Questions tagged [concept]

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2 votes
6 answers
260 views

What is a word for bringing together fragmented pieces of a whole? [closed]

Is there an English word for the act of or the output of bringing together distinct but connected pieces to make a whole? I am working on a theory of anonymized digital connectivity where a complete ...
Spg103's user avatar
  • 21
-1 votes
2 answers
42 views

What is the word that describes willingness of a human or even an animal to provide value to others in general? [closed]

For example, willingness to provide for someone is generosity and willingness to protect someone is bravery, but if we wanted to put both of these (an possibly other values) under an umbrella term, ...
Alireza's user avatar
  • 415
4 votes
5 answers
302 views

What is a word for thinking that there is a word for any concept/idea

This question was prompted by an exchange of comments in another single word request question. Here is the exchange: -What makes people think that English has a one-word for anything they could ...
ermanen's user avatar
  • 62.6k
4 votes
1 answer
87 views

What is a simple way to express Class vs Instance?

In object-oriented programming, the concepts of "class" vs "instance" exist. The "class" defines the properties of the object (its behavior and attributes), while the &...
Charles's user avatar
  • 163
1 vote
0 answers
53 views

Singular/plural juxtaposition ? ("... was remarks ...")

There are many questions here on singular and plural controversies and one thing I have noticed is that many of these apparent contradictions are resolvable by grammar. However, sometimes, the ear (...
Nigel J's user avatar
  • 25.5k
-2 votes
1 answer
71 views

I can't understand this sentence

I read an English text. In this text I came across a sentence that I can't understand it as a complete sentence: "In this context and who can argue against the ethos of closer observation of what ...
Saeed Hp's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
96 views

what is the difference between propaganda and hoax?

I was looking for definitions of propaganda and hoax. The problem is that people in the internet are trying to post their own definitions without a clarification. At the end I chose these following ...
Minions's user avatar
  • 133
1 vote
3 answers
120 views

What figure of speech is this: "the arguing sixth floor window"

Sydney Barringer jumps from the ninth floor rooftop. His parents argue three stories below. Fay's accidental shotgun blast hits Sydney in the stomach as he passes the arguing sixth floor window. ...
Eddie Kal's user avatar
  • 1,152
1 vote
3 answers
1k views

What does historical average mean as a general statistics concept related to history?

Does it simply mean, 'whatever this average is for, it's from the beginning of it historically up till today'? For example, 'historical average of stackoverflow main page clicks', is this simply from ...
Sidd Boketto's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
99 views

Is "definacy" a word?

I came across this word "definacy" in an article by a grammarian who uses it to refer to the quality brought about by the definite article in English. Problem is I can't find this word in any ...
Eddie Kal's user avatar
  • 1,152
21 votes
8 answers
4k views

Is there a word/short phrase for "the most" of something (not necessarily the majority)?

I don't want to use the word "majority" in many contexts because it tends to imply that 50% or more of something has gone one way. However, I don't know a concise way of saying that something has ...
Joe's user avatar
  • 682
0 votes
1 answer
104 views

There is a quote from Brene Brown which I don't understand [closed]

I know the meaning of every word in it, but I can't fully understand it. The quote is: “The ability, to hold something we’ve done or failed to do, up against who we want to be, is incredibly ...
mohammadsdtmnd's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
54 views

Is "radius" a sub-category of "diameter"? [closed]

The question sounds a bit cumbersome, but it arises from this description of a product: Outer Diameter: 78.74mm (radius) If the word "radius" is a sub-category of "diameter", then the description ...
Madamadam's user avatar
  • 133
1 vote
1 answer
231 views

Neologism: I am introducing a new term in my thesis for a concept but I am cautious [closed]

Is it arrogant in writing to explicitly say I came up with the term? Fear of appearing arrogant made me think to just say: X will be used throughout the thesis to refer to the concept of Y without ...
Acer acer's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
216 views

Is there any word or phrase for the idea that "everything in the universe is a miracle"?

Is there any word or phrase for the idea that "everything in the universe (including the creatures) is a miracle"? Or someone who chooses to see everything as a miracle?
BeatsMe's user avatar
  • 1,458
4 votes
1 answer
1k views

Word or phrase for fake appearance or posturing

I'm looking for a noun (it has to be an object) that expresses the concept of fake appearances. In Spanish, we can express that with the word "facade" understood as the front of a wall (but part of ...
Drumnbass's user avatar
  • 151
2 votes
4 answers
283 views

What is the right word / an analogy for a "pendulum" that gains momentum with each swing?

I'm trying to find the right word / concept to describe the following effect: Consider a pendulum, except with each swing it gains momentum. The exchange of potential and kinetic energy is not equal,...
danimal's user avatar
  • 23
0 votes
4 answers
624 views

The concept of being too obsessed with honour

I'm looking for a word that refers to excessive or extreme obsession with fairness, discipline, chivalry, and respect. Note that this is the concept, rather than a person who embraces it. An ...
Piomicron's user avatar
  • 135
0 votes
1 answer
587 views

What is a word for a concept that is understood across almost all languages?

