Topics related to time in written or spoken English
2
votes
0answers
11 views
After 13 years in the 21st century, what conclusion have we come to regarding the short forms of the names of the years?
Do you remember the other Year 2000 problem, regarding the nicknames of the years? If 1999 was "ninety-nine," then what would we call 2001? At the time, answers such as "one", "oh-one", "two-oh-one" ...
5
votes
3answers
4k views
Is there a version of brunch for a meal between dinner and lunch?
Brunch has become quite a common word in the English language. Is there a similar word for a meal in place of dinner and lunch? (A phrase will also do).
-1
votes
0answers
38 views
“Nowadays” in reported speech — convert to “these days” or “those days”? [closed]
I can't convert a sentence that contains nowadays to reported speech. Some websites say that it should be turned into "these days", while others say it should be "those days". Which is the correct ...
2
votes
6answers
425 views
Since, until / From, to on invoices or form date ranges
Which is the correct form on an invoice, or a general date range in a form, and why?
Monkey dolls 12 GBP
From 2012-01-03 to 2013-01-02
Monkey dolls 12 ...
8
votes
2answers
191 views
Drink 7 to 10 days after opening?
Is this label telling the consumer that it is best to consume the drink 7 to 10 days after opening it?
I know what they are getting at, but I feel like it should say "Best if consumed within 7 to ...
-1
votes
1answer
66 views
How to say years period [closed]
I have trouble with a phrase:
Potential investors study were carried out for the period 2008 - 2012.
This should mean that I've analyzed a documents published between 2008 and 2012. Is this the ...
3
votes
10answers
2k views
Is there a generic word in English that means “through time”?
I know "temporal" means "to do with time", but I'm looking specifically for a term that means "spanning time" or "over time". Not necessarily all time, as "eternal" would mean, nor do I want to ...
5
votes
7answers
3k views
Is it proper to use the word “bandwidth” as it relates to time allotment?
I'm a web developer and I've often heard other technical and developer types say:
Sorry, I don't have the bandwidth to take on your project at this time.
I started using the term myself and ...
11
votes
2answers
3k views
Saying “today morning” to mean “this morning”
As an American, I use the term this morning, but I’ve noticed some Asian Indian coworkers who always say today morning to mean what I mean by this morning.
Is this an Indian English “dialectism”? Is ...
6
votes
5answers
2k views
Can I use “as late as” to express a deadline?
You must submit your homework as late as tomorrow.
Does the sentence have the same meaning as the following one?
The deadline for your homework submission is tomorrow.
To be specific, I ...
7
votes
6answers
403 views
What is “long” doing in “all (time-period) long”?
What part of speech is long playing the part of in the bold parts of the quotations below?
For one thing, it shows at a glance how much money is on hand for any particular purpose all month long. ...
0
votes
1answer
87 views
Do you say “thirty past six”?
When telling the time, are the following expressions legal or natural to native speakers:
e.g.:
1. It's thirty past six (without adding "minutes").
2. It's half an hour past six (adding "an hour").
...
14
votes
4answers
2k views
What phrase is “o'clock” contracting?
I have been intrigued by the word o'clock since I learned English. Although there is an equivalent to this word in my native language (Spanish en punto meaning on point or on the dot) I want to know ...
10
votes
6answers
5k views
How should one say times aloud in 24-hour notation?
A couple years ago, I switched all my personal clocks 24-hour notation. I live in the US, and 24-hour time is used very, very rarely. So, I haven't been able to listen to anyone say times aloud.
...
0
votes
2answers
116 views
Is there a word for start and end of a time period? [closed]
Is there a word used to describe the extremities of an arbitrary time period? The word "weekend" refers to the end of a week, but it's limited to the week and it only describes the end, but not the ...
0
votes
3answers
79 views
Conventions for dates spoken without year
Today is April 4th, 2013. What is meant when someone says "May 1st"? I would assume its May 1, 2013. And "last May 1st" as May 1, 2012.
As for "next May 1st", I would assume "next" is a redundancy ...
15
votes
1answer
4k views
What is the proper name for “AM” and “PM”?
I know that AM/PM is for ante/post meridiem, but what is it actually called? Meridian indicator? 12 hour indicator? Something way more clever?
1
vote
1answer
6k views
Is there a one-word English term for the day after tomorrow? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How obsolete is the word “overmorrow”?
Is there a one-word English term for the day after tomorrow? Perhaps a term that has fallen out of modern English ...
1
vote
2answers
97 views
Correct usage of adjectives related to amounts of time
What are the correct adjectives to use when talking about amounts of time (when one needs to quantify an amount of time)? In particular, which one of the two:
little / small
big / large
For example: ...
1
vote
2answers
151 views
Can you say “within 90 days after”?
I understand that you can say, "within 30 days of receiving your application", but I am seeing more and more "within 30 days after your application is received". Is the latter grammatical?
34
votes
6answers
11k views
Which day does “next Tuesday” refer to?
At what point does next Tuesday mean
the next Tuesday that will come to pass
and no longer
the Tuesday after the Tuesday that will come to pass`?
And, when does the meaning switch ...
3
votes
5answers
4k views
Do I spell out a time in an essay?
When I am writing an essay, do I spell out times? How would I write AM or PM?
Example:
11:45 PM
How would I write that?
5
votes
1answer
526 views
“In 15 minutes” or “15 minutes later”?
Several years ago, when I was watching a show, it was 15:45 and the show started at 16:00. A foreigner asked me: "When will this show start?"
My English is not good, and I never talked to foreigners. ...
0
votes
1answer
440 views
Is “in [some period]” different from “within [some period]”?
