Questions tagged [meaning]
This tag is for questions related to definitions and nuances of meaning of a word or phrase.
25
questions
0
votes
0
answers
15
views
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 ...
0
votes
0
answers
34
views
meaning of to drive out between trains
I am reading Edith Wharton's famous 'Afterward' (1910).
Which is a struggle for me since many of her sentences and words are beyond my understanding. (English is not my native language)
Anyway, today'...
8
votes
1
answer
516
views
Is "farfel" an idiolectical quirk/part of a familect?
My whole life, my family has used "farfel" to refer to anything small, unwanted, usually fabric-based, and out of place (i.e., on the floor; not in the trash). Lint, a few millimeters of ...
0
votes
1
answer
57
views
Historical use of "reading" for Transportation
Seen in a print advertisement for D. & C. Line, dated 1914:
YOUR RAILROAD TICKETS, reading between Detroit and Buffalo or Detroit and Cleveland, are available for transportation on D. & C. ...
0
votes
2
answers
103
views
Need an accessible explanation on nitty-gritty details of how semantical distinction between count vs uncount nouns works in English
Sorry if this question has been answered before, I have been unable to find anything remotely adequate on this website.
What I want: to learn patterns that allow to be better at guessing (and/or ...
0
votes
0
answers
37
views
What's the meaning of "burrish"? [closed]
As the title said, I wonder what's the meaning of burrish ?
0
votes
0
answers
37
views
What does ´added twist´ mean? [duplicate]
in the sentence :
He performed his experiments with patients , this time with an added twist . it differs from ´with a twist´
0
votes
0
answers
36
views
Miscellany vs. Miscellanea [closed]
What is the difference between "miscellany" and "miscellanea"?
From what I read about, it seems that a book that consists of short stories can be called "miscellany" but ...
0
votes
2
answers
72
views
What is a Word for the Repetition of a Theme Song throughout a Show [duplicate]
What is a word to describe the theme song of a show, such as a movie or cartoon, in which it recurs often, but in a toned-down mode such as played softly by a single horn or string instrument. The ...
1
vote
2
answers
65
views
Deck as verb and the accompanying preposition
As per Cambridge dictionary and others, the word 'deck' in its verb form means to decorate or add something to something to make an effect: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/deck
...
7
votes
1
answer
990
views
What is the meaning of "sutting "?
On Netflix, I came across the word sutting while watching a British series called Supacell. It seems that the actor was talking about a gun. Unfortunately, I haven't found its meaning in any ...
-1
votes
1
answer
46
views
Can anyone explain the meaning of "as an old fisherman used to say when I was a boy not so very long ago, ..."
I read a novel, there is one sentence I cannot understand:
And he slapped the little bunny's back and gave a hop, skip and jump to one side, and then laughed some more, for he was as happy as a clam ...
0
votes
0
answers
19
views
The presence of "the" in the sentence of "Find all (the) indices of the ' ' character in a string" [duplicate]
Find all the indices of the ' ' characters in a string.
Find all indices of the ' ' characters in a string.
Do these two sentences have any difference?
Which one is it if one is more natural than the ...
0
votes
1
answer
59
views
The meaning of ''as also'' in the given paragraph?
Pakistan Nationals as also "persons resident outside Pakistan" holding Pakistani securities
desirous of sending or taking out the Pakistani securities not covered under the succeeding ...
0
votes
1
answer
56
views
Harry Vandiver's comment on the infinitude of Wilson primes
Wilson primes are prime numbers that meet a specific criterion. Only three such numbers are known: 5, 13, and 563.
In Paulo Ribenboim's book "My Numbers, My Friends: Popular Lectures on Number ...