A vocabulary is the body of words used in a particular language.
0
votes
2answers
225 views
What is the act of self-referencing?
Ok, so something can be self-referencing.
"This sentence contains thirty-eight letters."
or
"This is not a pipe."
But what is "doing that" called?
Along the lines of how self-deprecating is ...
1
vote
1answer
77 views
Word for a system that exhales gas
I'm looking for a word to describe a system that filters certain gases from a space and 'exhales' them outside. What verb can be used to describe that action?
2
votes
3answers
2k views
Is it correct to use the word 'etiquettes' for plural?
One of my friends argues with me that the plural for etiquette is etiquettes and for fish it is fishes. I was taught since ever that etiquette is plural as fish does. To support his statement he ...
3
votes
5answers
1k views
What's a gender-neutral way of referring to a nurse?
Good afternoon all,
In Japanese there is a word called "看護師" which basically is a gender-neutral way of referring to a nurse.
I was wondering, Is there such an equivalent word in English?
Is there ...
3
votes
2answers
464 views
What is the noun for “implore”?
What is the noun form of the word "implore"?
I saw some suggestions online for "imploration", but this seems awkward to me.
4
votes
5answers
120 views
Word to make a distinction between license as a concept and a license held
What would you call a pilot's license as a concept, and what would you call a license that the pilot is actually holding in his hand?
For instance, a pilot may acquire a Private Pilot License (PPL). ...
1
vote
3answers
168 views
Word for “official school interest group”
Is there a word that refers to an official interest group held in school where registration is totally optional but members once registered are expected to come? Official means the school keeps ...
-4
votes
2answers
837 views
“Innovation” vs “invention” [closed]
What is the difference between innovation and invention? Where should we use these words? I referred to Wikipedia but did not understand much.
1
vote
3answers
472 views
Technical term for `avoiding responsibility` with decision-makers?
Suppose a parliament that tries to "outsource" their responsibility in various ways (they take the gains but not wanting to take the risks). Of course, the situation cannot last: risks and gains ...
6
votes
3answers
11k views
“Consist in” vs. “consist of”
I would like to have this clear once and for all:
What is the correct use of consist in / consist of?
"Meditation consists in/of attentive watchfulness."
"The body consists in/of cells."
...
8
votes
3answers
183 views
What is a word for “the desire to be considered a victim”?
I'm wondering about this in relation to the notion of a "culture of victimization", when people want to garner sympathy and/or discharge their guilt by being considered victims.
The phrase "culture ...
4
votes
3answers
252 views
What is the most appropriate noun for 'a person who is ostracized'?
Is there any variation/conjugation of the word 'ostracism' that refers to a person who is ostracized?
Similar to 'conviction' and 'a convict'.
The word ostracism is used by the author I am citing ...
1
vote
2answers
150 views
Contract metaphor for preconditions and postconditions [closed]
English is not my primary language but I'm "forced" to write code and code's comments in English. I'm now trying to develop a PHP code (doesn't really matter this aspect) like this:
function ...
5
votes
4answers
443 views
Should I prefer “asker” or “questioner” for a person who asked a question?
Should I prefer asker or questioner for a person who asked a question?
Another question and answer on this site give a link that asker is quite legitimate. On the other hand I wonder whether ...
1
vote
1answer
959 views
So much is at stake
In this sentence:
So much is at stake that courses in foreign languages are often inadequate training grounds, in and of themselves, for the successful learning of a second language.
I have ...
1
vote
3answers
316 views
How do you say “more to the east”? Easter, Easterer, Easterner, Easternerer?
One can sure write “east to you” or “more to the east”, but if I'm located in London and you're in Berlin, can I say that you're “easter” than me?
2
votes
0answers
310 views
Difference between “fluid” and “liquid” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“Fluids” versus “liquids”?
What is the difference between fluid and liquid?
1
vote
3answers
257 views
What word describes a house without anyone inside?
