Questions tagged [grammar]
This tag is for questions about morphology and syntax, the two elements of grammar. DO NOT USE THIS TAG IF YOUR QUESTION IS ABOUT WHETHER SOMETHING SPECIFIC IS GRAMMATICAL. For such cases use the 'grammaticality' tag. Also do not use this for punctuation or spelling (orthography); those are not about grammar, and they have their own tags.
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Are there any simple rules for choosing the definite vs. indefinite (vs. none) article?
I can’t for the life of me figure out where to use a and where to use the — and where there is no article at all. Is there a simple rule of thumb to memorize?
The standard rule you always hear:
“...
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votes
4
answers
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When should a verb be followed by a gerund instead of an infinitive?
Some verbs are followed by ing, e.g. I enjoy swimming. We can't say I enjoy to swim. Likewise, some verbs are followed by to, e.g. I decided to make a plan.
Which particular verbs are followed by ...
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9
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When do I use "I" instead of "me?"
From some comments in the answers for common English usage mistakes (now deleted, 10k only), there's confusion around the usage of I vs. me:
While the sentence, "the other attendees are myself and ...
- 1,874
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3
answers
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Inversion in "only [adverb] have they"
I have seen this construction quite often:
Online ads have been around since the dawn of the Web, but only in
recent years have they become the rapturous life dream of Silicon
Valley.
What is ...
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4
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When should I use the subjunctive mood?
In which cases should I use the subjunctive mood?
I suggest that every applicant fill out the form carefully.
If she were rich, she would live on Long Island.
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Are there any rules on the positioning adverbs should take in a sentence?
For example:
Ever wish you could share information broadly
Could it be rewritten to:
Ever wish you could broadly share information
Are there any rules for the position of the adverbs.
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7
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How does one know when to use a gerund or an infinitive?
As a native speaker of English, the gerund version of this sentence sounds better:
infinitive:
When used together in chains,
extension methods are an unprecedented
tool to produce extremely ...
- 14k
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votes
2
answers
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Present perfect for past action with present effect
If I seem tired, can I say: "I haven't slept last night"? If not, why have I been told that we use present perfect for actions that have present effects?
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8
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What exactly is an "adverb"?
From comments to “Weekdays” used as an adverb", I learn that The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary says "open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.", shows the word weekdays is an adverb.
It seems to me ...
- 140k
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Non-finite clause complementation of complex transitive verbs
This question has been bothering me for a while. It came up when I was reading Chapter 16 of "A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language."
How to explain the grammatical structure of the ...
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Difference between "I have got" and "I have gotten"
I see these two expressions are used almost identically in different contexts. Is there a difference between I have got and I have gotten?
- 11.2k
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3
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Changing subject and verb positions in statements and questions
We always change subject and verb positions in whenever we want to ask a question such as "What is your name?". But when it comes to statements like the following, which form is correct?
I don't ...
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Can all coordinating conjunctions be used to connect nouns, adjectives, etc. as well as clauses?
To the best of my knowledge, there are seven coordinating
conjunctions only five of which can connect nouns, phrases,
adjectives, and clauses. That's what they are said to do:
connect those things. ...
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3
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"How do we call (something) in English?"
Is it really wrong to say "How do we call something in English?" instead of "What do we call something in English?"? The former's not unusual in Philippine English at all (probably it's because of the ...
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Omitting "and" in a sentence
He called her, emailed her, texted her, tweeted her—all to no use.
Strictly speaking, I would need to write texted her and tweeted her, but I'm omitting and to convey a rhythm and sense of urgency. ...
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13
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How can I reliably and accurately identify the passive voice in writing or speech?
How can I reliably and accurately identify the passive voice in writing or speech? I'm not interested in advice about whether or not to use it yet... I just want to know for sure what it is, so that I ...
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4
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"going to" vs "will"
I know several questions were asked about the difference between "going to" and "will".
Based on several answers (see, for instance, here, here and here), I understood that "will" is more spontaneous ...
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8
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Is there any difference between Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous?
I have studied "present perfect" and "present perfect continuous" for a week. I know forms, verb and helping verb I should use when I write them.
For me, they have nearly same definition because I ...
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4
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“I like to do (be) something” vs “I like doing (being) something”
This is what I read in an answer to a previous question:
Verbs Followed by Either Gerund or Infinitive
Sometimes the meaning changes according to the verb used.
<…>
(dis)like
&...
user3286
44
votes
11
answers
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What does "it" refer to in "it's raining"?
I wanted to leave the question title as is so as not to take away from my amusement :).
Anyway,
It's raining.
What is raining? Is it the sky? The clouds? The weather? The rain? What is "it"? Any ...
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4
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Can “due to” and “because of ” be used interchangeably?
Is it fine to use due to in place of because of ? How about the other way around? Are any of these sentences ungrammatical?
He was lost because of the storm.
He was lost due to the storm.
He lost his ...
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4
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If the English language is always evolving, why do we need to learn and follow grammatical rules?
Since language evolves over time — the best example I can think of is slang where it mostly doesn't follow grammar rules — why is there a need to preserve grammar or stress that proper ...
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13
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"May" & "Might": What's the right context?
I may not be coming in tomorrow...
I might not be coming in tomorrow...
When should I use "may" and when should I use "might"?
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votes
1
answer
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Is "group" singular or plural? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is a company always plural, or are small companies singular?
When I'm referring to a group of multiple things, should it be considered singular or plural for the purposes of ...
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votes
2
answers
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Subject/Complement Agreement. How to describe problem with "The thing is/are the objects."
