Questions tagged [usage]
For questions on how and why certain words are used in varying ways within various contexts.
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1answer
19 views
If only had I known it! / If only I had known it!
Could you help me, please?
A question for the native speakers (desired) of British English or American English.
Which variant is correct and why? Or it's possible to use either of them)?
If only ...
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3answers
31 views
Can I replace “was” by “had been” here?
I have got two sentences and I want to know whether they make sense gramatically or not.
1) I would surely have crashed the car if I was driving at the time you called me.
2)I would surely have ...
1
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0answers
29 views
“The page address” or “the address of the page”? [migrated]
Which would be more correct: “The page address” or “the address of the page” in the sentence:
“Check the page address, or use the form below to search the site:”
in the meaning of the URL?
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3answers
39 views
“Questions need to be answered” or “questions require to be answered”? [on hold]
"Need" is often used on living things, whereas "required" is often used on non-living things.
For example:
I need a stereo for my car.
My car requires a stereo.
But when it goes to "question", we ...
3
votes
1answer
80 views
The difference between “Kudos” and “Props”
I've looked through the definitions of kudos and props:
According to Cambridge Dictionary, the definition of kudos is the public admiration that a person receives as a result of a particular ...
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2answers
43 views
Is it “more just” or “juster”?
I was recently writing a sentence and added the words "more just", only for my extension Grammarly to flag the phrase and suggest "juster" instead. Is "juster" really a comparative form of "just"? If ...
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3answers
74 views
Does the word “hovel” have an offensive connotation?
I came across the word hovel and I rather like the resonance of it. I'm aware it generally refers negatively to minimal, ramshackle dwellings, but I'm wondering whether or not the word is also ...
1
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1answer
25 views
On using a modifier with a (comma-separated) list
I have a couple of related questions, one of which is a concrete question and the other of which is more general/abstract.
My first question is in regards to the following sentence, which was taken ...
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0answers
26 views
Using “Mix of” with one object
"Mix of" is most frequently used to show that two or more items are included in the creation of something. Is it still grammatically correct to use "mix of" when there's only one item, but the item is ...
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0answers
51 views
Does “in the area” mean the same thing as “throughout the entire area”?
Curious about the scope of the phrase "in the area," and whether it means the whole area or part of it.
For example: If someone's authority was restricted "in the area" of foreign policy, does that ...
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0answers
26 views
Usage of “caught”
I read the following sentence somewhere. "maid's son caught up with chicken pox". Is this usage of "caught" correct?
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0answers
24 views
Can contractions always be used to replace their original words? [duplicate]
I was thinking about how "I am" can stand as a sentence but wondered why "I'm" doesn't sound right. I kind of came to the conclusion that noun-verb contractions (ex. I'm, they're, it's, she'll) can't ...
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1answer
52 views
Usage of “as of”
Can this phrase be used other than referring to time? For example, is it correct to say:
"If condition A happens, then do option 1; as of condition B, do option 2."?
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1answer
25 views
which word is correct to use? And or or?
In the following sentence which is correct to use? And or or?
"I have the choice between Tony or Samantha"
"I have the choice between Tony and Samantha."
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0answers
41 views
“engine turns over” in closed captions
I noticed that closed captions of movies and TV shows often use the phrase
engine turns over
when somebody starts a car. While I understand that there is a technical difference between the engine ...
1
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1answer
53 views
When to use attributive nouns vs. deverbal adjectives
I'm not sure if I have the title correct, but I am trying to figure out how to determine whether to use a noun form as an adjective or a verb form as an adjective.
For example:
1) Is it an extension ...
1
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1answer
37 views
Is “you have so many double standards” idiomatic and if not, why and what would be?
The noun double standard is countable. Looking at some ngram you can see the plural form used for titles (to mean something like the topic of...) or when there's a number preceding it (i.e. referring ...
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0answers
78 views
Can the term “white trash” for the “rich and famous [who] act badly” be used as a derogatory ethnic slur (in a non self-deprecating way)?
