Questions tagged [formality]
This tag is for questions about formal (versus informal) words and usage. The question must identify a particular concern about the formality of the word or phrase at issue, and specify the target context or audience.
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discreetness, secrecy
Is paraphrasing:
I expect you to keep this subject secret from people it does not concern.
as
I'm expecting discreetness concerning this subject.
a correct use of that word? How else would you ...
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3
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Straight quotes vs. curly quotes in formal writing [closed]
Should I use “ or " in very formal English writing?
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Why put a period after your name in the closing of a communication/E-mail? [closed]
I have several co-workers in Europe and all of them tend to put a period after their names in the closing of E-mails, e.g.:
Thanks,
Matt.
I've never seen this, so I am curious if it is proper ...
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More formal synonyms of "snob"
To me, the word snob seems rather informal, although it appears in dictionaries, and I am unable to find anywhere on the internet a more formal word than snob.
Are there any sophisticated synonyms ...
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"Engagement", "betrothal" — connotations?
I'm not a native speaker, so frequently I don't know underlying semantic subtleties of synonyms; what connotations they bear, which may be antiquated or very official, which are specific to given ...
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Swearing: “bollixed”
The House Ethics Committee has now hired an outside counsel to investigate its own bollixed investigation into the conduct of Representative Maxine Waters. (“The House’s Farcical Self-Investigation”, ...
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"Will graduate" vs. "will be graduated" vs. "is going to graduate"
Which of the following sentences are correct?
He will graduate in May.
He will be graduated in May.
He is going to graduate in May.
Issue 1: Is the second one grammatical?
Issue 2: There ...
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Usage of "is when"
In grade school, when writing stories for English classes I recall being gently corrected whenever I handed pieces in that contained sentences with a structure similar to this:
“A debate is ...
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1
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Is the phrase "Please be informed that" grammatically correct?
I have seen this phrase in many articles. It sounds a little bit odd to me.
Also, what could be an alternative to this? Can I use "please be aware" or "For your information" instead of this phrase?
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Is it suitable to use 'etc.' in an academic paper?
I'm writing one of my first academic papers and I'm not sure whether etc. is too informal. Should I use et cetera instead?
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Subjunctive mood: 'was' usage after 'I wish' and 'if only'
SFX Magazine had declared the sentence below as follow: 1) STAR TURN, 2) BEST LINES.
I wish Bernard Cribbins was my grandad. Perhaps he would be willing to
adopt?
Rattigan: “If only that was ...
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Formal expression for "talking about something unrelated" [closed]
What are some words or phrases that can be used when a person is discussing a particular subject with a group of people and unintentionally she/he talks about something unrelated? I need a formal ...
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Pronoun to use in a one-person report ("I", "we", something else) [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Style Question: Use of “we” vs. “I” vs. passive voice in a dissertation
When I am writing a report I usually use we.
What if the project is done by ...
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How often do people say "gotta", "wanna" or "gonna" in English speaking countries?
I learned these three words from Collins Cobuild Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.
got|ta /g'ɒtə/
Gotta is used in written English to represent the words 'got to' when they are pronounced > ...
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Phrasal verbs (formal and informal use) [closed]
I'm not always comfortable with phrasal verbs. I find that Americans use a lot of phrasal verbs than say people from UK -- I might be completely wrong though.
What I find most difficult with phrasal ...
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8
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Usage of double dots (..) Is it formal?
I am sure that this wouldn't have much meaning, but still want to get acknowledged whether usage of double dots is formal.
I have observed people using double dots in business Emails. Usually while ...
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Can I say "What opinion are you of?"
We can say "I'm of the opinion that ~" instead of "I reckon that ~" in a formal way.
Then, can I say "What opinion are you of?" in place of "What do you reckon?"
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Is "get" (in the sense of "become/make") appropriate for formal writing?
Is the use of "get + adjective/participle" appropriate for formal writing (for example, scientific papers)? I am thinking of usages analogous to
get fat
get inflated
get sick
where the meaning is ...
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7
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learn how to [verb] vs. learn to [verb]
"learn to [verb]"
"learn how to [verb]"
Is [1] merely a less formal version of [2]? If not, does [1] communicate something subtly different? Consider the following:
In [2], the object of learning is ...
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8
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Usage of the phrase "you don't know what you don't know"
What is the correct usage of phrase "you don't know what you don't know"? Can it be used in formal conversation/writing?
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Starting a sentence with 'About your question, ...'
I have noticed myself often starting a sentence like this:
About your drawing question, I don't think there is an easy way to draw these shapes.
Is it formal to start a sentence that way (formal ...
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3
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Is "bettern't" an OK word to use?
In the spirit of:
You can swim, can't you?
You should tell the truth, shouldn't you?
You'd be crazy to miss out, wouldn't you?
Can I say:
You better study, bettern't you?
It's listed at ...
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What is a more refined & formal way to say 'we eat our own dog-food'?
In some formal communication, I would like to use that phrase to indicate how reliable my product is, because we use it on a regular basis, and thus serve as a reassurance.
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Are contractions of "I am" or "I would" rude? [duplicate]
I got edited on Stack Overflow because I used "I'm", "you're" and "I'd" instead of "I am" etc.
Is it considered rude to use contractions like that in informal conversations on the internet? I would ...
