Tagged Questions
-1
votes
1answer
64 views
“Flatly denied that he had copied” vs. “flatly denied the charges that he had copied”
The student flatly denied that he had copied in the examination hall.
The above sentence is not correct, I found that it must be "flatly denied the charges that".
Am I thinking in the right ...
0
votes
0answers
25 views
Doubts on relation - Father and Son [closed]
If I have a statement of the form George is the father of James, who is in fact the father of Thomas. Then how do I expand it ?
Is it that
James is the father of Thomas
Or
George is the father ...
0
votes
1answer
54 views
Does “approbate one's flaws” make sense?
I'm going for a little stronger word than accept and I like the word approbate.
To approbate my flaws.
Does it work?
-1
votes
1answer
51 views
Using 'show' with 'treatment'
Is it proper to say 'show special treatment' for example in "He showed him special treatment."?
I know it sounds more natural to say, "He took a special interest in him because of his background." ...
3
votes
4answers
243 views
Religious use of “exegete”
I've noticed quite a number of religious professionals of late have used phrases such as "let's exegete this text" or "we need to exegete Paul's meaning here." Of course, an exegete is one skilled in ...
0
votes
2answers
90 views
What is the meaning of “gather way” in “The idea gathered way”?
As far as I know "gather way" means "to attain headway" in navigation. So I believe this is a kind of idiom or something like that.
I just found this sentence with no context, so I don't know if you ...
-2
votes
2answers
137 views
“hanging on the rope of”
I'm looking for two single words, a verb and a noun, with similar content, which could be best inserted in these sentences:
In some countries workers are entirely _______ 1 of/to/on their ...
3
votes
1answer
72 views
Can something “hold a property”
In academic writing, it is common to refer to or prove properties about the main object of an article.
If I prove a property for (some object), I know I can use the phrase:
Property X holds for ...
2
votes
2answers
95 views
“Dysfunction” as a verb?
I wonder if it is possible to use the noun "dysfunction" as a verb.
It is certainly a noun, but in general use it seems to mean something far more awful and much less technical than "malfunction". ...
3
votes
1answer
123 views
Pronunciations of 'retard' and 'retardation'
Why are the verb form (/rɪtɑːd/, ri-tard) and the offensive noun form (/ˈriːtɑːd/, ree-tard) of the word retard pronounced differently?
While I have heard both variants in use as part of the ...
1
vote
3answers
378 views
What does “popping bottle” symbolise?
I keep hearing the phrase "popping bottle" in contemporary music. Does it simply mean "opening an alcoholic drink"? Why do they keep using it?
I invented swag, poppin bottles, putting supermodels ...
2
votes
1answer
40 views
“To consolidate cost”
Is it correct to use the expression "consolidate cost" when you add cost figures in a specific period of time? The context is a description of what a piece of code is doing:
consolidate cost over ...
2
votes
2answers
110 views
“Weeks of rain/raining”? “Weeks of fight/fighting”? Is there a rule to use the gerund in those examples?
It’s common and correct to use both after two weeks of rain and after two weeks of fighting. But since fight is also a noun, couldn’t it be used instead of fighting?
Also, why rain and not raining? ...
2
votes
2answers
235 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?
1
vote
1answer
90 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 ...
3
votes
1answer
102 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 ...
25
votes
12answers
2k 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 ...
1
vote
1answer
166 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" ...
3
votes
1answer
54 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
335 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 ...
2
votes
3answers
1k views
“Gain/acquire/gather/get experience”
According to my Longman dictionary, gain experience and get experience seem to mean the same:
gain/get experience: The programme enables pupils to gain some experience of the world of work.
But ...
0
votes
5answers
268 views
“I am angry to die” or “I am angry to death”
I want to say that I may die because I am angry.
Can I say "I am angry to die" or "I am angry to death" to express the above?
2
votes
3answers
185 views
“Learning” as a noun
This question came to my mind after seeing this tweet from an online acquaintance:
The use of learning as a noun makes me ill. Maybe someone gained
their learnings about language from corporate ...
5
votes
1answer
78 views
When to put a verb ahead of its doer?
I have read this at the Science.com, and it's in the second line of the last paragraph.
A bow and arrow or an atlatl allows users to attack prey—and enemies—from a safer
distance than does an ...
7
votes
4answers
356 views
“Bury” — noun meaning?
I would swear that years back I saw a definition of the word bury and it contained a noun, not only a verb. If my memory serves me well, the noun meaning was associated with church.
Today I cannot ...
0
votes
2answers
139 views
“chance” as a verb in context [closed]
In the following text, is "chance" a verb or a noun?
Very few did better than chance in spotting which was which.
Could I replace it with "guess"?
1
vote
0answers
29 views
“Thank you for your coming” and “Thank you for your understanding” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Thank you for coming” and “Thank you for your coming”
The first one seems ungrammatical, as pointed by some of native speakers. But the latter ...
0
votes
2answers
1k views
“Thank you for coming” and “Thank you for your coming”
Consider "Thank you for coming" and "Thank you for your coming".
Would the latter one be grammatical? Why? Is it possible to recognize latter "coming" as noun? Some say you need no pronoun because it ...
3
votes
1answer
266 views
Enable (positive connotation) - Enabler (negative connotation). Why?
I am writing a speech about people having people in their lives who are catalysts for them to propel them to something positive in their lives.
