Questions tagged [grammaticality]
This tag is for questions about whether something obeys the rules of grammar in English. The question must INCLUDE THE SPECIFIC GRAMMATICAL CONCERN. If your question is about grammar itself, please use the "grammar" tag.
508
questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
3
votes
2
answers
163
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Can I drop the word "like" in certain instances?
The particular example I am thinking of here is: "This sounds like a noble pursuit." I was wondering if it would be grammatically correct to drop the like: hence, "this sounds a noble pursuit."
It ...
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3
votes
1
answer
215
views
Seem small clause
It is said that the omission of "to be" is allowed only when the adjective (phrases), noun (phrases), or prepositional phrase comes after the to be like this:
a He seemed (to be) angry about the ...
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3
votes
1
answer
458
views
Can you say "rancoring"?
I know it's an adjective, but I googled it, and found it in an article about John McEnroe, specifically, "a rancoring go-to-hell beast".
I was wondering if it is okay to use the word as if it were a ...
3
votes
1
answer
501
views
Subordinating conjunctions "who" & "when" as subject clause?
I understand who and when can be used to introduce adjective clause for sure like the following sentences.
The time when it is good for us to meet has not been decided.
The person who is qualified ...
3
votes
2
answers
211
views
Placement of “anymore” with respect to other complements, as in "not possible anymore to …"
I often see sentences like this from non-native speakers:
?It is not possible anymore to cross the border without a passport.
To me, this sounds wrong, and I would write this instead:
It is no ...
3
votes
3
answers
340
views
Trying to determine if a specific clause/phrase is essential or non-essential
I am a volunteer English tutor. My advanced ESL student wrote the following sentence after reading an article:
However, recent studies, in Sweden and in Finland, have found out that different ...
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2
votes
0
answers
57
views
"The exam sheet should only be used to write answers (on)"
Do I need the prepositions in these sentences?
The exam sheet should only be used to write answers (on).
The blanks should only be used to write answers (in).
The equipment should only be used to ...
- 339
2
votes
0
answers
42
views
Why should the past simple tense be used in this case?
In the following sentences, the past simple tense is used after the present perfect tense. Both sentences are connected with each other:
I have been hit by a baseball bat in the past. It felt awful!
...
- 21
2
votes
0
answers
43
views
Hyphenation when adding a prefix to a hyphenated phrase
Consider these hyphenated phrases:
"State-of-the-art design"
"family-owned cafe"
Are the following modified phrases grammatically correct? Are they idiomatic?
"sub-state-of-...
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2
votes
2
answers
102
views
Why is "strategies to cutting" correct in this sentence?
I'm reading When Breath Becomes Air by the late Paul Kalanithi, and I came across the sentence:
I could see that there were two strategies to cutting the time short...
My question is why to cutting ...
- 23
2
votes
0
answers
322
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Have got + adjective (Present Perfect)
this is a question most suited to British speakers!
I am aware of the difference between the British and the American "get" conjugation (got-gotten). Now, I have come across the sentence "My cough has ...
- 21
2
votes
0
answers
233
views
syntactic function of word "if"
What syntactic function does the word "if" serves in this sentence.
Certain pesticides can become ineffective if used repeatedly in the same place.
This sentence is taken from GMAC prep material ...
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2
votes
0
answers
146
views
"Try one's hand at something" -- why is it not hands?
I came across this phrase today
Try one's hand at something
Why is it not hands since we have a pair of hands?
In addition to that, I have also noticed both
pleasing to the ear
pleasing ...
- 1,975
2
votes
0
answers
104
views
Usage of “so” in “So do I”
What are the grammatical rules behind the construction using “so” in the following examples?
A: “I like chocolate.” B: “So do I.”
Alice likes chocolate. So does Bob.
Both examples seem to be correct....
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2
votes
0
answers
38k
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at our side / on our side / from our side
I'm developing a web form wich communicates with an external service and they are validating the data that I send to them from the web form. But, I would like to manage the validation by my self.
I'm ...
- 121
2
votes
0
answers
94
views
Semantic implications of "The President and we are disbanding the Forum"
In a widely publicized statement, a group of CEO's on President Trump's "Strategic and Policy Forum" wrote that because of contention surrounding recent statements by the president:
As such, the ...