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Please accept this intimation
What does the phrase "accept this intimation" mean in the context of a funeral notice?
Is it appropriate to use when announcing the consecration (Unveiling in the Jewish ritual) of a tombstone?
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Informal use of the title 'sir'
I would like to hear from the forum regarding the use of 'sir' in American literature, such as 'The Manhattan Transfer' by Dos Passos published in 1923. In the Italian translation it is given in the ...
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1
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Reminder of promised resource [closed]
Someone promised me a resource and I haven't received it yet. I am tired of waiting so I would like to remind this person that he/she promised me something and ask about the situation.
My question is ...
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3
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1st or 3rd person in CV/résumé? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is it normal in English to talk about oneself in the third person in these cases?
I’m currently preparing my CV in English. I’m not a native English speaker, and I rarely ...
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8
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Can "Mr", "Mrs", etc. be used with a first name?
Is it correct to use Mr/Mrs with a first name?
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2
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"Institution", "body" or "organ"
I'm a non-native speaker active in a labor union that does not use English internally. The union has a representative assembly (made up of representatives of branches), whose existence is mandated by ...
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Is "embiggen" considered a formal or slang word?
If my memory serves me correctly, I first encountered the word embiggen a year or so ago. I thought it seemed odd, but in context, the meaning was quite obvious.
Since that time I've seen this word ...
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2
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Addressing Professors: Between Dr. and a hard place
Early in my (academic) life, I was told that it is appropriate to address a faculty as Professor only when he/she possesses the full Professorial rank and I would be better off addressing Assistant ...
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How common is "What happened?" when asking people to repeat what they said? How long has this been in common usage?
For several years, I have heard most young people and some adults use the phrase What happened? when they do not hear what is spoken. It appears to be used where previously several other phrases were ...
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What is a more formal way to say "Don't get me wrong"?
I think the phrase "Don't get me wrong" in conversation means, "I'm about to say something that you might misunderstand, so don't."
I'm looking for a similar phrase that sounds better when speaking ...
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What's a more formal name for a "third" party?
Two parties are trying to resolve some dispute that involves interest of both. Sometimes it's hard for them to reach an agreement on a fair basis. This is typically when another party who has no ...
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What is the male equivalent of "mistress" in formal English?
The mistress definition, Oxford dictionary
a woman having an extramarital sexual relationship, esp. with a married man
I am looking for the male equivalent of 'mistress' as defined above. Some ...
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"Alumnus" vs "dropout": Can you still call someone who chooses to quit college/university study an "alumnus" of that institution?
If someone chooses to quit college, I can refer to that person as a “former” student of that college. It therefore appears that I can use alumnus according to the definitions given for that term given ...
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How many articles should go in "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!"?
On the very first Christmas card it was written as "A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year..."
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/christmas-card-sayings-and-phrases.html
In Wiktionary that same ...
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Formally introducing yourself in an email
I am composing an email to a work associate who I have never had any dealings with before. I'm struggling to think of a formal yet succinct way of introducing myself.
In person, I would probably say: ...
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A question of informal punctuation: How do you correctly end a sentence with 'haha'?
What is the best way to end an informal sentence (such as a text or over Facebook chat) with haha?
Consider the following options:
It's always bugged me haha
It's always bugged me haha.
It's always ...
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When proper usage impedes communication
This question may be moderated as unanswerable, but I am interested in opinions.
Take this scenario: Most people I know will improperly correct "The ball belongs to John and me." to "The ball belongs ...
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Posting a letter and sending it via e-mail
I am sending a formal letter to a recipient by registered post and e-mail.
Is it convention to include within the e-mail/PDF such text like: "As sent via post on " or something similar to inform the ...
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Is there a U.S. equivalent or version of the Plain English Campaign? [closed]
I recently found out about the Plain English Campaign, a UK-based movement for simplification of document language. They advocate the use of plain English in corporate-to-consumer and state-to-...
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Are there clear differences in formality of words between British-English and American-English [closed]
I wonder if there are any clear distinctions regarding using formal words in British-English and in American-English. Do American and English people use different words when for instance asking a ...
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Can the word "that" be used to refer to people?
I came across this SAT Question of the Day:
Unbelievable as it may seem, many individuals that fought in the
American Revolution were still alive in 1839, the year the world was introduced to ...
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More formal way to say "just in case"
I thought "provisionally" was what I was looking for, as in:
"As a provisional measure, I'd like someone with Volkswagen Corporate to follow up with me next week."
What I really mean is:
"Just in ...
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Is "non-freedom" correct?
I need to write something like
Students were silenced because of social media posts: a case of non-freedom.
That isn't the exact context, but I need to know if non-freedom is correct.
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Meaning of "No, yes ..."
I'm not sure if this is something only Americans say, but it has confused me for a long time. If someone is asked a question why do some people respond with something like, "No, yes it was"? What does ...
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Appropriate use of "app" vs "application"
Can app serve as an accepted abbreviation for application in formal contexts? Is there some context where app is more accepted (for example, when talking about mobile applications)?
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Confusion over “family name” in English: What about double-barrelled last names? [closed]
How do you fill out an official form in English that asks for just one last name when you instead have a surname which comprises more than one word?
I currently live in a Latin country, where we ...