New answers tagged word-usage
0
Fellow-wives or rival wives can also be used.
0
I agree that it does seem a little bit awkward. I think swapping the word "accordingly" with suitably would fit much better. I also prefer large to big, but that is just my preference.
0
I would consider simply using "supposedly" in that sentence. If you want something more fancy "purportedly" is another possibility that may be closer to the meaning you want.
2
The feeling of incorrectness, in my opinion, stems from the connotation of "accordingly." There are other usage irregularities in this sentence, but to focus on the one in question, I would suggest taking note of the subtle variations in meaning of some possible synonyms or non-synonymous alternatives to "accordingly." First and foremost, "accordingly" ...
0
The primary problem with the sample sentence is the phrase “an accordingly big army”, where large should replace big. Definitions of big and large may be of little help in determining which word is appropriate here; but it appears that big (which suggests “large in volume”) is less suitable than is large for the meaning needed here, “large in number”.
In ...
4
“... The putative high quality army” is grammatically incorrect, while “... the putatively high quality army” is grammatically correct but clumsy or misleading. A phrasing like “Lower-grade soldiers made up two-thirds of what was, putatively, a high quality army” would be slightly less awful. Your original sentence with “what was supposed to be” would be ...
0
It is an Americanism and is outdated since nobody rings information / directory inquiries anymore.
It could also be misconstrued by today's digital generation since 411 is the http error code for "length required". So giving somebody the 411 might have a whole new meaning ;-)
2
The most common use of wanna is for want to. So, wanna can be used like this.
I wanna be a doctor.
shown here
But, there are some of the cases, where wanna is used for want a, as below,
I Wanna New Room.
referred here.
2
I think wordlength (as a single word, or two words separated by a hyphen or a space) is a bit "geeky" these days. Non-specialists invariably refer to 32- or 64-bit systems, and programmers usually refer to 4- or 8-byte [native] integer size where the distinction is relevant. But if they were happy with the term itself, I doubt anyone would quibble over which ...
0
An email title like one of the following may serve.
Status of my application?
Current status of 123's application?
How is my application progressing?
If you like, tack on “And new accomplishments” or similar at the end; for example:
Status of my application? (New data enclosed)
In email titles, both brevity and specificity matter. Leave ...
6
Perhaps victim is the word you are searching for:-
a person who suffers from a destructive or injurious action or agency: a victim of an automobile accident.
1
I presume that in your quotation the word "something" would be substituted by the name of the item that you are enquiring about.
On that basis, I think it's perfectly normal and acceptable English (in the UK).
1
I will quote Michael Swan (Practical English Usage, Oxford University Press, § 253):
Another meaning [of hopefully] is ‘it is to be hoped that’ or ‘I
hope’. This is a fairly recent use in British English, and some people
consider it incorrect.
Since it is an adverb, it is regarded as incorrect because it refers to the whole sentence, instead of ...
0
The adverbs also, as well and too have similar meanings, but they do not go in the same position in sentences.
Also is usually used with the verb. Too and as well usually go at the end of a sentence or clause. Note that ‘as well’ is not very common in American English.
He not only plays; he also works.
He was fat, and he was also short.
He not only plays; ...
2
This is not an answer in terms of grammar as such, but I'm writing this hopefully to shed a different light on the issue.
Hopefully, of course, literally means "full of hope". Edwin says It is short for the comment clause 'It is to be hoped that' (...). (which I don't disagree with). But I tend to think of it as short for "I (or we) hope that" - but the ...
1
Certain kinds of English have particular rules that are not the same as conversation. For example recipes don't sound natural at all. In this case, the sentence is using a lot of highly specific words and eliding some. The two phrases X to Y refer to shapes that fit along a spectrum. The colour equivalent might be "red to orange" in one place and "yellow to ...
0
[This answer was written before the question was edited. The original version of the question had both sentences on a single line as if they were intended to be read one after the other, whereas the question format now shows them bulleted as two independent sentences. Most of what I've written below still applies, but, with the revised question format, ...
-2
Perhaps the most universal fit is edify.
We are upgrading the current system for greater Enterprise edification.
I believe we need to change our approach. We need to edify it.
It will take some time to write an article that's more edified than I've written before.
This may not be a typical way of using it, but certainly works.
Other good ...
2
Both of those examples appear grammatically correct. The common usage of the compound "to vote in" is more frequently and naturally used in the form "to vote ... in." That said, ending a sentence in a preposition is to be avoided, so one usually follows "to vote ... in" with what position or office the object is being elected to.
In the case of your first ...
0
"having soup" would be more generalized. what do you say?
3
In US English, either eat or drink could be used with soup. I hadn't noticed it before, but although you generally drink liquids, you eat with a spoon, so you would drink a cup of soup and eat a bowl of soup.
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accepted ...
came to accept ...
2
A couple of other phrases for the concept you're describing:
"he's resigned to his fate"
"he's reconciled to his imminent death"
"he's at peace with his own mortality"
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People don't say either. Google N-grams reports no use of either phrase. Even a Google search of the phrases nets you less than 50 results for either.
"To come to terms with death" is a great phrase that carries a powerful connotation. But, other similar phrases are "move past" and "adapt."
3
Jewelry "findings" are the parts used to join jewellery components together to form a completed article...
As @Fr0zenFyr mentioned refer this article:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finding
0
"Results" perhaps, if these are displayed after someone has searched.
1
Look at fraze.it site for examples of sentence using 'baby steps'.
Link below.
http://fraze.it/n_search.jsp?q=baby+steps
3
Keep in mind that baby steps is a metaphor: it compares initial stages of a new endeavor to the very small and stumbling steps of a child just learning to walk.
