Questions tagged [speech]
Questions about spoken English.
488
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Conditional (if) [migrated]
Nowadays, countless websites will only function if you open an account, which means providing them with an email address and some of your personal data.
Nowadays, countless websites will only ...
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How to answer to the message “Thank you for giving the opportunity to add me in your net” [closed]
The person texted me this message in LinkedIn. Can you help me with the answer.
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Rewriting in an indirect tone: B: "Peer pressure has its benefits as well. Our peers also motivate and inspire us to do better and work hard."
A: "It is difficult to fight against peer pressure."
B: "Peer pressure has its benefits as well."
So shouldn't this be:
A said that it is difficult to fight against peer pressure. ...
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Schwa in Webster dictionary [closed]
Why there are too many sounds marked by schwa in Webster's dictionary and how to recognize the correct pronunciation? E.g.:
Cup /kʌp/ in Oxford and \ˈkəp\ in Webster
Notice /ˈnəʊtɪs/ in Oxford and \...
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Goodly/godly, loose/lose - name of the rhetorical device? [closed]
What is the name of the following rhetorical device?
loose - lose
goodly - godly
(not in the sense that both words are used in a text but that one is used while implicitly implying the other, e.g. ...
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Cardinal numbers in dates when speaking
I understand that in speaking (if we are talking strictly about formal rules) it is more common to use ordinal numbers and not cardinal numbers. However, it has come to my attention that people these ...
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When is the "t" pronounced in won’t, don’t, can’t?
I am a speaker of Canadian English. I have noticed that when people pronounce won’t, don’t, and can’t, often when speaking normally, they don’t release the “t”, as in connected speech. The standard ...
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We decided that if they do not leave the place in one day, we would surely force them out. To use 'do not' or 'did not' in this sentence?
We decided that if they do not leave the place in one day, we would surely force them out.
We decided that if they did not leave the place in one day, we would surely force them out.
Difference ...
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What signifies a reporting clause?
I know reporting clauses are punctuated thus:
(1) She said, 'We are about to close you know?'
but what if the phrase prior to the speech is not a speech tag. For example, is it:
(2) She looked ...
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How do American speakers use the present subjunctive in a less formal way on American-English? [duplicate]
Although we don't use present subjunctive often, there are some kind of times you practically need to use it.
For example, in British-English you usually use "should" in the present ...
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Is this a case of free indirect speech?
I would like to know if Rowling uses the technique of free indirect speech in this piece of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, particularly in the italicized part.
Harry was silent. Judging by ...
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Sorkin's "Your imagination, like a child, will explode with unrestrained possibilities for adventure." Works so well despite feeling problematic; why? [closed]
I'm going to somewhat but not completely premise my question on the following:
the line is likely written or edited by Aaron Sorkin rather than Kevin Falls (Galileo West Wing Season 2 Episode 9 ...
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2
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Meaning of the Verses [closed]
Genesis 23:15-16
15 My master, hear me; the land is worth four hundred shekels of
silver; what is that between me and you? and bury your dead.
16 And Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed to ...
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Talking without doing the act [duplicate]
What’s the word when you mention something without actually doing something about it.
Like talking about climate change but not actually doing anything to mitigate it
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Word for explaining something cruelly
I'm looking for something to describe speech that is something along the lines of cruel, menacing, tormenting, and dripping with malicious meaning. But not quite outright threatening, i.e. not "I'...
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Help Fixing Yoda-like Sentence Structure? [closed]
I'm a native American English speaker and have noticed something in my speech/writing that I don't really understand. I've noticed my speech sounds "Yoda-ish" and have been trying to figure ...
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Why women are not called gentle? [duplicate]
Avoj friends I have a question - When the host say "Ladies and gentlemen" why they don't put gentle before Ladies? I think ladies are more gentle than men. Why not it be "men and gentle-...
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"It is!" I squealed at the same time she cried, "It's not!" - Is this sentence correct? [closed]
Is this sentence apt? -
"It is!" I squealed at the same time she cried, "It's not!"
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Past Continuous in reported speech
Let's imagine someone has told me:
Last month while we were traveling in Cyprus, my mother was packing her bags for her first ever foreign trip.
I was wondering whether I could paraphrase it, and ...
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Do "cook the" and "cooked the" get pronounced differently?
How are they different in pronunciation?
In other words, how can one recognise the difference purely by sound?
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Is the double "do" in the expression "If I do do it" more acceptable in spoken vs. written English? [closed]
I'm a native English speaker from the Midwestern United States. While writing a description to a colleague of some work that I recently did, I found myself typing a sentence to the effect of "I'...
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Pronunciation of numbers in address [closed]
When I say the name of a street with “at”, like “at 12 Oxford St”, should I pronounce the number as cardinal or ordinal? And if it is ordinal, do I get it right that it still must always be written ...
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Possessive apostrophes with names in speech marks [duplicate]
I'm translating a text that refers to a person who goes by a nickname, so in the text this nickname is always shown in speech marks - "El Cuco". How do I use a possessive apostrophe ...
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"from the standpoint of" vs "in terms of"
I've been confused by the usage of "from the standpoint of" and "in terms of".
Could anyone tell me if both of the following sentences are correct?
In terms of a high standard ...
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57
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What does the intonation pattern on "online" mean or imply? [closed]
What does the speaker mean or imply with the intonation on "online" at 0:31 around? A negative and doubtful query? Does the intonation pattern on "online" completely fall at the ...