In my ell answer, version 32, I provided the following, problematic, wording (especially bold italic), and I need help to better understand this issue so I can fix my answer:1
The thing is ...
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3
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"than it's worth" adjective or noun
It's more headache than it's worth. It's more trouble than it's worth.
Is this "worth" adjective or noun?
I think the adjective "worth" needs an object after it.
However, there is ...
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votes
7
answers
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Is using passive voice "bad form"?
Whenever I create a document in Microsoft Word, it complains about a lot of my sentences being in passive voice. But, when I read that sentence aloud, it sounds fine to me. I am not sure if it is just ...
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2
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Why do we say "It's time we ate" and not "It's time we eat"?
Why do we use the simple past but not the present or future in the following expressions:
Don't you think it's time we went a little further
Don't you think it's time we ate
Don't you think it's time ...
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0
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Past tense or present tense to describe something that 'happened in the past' but is still true? [duplicate]
For example:
"Last week, I found out that NASA stands for 'National Aeronautics and Space Administration.'"
or
"Last week, I found out that NASA stood for 'National Aeronautics and Space ...
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6
answers
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"I didn't realize it was him." [duplicate]
Overheard on an elevator today,
I didn't realize it was him.
Corrected by the know-it-all,
He. "I didn't realize it was he."
The know-it-all then went on a rant about how everybody is a dolt ...
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1
answer
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How to correctly use the present perfect tense
This link states that:
When you use the present perfect tense you have to be talking about a period of time that you still consider to be going on. For example, if it’s still morning, you can say, &...
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votes
8
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The hidden flaw in "singular they"—what to do about reflexive pronouns?
We have a highly regarded answer by nohat to a question about gender-neutral pronouns, in which he points to the "singular they" and its long history of use in English. (Note that he also advises ...
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votes
2
answers
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How are embedded quotations used? [closed]
How would embedded quotations be used when quoting from passages/sources within an essay? What would be the difference between normal quotations and embedded quotations?
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7
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"Dangling Participles"
My case here is that I was writing something for school, and my teacher explained an error which I really can't see.
She referred to articles about "dangling participles", which was ...
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Why use "need not" instead of "do not need to"?
The header of psyco.sourceforge.net states:
High-level languages need not be slower than low-level ones.
Why use need not instead of do not need? What does it mean? Also, why no to before be?
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Why do some adjectives follow the nouns they modify?
Right now I can only think of one instance in which this regularly occurs. The adjective proper is sometimes placed after the noun it modifies, e.g:
Reptilia: A class of cold-blooded oviparous or ...
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7
votes
3
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Correct usage of ‘on’, ‘at’ and ‘in’
As a foreign English speaker who never really studied too much English grammar other than the basics at high school, I often struggle to decide what is the correct preposition to use in certain ...
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7
answers
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"I'm well" vs. "I'm good" vs. "I'm doing well", etc
The greeting How are you? is asking How are you doing in general?
—
How are you?
I'm well. [Misunderstood the question.]
because well as an adjective which means:
in good health especially ...
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14
votes
7
answers
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Is "running" a gerund or a participial adjective?
An enlightening experiment
Google Books yields only 39 results, and instead asks me if I wanted to say “an enlightening experience”, and eagerly shows an impressive 10,000 results when I click on ...
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To infinitive used after adjective
This question is relatively simple. I don't understand why we never use passive form of to infinitive after the adjective unless the subject is "it".
For example:
He is difficult to please.
...
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Is this correct? "One of the things that makes him great is..."
One of the things that makes him great is he brings it every night.
I'm pretty sure it should be that make him in the plural, because one of the things is referring to a lot of things and a lot of ...
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Why do we use the base form of verbs instead of the past form in past tense questions?
In regard to this answer, my question is similar but that answer is not clear. I want to know why we use base form of verb, e.g. 'go' to form the past tense instead of past form such as 'went'?
...
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3
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Is it: My apples and orange are/is wrong?
Simple question:
My apples and orange are wrong
or
My apples and orange is wrong
I am not a native English speaker, and I am having some trouble choosing between plural are or singular is for ...
- 1,752
28
votes
2
answers
380k
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How to use "to + V-ing"?
I saw some scenarios that used the structure "to + V-ing", such as the following:
Looking forward to hearing.
Disposed to using few words.
I would like to apply what I learned in school to helping ...
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2
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"Give him a box that everyone knows what it contains."
"Give him a box that everyone knows what it contains."
Is this correct English? It sounds wrong to me.
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position of "only"
Which sentence is correct?
(A) Mosquito larvae can only be seen through a microscope.
(B) Mosquito larvae can be only seen through a microscope.
(C) Mosquito larvae can be seen only through ...
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Is there an apostrophe in a master's degree?
The question asks it all really. When referring to a master's degree, do you use an apostrophe or not? That is, is it "a master's" or "a masters"?
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5
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What is the accepted stance on using "they" in a singular form? [duplicate]
Is it good English to say "They have just left", when talking about a single person (perhaps someone you don't know the gender of)?
(I am a native English speaker, I'm looking for the view held by ...
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"I think him to be about 50" or "I think he is about 50"?
I have two options. Which one is correct?
a) I think him to be about 50.
b) I think he is about 50.
If both are correct, should I avoid one or the other?
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Is there a name for the abbreviated syntax used in signs etc?
For instance, a train sign might say South bound trains this platform rather than Use this platform to take a Southbound train.
There is an interesting lack of articles and sometimes verbs, is there ...
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