Questions tagged [meaning-in-context]
This tag is for questions about the meaning of a longer passage of English. A SPECIFIC CONCERN must be emphasized.
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1answer
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What's the meaning of “exposure ” in this context?
From a reading test on IELTS PTE Online titled "Allergy Testing,
A person does not become allergic to a particular substance until after the first exposure. However, in some cases, even trace ...
0
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1answer
13 views
Can I drop the “one” in this sentence?
“I think immigration is becoming a national issue and ONE that will need to be addressed by all parties in the fall.”
If I drop the “ONE”,will it cause any difference of the meaning？
0
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1answer
41 views
What is “The Evil Organization”?
Recently I clicked on a "hot" topic from Information Security.SE titled...
Buying a “Used” Router
A number of times the term "Evil Organization" came up in the comments. As in...
The Evil ...
0
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1answer
36 views
Is it right to say that a product has been “proofed” by its company?
I saw a company (in germany) advertise its product by saying that it is "Proofed by [company name]".
Is that right? I was a little confused, i can imagine that it is "right", but it is common to say ...
0
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1answer
30 views
What does ''to'' mean in this context?
The Helpline was set up ten years ago by the Students Union and it aims to provide new students to the university with a service that they can use if they need information about practical areas of ...
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0answers
25 views
What is the meaning of ''as'' in this context?
The programme starts at 10 o'clock. Try not to be late as it's a very full day.
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0answers
21 views
Does selected mean “it's chosen” or “chosen from”?
I entered a contest on Gurushots, and was glad when I got the right level to win. That level is called an "All-star". Then I went back and re-read the rules of the contest, now I'm not sure about ...
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3answers
134 views
meaning of “a priori” [on hold]
I am reading an article, but a sentence confuses me.
On one side, novels and films are opposed as “words” and “images,” agreed to be irreducible, untranslatable, a priori entities by most ...
0
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1answer
43 views
Can “removal” mean to move **to** a different place in contexts other than furniture, etc.?
The OLD includes the following meaning for the noun "removal" in British English:
an act of taking furniture, etc. from one house to another
Is the use of this noun with a similar meaning in ...
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0answers
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Meaning of “its own loom would have forsworn” in O Henry's “Furnished Room”
The paragraph is as follows;
The young man followed her up the stairs. A faint light from no particular source mitigated the shadows of the halls. They trod noiselessly upon a stair carpet that its ...
0
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0answers
33 views
What does the idiom “feel at home” mean in this context? [on hold]
Here is a sentence from an adventure game's description:
In the game. the characters' uppercuts feel right at home.
I know the lexical meaning of the said idiom. However, I am not sure if it fits ...
0
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1answer
20 views
What “I couldn't place it“ about an accent means?
Stephen Clarke wrote in A Year In the Merde, 2004 :
"Not really, I'm 27. If I was a rock star I'd be dead." The bloke made apologetic gestures. "No, no. Ah'm not criti-sashing. Ah'm just... ...
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0answers
19 views
Translation or interpretation [closed]
"The man who assaulted her late daughter."
How can we translate "late daughter"?
1
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1answer
26 views
What does the word “suggestion” mean?
I was recently speaking about a design challenge. This person felt that a side table was required and while I felt no side table was required, I said a shelf could also be used. This person then said ...
0
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1answer
25 views
The meaning of word earned [closed]
The meaning of word earned in this sentence: "Ashton lifted Gillian up and earned her to the kitchen"
1
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1answer
52 views
Meaning of “That'll get steam on the table.”
I was watching a movie featuring a conversation between two men. This is an attempt at transcribing the conversation:
Man #1: "I'm redistributing wealth. It's quite spiritual. Karma,
boy."
I'm ...
3
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3answers
34 views
Meaning of “it would not be a crime to do sth.” in nonlegal context
I recently had a discussion with a colleague regarding the exact meaning of the phrase "it would not be a crime to do sth." in the context of accepting a paper for publication. Specifically, a ...
