68
votes
Accepted
Why "the powers that be"?
To expand on Henry's answer: "The powers that be" is a set phrase quoted from Romans 13:1.
Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers ...
- 2,632
47
votes
Why "the powers that be"?
"The powers that be" is a set phrase drawn from early translations of the Bible into English (Tyndale, Geneva, KJV etc.), in particular Romans 13:1.
So its grammar (subjunctive) reflects the usage of ...
- 20.1k
17
votes
Accepted
Construction of “woe is me”
It is indeed old, and can be found in Beowulf:
Wa bið þæm þe sceal þurh sliðne nið sawle bescufan in fyres fæþm, frofre ne wenan, wihte gewendan; wel bið þæm þe mot æfter deaðdæge drihten secean ond ...
- 65.2k
8
votes
Plural of 'performance'
MSWord grammar checker is correct as far as it goes. You can either use the plural "performances" with "are", or the singular (or uncountable) "performance" with "is".
The real question here is ...
- 14.8k
8
votes
Accepted
"Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s (is)"
This answer ignores the physics implied by the sentences and focuses only on the English content.
In linguistics, ellipsis (from the Greek: ἔλλειψις, élleipsis, "omission") or elliptical ...
- 38.4k
7
votes
Why "the powers that be"?
The phrase "the powers that be" doesn't employ the subjunctive mood. The phrase comes from the New Testament (Romans 13:1) and uses be instead of are as an archaic alternative to the ...
- 10.4k
5
votes
Think about ~~. 's answer is ?? I am or I do
First of all, in both responses the word "think" is left out and understood. In other words it would be "I am thinking" or "I do think." Do is often added to a verb for emphasis and also stands in for ...
- 304
5
votes
What is the difference between "to be" and "must/need/should be"?
It is a very General question, but here is a starting point, in very general terms:
Use "to be" when that is what the future holds, according to the current situation.
For example:
OK: &...
- 4,731
4
votes
Contraction of "I was"?
There is no natural/common abbreviation of "I was".
A person speaking with extreme slang, and an affected accent, might say "I's garn down town when I saw dis babe", but usage would be rare.
- 1,731
4
votes
Why "the powers that be"?
This blog says that it's the archaic English subjunctive form. Which I guess we could translate into modern English as "Whatever powers there may be".
However, I think the in sense that most people ...
- 1,478
4
votes
What is the difference between "mean" and "be" in regards to mentioning words?
How philosophical do you want to get? The Japanese symbols 便所 form a label that has a meaning to Japanese readers in the same ways that the Roman letter combination stool has a meaning to English ...
- 44.6k
4
votes
"Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s (is)"
I think you would come across much more clearly, if you instead structure this as "Electricity travels at the speed of light". The term velocity gets in the way of clarity in my opinion. This is ...
- 3,771
4
votes
When to delete Verb to be
This phenomenon is known as zero copula (also null copula). It is a feature of African-American Vernacular English (AAVE), (example: Gwendolyn Brooks's poem "We real cool"), but it also ...
- 151k
3
votes
Contraction of "I was"?
"I's" as a contraction of 'I was' is nonstandard and dialectal but nevertheless widely spoken and heard in my neck of the woods (West Country, England). For example,
"I's living in ...
- 17.9k
3
votes
In “Why do you think this is?” is the verb “to be” a linking verb or a stative verb?
I believe the verb to be has a 'stative' quality.
One could have said Why do you think this is so? But in the absence of so I find it unnecessary to re-instate it in brackets for the purpose of ...
- 64.5k
3
votes
Why does the word "be" change so much?
Interesting question.
I would say that it is because in the simple sentence "X is [adjective]" , 'is' is the copula: it is syntactic sugar, with no semantics of its own. So in "Y makes X [adjective]"...
- 76.6k
3
votes
"My name is" or "My name's"
According to APA style, contractions are allowed but considered less formal. Your use of contraction is correct but not recommended in, say, an academic paper.
An excerpt from the above link:
...
- 616
3
votes
Accepted
"That is me" vs "that am I"
It was good enough for Shakespeare (Much Ado About Nothing, Act IV, Scene 2)
Sexton: Which be the malefactors?
Dogberry: Marry, that am I and my partner.
But bear in mind that Dogberry is a comic ...
- 44.6k
3
votes
Be or Is? That is the question
whether it be something, something is a set phrase in English. So, it is always be and can never be is. I know the grammar may seem a little bit strange, but like I said this is a set phrase—it's ...
- 5,845
3
votes
Can passive voice exist without "to be"?
Your third example is an active voice sentence using the intransitive verb "sink" (to move downward due to a lack of buoyancy). This has a different, though related, meaning from the transitive verb "...
- 630
3
votes
Accepted
Can passive voice exist without "to be"?
I've actually already written about this on ELL. My conclusion has been that all style guides fail to adequately classify sentences like this in their two category system of active vs. passive voice.
...
- 65.2k
3
votes
"Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s (is)"
The standard way of expressing this idea, at least in BrE, would be "Electricity has a velocity as high as that of light".
- 24.3k
3
votes
"Electricity has a velocity (that is) as high as light’s (is)"
I think Lawrence has already given the correct answer, but let me try to make it simpler by 'breaking down' the meaning of the sentence:
(1) you are comparing the velocity of electricity with the ...
- 7,326
3
votes
Accepted
Pronunciation of ‘been’
The /bɪn/ pronunciation for "been" is I believe quite old. The Oxford English Dictionary says
The standard form been derives from the latter, and, in unstressed position, develops a weak ...
- 80.3k
3
votes
how to answer would you be able to come in for an interview on {date} at {time}?
It depends on the level of formality you wish to set. I feel that the first option you suggest is too formal, and the second option too informal.
In messages about job applications, people ...
3
votes
Is "I be", grammatically correct?
"I be" works fine in the subjunctive, but no where else: Mary requires that I be on time>
- 37
3
votes
Be we all here?
Perhaps, he wanted his readers to see the carrier as a poorly educated man. Does this use of the verb "to be" make you think of the same thing? If not, what impression do you get?
Be as a conjugated ...
- 749
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