Questions tagged [synonyms]
A synonym is a word that means the same, or almost the same thing, as another word. This tag is for asking about pairs of words. If you're requesting a synonym, please use the ‘single-word-request’ tag.
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What's the difference between 'resolve' and 'solve'?
What's the difference between 'resolve' and 'solve'?
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Difference between nevertheless and nonetheless
I am never quite sure whether to use nevertheless or nonetheless; they seem almost synonymous to me, but I think I might be missing a subtle distinction. Is there a difference, and if so, how do I ...
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Alternatives to "and/or"?
As a programmer, I have no problem with seeing or using "and/or" in technical documentation. For example,
I can upvote an answer that satisfies me and/or mark it as accepted.
That's perfectly good ...
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What is the purpose of using the word "automagically" when we already have "automatically"?
Is there a difference between the two? I see it used regularly in the tech community to mean automatically.
Has the word been adopted into any recognised dictionary?
For example:
That was the day ...
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"Toward" or "towards"?
Which one should should I use? For some reason I have always used "towards", but I see some people saying "toward", like here:
A great deal of his work in economic theory has been ...
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Which is more wet: ‘moist’ or ‘damp’?
Which contains more liquid, something that is moist or something that is damp?
Context of question:
This question was asked to a young friend of mine in her high school freshman English class. It was ...
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When are "because", "since","for" and "as" interchangeable?
I am not a native speaker. On a previous question of mine, I thanked for an answer by saying:
So the phrase is not an idiom, since it is applied in its literal sense.
I consciously chose since ...
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Is "faff" well understood outside Britain?
Google says "faff" is just British English. Is it well understood in other English speaking regions? If not, is there an international alternative?
faff
BRITISH informal
verb: faff; 3rd person ...
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What is less harsh than "brainwashing"?
The word brainwashing, which has existed in English since circa 1950, may have had its origins in the Chinese Communist Revolution of 1948. It involved the use of extreme methods, the process known as ...
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Alternative expression for "xyz Nazi"
I'm not a native English speaker, but I do understand and personally appreciate the use of the term "xyz Nazi" to say that someone is a bit dogmatic about their point of view, without necessarily ...
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What was “Herbal Tea” called before ‘tea’ was introduced in Europe?
I recently got in a discussion with a colleague, about herbal tea not being a correct term, as it contains no tea. Instead, one ought to use the term herbal infusions.
Tea (dried leaves from the tea ...
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What are the differences between "assume", "presume" and "suppose"
I believe that "assume", "presume", "suppose" are similar in meaning of to take some facts as a truth without proof.
But it seems to me that "presume" is more formal, "assume" is less formal and "...
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Is there a subtle difference between "somebody" and "someone", "anybody" and "anyone"?
Are there any subtle differences between "somebody" and "someone", or can they be used completely interchangeably? Similarly, can you imagine a situation in which you would prefer "anybody" to "anyone"...
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What is a less controversial name for the clothing item known as a "wife-beater" in the United States?
In the United States, a white sleeveless shirt is often referred to as a "wife-beater".
Typically I try to avoid using "wife-beater" due to its negative connotation. I've tried using a few different ...
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Is the word 'Hitherto' outdated? [closed]
I am wondering if you would consider the word hitherto to be outdated. I prefer it over its definition, "until now" and know of no equal alternative. I have been marked down (on papers) for using this ...
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When should "farther" and "further" be used?
I know I learned the difference between the usage of farther and further in school, but I can never remember where each one should be used. Can someone help me out here?
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Less vulgar synonyms for "circlejerk"
Someone asked in the Math.StackExchange chatroom what a "more refined word for circlejerk" might be. UrbanDictionary defines this (in our desired usage) as:
[...] pompous, self-...
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Why are not "infamous" and "inflammable" the opposite of "famous" and "flammable"?
Why are not infamous and inflammable the opposite of famous and flammable, like incomplete, inactivity, inappropriate and so on?
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What can be used as formal euphemism of "hack"?
I'm writing a technical document, and I need to convey the fact that we had to find a non-optimal, non-orthodox solution that was adopted as the best available alternative (a hack) to solve an ...
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What is the original connection between "nurse" and "sister"?
In Hebrew, the difference between the words "Sister" and "Brother" is that "Sister" has an additional suffix, as might be expected given the structure of the language. Also, the Hebrew word for a ...
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Secular alternative to "doubting Thomas"
When looking at this question, the phrase "doubting Thomas" popped into my head as a potential answer. That in turn led me to question the origin of the phrase, which I discovered comes from the ...
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Correspond to vs. Correspond with
Is there any significant difference between Correspond to and Correspond with?
I only mean in the sense of "matching", here, rather than "communication".
I've looked at a few sources, but I can't ...
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Appropriate word for internet name of a person
What is the appropriate word or phrase which means the internet name of a person. I mean the nickname that a person uses in almost all places on the internet like blog, IRC, forums, mailing lists etc.
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Secular alternative to "preaching to the choir"?