If all occupants left a house for a short period of time (not longer than a day), how can that house be described?
0
votes
1answer
391 views
Does accent really matter when speaking in english? [closed]
First of all, this is a good Q&A site for english enthusiasts along with stackoverflow, where i freak out most of time. Does pronunciation or accent in english really matter? Because, I myself ...
3
votes
5answers
451 views
What word describes the amount an object is filled towards its capacity?
Given an object that can hold a capacity of something, is there a word which describes the current amount it holds towards that capacity?
For example, if an elevator has a capacity of 20 persons, and ...
2
votes
5answers
562 views
Vast amount of vocabulary in English books [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Are there 20,000 English words in the average adult's vocabulary?
English is not my native language, but I use it on a daily basis. I started reading English ...
14
votes
6answers
2k views
Is there a term for simultaneous snow and rain?
I'm from Australia where we don't have so many kinds of precipitation. I'm familiar with these:
rain
hail
snow
sleet
As I understand it, sleet refers to frozen rain but I'm not totally familiar ...
1
vote
3answers
130 views
How should I understand this comment from Mark Twain about Chicago?
"It is hopeless for the occasional visitor to try to keep up with
Chicago --- she outgrows his prophecies faster than he can make them." wrote Mark Twain in 1883, when Chicago was just fifty ...
-4
votes
2answers
244 views
Meaning of “Chase a Crooked Shadow”?
What is the meaning of chasing a crooked shadow?
I read Chase a crooked shadow in the Times of India newspaper, 10 Feb 2012, but could not understand the meaning of that title.
Some context from ...
3
votes
3answers
168 views
“Effect a friend” in advertising?
Toyota is running a Super Bowl campaign called:
THE ‘CAMRY EFFECT A FRIEND’ GIVEAWAY Every Camry has a story. Yours
could start on February 5th.
I see some Twitter comments mentioning this is ...
2
votes
3answers
363 views
Term for buzzing or hissing sound often created by vibration
Specifically, I am referring to the hissing, buzzing, S-like, or fuzzy sound that is created when electronic speakers play sounds or music near their volume or frequency limits.
I recall having ...
2
votes
3answers
728 views
How to describe word with many syllables
How do we describe a word that has many syllables?
For example, what's the correct way to rewrite the sentence below?
However these names end up being very long both visually and
...
5
votes
4answers
3k views
Difference between “underneath” and “under” when we describe an action
I ask for the difference in a sense of active quality rather than a stative quality of the verbs. E.g. in "the toy is sitting underneath/under table", the verb is stative. So we are dealing with ...
0
votes
2answers
343 views
How did southern US blacks address whites post-emancipation and pre-civil rights?
You hear it in movies like "The Help" all the time, but I'm trying to look for words like "missuh" and not finding any. Anyone familiar with the early 20th century African American lingo?
I'm only ...
2
votes
0answers
343 views
Whats' wrong with the following sentence? [closed]
One thing that despise me is when people cannot look me in eye.
I believe that the statement is grammatically wrong since we are using passive voice in the sentence so it should be 'despises' ...
3
votes
3answers
3k views
If trinity means 3 in one, what's the word for one in one, 2 in one, 4 in one, 5 in one? [closed]
Just curious.
Christians have this trinity doctrine. What if, after extensive research, Pope discovers that we have 5 "monotheistic" Gods rather than 3, for example. What would the doctrine name be?
-2
votes
1answer
2k views
Is there any difference in meaning between 'efficacy' and 'efficiency'? [closed]
I feel that there is a subtle difference in meaning between 'efficacy' and 'efficiency', but I couldn't find any authoritative sources that could help me confirm or refute this. Is there any ...
4
votes
3answers
716 views
A negative person [closed]
What is the best word that I could use to describe a person that seems to attract negative situations? Every time I am around him/her, something bad always seems to happen. Is there a word to describe ...