In the article White Trash: The Social Origins of a Stigmatype (Matt Wray, 2013), the author explains three use cases for the term white trash (not described in the dictionaries: Wiktionary, ...
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1answer
28 views
Why to use “do” with galaxies instead of “does”? [closed]
Example: Do galaxies form around supermassive black holes, or do supermassive black holes form in the center of galaxies?
A galaxy isn't a third person? Like he, she, it?
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1answer
43 views
How would you say “it is not an uncommon belief that X's solution ends the search for a solution of problem Y”?
I'd like to carefully say that people not well trained in a field think that some solution X basically closes the whole problem Y, which is false. But instead of saying it is a common misconception, ...
0
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0answers
45 views
Choice of expressions to indicate something remembered
When talking to my friend, I’d like to say some events that we have done in the past. I am confused about the usage for this.
“As far as I remember what we’ve done: (I'm beginning to tell) We liked ...
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2answers
49 views
Is 'carry' a daily usage or it's an internet word?
In online video games, the strongest player in a group is called the carry. Is it a daily usage? Like in school projects or office team works? If not how is it usually described?
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1answer
50 views
“I am not starving yet” is that correct English?
I am trying to say "I am not feeling hunger at the moment, but I probably will in the nearest future." "I am not starving yet" - is that a proper English in general and particularly in that case of ...
0
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0answers
30 views
Why do people say 'sat'? [duplicate]
A while ago, I think, I started hearing and reading people use the verb 'to sit' incorrectly, but it seems to becoming increasingly common.
Such as "I am sat", "We are sat", "They were sat". Sit is a ...
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0answers
25 views
What does 'Whitman's poet' in the passage?
I think 's generally indicates possession, but in the following passage, the usage evades me. Does it mean 'Whitman's poetry' or 'a poet like Whitman'?
Long before Walt Whitman wrote Leaves of ...
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1answer
25 views
Is this correct use of nor? (with “may not be able to”)
Is the use of "nor" here correct? "The XXX acknowledges that XXX may not be able to withhold a record (e.g., data, document, etc.) nor deny access to a record requested pursuant to the Act..."
I ...
1
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1answer
45 views
What is difference between present perfect and present perfect continuous?
I've been studying English by the book "English Grammar in Use" for a month.
There is a Unit about present perfect and - continuous, also Exercises.
Please check the below exercises...
A. You meet a ...
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1answer
87 views
Why are there vague terms in science and mathematics? [closed]
In the sciences and in mathematics there are a great number of words and terms in use that do not, in any literal sense, describe the concept they are meant to describe.
Let's explore the use of "...
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1answer
20 views
“Write me a description…”
Please help me. Here is a piece of my English exercise. The textbook was written by British authors.
Now, class, I’d like you all to write … a description of your last holiday.
A. me
B. to me
C. ...
1
vote
2answers
47 views
“Beck and call” after “to be” only?
Can the phrase "at one's beck and call" only be used after "to be?" For example, I can definitely say "her daughter was at her beck and call," but I am unsure if I can use it adverbially i.e. "her ...
0
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1answer
31 views
Is it correct to say “the origins of {X} was…”?
In the following sentence, is it correct the use of the verb was?
As both Engines of Privilege and another new book on the top tier of private schools, Gilded Youth by James Brooke-Smith, explain, ...
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 ...
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0answers
32 views
Was the pronoun 'it' always reserved for inanimate objects?
If you want to refer to a singular person, you've got He/She/They. Has this always been the case in English? Was the pronoun 'it' once a part of this list?
Either way, do we know what patterns led to ...
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2answers
87 views
Can we use the word North to refer to all of Europe including southern Italy?
The way I see it is that the default position of the world is the equator, and thus Europe could be referred to as the "North", but I am wondering if I am stretching the meaning of the word too ...
