine's November 10, 2011 article titled “The ChIndian Century, ” deals with the prospect that the combined power of China and India can be a spearhead of global growth in the coming decades. ...
1
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3answers
4k views
Determining main verb of a sentence which match with subject + verb + to + verb pattern
If I have sentences
Member is allowed to change himself back
I want to go to school
He needs to stop
What are the predicate of these sentences? Are they allowed - want - need, or ...
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5answers
2k views
Is a sentence always grammatically incorrect if it has no verb?
Is the following grammatically correct? My friend says the second sentence is grammatically incorrect, but couldn't explain why.
I have always been fascinated by statistics. The different ways in
...
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7answers
4k views
Is it correct to start a sentence with 'also'?
Is it correct to start a sentence with 'also'?
Also, I had given him the file you sent me.
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3answers
2k views
Is “Thanks” a complete sentence? [closed]
When not used as a polite closing, are "Thanks" and "Thank you" sentences ending with a period? "Thanks. I appreciate your effort." "Thank you, Kevin. I will be in touch soon."
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2answers
5k views
Can you grammatically end a sentence with “with”?
Do you want to come with?
Can I come with?
I seem to hear this construction more often in recent years, but it still grates on my ear.
I know it's often said that one shouldn't end a ...
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1answer
983 views
Is “I'll when” proper form? [closed]
A friend of mine keeps using a contraction like this and I keep correcting him by asking "I'll what?". He doesn't get it though, and no matter how much I try to explain it doesn't seem to sink in.
...
3
votes
1answer
68 views
“Prove that…” or simply “Prove…” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Are there rules about using “that” to join two clauses?
In mathematical parlance it is customary to write, for example, "One wishes to prove that the ...
7
votes
1answer
502 views
Is it okay to start a sentence with a Greek letter (variable)?
Is it okay to start a sentence with a variable? Do I need to rewrite a sentence just because the subject is typeset as a Greek letter?
For example:
Φ is treated in a special way.
vs.
...
8
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3answers
7k views
Sentences beginning with “so”?
This also came up on either a BBC or CBC science program, but not as a linguistically-oriented discussion.
Over the last two or three years I've noticed a lot more people starting a sentence with ...
1
vote
3answers
255 views
Can't figure out how to say this sentence [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
possessive connecting word for inanimate object
Can't figure out how to build this sentence.
Say I have a form someone needs to fill out and one of the cells that he ...
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5answers
275 views
What is the difference between “Change we can believe in” and “Change we can believe in tomorrow’”?
The article of today’s (August 27) Washington Post titled, “Obama offers 2012 election supporters change they can believe in — next term” begins with the following sentence:
Three years after ...
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6answers
3k views
Replying to a favour done by someone
Some people did me a big favour. What should I ask them after their help?
I have tried to ask directly, using the following sentences:
What would you like me to do to pay back what I owe you?
...
4
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2answers
863 views
Is “Please advise” a real sentence?
Is
Please advise
really a sentence?
If so, is it because there is an implied subject (I am not sure if that even exists)?
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3answers
183 views
Meaning of “suits trading airport stories”
It's still from this sentence in New York Times,
Despite all the sartorial trappings, guests dressed like any in your typical off-the-rack hotel. On a recent Monday, there were F.I.T. parents in ...
7
votes
5answers
574 views
What does “I believe in making America safe for old-fashioned light bulbs and not those weird curly ones,” mean?
I saw the line, “That’s all I believe in. That and making America safe for old-fashioned light bulbs and not those weird curly ones,” in the speech of Michele Bachmann quoted in Maureen Dowd column in ...
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3answers
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When using complete sentences in parenthetical e.g. or i.e. situations, should the first word be capitalized?
In a bulleted list of very technical sentences, where each bulleted item has one or two parenthetical examples or restatements which are complete sentences, should the first letter of each e.g. or ...
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5answers
515 views
“Drinking water” or “drunk water”
Why do people use bottled drinking water instead of bottled drunk water?
I am puzzled by the two sentences.
I am drinking some water.
Some water is being drunk.
I know they are the same ...
1
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2answers
116 views
Use of “mental” and “spiritual” as adjectives
If I say something encouraging for someone, then I am mentally or spiritually supporting him.
I mean to input into his head as well as resurect ideas of possibility that has been far out of ...
1
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3answers
333 views
Use of “massively” in this specific sentence
Instead of using massively in the following sentence, what else can I use?
I am massively running out of time now!
I have tried "terribly", "horribly", "incredibly", "unbelievably", and ...
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3answers
174 views
“These will be, should be” [closed]
Is the following sentence correct?
"... the goods will arrive later. These will be, should be packed, will be stored in our third shed"
I don't know if it does make sense to you guys, but since ...
