Verbs are words that express an action, occurrence, or a state of being.
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2answers
80 views
Plural or singular verb for collective term
Should the verb, in the following sentence, be singular or plural?
A series of samples was produced.
In a related question I found a reference. However the text in that reference seems to ...
7
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5answers
4k views
What types of sounds do cars make?
What words can be used to describe the sound a driving car makes? I'm specifically looking for words that could apply to a standard 2000 Honda Civic, or comparable vehicle.
"Roar" sounds too ...
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5answers
400 views
Verb meaning “to robust”
I am looking for a verb meaning "to make something more robust", especially in a software engineering context.
Is "to robust" correct and understandable? "Robustify" seems to be another candidate but ...
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0answers
23 views
Is there a term that addresses the use of optional / in the following sentence
In this sentence "I cannot overwrite/ride the method" is there a term that applies to the use of the optional "/" and in fact is it correct to denote the optional as such or are the full words ...
2
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2answers
85 views
For + verb-ing at the beginning of a sentece
Is the following sentence structure grammatically correct? I mean, I've found a lot of examples that have this structure but not at the beginning of the phrase but with a subject before. Here is an ...
37
votes
11answers
1k views
Central Pennsylvanian English speakers: what are the limitations on the “needs washed” construction?
In the Central Pennsylvania dialect of English (and possibly elsewhere), the following construction is possible:
This car needs washed. (=needs to be washed)
The room needs cleaned. (=needs ...
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3answers
2k views
needn't = don't need to?
Are these two sentences equivalent?
You needn't pay at once.
You don't need to pay at once.
If yes, which one would you recommend? Is it an US/GB thing?
6
votes
2answers
315 views
Why don't “-use” verb-noun pairs obey initial stress derivation?
It's well known (and several past questions on this SE have covered) that to convert a two-syllable Latin-derived English verb into a noun, you shift the stress to the first syllable. This is ...
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1answer
62 views
The right usage of the verb “elaborate”
I'm writing a paper, please can you tell me which sentence is the right?
The Pseudo-code is outlined in Fig 2 and we elaborate it in the following section.
The Pseudo-code is outlined in Fig ...
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1answer
84 views
“more people becoming increasingly xxx” or “more people increasingly becoming xxx”
I need a bit of guidance regarding the following sentence. Which of the three variants is grammatical?
Are more people becoming increasingly intolerant?
Are more people increasingly becoming ...
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4answers
121 views
What is the difference between “anticipate” and “expect”?
My understanding is the following:
I anticipate everyone will come here by 10.
= "I hope it's gonna happen, but I'm not so sure about the result".
I expect everyone will come here by 10.
= ...
-2
votes
2answers
104 views
Is a bare infinitive acceptable as the object of a verb? [duplicate]
I came upon the phrase, "writing helps develop a child analytically thinking." Is this grammatically correct? Is it OK to use just develop instead of to develop?
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0answers
39 views
What is the slight difference between “assign”, “appoint”, and “dispatch”? [closed]
They seem similar, but how could I tell the difference between them?
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0answers
37 views
the placement of prepositions in phrasal verbs
In England today, "put your coat on" and "put on your coat" are in free variation. But was there an original dialectal difference in the placement of the preposition, and if so, which areas said ...
1
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1answer
28 views
“Curious X”: X is the subject or an object
When 'curious' is used as an adjective (e.g., in the construction "A is a curious B"), there is ambiguity as to whether the noun it modifies is:-
The subject: A feels curious (e.g., "Humans are a ...
2
votes
1answer
54 views
Is “to circuit” a common verb in colloquial language?
My boss asked me to have a look at a presentation he'll be giving next week; checking if he didn't forget anything.
While skimming over the document, the following sentence was somehow bothering me:
...
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0answers
39 views
Stoblify - To state the obvious [closed]
Stoblify means to state the obvious
Stoblification means the act of stating the obvious
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6answers
4k views
“I'm done” or “I've done”
When someone asks whether you have completed a task e.g. shopping, dinner. What should be your answer?
I am done.
or
I have done.
To me, the former sentence's formation, Sub + VBe+ Past ...
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3answers
136 views
Can “predeceased” be used before any event?
When a person dies, it is common to say the person was predeceased by other people such as his parents, his brother, and others.
However, I am wondering if these statements are correct:
His ...
0
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1answer
101 views
“She got her first child” vs. “She had her first child”
I am not a native speaker and yesterday someone told me that "She got her first child" would be misunderstood and "She had her first child" is correct. Now I wonder if this is a 'local' thing here in ...
0
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2answers
52 views
What is the meaning of “contribute” in the following context [closed]
What is the meaning of contribute here?
Plug-ins can contribute actionSets extensions that define actions with an
ID, a label, an icon, and a class that implements the interface IActionDelegate.
...
2
votes
4answers
2k views
“To call” vs. “to ring”
What is the difference between the verbs "call" and "ring" in the meaning of telephoning? For example:
I will ring you back shortly.
I will call you back shortly.
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1answer
103 views
What is the difference between “toss” and “throw” [closed]
I want to know, what is the diffrence between toss and throw?
For example,
We must toss him out.
We must throw him out.
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4answers
153 views
What are the antonyms of “append” and “prepend”?
I need the antonyms for "append" (that is, I need a word that means "to remove at the end", since "append" means "to add at the end") and "prepend" (that is, I need a word that means "to remove at the ...
0
votes
1answer
67 views
Proper to add tense to acronyms, abbreviations and initialisms
What is the correct way to pluralize an acronym? asked about pluralising acronyms, abbreviations and initialisms, but is there a standard way to add verb endings e.g. -ing and -ed (what are these ...