And when you employ a metaphor you should keep your language consistent with the image you are evoking, at least within the scope of the sentence in which you introduce it. (But if you try to extend ...
2
You can use snapping out of a dream, which has that sudden meaning.
You can also use startle, as in startled from a dream, although this seems less sudden.
People are more often disturbed suddenly from daydreams than dreams, so you may find more uses by looking for daydream terms such as reverie.
-3
hip comes from the word hipster. There were hipsters, black, Latin and white, long before Elvis became popular in the mid 50s. In the 50s, Elvis was called Hep, as in a Hepcat.
Robert Mitchum and Jack Kerouac were well-known whites who were considered hip in those days.
If something reached the mainstream culture in a big way, it was no longer hip.
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Your friend most likely meant that it occurred to them. Accrued is a mondegreen: a language mistake based on similar-sounding words.
0
While 'fear the government' and 'fear your teacher' do not equate to respect in more modern times and cultures, they have been known to hold that connotation.
For example, if one were to say 'fear the government' during the Inquisition it would be taken more as 'fear their power, what they can do to you,' while some may be willing to argue this is the same ...
2
The more typical, effective, and elegant way of phrasing the original sentence is, "Do all sentences tell us what the speaker wishes would happen?" (Kristina is correct that the original is grammatical, if clunky.)
Adding "for it" to the original is simply wrong because it inserts an unconnected and unnecessary word pair in a place where it could not ...
4
Use a different adjective, like tardy or unpunctual. Or use a different construct, like
to see the late-comers penalized
0
Extra bandwidth explanation:
Simply means you have the extra capacity to work on addition projects given the same time constraints. A very interesting American term!
From a European.
1
In English, greetings like Hello and Hi and Good Morning don't change if you are addressing one, a few, or thousands of people. It's quite common to add something to note that you are greeting many people, such as "Hello everyone" or "Good morning everyone" and certainly there is a range of formality in what you choose to put there.
To my ear, ...
0
Possible and probable are both Modal terms.
This means they're weird, confusing, and irregular as hell.
Two major groups of modals are the Necessary (⃞ 'Square') and Possible (⃟ 'Diamond') modals. Necessary and Possible are defined logically this way (where p is any proposition):
If p is Possibly True, then p is Not Necessarily Not True ( ⃞ p ≡ ...
0
The issue on the word "crony" depends on your nationality. The word is negative in the USA, positive in the UK.
In America, a crony is a sleazy, almost illegal sort of person.
In England, I recall that a wonderful Prince of Wales, in the 1800s, said to a salesman of hats in a store, "Freddy, start your own store, and I'll bring all my cronies there..." and ...
4
The answer to your question is not quite as easy as it should be.
The reason for this is that both "possible" and "probable" are also technical terms. So while some may use the words ordinarily, others may use them technically.
The ordinary meaning of the word "possible" is that which is able to occur.
The ordinary meaning of the word "probable" is that ...
4
Your “Hello, folks!” sounds a bit odd to my ear.
In a colloquial register, one often says “Hi guys”, and one uses this irrespective of the gender distribution in the group addressed.
A more Southern-sounding version is “Hey y’all”.
An extremely informal version is “Hello people”.
In a more formal register, “Good morning/afternoon/evening, ladies and ...
1
Ignorantly is semantically possible if person A in fact would understand an argument and would be willing to change his or her point of view. However, dingo_dan's suggestion of dismissively is an excellent alternative and probably a better choice.
The sentences have a few grammatical and other problems, though. This is one possible revision that solves the ...
4
Grammatical rules that apply to units larger than a word apply only to constituents.
"Puzzled why", however, is not a constituent, but rather a string taken from a sentence.
The psych predicate adjective (be) puzzled can take a number of complements, including tensed that- and wh-clauses
He was puzzled why she hadn't arrived yet.
He was puzzled that she ...
0
I suggest following up the summary with a phrase like "Additional details on my experience/work with these areas are included in my attached resume."
0
It sounds fine to me, although I'd probably just say "please see my resume."
What sounds awkward in your example sentence is the repetition of "resume." I'd avoid that by saying e.g.
"For more information about my studies and work experience, please see the attached résumé."
1
Joel is mistaken when he says that as of means "up to and including a point of time," although it is often used to mean so.
As of designates the point in time from which something occurs. So as of some point would mean from the date specified onward.
However, his answering of the best way to say each phrase is spot on.
One may use either until or up to ...
0
You have a valid point.
This definition is given by The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer, at http://idioms.yourdictionary.com/as-of :
From, at, or until a given time.
2
As OF implies everything up to and including a particular point in time.
As AT is similar to as of, and could be used synonymously. As at has a connotation of a snapshot. You might say transactions as of but balance as at.
As FROM is not an idiom in English as far as I have ever heard.
In order to be more clear, you could use different language ...
10
In all these cases there is no link to the animal
Cock - A rooster
The body part is probably from cock to mean raise up, as in "cocking a gun". The bird is old English/Scandanavia
Pussy - A cat
The body part is much older from Scandanavian/OE word for a pocket or bag. The cat is newer and probably just a childish onomatopoeia for soft/furry
...
3
By no means have you got an exhaustive list. Just for the penis there are words like dick, johnson and willy that are not animal names - and dozens more that I'm not prepared to type. There are literally hundreds of names for the sexual organs and so it's not surprising that some of them are animal names - probably almost any category of nouns will include ...
0
In "The Life and Opinions of Tristam Shandy, Gentleman", published 1760, Lawrence Sterne uses the expression "by the bye" often, as he would have to in that meandering novel.
Here in New Zealand it is still in common usage even among school children, and my grandchildren who live in the Cook Islands use it.
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