These people enable others to be something better than ...
6
votes
2answers
166 views
What does “Watch the plain clothes” account for in terms of “Cheap liquor nationalism”?
International Herald Tribune (September 30) introduced a commentary of Japanese novelist, Haruki Murakami who is regarded as a favorite for this year’s Nobel Prize in literature on Japan’s dispute ...
2
votes
2answers
946 views
Being 'admitted' to the hospital? [closed]
Does one say "Hospitalization/hospitalized" when it comes to staying at the hospital because you're sick?
Or is it "I'm being admitted at the hospital"?
And If I was compiling a statistic of people ...
5
votes
2answers
183 views
Is “quaver” a blend word of “quake” and “waver”?
Dictionary.com has this etymology for quaver:
1400–50; late Middle English quaveren (v.), blend of quake and waver
But Wiktionary disagrees:
From Middle English quaveren, frequentative ...
2
votes
3answers
173 views
Meaning of “classes meet at their regular times”
Classes meet at their regular times, and we're able to attend as many (or as few) as we want. — Source
Does classes in this sentence refer to groups of students or different lessons such as art ...
1
vote
0answers
234 views
Looking for a 2 syllable word for the scenario described [closed]
I am looking for a 1 (or) 2 syllable word for my website. I need something thats really cool, but is easily understood by everyone.
This is the concept - "People meeting up in predetermined (or) ...
5
votes
6answers
351 views
“Do a shop” for “go shopping”
This has puzzled me for a few years now. When preceded by 'a', shop becomes a noun. Does "do a shop" even make sense then? The correct phrase for me was always "go shopping", or similar.
Can ...
5
votes
1answer
356 views
plural noun/singular verb and vice versa [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
None as plural indefinite pronoun
In my work I am often exposed to sentences written by nonnative speakers of English.
I often come across sentences with a singular noun ...
6
votes
3answers
5k views
Which nouns can be used as verbs?
Someone told me that the English language is special (compared to German, at least) in the way that every noun could be used as a verb. I think this phenomenon is called supine. Is this correct?
...
0
votes
2answers
10k views
Difference Between “Sell” and “Sale”?
I'm a copy editor at a law firm and need to give a quick-and-dirty explanation of the difference between "sell" and "sale" to a native English speaker (a legal secretary) who is very self-conscious ...
1
vote
4answers
120 views
Can an approximation be “lifted”?
Let's say we make some approximation in some theory (such as there being no friction, when in fact there is).
Now we want to remove this approximation, and thus improve the real-world meaning of the ...
0
votes
5answers
748 views
Synonyms to “teach a course”
I'm a non-native English speaker who sometimes teaches topics like programming and development practices but I haven't found a good way to express that in English.
"Teaching" and "educating" sound ...
-2
votes
2answers
125 views
“adapt the discussion to suit your own needs” <- correct? [closed]
Consider this:
The theory above was put forward in the most general way possible. You
should adapt the discussion to suit your own needs.
Is the phrase “you should adapt the discussion to suit ...
1
vote
3answers
581 views
“Endorse” vs. “condone”
What is the difference in meaning/connotation between the two words? Is endorse "stronger", more positive?
Also, endorse is to endorsement as condone is to what? Is there a noun counterpart?
2
votes
1answer
246 views
Verb endings with complex nouns
Which is correct:
One of the clearest analogies which helps us understand ...
or
One of the clearest analogies which help us understand ...
I think it's the first one because 'One of ...' ...
5
votes
1answer
504 views
Why is the verb form of “record” pronounced [ri-kawrd] but the noun form is pronounced [rek-erd]?
Is there a different origin of pronunciation style for record as a verb and as a noun?
Fun fact: in OS X, if you type say "this record" and say "record this" — the text to speech system picks up the ...
3
votes
1answer
100 views
Which lexical class does “wont” fall into in this sentence?
As he is wont to do.
Is "wont" an adjective, noun, verb, or something else in this context? How would you determine which lexical class wont falls into in any given sentence, since it can be used ...
2
votes
3answers
314 views
In the sentence “Go for a kayak” is “kayak” a verb or a noun?
I thought it would be a verb considering it is being used in place of "ride in a kayak". However if 'a' is a indefinite article, doesn't it have to refer to a noun? Would that make the word 'kayak' a ...
1
vote
3answers
466 views
When the reader sees the words “foreshadow” or “omen” does it usually mean good things or bad?
I'd like to use a word like "foreshadow", or a word similar to it, as long as the reader will understand what is to come is going to be good.
Is the a subjective interpretation of "foreshadow" or ...
0
votes
3answers
217 views
“concern” instead of “business”; “operate” instead of “run”; “one” in front of a person?
I find the word "concern" attractive, because it is not as often seen as other words. Is it always safe to use it instead of "firm" or "business" -- even if the business is a small startup? For ...
1
vote
3answers
435 views
“To ride a bicycle” vs. “ride a bicycle” [closed]
I want to describe my hobbies and would like to say that I like bicycles.
ride as noun: I like ride a bicycle
ride as verb: I like to ride a bicycle
Which variant is right?
8
votes
1answer
1k views
Rules for nominalizing a verb
To nominalize a verb, you sometimes use the gerund.
to happen --> a happening
Sometimes it's a different word.
to arrive --> an arrival
so we don't write
to arrive --> an *arriving
...
