This tag is for questions about the correct order of words in a phrase, or a sentence.
-1
votes
2answers
43 views
“I only have discovered today” vs. “I only today have discovered” vs. “I have only today discovered”
Since I am not a native English speaker it's hard to find anything related to this topic on google.
Which of the following word orders is grammatical?
I only have discovered today we have a ...
1
vote
2answers
40 views
Does a name go before or after the noun it modifies?
The sentence
The user “John Smith” has been registered; go to the “User Profile” tab to view the user’s details.
reads more naturally to me than
The “John Smith” user has been registered; go ...
0
votes
1answer
27 views
Combining “only” with a second modifier
I would like to know which of the following phrases are grammatical.
administrative-only data
administrative only data
only-administrative data
only administrative data
2
votes
3answers
56 views
Adjective + “of them”
My wife and I were discussing whether it is allowable to put an adjective in front of "of them". For instance, I could say "I want 5 cats" and "I want 5 of them". However, while it sounds perfectly ...
2
votes
1answer
186 views
Which are the word orders that can be found in English?
Besides SVO, which are the word orders that can be found in English? Are there any that are peculiar to dialects such as Singlish or Indian English? Please provide an example sentence for each order ...
2
votes
0answers
22 views
“A question in a question” [duplicate]
I've got two questions for you.
Number one: I've always been confused about what I call "a question in a question" (maybe there is a technical term for that but I don't know it). What I mean is... ...
5
votes
2answers
660 views
Which one is grammatically correct? Why?
I've a quick question about grammar within a sentence. I'd also like to know why it is like that if someone could provide an answer.
Which one is correct?
Along with fishing, I enjoy ...
1
vote
1answer
52 views
A Revelation (?) from MS Word [duplicate]
So, I typed the parenthetic statement 'Asked why did he come here'. Microsoft Word suggested that I change the sentence to 'Asked why he came here'. I agreed with the correction, but when I had word ...
1
vote
1answer
136 views
Is it correct to start a sentence with “with” in English?
Is it correct to use with at the beginning of a sentence?
Here's an example sentence:
With the development of the economy, living standards improved.
To my eyes this looks unnatural; I would ...
-4
votes
1answer
65 views
“Enter the password 1234” vs. “enter 1234 for a password” [closed]
Which sentence is correct?
Enter the password 1234.
Enter 1234 for a password.
0
votes
0answers
52 views
How to describe an event happend in the same time? [closed]
It is the year of 2013,I want to describe a meanning that , [my classmates who graduated along with me in exactly the same year of 2010,have a better job than me now],how to say it in oral English(I'm ...
0
votes
2answers
84 views
“Sometimes also” or “also sometimes”?
I have a sentence where I think I could use either of these two constructions. They seem very similar in meaning, so I'm not sure which I should prefer. There might be some subtle point of grammar ...
0
votes
1answer
81 views
Which is right: “what pants is he wearing” or “what pants are he wearing”? [duplicate]
Since 'pants' is one of those always plural words, I can't figure out which sounds right.
1
vote
4answers
257 views
Why should “be” come after “neither a borrower nor lender,” not before them?
I came across the maxim, “Neither a borrower nor a lender be” in the following sentence of Jeffery Archer’s fiction, “The Fourth Estate” (P.54), and found that the maxim came from Lord Polonius’ ...
5
votes
5answers
370 views
Why put the verb before the subject?
The opening sentence to The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien reads,
In a hole in the ground there lived [verb] a hobbit [subject].
I wonder if there are accepted stylistic purposes for such a structure. ...
-2
votes
2answers
40 views
Is it 'express shipped' or 'shipped express'?
Which one is correct?
He should have express shipped it to me.
He should have it shipped express to me.
3
votes
2answers
2k views
Adverbs position in English: “place–manner–time” or “manner–place–time”?
Wikipedia tells us that the order should be place–manner–time. However, this webpage tells that it should be manner–Place–Time. Which one is correct?
I have one sentence in two different orders:
...
13
votes
4answers
4k views
Order of “not” with infinitive
This is one thing that keeps bugging me, and maybe there's a direct answer.
Grammatically, which one is more correct of these two? Does it make a difference?
I tried not to do that.
I tried ...
-1
votes
1answer
93 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 ...
-1
votes
3answers
189 views
When I write any sentence in English every native reader can tell I am Europen, how? [closed]
Can you conclude that just by my writing the question?
1
vote
4answers
96 views
Does it matter where you put “only”? [duplicate]
Could you please tell me which one of these sentences is correct, or are they both grammatically correct?
This will only happen if you go with me.
This will happen only if you go with me.
6
votes
3answers
542 views
When to put “River” before or after its name and why?
Unlike mountain names, where "Mount" always precedes its name, e.g. Mount Everest, I've noticed that some rivers have "River" before its name, e.g. the River Nile but others have it after, e.g. the ...
126
votes
3answers
37k views
What is the rule for adjective order?
I remember being taught that the correct order of adjectives in English was something along the lines of "Opinion-Size-Age-Color-Material-Purpose."
However, it's been a long time and I'm pretty sure ...
4
votes
3answers
144 views
Who vs whom in "Who is the right person to turn to?
Take the sentence:
Who is the right person to turn to?
I'm not sure whether who or whom should be used in this position.
0
votes
1answer
68 views
“Bring down X” vs. “bring X down” [duplicate]
I am unable to understand the difference between these two sentences:
I want him to bring down the opponents.
