All Questions
131,290
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CavalCade -> motorcade
I have read this questio What is the etymology of "-cade" as in motorcade or cavalcade?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorcade says
The term motorcade was coined by Lyle Abbot (in 1912 or ...
- 1,303
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7
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What does "goes in" mean?
I can relate to this to some extent. My boyfriend is Korean, and given the recent "Kpop fever" or whatever, we often catch 13-year-old girls taking pictures of him, whispering while pointing ...
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9
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Regarding the rule of introducing a narrative change of character with a new paragraph: Does this still apply if the action is minor?
I am editing a novel. I generally follow the widely endorsed rule of using a new paragraph when introducing a change in dialogue, action or subject.
However, would this still apply when said action is ...
- 1
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15
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Is the word "smacking" only used when slapping someone on the buttocks? [closed]
I'm reading a book where the narrator says he wants to "smack" someone. I don't understand if he intends to slap the face or the buttocks. Can smacking only be used when someone is slapped ...
2
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1
answer
116
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Fire (as in shooting) in plural
Is it usual to write about “fires” when one means shooting?
I was reading the RUSI report “Preliminary Lessons from Ukraine’s Offensive Operations, 2022–23”, and found that it uses the noun “fire” in ...
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-2
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27
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Can I omit "it" in informal speech?
Instead of "coming from you, it means a lot" can I say "coming from you, means a lot"?
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-1
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18
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Single noun as a concept instead of an object
I've been hearing these sentences since I started listening to podcasts, typically from elite intellectuals. Does this grammatical construct have a name, and where does it come from?
The grammar is ...
- 289
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1
answer
42
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Is "me's" a word?
I was writing out song lyrics and the guy pronounces "me is" (as in "ignoring me is bad enough") as "me's". Is this a real spelling or just sloppy pronunciation? I do ...
-4
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58
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What scientific literary English term describes a person who makes money from the misfortunes of others?
I forgot the scientific term in English that describes a person who makes money from the misfortunes/problems of other people.
«Nineteen Eighty-Four» (1984) mentioned the term "prole", which ...
- 93
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1
answer
21
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Which sentence is most correct? [closed]
Which sentence is correct?
Coming from you means a lot!
Coming from you, it means a lot!
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30
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Is "sort of like" hypercorrectur? [closed]
Dutch has soortgelijke "alike, similar", soortelijk "specific to", and indeed soort van "sort of", German has to my knowledge only technical jargon sortenrein "...
- 816
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1
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43
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What is the general term for terms that end in -ian, -ist etc.?
All the terms with a definition starting with 'One who... ', what is the term to describe these terms?
Like, Occupation is the general term for a particular line of work; Mechanic, Doctor, Dentist, ...
- 339
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0
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8
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What's the correct reply to “nice to meet you”? [migrated]
I’ve learnt all my life replying to “nice to meet you” as “me too” or likewise and so on. But maybe I am learning wrong or whatever, I have seen people replying in American soaps and movies as “you ...
- 101
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2
answers
202
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Is there a word in English specifically for any dream during sleep? [closed]
The word dream have two main dictionary meanings:
a series of events or images that happen in your mind when you are sleeping
something that you want to happen very much but that is not very likely
...
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22
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'If I were mayor, I'd make the public transport free.' What is the reported speech of this sentence beginning with 'she said'? [migrated]
I am confused about the answer to this question in the Cambridge English Objective Proficiency Student Book Second Edition. The answer given is
She said that if she had been mayor, she would have ...
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