0
votes
1answer
70 views
“You can add more at the end of this list BUT before making a new entry make sure its not already present” [closed]
This is a tip that is being included with an Excel form, which requires the end user to fill some technical information. In the given scenario, the end user would not be very tech-literate, so we want ...
0
votes
3answers
401 views
I want to buy something, but don't have enough money on me [closed]
Suppose for example I want to buy something, but don't have enough money on
me. If I want to come back later to get it and don't want it to be sold
before I come back, what do I say to them? Is there ...
0
votes
4answers
862 views
Can you find a noun for the word “diminish”? [closed]
What I meant by "diminish" is the reduction in value of something abstract.
For example:
The purpose of the principle is to set a standard of morality
according to the promotion or __ of ...
1
vote
1answer
235 views
Term for bowling alley machines that fix pins [closed]
What do we call the bowling alley machines that fix the pins after the ball rolls and hopefully strikes them out?
1
vote
3answers
224 views
What's the difference of these words that means “to indicate by signs”? [closed]
presage
bode
augur
betoken
omen
portend
These are the words I learned today. Are they basically the same, or are they usually used in different contexts? I checked the Google Ngram ...
9
votes
3answers
692 views
How to speak mathematics [closed]
I've been asked to give lectures on electromagnetism in English, but I encounter many problems trying to express mathematical formulas since they are written and I do not know how to read them. Are ...
2
votes
5answers
375 views
Using “to fix” as synonym of “to correct”
I often encounter the usage of "to fix" verb in the meaning "to correct".
Was this a widespread use before the computer age?
How would you conduct the other meaning of "to fix", i.e. to make ...
-5
votes
2answers
194 views
Is there a word for a compilation of charts? [closed]
What word can best describe multiple charts put together?
(Graphs, in math context - not projections or business)
1
vote
8answers
426 views
A Vocabulary word meaning: “ to completely embody the meaning of a term ” [closed]
Example:
( a really REALLY bad situation )
This situation __ FUBAR
Some synonyms I can come up with:
embodies
exemplifies
2
votes
3answers
125 views
What is “outbearded”?
I was reading Scott's Woodstock the other day, and came upon the word outbearded. Searching with Google reveals nothing relevant and I am wondering what it means.
The context is that Everard and a ...
7
votes
4answers
894 views
Isn’t “Eye-glazing” a popular word? Why isn’t it included in major English dictionaries?
I came across the word eye-glazing in the article of today’s Time magazine (Sept 9) titled ‘Slow Down! Why Some Languages Sound So Fast?’, which I'm sure will interest 'language buffs'.
It begins ...
2
votes
3answers
440 views
Does “split” necessarily mean 50/50?
In the Jerusalem Post headline, Palestinians split on Itamar, the statistics cited in the article say that approximately two-thirds of the Palestinians who were polled opposed the attack (Itamar is ...
1
vote
1answer
571 views
Is “plunger” a familiar word for part of a phone?
I was looking for the name of the button on a telephone that you push to hang up. On older phones where the receiver sits horizontally over two buttons, I've seen them called "plungers." Are people ...
4
votes
3answers
560 views
In which context is the word “libation” more often used?
I noticed that the word libation has 2 meanings:
the pouring of a liquid offering as a religious ritual
Intoxicating beverage
But which of the meanings applies more often?
1
vote
0answers
276 views
Contextual meaning of “compromise” [closed]
Looking up the dictionary shows only that compromise has the definition:
to reach an agreement in which everyone involved accepts less that
what they wanted at first
However, what is the ...
0
votes
1answer
450 views
Looking for word/expression/idiom that describes “difficult to describe driving directions”
On lives in a part of town which has new roads most cab drivers don't know. In effect, one needs to direct the driver to the part of town, instead of just saying "take me to street X that intersects ...
2
votes
7answers
527 views
What is “lemonade” in American English?
Lemonade is a fizzy drink, strongly carbonated. It comes in two varieties, white (which is actually colourless) and red. I have never known anyone to make it at home.
Various things I've picked up in ...