I want him to bring the opponents down.
Which is right and when should each ...
0
votes
2answers
350 views
“Plugging in X” vs. “plugging X in”
Does one say
Plugging in that value into the previous equation...
or
Plugging that value in the previous equation...
or something else?
-1
votes
1answer
49 views
“for which” usage
I am writing comments to my algorithm and I used this sentence to describe one variable. But I am not entirely sure if it makes sense and if I used commas right.
id of node, for which, program is ...
-3
votes
3answers
65 views
Positions of “of which” [closed]
I am not sure how to use of which here. I do know I could use whose, I would just like to understand this structure more.
Each bag contains a number of bank notes (bills).
And now:
Select the ...
4
votes
1answer
130 views
What is the correct use of “even” as an adverb, with the verb “to be”?
http://www.onestopenglish.com/community/your-english/word-grammar/your-english-word-grammar-even/156431.article gives some examples of correct use of "even" as an adverb to indicate that something is ...
-2
votes
1answer
41 views
Not only & But also separated by full stop
Let's say we have the following sentence:
This powder is able not only to effectively wash your shirts and sweaters, but also to
clean out even the most terrible stains on your pants, ...
-3
votes
1answer
112 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.
9
votes
4answers
7k views
“Can easily be” vs. “can be easily” — what's the difference?
I'm wondering what the difference is between:
It can easily be obtained.
It can be easily obtained.
Also, what's the preferred way to write it? If there is any...
I googled for both ...
1
vote
0answers
72 views
Origin of actual order pattern in English [closed]
It is well-known, or better said, well-accepted, that the ancestral language Proto-Indo-European (PIE) was a OV language with a very limited (or nonexistent) use of subordinate clauses. In ...
4
votes
5answers
1k views
What is the correct positioning of “Please” in a sentence or indeed is there one?
Please can you help me with this question?
Can you please help me with this question?
Can you help me with this question please?
Is there a correct place for please in this question or ...
1
vote
1answer
1k views
Position of 'also'
What is the correct position of the word 'also'?
I would like to also talk about ...
I would also like to talk about ...
2
votes
1answer
168 views
Should I say “have only been . . . twice” or “have been . . . twice only”?
Will these next two sentences confuse you?
1.I have only been to London once before.
2.I have been to London twice only.
Now for a more complicated example, I want to express that I have ...
-1
votes
1answer
42 views
the Receipts page vs the page Receipts
Suppose there is a web application with several webpages, amongst them one with the title "Receipts". In the user's manual of this web application or a similar place, are both "the Receipts page" and ...
2
votes
0answers
66 views
Swapping the order in an idiomatic expression [closed]
I may have sounded general in the title but my question is very specific. Recently I was writing a poem and I needed it to rhyme this way
Some will stand to watch you go down quick
But no one ...
0
votes
3answers
144 views
Infinitive vs. Past Simple for short technical annotations [duplicate]
I use source control management software at work. When I commit some changes, I annotate them with the bare infinitive like this:
"add new feature", "fix bug #10012"
I note that some of my ...
13
votes
9answers
1k views
“Assign a variable to a value” or the other way round?
I was wondering which of these phrases is/are correct:
assign a variable to a value
assign a value to a variable
I'd say the second is correct, but I'm not a native speaker. A quick Google search ...
-2
votes
3answers
78 views
Adjectival order of “National African weightlifting federations”
Which order is correct?
National African weightlifting federations.
African national weightlifting federations.
African weightlifting national federations.
5
votes
4answers
6k views
Should an adverb go before or after a verb?
For example:
The word rarely turns up outside of those contexts.
The word turns up rarely outside of those contexts.
Which one is correct and why?
0
votes
3answers
264 views
Use of “yet another” in the middle of a sentence
Is the usage of yet another correct in the following sentence?
This sentence might need yet another piece of work for you!
Where can I place yet another in a sentence?
1
vote
2answers
218 views
“A is followed by B.” What's the order?
So the English class teacher is teaching IEEE referencing style, and we have something like this as an example:
Chan [1] claims that...
The teacher said:
The referencing number is followed ...
0
votes
2answers
114 views
Usage of “but” in a sentence. [duplicate]
I'm reading Robinson Crusoe and came across many of these constructions with "but" in it. I can't help but thought they were a little unusual. I don't consider myself fluent in English, that's why I ...
-2
votes
1answer
171 views
“For what” vs. “what for” [closed]
Is there any difference in the meaning between for what and what for?
If they are different, could you explain to me both?
21
votes
8answers
19k views
Distinction: “What can I do you for?” vs. “What can I do for you?”
Usually, when being served the phrase "What can I do for you?" is used but sometimes I also hear "What can I do you for?" in quite the same context. So is there a difference or is it just a slip of ...
4
votes
3answers
145 views
Jealousy and hate
Is this grammatically correct? Why does "jealousy and hate" sound more natural or better than "hate and jealousy." Isn't "jealousy and hatred" more grammatically correct than either?
11
votes
6answers
477 views
What number bus is that? or What bus number is that?
Imagine you are at the bus stop. You see a bus coming, but you can't read the number, so you ask: "What number bus is that?"
However, usually the noun used as a determiner precedes the main noun, for ...
1
vote
1answer
120 views
Punctuation for lists
I have a sentence like this:
As you can see, there are two projects "project1" and "project2", where the latter uses the global wrapper functions defined in "project1" project.
My question is ...