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0answers
43 views
What does “drop off the edge” mean here? [on hold]
In the British film 'About a boy' I saw the expression 'If only two people someone drops off the edge'. what does it mean?
He said 'Suddenly I realized, two people isnt enough. You need to back ...
5
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2answers
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Austen's usage of the word “condescension”
I looked up the definition of "condescension" both in Merriam-Webster and the Oxford dictionary, both of which imply a negative connotation to the meaning, where the act of emphasizing one's ...
0
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1answer
42 views
What does “run the place” mean here? [closed]
"Virginia's state government seemed unable to find anyone to run the place who has not either applied boot polish to his face while at college or been accused of sexual assault. "
What do "run the ...
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0answers
31 views
Was there another reason for Carson's usage of poetic language in her book “Silent Spring” other than explaining science to common people? [closed]
Rachel Carson begins her book "Silent Spring" with an allegory, explaining how a small American town with beautiful nature, one day is destroyed and all the birds stop singing. Obviously she tries to ...
0
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1answer
24 views
You got a little butterfly there [closed]
Please help me to understand sentence "You got a little butterfly there when he did a little work on you" in the following dialog in movie "A violent man". Thanks a lot.
BENJAMIN GREEN: Ty ...
54
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4answers
9k views
“What would you with the king?” -From the book “Eats, Shoots and Leaves”
In the book Eats, Shoots and Leaves, in order to show how punctuation changes meaning and can be used for jokes, it says:
Instead of “What would you with the king?” you can have someone say in ...
2
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2answers
54 views
What does “90m-strong” mean here?
"Goumin, a pet-services portal, says China has 73.5m cat- or dog-owners, a group approaching the size of the 90m-strong Communist Party." What does "90m-strong" mean here? Thanks.
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2answers
50 views
What is the meaning of “hollowing” in this sentence?
What is the meaning of hollowing in this sentence?
Mr Haldane: “Jobs were effectively taken by machines of various types, there was a hollowing out of the jobs market, and that left a lot of ...
0
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1answer
27 views
'I didn't know I needed' meaning [closed]
I have seen this phrase in youtube comments:
the *sth* I didn't know I needed
Could you please explain what does it mean and in which cases should I use it?
0
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2answers
43 views
What does “that would be a mistake” mean here?
"The situation is a test of President Donald Trump and his foreign-policy team, including the hawkish national security adviser, John Bolton. This week Mr Bolton hinted at the use of American troops. ...
0
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1answer
41 views
What is the definition of dig? If someone begins to cut into a surface is it considered that they have dug something? if not, why not?
According to the following extract:
Mrs. Baker wanted to go ice fishing. She read several books on the subject, and finally, after purchasing all the necessary equipment, she went onto the ice. ...
2
votes
1answer
63 views
What is the difference between an echelon and a rank?
I am talking in terms of military ranks and structures.
Throughout various sources, I see the two words being used interchangeably, but I cannot still see any clear distinction between the two.
From ...
0
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4answers
45 views
“can't it at least be over a real problem?”? [closed]
In the following text, what does it mean by "can't it at least be over a real problem?"
Climate change. Most scientists — and nations — see it as the mother of all crises. Mr. Trump’s approach thus ...
2
votes
1answer
56 views
what is the meaning of 'ruinously'?
What meaning does 'ruinously' convey in the given sentence:
"A city so ruinously sad that it had forgotten its name."
Does it mean that, it was so badly sad that it had forgotten its name or that ...
0
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1answer
45 views
Is “getting yourself being told to” a valid sentence?
Imagine constantly getting yourself being told to do something.
Is the above a valid sentence? The question is particularly about the part "getting yourself being" in this context. This phrase ...
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0answers
27 views
Meaning of nuance in context?
What is the meaning of the word Nuance in the following context: The expression of subtle nuances of thought
According to the definition, nuances are subtle differences in or shades of meaning, ...
0
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0answers
29 views
“too stupid to insult” meaning
In the film, "The Hangover", there is a scene where one of the characters say to another:
"You are literally too stupid to insult"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDbuhhRthqU
By this, does he mean:
...
