Questions tagged [word-usage]
This tag is for questions about correctly using a word. The word has to be provided within the question. The question should be limited to the usage of one word. For the usage of complete phrases there is the tag phrase-usage.
6,828
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What is a way to say "take pride" without the implication of arrogance?
I want to say "our team takes pride in the quality of our output," but I don't want the audience or my teammates to get the sense that we are arrogant, flawless, or ungracious. How else ...
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Is it 'a' L-formula or 'an' L-formula? [duplicate]
In Logic & Mathematics textbooks, the terms 'L-formula', or 'L-term', or 'L-theory' are used. (Though for math, it is reserved to mathematical logic.)
I've witnessed it first-hand, and I'm sure ...
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What does "rule" mean in "the rule of law"?
What does rule mean in the rule of law? I understand the concept of it, but not the grammar. Does "rule" mean "control"/"domination"? Or does it mean "rule" as ...
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Can "multiply" be used with uncountable nouns?
If multiply means to
increase or cause to increase greatly in number or quantity (OxfordL)
does that mean that multiply can be used with uncountable nouns as well? Most examples I find are with ...
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Usage of the word "candle" to refer to a specific item in a list
In Maltese English, whenever items in a list are preceded by letters or Roman numerals instead of numbers, we would say that the list is made up of candles. Let us suppose we have the following two ...
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Is the phrase 'keep your act together' ever used?
At the beginning of the movie Klaus, the narrator, Jasper, says:
Letters. You don't really write many these days, do you? But I bet
there's one you never forget. Send it off to a certain plump guy in ...
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3
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561
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Can repertoire be used with respect to a library's books?
Instead of saying
The library had a massive collection of books to choose from.
could I use repertoire to make it
The library had a massive repertoire to choose from.
Although the synonyms of the ...
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Shall/will; should/would [duplicate]
Let's try this again.
Recently a very frustrated someone asked me, "What is this shall and will? How to know when to use shall and will?
I proceded to give him a mini lecture on how shall/will ...
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14
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Happy about + ing [duplicate]
The other day I was watching a movie and I heard the sentence "(you are) happy about my killing you". I think "happy about me killing you" would make sense, but I don't understand ...
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Is "Sorry for the inconveniences" the right expression? [closed]
I know
Sorry for the inconvenience
and
Sorry for any inconveniences
are both commonly used, but is "Sorry for the inconveniences" considered wrong, even though it is grammatically ...
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"both X and Y coexist" vs. "X and Y coexist"
I want to say "X and Y coexist" in an article but my co-author repeatedly suggested wording it as "both X and Y coexist". We are not native speakers but her command of the language ...
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Can "attack-on" be considered a new English word? [closed]
I was curious about making new words in English and comparing this process to my native language. I wanted an adjective that describes a person who is actively involved in attacking different places.
...
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3
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Can ''anecdote'' be synonymous with ''detail'' or ''small point''? [closed]
As in, would it be correct to write something like:
It is simply anecdotal that I didn't finish college?
Further, can it be used in this sense in the form of a question? E.g.,
This is only an ...
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Does the word metaphor always require an article and why?
For example, can I say, I like your use of the word riverine as metaphor? Or, must I say, I like your use of the word riverine as a metaphor? Grammarly seems to think that the article "a" is ...
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Does "chagrin" mean embarrassment or annoyance?
I originally learned this word studying for the GRE:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/magoosh.resources/magoosh-gre-1000-words_oct01.pdf
chagrin (noun): strong feelings of embarrassment
Much to the the timid ...
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Parenthetical "read out loud" for word substitution
I want the reader to see the word A, but read it as B. Or, to put it another way, I would like the reader to read A while thinking at its true meaning B.
I think I can accomplish this generally by:
If ...
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Is "unsubstantiate" used correctly as a verb?
I tried to register my mom for a regular zoom meeting, and I gave her email to the host of the zoom. After the meeting was over, I received this message from the host:
(She unsubstantiated- maybe by ...
- 25.5k
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2
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98
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What's the meaning of "so in"?
I couldn't find anything about "so in" in my research on Google. I heard people say it. And today I saw that on a Facebook post. So here's the context-
You want long hair but short hair is ...
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1
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149
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Is the following example of a phatic hiatus appropriate or is it misleading?
On page 203 of the novel ‘That Hideous Strength’ by C.S. Lewis, an example of a phatic hiatus follows this opening statement:
“The cardinal difficulty in collaboration between the sexes is that women ...
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245
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What is the meaning and etymology of the phrase "T4"?
I have often heard Orthodox Jewish kids use a phrase "t4". It usually means "just throwing this out there for attenton" but I am not exactly sure. I have finally seen this in-print ...
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3
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What is a word for "to create a universe"? Can 'universalize' be used?
Per Lexico, universalize means:
Give a universal character or application to (something, especially something abstract)
‘theories that universalize experience’
Can this definition include the sense ...
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Word for "it is so because we say so, period." [closed]
What's a word for the reasoning / leadership mindset of "it is so because we say so"? Or a regime / rule based on such a mindset, with the issuing of unexplained and seemingly arbitrary ...
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176
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Word for something that must happen when it should happen and must not happen when it shouldn't
This question has been bugging me all day. My biology teacher was describing red blood cells (RBC) and said that blood clotting must occur when it should and must not occur when it should not. If the ...
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Is the verb ‘recollect’ used in American English? How is it different from ‘remember’?
I (American English) am a plaintiff in a lawsuit taking place in Malta (UK English) that involves some British people as well as some Americans.
When cross-examining a British person, many of his ...