This questions is probably strange, but I will give an example. The concept of money, for example is understood by almost all languages, or take the concept of mathematics. Is there an actual word for ...
Ziky's user avatar
  • 3
0 votes
0 answers
92 views

Confusion about when to use definite article when writing about "concepts"

Should the following sentences include a definite article? (The) management of different implementations is realised using a factory design pattern. There are two ways of measuring (the) availability:...
lena's user avatar
  • 1
1 vote
3 answers
820 views

What word best represents the concept of data that can be easily used by a computer?

I want to find a word that encapsulates the concept of information that can be easily parsed by a computer and does not require a human to interpret the concepts. Imagine you are filling out a form ...
user3841460's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
169 views

Concepts implied by the word 'realize'

When saying 'I realized something' does this imply that I became aware on my own? If someone had explained something to me and only after did I understand, can I still use 'I realized'? Or do I need ...
RafC's user avatar
  • 11
0 votes
4 answers
187 views

Word to explain "mapping the unseen to the seen" (i.e. infrared light to visible light)

There is a popular misconception that sound can travel through space. Since space is a vacuum, this isn't possible. Confusingly this scientific video describes "the sound two black holes make when ...
makerofthings7's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
187 views

which word equals to this phrase: to keep away from sth one hates it [closed]

I am looking up a formal word with this definition:' to keep away from something which one hates it.'
Masoumeh Sari's user avatar
1 vote
3 answers
84 views

In search of a English word [closed]

my question is that if a person A does something bad to another person B but regrets it and helps B so that A can forgive himself.....is there any English word to sum up that sentence?
Prithvi Pandiyan's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
5k views

ranked 2nd out of 124 peers -- Is this sentence grammatically correct?

I want to say that I ranked 2nd among all the students with the same entrance as mine at my university. I want to say this with as few words as possible. This the best I've been able to come up with: ...
Ali's user avatar
  • 121
7 votes
2 answers
296 views

Is there a word for the concept of attributing genius to something simply because it's incomprehensible?

Say someone is a well-known, highly-praised academic figure who came out with an idea that was complete and utter nonsense, yet instead of dismissing it as BS, some folks insist the idea is brilliant ...
Wilhelmina Beavers's user avatar
4 votes
3 answers
1k views

Something that is easy to learn, but rewarding to master

I'm looking for a word or phrase that expresses the idea that something can be done well at the beginner-level, but can also be extremely rewarding when someone reaches an expert level. The concept ...
Zibbobz's user avatar
  • 7,291
1 vote
0 answers
210 views

Concept of "none" in the English language [duplicate]

None of them are/is I don't know if this is the place to ask, but: In German you would say "none of them is" and it totally sounds wrong to me to say "none of them are". As German and English are ...
yamm's user avatar
  • 109
1 vote
4 answers
540 views

Is there a different way of saying "Steam Engine Time"?

Steam engine time shows up on urban dictionary, but isn't quite as prevalent beyond that. I'm trying to remember the name of the concept that it's "time" for something to get invented when all the pre-...
Kit Sunde's user avatar
  • 1,248
1 vote
4 answers
6k views

big to small, and small to big approach names

In a book, I read: Engineering is all about breaking down big problems into smaller ones and putting the solutions for those problems back together. My generalized interpretation of this text is ...
Saeed Neamati's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
371 views

Can parents "educate" their children? Or only teachers? [closed]

Many of my Asian students who are learning English say that parents can "educate" their children. However I'm not sure if this is a correct collocation in English. My understanding of "education" is ...
user43898's user avatar
  • 810
0 votes
3 answers
73 views

phrase request: describe authorship which overruns logical stopping points and/or fails to omit extraneous ideas

How can I describe authorship where the author often oversteps logical stopping points, or where the author introduces superfluous, tangentially related content? Here are some more details to ...
rschwieb's user avatar
  • 332
2 votes
5 answers
8k views

Etymology of "second to none"

second to none To the ears of a non-native speaker, mine anyway, this expression sounds very laborious. Where does it come from? Is it not contrary to the idea that English is a '...
Jonas's user avatar
  • 301
4 votes
1 answer
1k views

A theory or concept related to language use by elite or the higher classes

I'm an English teacher, and I'm looking for a theoretical model that suggests language is used differently by different classes. I am aware of Bernstein's Elaborated code, which refers to an elite ...
track2now's user avatar
  • 209
3 votes
4 answers
220 views

Can a tractor or a skid-steer be called a "device"?

I am having an argument with my cousin after I called a tractor a "device." He argues that tractors are machines, but never "devices." Thoughts, folks?
zealoushacker's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
129 views

odd taxonomy of English [closed]

The taxonomy of ox, like cow, bull, calf, steer, bullock, cattle, etc. is all odd to me, using different words for the same animal. (The same can be said to sheep.) I'm looking for similar odd-...
mmt's user avatar
  • 17
0 votes
1 answer
91 views

Can a number be given the attribute 'physical'?

This question initially arose while translating a technical document from German. The original text was 'physikalische Heizzonenummer', literally 'physical heating-zone-number'. My immediate reaction ...
paul's user avatar
  • 747
4 votes
3 answers
2k views

What is the term for an idea that requires/creates its opposite?

An example would be that the concept of 'light' necessitates an opposite: 'dark.' The idea of one entails the other. Is there a term for this?
Peter Cameron's user avatar