Is there a secular alternative to the phrase "preaching to the choir"?
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"right" vs "correct"
Except for the fact that we use right to denote direction, what is the difference between the two terms right and correct?
Also, which one is the preferred construction between these two?
Am I right?
...
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"Onward" vs "Onwards"
Possible Duplicate:
“Toward” or “towards”?
Which is the correct usage? "Onwards" or "Onward" ?
For example:
I would be free any time Tuesday onward.
vs
I would be free any time ...
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Word for metallic “dust”?
What’s the English word for the metallic “dust”, or more precisely the tiny remains (waste) of drilling, welding, cutting through metal, and similar metal processing?
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Polite synonyms for "a——hole-ish" behavior
Are there any polite synonyms for asshole-ish behavior? A good synonym would probably have about the same impact and wouldn't send people looking for their dictionaries.
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Alternative term for 'cargo cult'
In my line of work as an IT Security Engineer it is common to come across articles written by prominent technology companies describing their practices and processes. It is then also common for ...
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Do the words "jail" and "prison" refer to different things?
In everyday speech, the terms jail and prison are used interchangeably in many situations. However, my understanding is that, at least in the US, they actually refer to slightly different things. For ...
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What is the difference between "gift" and "present"?
What is the difference between gift and present?
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What is the distinction between "among" and "amongst"?
It seems amongst is quite often used as a synonym for among but it is supposed to sound more distinguished. Is there any difference in the meaning?
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Is there a difference between "Speciality" and "Specialty"?
My work colleagues and I have been having a discussion about doctors (we work in healthcare), and we're split down the middle as to whether a specialist doctor would have a speciality, or a specialty (...
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Difference between "ability" and "capability"
What is the difference in usage between ability and capability?
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Secular phrase for "Heaven only knows" or "God only knows"?
As the title states, I am seeking a secular phrase synonymous to "Heaven only knows" or "God only knows." Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated.
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Is there a non-combative term for the word "enemy"?
I am a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. When talking about the people opposing us, I have always referred to them as the "enemy." Now, as I get a little older, and a little more ...
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Noun for "person with intermediate skill"
I'm looking for the noun form of "person with intermediate skill". For example, in the context of a particular activity, "person with no skill" might be designated a novice, and "person with much ...
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"Alternately" or "alternatively"
What is the difference between alternately and alternatively? I've seen both words being used, but which one is grammatically correct?
He could do X. Or alternately, he could do Y.
He could do X. Or ...
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When is it appropriate to use "Yeah" and "Yep" as variants of the word "Yes"?
As a learner of English I know that yes is a standard variant and the other two are informal, spoken words. I know nothing more about it, and always try using the yes variant, just to not sound ...
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Difference between "spicy" and "hot"
I make a distinction between "hot" and "spicy" food ("hot" not referring to temperature). I consider "hot" food the kind that "burns" and "spicy" food that has lots of flavor, but that may or may not "...
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Nonreligious version of "heaven knows that…"
Are there any nonreligious versions of the phrase "heaven knows"? For example:
Heaven knows I'm not perfect when it comes to exercise.
I've heard other religious variants like "the Lord knows", ...
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Alternative expression/term to trivial use of 'OCD'
After being reproved for doing so myself on SO yesterday. I realized that over the last couple of years the meaning of the expression OCD, seems to have deflated. Up to the point where people(read I) ...
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Do native English speakers use the word "touristic"?
A word usage that always annoys me and feels like Euroenglish to me is "touristic".
I don't believe I've ever seen it printed or heard it used by a native English speaker and I've travelled in most ...
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I'd like to know the spelling of a word, a synonym of unknown
I'm used to watching American TV Series all the time. I watch them with Italian subtitles, so I misspell many words. Many of them are not so difficult to figure out, but there's one that I just cannot ...
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What is the adjectival form for the word "integrity?"
I'm looking for the adjectival form of "integrity."
Instead of "Be a person of integrity," I'd like to say something like "Be [one word I'm looking for]"
I did a Google ...
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"Farthest" vs. "furthest" [duplicate]
My spellchecker insists on replacing "furthest" with "farthest". I was under the impression that farthest is strictly speaking in terms of distance, whereas furthest is more abstract.
A poster on ...
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A synonym for "picky" with a positive connotation (food)?
We're very picky about the ingredients we use.
In that context, what's a synonym for "picky" with a positive connotation, that denotes that we care very much about the quality of the ingredients?
...
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What do you call something that is not first in a sequence?
Is there a word to describe something that is not the first element in a sequence, but can be in any other position? A synonym of "not first", in fact.
This element is __ in this sequence.
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"flat" vs. "apartment"
Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 8th edition
Flat:
noun. [ countable ] ( BrE ) a set of rooms for living in, including a kitchen, usually on one floor of a building.
Apartment：
noun. ( ...
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Recur vs. Reoccur
Is there any difference between the verbs reoccur and recur?
Several sources suggest that they are synonymous, but some fine-tuners suggest that there is a nuanced difference, such as Grammarist, ...
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