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95
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Are primary forms the same things as primitive forms? [closed]
Which of these is better or worse than the other? (Note that the pronoun it is here referring to some 3D object.)
You apply all the transformation data so that it won’t reset back to its primitive ...
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2
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Why "monatomic" and not "monoatomic"?
"Mono" means singular, and "atomic" stands for the atom. So combining them will give a single atom - "monatomic".
But why is this so? Why can't it be "monoatomic&...
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1
answer
100
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Is "before" also an adjective? [duplicate]
I searched "define before" in Google and found out "before" is not listed as an adjective in most dictionaries.
Google's built-in dictionary, which is one of the Oxford ...
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Is "a normal woman" correct?
Normally, we say "an ordinary woman", but I read an article about Kate Middleton recently, the Duchess of Cambridge, it says she isn't a normal woman. From the article, I can tell that the ...
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Is "head data" a true alternative to "header data"?
Our software uses the term "head data" for which I think should be called "header data".
If I look up the German translation "Kopfdaten" on Leo, I only get "header ...
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112
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"a bit" vs. "some"
Disclaimer: I'm a German native.
I'm working on some software with a coworker from US. He just sent a message saying "if we decide to actually publish this as a real package, I'd like to clean it ...
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What would be the modern equivalent of " ... is around the corner yet"?
Here's a neat article covering the differences between yet and still:
https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-still-and-yet.html
There is, in Mark Twain's Connecticut Yankee, a sentence that ...
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when to use move-in vs move in in general english [duplicate]
is there a difference between move in vs move-in? It seems to be the same
'Want to move in to my house?'
vs
'Want to move-in to my house?'
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Can the word 'partner' mean 'customer/client'?
My question stems from the fact that the word 'partner' is excessively used in the former USSR countries when referring to or addressing their customers/clients/buyers. Russian-speaking manufacturers/...
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Is ‘platform’ used correctly in the intended sense in this context? [closed]
Dating websites and dating apps are today very popular, but we don’t
know how successful finding relationship via such platforms is. What percent of those using dating platforms find the right partner?...
- 3,011
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Using "Nominal" in software engineering
I hope this doesn't sound like a silly question but recently some work was done on some software and someone asked me if everything was working and I responded "everything is looking nominal"...
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Is the use of words "institute" and "college" together in naming an institution right?
Is it right to use the words "institute" and "college" in naming an educational institution namely "Institute of Public Policy & Leadership College"? It is an ...
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Is "none" when used alone without antecedent singular or plural (for context, I'm talking about people): "None [are/is] here"?
I know that "none of [...]" can be both singular or plural, but when I use it alone in a sentence, without the "of" and without any other nouns, can it be both singular and plural ...
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throwing roses in the museum gallery to slack-jawed guests
The Associated Press (AP) has printed the following story, where the boldfaced "to" is used:
PARIS (AP) — A man seemingly disguised as an old woman in a wheelchair threw a piece of cake at ...
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What is the difference between "presume" and "preassume"?
Preassume (third-person singular simple present preassumes, present participle preassuming, simple past and past participle
preassumed)
(transitive) To assume in advance; to presume.
Wiktionary
How ...
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Why isn't it "I will have been running, lest they have been catching me"?
The phrase in the title is obviously incorrect; however, I'm having difficulties figuring out how it could actually be grammatically constructed. To be clear, I'm aware this is a ridiculous ...
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The origin of and the difference between primogenitor, primogeniture and progenitor
In Etymonline, the etymology of primogenitor (and primogeniture) is very similar to progenitor. The word's meaning: Ancestor or forefather.
However, nowhere do I find the reason of the split from the ...
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Is it considered rude or inappropriate to frequently address others as "friend" - often in a disingenuous fashion?
Recently, I have encountered (what I think is) a fairly common usage of the word "friend" that I consider to be insincere and offensive, but when I brought this up with the offending party, ...
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Difference between roaring 20s and raging 20s?
One article A recession in America by 2024 looks likely from The Economist has a subtitle named:
From the roaring to the raging 2020s
From Google's online Dictionary(which is from Oxford):
roaring ...
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Does it make sense to use 'untenable' in this context?'
I'm writing about a character who is facing an arranged marriage. Does it make sense to say that, in a situation such as this, developing feelings for someone else is 'untenable'? Are there any other ...
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2
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"a tall price" vs "a high price" [duplicate]
One of the meanings of "tall" from dictionary.com:
large in amount or degree; considerable: a tall price
As I understood from this definition, "tall" in "a tall price" ...
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Why did ‘brainwash’ develop to be a negative word?
I was pondering this recently. Why didn’t the word develop to have positive meaning, as in: you wash your brain from the toxic thoughts, and instead come to mean indoctrination?
Are there other words ...
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To act as [insert profession]
Would it be correct, in English, to say:
I acted as an engineer in that company
I acted as a lawyer in that firm
And, more generally:
To act as [profession]
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What does "hell-turding away" mean here?
Just as we were reaching the cottage, we saw two women in the
street. One of the women was Old Mrs Adams. She was shouting
at another. Hell-turding away.
From the book How to Stop Time by Matt Haig
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In what varieties of English is "working" used (as a gerund) instead of "work" (as a noun)?
A recent question on the English Language Learners Stack Exchange concerned the use of the phrase "have been knowing" (as opposed to "have known"). While the latter is standard in ...
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How to use he/she (or another word) when we dont know what the other person is a man or woman? [duplicate]
So in meetings, text, documents etc, and speaking to other people we discuss what users should do or will do.
So for example, a sentence could be 'the user enter his/her username and then he/she ...
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