Tagged Questions
2
votes
1answer
56 views
Is it ok if I start an opinion composition with the word 'Indeed'?
I was just wondering, is it's OK to begin an opinion composition with the word 'Indeed' in the first sentence? For example:
Indeed I believe people's consumerism is one of the main causes for our ...
-1
votes
0answers
65 views
Punctuations and “tumbles down the hill”
He jump but hardly reaches the stone and tumbles down the hill. He tries to catch some other edge or stone as he falls and catches a small hole with his two fingers in the left hand.
Something ...
0
votes
2answers
62 views
Introducing a character [closed]
JOHN MICHAELSON, in his late 40s, is sitting in a couch, reading a
book. He is lean and hard. His eyes look tired and depressed, and
there is a vacuum in his life; we see that in his face.
I ...
2
votes
1answer
47 views
Uniformly at random vs. randomly uniformly
In their paper "Handling Churn in a DHT", the
authors use the following sentence:
For each event we select a node to die uniformly at random[...]
Do you think this sentence is unprecise? Or is ...
-1
votes
1answer
54 views
Grammaticality of differently worded quotations
In crafting a "homemade" quotation, and after considerable time, I've come up with a few versions. I'm not sure, however, if any of them is correct grammatically, not to mention memorable ...
3
votes
2answers
119 views
Using articles before titles beginning with articles
What are the rules for the use of articles before titles beginning with articles? Which of the following sentences is correct?
I went to the The New York Times office this morning.
I went to The New ...
3
votes
1answer
276 views
Omitting “by” after “impressed”
Which is correct?
You may be impressed how often the technique is being used in
industry.
You may be impressed by how often the technique is being used in
industry.
The first one is ...
-4
votes
2answers
119 views
“Hispanic were X persons” vs. “Hispanic numbered X persons”
!
Is the following sentence from Wikipedia poor style or even ungrammatical?
The 2010 United States Census reported that San Jose had a population of 945,942. The population density was 5,256.2 ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Where does “emphasis mine” go in a quotation?
I have often seen the term emphasis mine used whenever an author wishes to denote that emphasis in a given quotation originates from said author rather than from the original source.
What is the ...
0
votes
1answer
63 views
“After-midnight” as adjective
A recent CNN report reads:
In an after-midnight session the U.S. Senate passed a bill Saturday ...
Google returns few results for after-midnight, other than references to a certain horror ...
-2
votes
1answer
2k views
“In a time when” vs. “in a time where” [closed]
Which one is grammatical? Or is this a question of style?
In a time when someone else is sent to clean up our mess.
In a time where someone else is sent to clean up our mess.
3
votes
1answer
768 views
Is “project in hand” correct?
I am writing my MSc project report in English and I want to use the phrase
"the project in hand"
as a title to a chapter where I will be introducing the project that was undertaken.
Is such an ...
13
votes
3answers
500 views
Difference between styles of English in technical communication
I have a collaborative software project with two other users. Nearly every technical report and documentation written goes through the following editorial changes to some of the sentences (examples ...
1
vote
1answer
442 views
“Upon” at the very beginning of a sentence
Can a sentence begin with upon? Or should it be changed to on?
For example:
Upon a decrease in temperature... [Is this grammatical?]
On a decrease in temperature... [What about this?]
2
votes
1answer
166 views
“Because of our doing something …” - Is this correct English? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When is a gerund supposed to be preceded by a possessive pronoun?
I am a German mathematician. In some research papers I find grammatical constructions like the one in ...
1
vote
2answers
1k views
“Conformity” vs. “conformance”
I am curious about the differences in meaning, connotations, style, and correctness of using conformity vs conformance.
I haven't been able to find much using a simple web search, only a single ...
6
votes
5answers
299 views
How to use “used to use”?
Is it correct to say something like this?
I used to use the knife to open things like cans.
1
vote
3answers
257 views
“A smile cures the wounding of a frown”
I found the following on a poster of a professional photographer:
A smile cures the wounding of a frown
The sentence seems awkward and wrong to me. I think something can cure a disease and heal ...
3
votes
2answers
408 views
“The likeliest problem” vs. “the most likely problem”
The likeliest problem vs. the most likely problem:
are they both correct?
do they mean the same thing?
is one preferable over another?
1
vote
1answer
751 views
Is it correct to combine multiple clauses into one sentence?
Is it correct to combine multiple clauses (sub sentences) into one?
For example, let us consider this sentence:
On managerial side, I am experienced in accounting software, have been working ...
1
vote
4answers
1k views
Past participle after noun: “proposed cost” vs. “cost proposed”
I have the following two examples:
Our proposed cost is expensive.
Our cost proposed is expensive.
Is there any difference between them? Or is the second sentence wrong?
3
votes
4answers
210 views
Number agreement of “a thing of the past”
Is the pluralization correct in the following sentences?
To Do lists are a thing of the past.
To Do lists are things of the past.