1
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2answers
776 views
Should this relative clause start with “whom” or “to whom”? [duplicate]
Which of the following sentences is correct according to English grammar and usage? (Note: this was asked in an examination and I have to select only one of the four sentences.)
1) The fishermen, ...
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0answers
32 views
Why is the US referred to as “the Union” in “State of the Union”?
I wonder about the use of the word "Union" in the name "State of the Union", which is the US President's annual address to Congress. The phrase appears in the Constitution:
He [the President] shall ...
0
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2answers
59 views
What are the differences in nuance/meaning between I hope you will spend some time with me, and I want to spend some time with you [closed]
Could anyone help me understand differences in nuance/meaning between 'I hope you will spend some time with me', and 'I want to spend some time with you'.
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0answers
17 views
The meaning of “сome + noun/gerund” [duplicate]
What is the meaning of this construction in the following sentence heard in this video?
DA's office is pursuing this as a capital case, which means that come
sentencing it will be up to the jury ...
0
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1answer
54 views
What' s the meaning of 'mole trap'?
sorry if my English is not good .
in season 1-episode 3 of "killing Eve", there a conversation about a murder between Eve and Jin.
Jin want to give something Secretly to Eve.
Eve : What is that?
...
3
votes
1answer
69 views
she <wet her hair> or she <wetted her hair>?
According to Professor Pam Peters, the author of “The Cambridge Guide to English Usage”: “wetted” is used for the past tense when there’s a reference to a deliberate action.
So, I guess it should be “...
2
votes
1answer
29 views
Omitting article before “evaluation”
In the sentence
This talk focuses on an evaluation of....
it somehow feels way more natural to omit the article:
This talk focuses on evaluation of....
Or at least change the sentence like so:...
1
vote
1answer
45 views
What happens when there is a quotation within a quotation within another quotation? [duplicate]
For example: Kevin said to Ms.Russell: "Sam was mocking Dave by saying 'My name is Dave!? I'm so smart!?'"
*note that the question marks are what I'm wondering what I would put there
**note that ...
0
votes
1answer
35 views
the best we could hope for
Here is a sentence quoted from a news report online:
New trade deal is the best we could hope for.
I'd like to know the meaning of "could hope for". Does it mean that the speaker once actually hoped ...
17
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2answers
2k views
“Woman students” OR “Women students” - which one is correct?
If I mean to say that many students who were also women smoked cigarettes, but do not wish to use "female students," which of the following would be correct to say:
a) Many woman students smoked ...
4
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2answers
1k views
Can we use “id est” in lieu of “i.e.” in academic writing?
In an academic, format context, can we write id est instead of its abbreviated form (i.e.)?
Compare:
‘a walking boot which is synthetic, id est not leather’
with:
‘a walking boot which is ...
2
votes
3answers
56 views
I need a word like “confound,” or “confuse” but with an important nuance
The word needs to mean confound or confuse, but with ignorance on the part of the confused that they are indeed, confused. We as spectators can tell they are coming to wrong conclusions based on ...
0
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2answers
110 views
'In which' or 'where'?
Which case is correct? I'm writing like some kind of fanfiction, but I really want to know and get better in grammar.
"He had been unable to sleep well the night before to the morning where he had ...
0
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0answers
25 views
Use of “Well…” instead of “What?” in response to being summoned [duplicate]
In the 1940s and 1950s, if Mother were to call for one, "Oh, Jamieeee?", one was to respond "Well, Mother..." and never "What, Mother...?", the latter being considered vulgar and ill-spoken.
Locale ...
0
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1answer
59 views
more than I could hope to
I'd like to know the meaning of "could hope to" in a sample sentence from my grammar book:
He earns more in a month than I could hope to in a year.
I think it's hypothetical situation. But I don't ...
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0answers
18 views
Verbs followed by a description \ 2 Verbs in a row [duplicate]
I have a question regarding the usage of Verb-ing and V1 when we have 2 verbs in a row, or a verb with a description.
For example:
"My mom doesn't let me bring a cat home." "Let's go eat." "I
...