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2answers
81 views
“He made a picture” vs. “he has made a picture” [duplicate]
Which form is better to use?
He made a picture of his sister.
He has made a picture of his sister.
And why?
The situation in which I want to use it is as follows. This is my first ...
44
votes
4answers
3k views
How do the tenses in English correspond temporally to one another?
Non-native speakers often get confused about what the tenses in English mean. With input from some of the folk here I've put together a diagram that I hope will provide some clarity on the matter.
I ...
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4answers
109 views
Verb to describe “to enable or to disable”
I'm looking for a word that describes "to enable or to disable". This related question found the hypernyms mode and state, but I am looking for a verb. I.e. a word for "(potentially) change ...
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votes
1answer
92 views
“One blue ball and one red ball is” or “are”? [duplicate]
Which is correct?
One blue ball and one red ball is preferred.
One blue ball and one red ball are preferred.
-4
votes
1answer
90 views
“Haven't” vs. “hadn't”
Are there any differences in meaning between the two sentences?
We hadn't left the place yet; we will be there in 10 minutes.
We haven't left the place yet; we will be there in 10 minutes.
...
3
votes
2answers
95 views
To write or to write to?
Is it correct to say "I wrote him" or "I wrote to him"? My Mother was a stickler for English grammar and would say "I wrote your Uncle..." rather than "I wrote to your Uncle..."
13
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2answers
11k views
Is it “quit” or “quitted”?
What is the correct (grammatical) simple past and past participle form of the verb quit? Is it quit or quitted?
She quitted her job. (She has quitted her job.)
or
She quit her job. (She has ...
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2answers
71 views
Is “Cutting Across the Afternoon of Life” grammatical? [closed]
I'm using this for a title of short story. The title has to reflect the last line of the story, which is as follows:
A long, dark shadow cuts across the countless cubicles.
I've thought of ...
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votes
1answer
103 views
Usage of “I am afraid” [closed]
What kind of sentence should follow the phrase "I am afraid", assertive or interogative?
For example, is the following sentence grammatical?
I am afraid is it appropriate ask me a copy of it.
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votes
1answer
52 views
How to reverse sentence so that their subjects and verbs agree? [closed]
How do you reverse the following sentence so that the subject agree with their verb............?
The president as well as his assistant have declined every comment.
The government’s reason ...
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vote
1answer
60 views
Are These Words Interchangeable? [duplicate]
"The man was hung at dawn."
"The man was hanged at dawn."
Are "hung" and "hanged" entirely interchangeable?
6
votes
1answer
2k views
Past tense of 'to output': output or outputted?
According to Wikipedia, the past tense (and past participle) of the verb to output is either output or outputted. Are these two forms entirely interchangeable? Or do they have certain nuance in ...
0
votes
1answer
34 views
to know or know
One of my English friends has written to me:
A teacher can receive no greater gift than to know he has had a positive influence on his students.
Here is my question: Why has he written to know ...
11
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2answers
736 views
{wend, went, went} changed into {go, went, gone}
I have heard that the verb go used to be wend in olden days. I am curious if there is any historical or other explanation why the past form of wend, i.e. went, is still in use while the simple present ...
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2answers
57 views
How to say removing redundancy and/or duplicate entries from a list of items?
How to say removing redundancy and/or duplicate entries from a list of items with a single word?
38
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10answers
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“Eat” is to “feed” as “drink” is to what?
I can say "I feed someone". Am I forced to say "I give someone a drink", or is there a single word for this (as in "I [verb] someone")? Unfortunately my thesaurus can't really help me.
18
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1answer
9k views
Suffixes for verbification: -ify, -icise, -ificate
The suffixes
-ise/-ize
-ify
-ificate
are all used for verbifying nouns and adjectives. What are the differences in meaning/connotation/usage between them?
(This is generalising from the ...
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votes
1answer
45 views
Grammaticality of “help someone something” [closed]
A few times I've encountered phrases of the form "help yourself [something]", for example "help yourself some water". I consider this form to be ungrammatical, but I am not a native speaker. Is it ...
0
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2answers
117 views
Words or expressions to describe having a difficult time in your dreams or nightmares
What is the best word to use in the following sentence? Any other words or expressions that can be used?
That day as well he had barely woken up after a night spent tossing and turning in a ...
4
votes
2answers
173 views
Is “Songify” a well-received word as an English neology?
I came across the word “songify” for the first time in the article of October 23 NY Times titled ‘Yes We Chant’ with the sub-head, “The Gregory Brothers songify the debate, with Gregorian chanting.”
...
8
votes
1answer
189 views
Is ‘toasty-roasted’ well-received English?
I found the word, ‘toasty-roasted’ in the article of the Art section of Time Magazine reporting the reputation of the recently released movie ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ under the title, ‘Box Office: Why ...
5
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10answers
701 views
Equivalent word for 'Unfriend' on Social media sites?
I understand that 'Unfriend' is not a valid English word.
But, is there an equivalent word for the act of 'Unfriending' someone, like on Facebook?
'Not being on talking terms' is something a friend ...
0
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2answers
924 views
Is “injur” a word? [closed]
Am I going crazy? I think "injur" must be a transitive verb meaning "to cause injury to," as in "the flying debris might injur the bystanders."
Yet when I google around and check online ...
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9answers
10k views
0
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1answer
73 views
Meaning of “I command you for that” [closed]
I noticed this somewhere and I have no clue what it means, as I'm not a native speaker. Google hasn't helped out. Does anyone know what this means? (If you need additional context, let me know).
I ...