A To Do list is a thing of the past.
Are they all ...
5
votes
4answers
9k views
Is it correct to use this expression in an email: “Attached you may find …”?
Is it grammatical to use the expression "Attached you may find ..." in an email? For example:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Attached you may find the documents you requested.
...
If this is ...
5
votes
1answer
228 views
Is it acceptable to use 'that' followed by a direct quote?
New York Times:
Even before President Obama declared this month that “I have Israel’s
back” in its escalating confrontation with Iran, pro-Israel figures
like the evangelical Christian leader ...
2
votes
4answers
417 views
Ambiguity from the placement of a prepositional phrase
Consider:
The executive director presented to the board her final recommendations on fundraising and the dissemination of those funds.
This does not read well and moving to the board would be a ...
4
votes
1answer
151 views
Should the use of apostrophes be consistent?
It is time to rock, but don't be too loud.
Is it recommended to stay consistent with the use of apostrophes? Should it instead be:
It's time to rock, but don't be too loud.
If that is fine ...
8
votes
5answers
13k views
“I and someone”, “me and someone” or “I and someone we” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When do I use “I” instead of “me?”
A friend of mine asked me for advice about an e-mail he was writing. There was a sentence like this:
I and ...
0
votes
3answers
88 views
“Iran diplomats return to heroes' welcome”
That's an example of the type of headline increasingly seen in the media - I first noticed the trend on Sky News but it seems to have become endemic.
To my mind the example above should read "Iranian ...
1
vote
2answers
241 views
What is the proper grammatical terminology to describe this parenthetical remark?
The following sentence appears in this book review:
But this idea has been a driving force in mathematical logic and computer science since Alan Turing, A. N. Kolmogorov and Emil Post (he of the ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Analysis of “It is like a dream come true”
I've been unable to grammatically analyse the sentence
It is like a dream come true.
To me, it should either be
It is like a dream that has come true
or
It is like a dream comes true.
...
14
votes
4answers
690 views
What is it called when words are deliberately written wrong but pronunciation is kept unchanged?
For example,
Night -> Nite
Nite even appears in some dictionaries as having the same meaning as night.
What is it called when words are deliberately written incorrectly but the pronunciation ...
4
votes
4answers
19k views
“I would like to ask you a favour” vs. “I would like to ask you for a favour”
Which form is to be preferred?
I would like to ask you a favour.
I would like to ask you for a favour.
-2
votes
3answers
192 views
“The aims are promoting and protecting” vs. “the aims are to promote and protect”
Which of the following two constructions is correct? and why?
Some of the important aims of the UNO are to promote peace and protect human rights.
Some of the important aims of the UNO are ...
3
votes
2answers
976 views
“has” or “have”? As in “X requires that Y have …” versus “X requires that Y has …”
To me, it seems that the following subtly differ in meaning:
X requires that Y have (occurred prior to blah-blah-blah)
X requires that Y has (occurred prior to blah-blah-blah)
Problem is, I can't ...
6
votes
5answers
375 views
Is “i.e.” in this situation incorrect?
I.e. is used when we would like to use a situation as a kind of clarification.
Suppose I was to write something like this:
Nano-boxes are used in medical science i.e. cancer treatment, where ...
0
votes
2answers
107 views
Am I using “spend a day” correctly here?
Is this a correct usage?
How do you spend a typical day at
school?
What are the alternatives?
4
votes
3answers
6k views
“I'm home” or “I'm at home”
The second form looks more correct to me, but the first expression is present in several titles of movies and songs. Which form is preferable?
16
votes
4answers
873 views
Usage of “And” in the beginning of a sentence
Since I first learned English, I have been holding this understanding that "and", as a conj. but unlike "but", can only connect two clauses, not two sentences ended with periods.
But recently, I ...
3
votes
1answer
359 views
I need <something> yesterday?
Is it correct to say:
I need those reports, and I need them
yesterday.
Shouldn't it be:
I needed those reports yesterday.
Or is this aberrant usage style simply a colloquialism?
6
votes
3answers
615 views
Is it proper to start a sentence with the word that ended the last sentence?
For example:
Instead, you’ll use a higher-level model called ASP.NET AJAX. ASP.NET AJAX gives you a set of server-side components and controls that you can use when designing your web page.
This ...
14
votes
2answers
433 views
Ellipsis that results in one word serving as both subject and object
Quoting from Jeff Atwood's blog:
[I expanded the team] by adding Kevin, who I didn't know, but had built amazing
stuff for us without even being asked to, from Texas. And again by adding ...
22
votes
15answers
6k views
What are some examples of awkward sounding but grammatically correct sentences?
What are some examples of awkward sounding but grammatically correct sentences?
3
votes
1answer
166 views
Can one be *highly* ambivalent?
I've always felt that it's something of a contradiction to be very or highly ambivalent. It's grammatically correct, as far as I know, but is it stylistically acceptable, or is my sense of linguistic ...