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2
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Which is correct: “as” vs “to”?
On a sister site, there is a difference of opinion where each claims the other is a grammatical error (look at revisions 4 and 5).
Option Ω:
…, with a similar effect on humans to Wolbachia in ...
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2
votes
0
answers
307
views
Is the placement of the participial phrase correct here?
I am using a participial phrase to modify the noun. But instead of the more common way of starting the sentence with the participial phrase, I want to use a medial parenthesis:
So instead of this
...
- 1,966
2
votes
0
answers
1k
views
How to drop a pronoun? (pronoun-dropping/removing 'I'/omitting the subject)
I wrote resume and got stuck in this place. There are recommendations to write your achievements in the short form (without "I"):
"Worked with ... "
"Created something ... "
"Collaborated with ... "...
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2
votes
1
answer
40
views
Grammatical number of a noun with multiple attributes
The problem in question is in the following sentence:
The lecture was on the parameters used in the calculation(s) of the DAS28, SDAI, and CDAI.
The last three abbreviations stand for individual ...
- 21
2
votes
1
answer
20k
views
What's the correct phrase to use? In our app or on our app
This new service will be available in our app.
This new service will be available on our app.
What's correct? Second one feels wrong but interested to know what's right here.
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2
votes
1
answer
99
views
I am confused with usage about 'the' and object complement
Is the sentence as below correct in grammar? And is it clear enough?
Please copy & paste keyword, mykeyword, into the search box of Google
Play Store app or website to locate this pure app ...
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2
votes
3
answers
372
views
Small clauses (or verbless clauses)
Small clauses are clauses with "to be" deleted.
I found him (to be) difficult.
And as we all know, an adjective complement can be added afterward.
I found him (to be) difficult to work with.
...
- 31
2
votes
1
answer
249
views
"The soil is too arid to plant seeds." Is "to plant seeds" correct here?
I feel something's wrong with the part "to plant seeds", whose logical subject should be a person. I wonder if the sentence is right or how to correct it the other way around.
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2
votes
1
answer
75
views
Posessive pronouns after a noun?
I seem to recall reading something like "anguish thine is but a dream". The posessive pronoun thine is after a noun anguish it relates to. Probably, it is from some verse.
I don't encounter such ...
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1
vote
0
answers
30
views
"who/what should ... but" structure, examples with different tenses?
Here's an example sentence with that structure:
I looked under the bed, and what should I find but the keys I lost last week?
Are the following sentences correct in different tenses?
I was looking ...
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1
vote
0
answers
29
views
Why can you omit existential there when an adverbial phrase begins the sentence? Can you omit it in an existential question?
There are zebras in the zoo.
Becomes:
In the zoo (there) are zebras.
Does "in the zoo" become the subject instead of "there"? If so, if we don't omit "there", does ...
- 49
1
vote
0
answers
40
views
Understanding defining and non-defining relative clauses in the context of mathematics
I am a student of mathematics and I have to write my thesis in English. A problem which occurs very often is the distinction between defining and non-defining relative clauses. In mathematics, this ...
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1
vote
0
answers
48
views
Position of relative clauses after verb
I myself consider the sentence offset below to be correct; however, some of my associates regard it as being wrong. I would like your advice on it.
The sentence is
Jane Austen published 4 novels, who ...
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1
vote
0
answers
172
views
(Rather than) as a conjunction
It is said that, as a conjunction, the two constructions on each side of (rather than) must be parallel. So can this phrase join two sentences like this? (I know there are better ways of doing it)
I ...
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1
vote
0
answers
61
views
"there were expected" vs "there were expected to be"
There aren't half as many guests as there were expected.
There aren't half as many guests as there were expected to be.
What's the difference if I add in the end of that sentence "to be"? ...
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1
vote
0
answers
91
views
Can the use of singular 'they' for a dog that was just called 'she' be considered correct in English?
There's a video on the internet of a dog under the covers and the owner lifts the covers as the large dog spills out and onto the floor like water. The person refers to the dog as "she".
In ...
- 21
1
vote
0
answers
61
views
Could "being" be omitted in "spend time (being) someone"?