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vote
3answers
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the meaning of the word “shade” in this context?
There is this paragraph in the book called .
Motivated reasoning is a state of mind in which we find ourselves
willing (perhaps at an unconscious level) to shade our beliefs in
light of our ...
0
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0answers
24 views
When is “Mike mistook Mr. Daniels for Jack” appropriate, and when is “Mike mistook Mr. Daniels as Jack” appropriate?
in the following sentence:
Mike mistook Mr. Daniels [as or for] Jack.
which word am I supposed to use—"for" or "as"?
In everyday spoken English, I hear both, which is quite confusing, so I am ...
1
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0answers
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adverb vs. adverb + enough
Interestingly, only 38% of couples bother to get married these days.
Interestingly enough, only 38% of couples bother to get married these days.
What is the difference between the meanings of 1 ...
0
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0answers
29 views
Meaning of “would” in “This is what I would realise after I got home”
Sentence:
And this is what I would realise for sure after I got home from talking to the man on the bus.
Question:
The sentence is taken from the book "Yes Man". I don't understand whether "would ...
0
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1answer
37 views
what is the meaning of “more often than not now” and the bold paragraph ? Thank you so much!
It took humans 10,000 years to learn how to grow most of the crops we now take for granted. Along the way, we despoiled most of the land we worked, often turning verdant, natural eco-zones into semi-...
1
vote
1answer
33 views
Meaning of “feet to the flames”
Nia Warfield, "Crude oil is on track for its best January ever," CNBC:
Kelly also noted that investors are now holding oil companies' "feet to the flames" to increase cash flow amid the surge ...
0
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1answer
89 views
Meaning and usage of “There is a lock for every key”
The other day I was watching a television series called The Big Bang Theory on Netflix, and in season 5, episode 6, which is entitled The Rhinitis Revelation Mary Cooper said the following:
Now you ...
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0answers
15 views
Can participant be used for devices or machines
I have a technical documentation where robots are working together in a team. They are referred to as participants (lower case!). Is this correct in English? How should it be called? (field bus) ...
1
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1answer
47 views
Difference between “Being Of” and “Being About”
I am trying to understand the difference between Being of something and Being about something.
I've been reading about the difference between Think of and Think about, but I'm still not sure how it ...
0
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0answers
32 views
What is the exact meaning of “otherness” in following sentence
The sentence in question is this one:
"He wanted, of course, to imagine the dark, savage way of life, to get it all off pat in his head. He wanted to know as the Indians and savages know, darkly, ...
4
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1answer
32 views
What is the meaning of ‘ accommodate ‘ in this context?
The concept of indoor farming is not new, since hothouse production of tomatoes and other produce has been in vogue for some time. What is new is the urgent need to scale up this technology to ...
1
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1answer
47 views
'instinct for conventionality' meaning sense of humor?
This is an extract from Political Ideals (1917) by Bertrand Russell:
In combination with the instinct for conventionality,[1] which man
shares with the other gregarious animals, those who profit ...
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0answers
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Diffrence between that and the fact that [migrated]
Is there any diffrence between sentences below ?
1) It turned out that he lied all along.
2) The fact that he lied all along turned out .
3)It doesn’t interest me that he came late.
4) The fact ...
0
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0answers
23 views
Not sure what does this paragraph means
"Purchased three computers for 12 months, lease paying the first month installment in cash of net worth of 40,000 each."
Does it mean a single computer monthly installment costs 40,000 or the total ...
18
votes
1answer
3k views
What does 'Elk' mean in this context?
Watching Columbo, S02E04 Dagger of the Mind and this exchange takes place between Columbo and a Detective. They are in a gentleman's club, leather furniture, bookcases of old books, butler, etc.
...
0
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0answers
41 views
you're up on the board (can't make any sense)
I'm translating a tv show and I have no idea what they are saying in a scene. They are working out at gym, the woman finishes her set and this dialogue comes, here's the script:
Man: That was five ...