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What is the intonation or pitch pattern of "parties" at 0:30?
I wonder what the intonation or pitch pattern of "parties" at 0:30 around is in the clip? Why does the stress seem to fall on the both syllables, "par" and "ties"? While ...
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"Either x or either y-" why does this occur?
Recently, I've noticed several instances of people repeating "either" in sentences, ex. "you're either the predator or you're either the prey." Is this a documented phenomenon, or ...
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‘Thank you’ has an exceptionally special place among ‘good’ words used as irony?
A. A. Milne, best known for his books about Winnie-the-Pooh, is much less noted as a prolific playwright of about forty plays. They are carefully crafted works that continue to entertain and delight ...
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"She was beautiful, she was." [duplicate]
What is the term used to describe sentences such as:
They did all they could, they did.
It was a gorgeous day, it was.
EDIT: Thank you so much to all who helped; you guys are great!
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How did you find it? vs What did you make of it? vs How did it [you] go?
What is the difference between those follow up questions?
For example, if my friend said "I tried making octopus dumplings for the first time last night",
can I add response follow up ...
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Is this a correct sentence. "If I want to do this, so do you."? [closed]
As we say, "If I can do that, so can you". In a similar way can we use the sentence, "If I want to do this, so do you."?
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Does "for the record" come from legislatures' us(ag)e of the term? [closed]
So, what you'll hear sometimes is people saying, "for the record" before they say what they're going to say. Now, I know that in Congress and other similar institutions around the world (...
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"Being beaten to it by a week"? [closed]
I was watching this: video 0:26, and got lost about what he was saying. Roughly, what I heard was: "Another criterion is that it should be something that few other people are doing, because there ...
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What Literary device is in use, when the tone/pronunciation/intonation/delivery of a word or phrase gives its double meaning
What is the literary device used in the above scenario called?
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What is Skinn & Sheer in the Ambrose Bierce fable: The Rainmaker?
In the tale of Ambrose Bierce - The Rainmaker it is said the following:
hat is a pretty good joke," said the Reporter, laughing as well as he could in the strangling rain - "a mule driver's ...
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Started early because I had some lectures to attend later on. OR Started early because I have some lectures to attend later on
Which one of the following sentences is correct?
I started early because I had some lectures to attend later on.
OR
I started early because I have some lectures to attend later on.
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This RP accent makes me confused and mad
I'm trying to choose between RP and my current conventional accents/pronunciations.
For already two weeks I've been looking for some proves that RP is worth something and it's well-accepted everywhere....
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positive or negative denotation question. Please help! [closed]
Denotation refers to a word's meaning. Does the word MOBILE have a positive or negative denotation?
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Spoken equivalent of ... (ellipsis)?
When skipping part of the sentence or paragraph in a direct quote, it is common to use the ellipsis (...)
There are two ways of misunderstanding a poem ... the other to praise it for qualities that ...
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How do you pronounce "archmage"?
From Wikipedia:
The term archmage is used in fantasy works as a title for a powerful magician or a leader of magicians.
Should it be pronounced arch, ark, or some other way?
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vocative comma by default
If I say, "I will go skiing Nonna....." By default are the words preceding Nonna being addressed to Nonna? Or can I argue that my words preceding Nonna are not being addressed to Nonna, but ...
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punctuating speech - comma versus period
If I said, "I will go fishing John will I go shopping today." If I take "Will I go shopping today" to be a separate sentence on its own. Is there a way of punctuating it so that ...
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Are there recognized restrictions or categories for spoonerisms?
I enjoy thinking up spoonerisms in my spare time and came up with "why, indeed" and "dyin' weed."
But I don't know if this can qualify as a spoonerism, because
although the sounds ...
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using the right word - dismantle or disassembling a fitted object
I am confused about using dismantling and disassembling when it comes to furniture like door or chair. Can we say we dismantle a door or disassemble a door or simply broke them apart,pull it out or ...
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What is the meaning of the phrase "contended even unto death for seven long years?"
I am reading a speech delivered by John Hossack in 1860. I am posting this question because I would like to know what the phrase in bold means. Hossack is speaking below in response to the prosecution ...
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Computer vision, image processing software algorithms for identification, synonym, segregation of english & american words & terms images
https://www.google.com/search?q=words+difference+between+american+and+british+english&oq=Words+difference+between+american+eng&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j0i22i30i457.20248j0j7&client=ms-android-...
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No test that you wouldn't have had done before
No test that you wouldn't have had done before
https://youtu.be/4nm6Xaxvqd0?t=200 (3:20)
Is this phrase grammatical? There's no idiom such as would (not) have or have done.
What about No test you ...
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Proper use of "we" in this conversation
Is the following use of "we" in an informal conversation incorrect or ambiguous:
Mary: How did your day go at work?
John: It was good. I had a meeting early in the morning and we had lunch ...
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Is it natural to say "Me, I xyz"?
I tend to put "me" in front of sentences when I'm trying to set them apart from a previously said opinion or view.
Examples:
Me, I like pizza.
Me, I'm cold.
Is it okay to say it like that ...
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A combination of questions (Grammar, Writing and phrasal verb)
Q.1 what should I choose in the following context and why ? (early vs earlier)
1- I have been doing this since early/earlier this year.
2- This occurred early/earlier this year.
Q.2 is the following ...
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