I came across a sentence in Maugham's The Moon and Sixpence that I don't quite comprehend:
They may spend their whole lives aliens among their kindred, and remain aloof among the only scenes they ...
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1
vote
0
answers
40
views
Why do we sometimes omit and sometimes retain the conjunctions "because/while/when etc" when reducing adverb clauses?
We can reduce this sentence
"Because she has a test next week, she is studying very hard." (1-1) -> "Having a test next week, she is studying very hard." (1-2)
"Before he ...
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1
vote
0
answers
33
views
Perfect infinitive- Expressing future
The perfect infinitive can refer to something that will be completed at a point in the future.
Example:
We hope to have finished the building works by the end of March.
Can I replace the verb "...
1
vote
0
answers
460
views
Why do Christians in American deep south say "whenever" when they mean "when"?
As a midwestern American (Iowa), I want to understand the history, reason, and mechanics of why southern Americans say "whenever" when the word "when" would suffice.
For instance:
...
1
vote
0
answers
74
views
Can we neglect subject in passive voice?
Hello I want to know that whether the following statement grammatically and semantically correct or not
ceremony has been decided to be held tomorrow
here it is in passive voice and we are not ...
1
vote
0
answers
23
views
Dialogue usage uncertainty
Sorry for the vague title! I'm writing a short story and I'm wondering if the below sentence is correct. Should a new paragraph be started when she hears the shout, since it's technically dialogue? Or ...
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1
vote
0
answers
125
views
Is this the correct usage of commas in Alice in Wonderland?
Reading Alice in Wonderland, I noticed a strange use of commas:
The only things in the kitchen that did not sneeze, were the cook, and a large cat which was sitting on the hearth and grinning from ...
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1
vote
0
answers
71
views
What does this "neither....nor" sentence really mean?
"There are neither serious doubts about Facebook’s dominant position on the German social network market nor the fact that Facebook is abusing this dominant position,” the court said.
What does ...
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1
vote
0
answers
107
views
I would enjoy it, but I've already seen it
CONTEXT:
John has asked Samantha out, and they are going to the movies. John tells Samantha the name of the movie they are about to watch. Samantha has already seen that movie, and she doesn't want to ...
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1
vote
0
answers
2k
views
Training of vs Training for
training for all users across..
training of all users across..
Are these interchangeable and grammatically correct?
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1
vote
0
answers
267
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Help me understand the structure of this sentence from Virginia Woolf To the Lighthouse
I have some knowledge of English syntax with tree diagrams. Now, I'm learning traditional sentence diagramming. Of course, I want to challenge myself, and I chose to understand a sentence from ...
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1
vote
1
answer
178
views
Can "life" be used in reference to more than one person?
Is it grammatically correct to use the word life in the singular when referring to more than one person?
I found the following sentences in the Corpus of Contemporary American English.
a. we can ...
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1
vote
0
answers
19
views
Singular vs plural when listing multiple items
Mutation of the human genome results in three classes of genomic
variant: single nucleotide; short insertions or deletions; and large
structural variants (SVs).
Is this case, should genomic variant ...
- 11
1
vote
1
answer
51
views
Generalization or definition of the word "from" when used in "I returned to the city from having travelled the world"
I contrived this sentence, but had a hard time explaining how to construct sentences of similar nature, the sentence being
He returned to the city from having travelled the world
Meaning, "[...
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1
vote
0
answers
51
views
Omitting the verb but changing the subject in enumeration
If I say:
Alpha denotes the car's speed and Beta [denotes] the acceleration.
Can I omit the second "denotes"?
Is there any rule that justifies this?
The omission sounds good to me in the ...
- 11
1
vote
0
answers
27
views
Is this an explanatory/appositive phrase, and do I need to separate it with a comma?
In the following sentence (forgive the obscure acronyms):
To begin with, we search within three pixels of the predicted position to lock onto the target, using the WCS header in each FITS file to ...
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1
vote
0
answers
21
views
Every single logo, advert, presentation and video IS or ARE?
I know that every single is followed by singular, but what if there are different units after "every single"?
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1
vote
0
answers
187
views
How should a numbered list be punctuated within dialogue?
In a story, a character reads aloud a numbered list. What should the punctuation be? I was thinking of treating it like a recitation of a poem or song - indented and italicized. There are 26 items in ...
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