Q1: "I'll finish this job within 5 days" definitely means the job is expected to cost 5 days or less. However, does "I'll finish this job in 5 days" mean exactly the same?
Q2: Can we say, "I'll ...
4
votes
4answers
8k views
Does the term “within 7 days” mean include the 7th day? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is “in [some period]” different from “within [some period]”?
The title states it all: When an author says "within 7 days", does the author mean ...
12
votes
4answers
10k views
How should “midnight on…” be interpreted?
From what I understand, the word "midnight" is usually interpreted incorrectly.
Midnight is written as "12am" which would imply that it's in the morning. Therefore, it should be at the start of the ...
-1
votes
5answers
196 views
“By the time”: what time case to choose?
I have the following sentence that I doubt about what time to choose:
By the time they are in their late teens, their ability to learn ____.
What should I use?
is lessening
lessens
lessened
...
-1
votes
2answers
173 views
“each day” → “daily”; “every other day” →?
Is there an adjective that means "every other day"? I found "bidaily" but it seems to mean "twice a day", not "every second day" (not even both as "biweekly" does).
I'd need this word to very ...
0
votes
5answers
205 views
Is it correct to say “it is forty-five past nine”?
I had a quiz and I failed because I wrote that 9.45 was "forty-five past nine" instead of "quarter to ten". I think it should have been accepted by my teacher. I searched the Internet and I found the ...
14
votes
5answers
754 views
The difference between “take” and “last”
We say: "the meeting will last two hours". But we say: "how long does the flight take?"
Please let me know the difference between last and take and when we should use each.
6
votes
3answers
6k views
“In the last 3 months” vs “in the past 3 months”
What's the difference between in the last 3 months and in the past 3 months if there is any?
2
votes
2answers
187 views
0
votes
0answers
66 views
What is a “nice” word to express the time during 25 to 27 or 8? [duplicate]
I am trying to find a nice word that expresses the time after midnight and before morning. Within my poor research, I could find such as "overnight", "late night", "wee hours", "dawn", etc.
I think ...
0
votes
1answer
141 views
What is this time describing noun called? [duplicate]
A noun for when something happened is occasion. A noun for how long something took is duration.
But how would you describe an event that happened at a certain time after an occasion?
Example:
The ...
5
votes
2answers
4k views
“In the next two weeks” vs. “next two weeks”
Which one of the following is correct if the writer intends to say a week after next week?
My friend and I decided to go to the beach in the next two weeks.
My friend and I decided to go to ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
Terms for “half a decade”
Is "lustrum" (pl. lustra) an understandable (say, at least in academic publications) or valid/common term for a five year span, e.g. to use in a table summarizing data where space can be very ...
0
votes
1answer
92 views
Would “pentaminutely” reflect an event that occurs every five minutes?
Would the compound pentaminutely (from penta- and minutely) be correct in describing an event that occurs every five-minutes? Or is there a better word?
Edit: For clarity, I'm looking to name an ...
4
votes
5answers
2k views
“Good night” or “good evening”?
If it's 7:30pm, which of these phrases is correct, Good night or Good evening?
2
votes
5answers
429 views
What is an appropriate greeting to use at night time? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Good night” or “good evening”?
I am in the process of creating a software application which displays a greeting to users based on the time of day. I have come to a ...
3
votes
3answers
867 views
Has the use of the idiom “last week” surpassed the use of the correct “yester-week”?
In his book Write It Right, which was published in 1909 -– a hundred years ago -- Ambrose Bierce disagreed with the usage of the words “Last” and “Past” with “week”. He explained :
Last and Past. ...
-2
votes
1answer
186 views
Is “even when” a conjunction?
Does even when grammatically work the same as even though and even if work? Or is it more of a time expression?
Following the rules is essential, even when it’s difficult.
Following the rules is ...
2
votes
0answers
85 views
Is “do something by date X” inclusive? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Does “notified by [date]” include the end date?
For example, if John says:
Return it to me by March 24th.
Does it mean that I need to return it to ...
1
vote
0answers
55 views
“Please finish this by May 15” — can I still do it today? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Does “notified by [date]” include the end date?
Today is May 15. I have an email in my inbox that says
Please respond by May 15.
My question is: what ...
6
votes
1answer
173 views
What is the difference between yesterday and one day ago?
Do yesterday and one day ago refer to the same time period? If no, what is the difference?
5
votes
1answer
173 views
When is Christmas Eve Eve?
I have recently seen weather forecasters making predictions for Christmas Eve Day, Christmas Eve Night, and for Christmas Day. One also reads of Christmas Eve Eve, with two eves.
Are those all ...
20
votes
5answers
1k views
What method of counting puts Twelfth Night on January 6th?
I know English has (or at least had) some strange usages of eve and night, but I still can’t figure out how December 25th and 12 can be combined to come up with January 6th.
(This stems from my ...
4
votes
7answers
2k views
Is “yesterday night” acceptable?
I catch a lot of grief about this from family and friends, so I figured I'd settle the score once and for all.
In verbal context (though not written), I tend to use the phrase
... yesterday ...
10
votes
4answers
374 views
What exactly is “noonday night”?
In answering the question Is there a term for “midnight” that is like “noon”, I came across the phrase noonday night listed as a synonym for midnight in my copy of Roget's International ...
1
vote
2answers
388 views
What to call the collective parts of a day?
Millennia are made of centuries and decades, centuries of decades and years. Years are months, months of weeks, but not precisely. Days are made of hours, but what do we call the several imprecise ...
5
votes
2answers
241 views
Is there a word that means near-daily?
I am trying to write a document that describes the frequency with which we perform a task. It is usually done daily, however I don't want to be tied to having to do it daily. Is there a more ...
