Questions tagged [american-english]
This tag is for questions specifically related to the English language as spoken and written in the USA. If you are interested in a difference between American English and British English, please use transatlantic-differences.
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What should I use to show my anger not using curse and bad language to refer to someone in American English?
Lets suppose you (Martin) park your car somewhere and leave it there. When you come back, out of the blue, you see a big scratch on your car’s surface. You have your friend with you who you stand on ...
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Song lyric accuracy/ type of usage
There are lots of questions on this forum concerning song lyrics, but mine is related to English also.
1980's song China in your Hand has the line- It was a theme she had on a scheme he had
Question:...
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Can we say "The sound of what is this?" or "This is the sound of what?" (American English)
In American English, can we say either of these sentences interchangeably?
The sound of what is this?
This is the sound of what?
Context: Imagine I heard a sound at home which sounds like it ...
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Past simple or present perfect for "I am aware of what I [did/have done]"?
Is the following correct:
I am aware of what I did.
Or, is it supposed to be:
I am aware of what I've done.
Can someone explain?
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Just + simple past: "I just watched" vs. "I've just watched"
I don't know if I'm supposed to write an intro before the question since I'm new here lol I'd like to know if it's correct to use just followed by the simple past, e.g.:
I just watched the first ...
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What's the meaning of "Bought it up"
I heard this phrase from a TV show.
We thought you bought it up there.
The background is that Mike who is injured in an accident and come back to his friends, one of them said "we thought you ...
J.R.♦
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What's the meaning of "Is it now?"
Can anyone explain the meaning of "Is it now" to me? I googled this phrase, but I couldn't find the answer out...I heard this from a TV show:
Maggie: Mail's here, telephone bill, letter from your ...
J.R.♦
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Meaning of "it wasn't so much"
It wasn't so much that I wanted my sisters to be envious. It was more that I wanted to celebrate my new privileges to come and go, to wander through shops without my sister's supervision.
What does ...
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What is the term for the child of my aunt or uncle?
How do you call your aunt's or uncle's daughter and son respectively in English?
Are they just called 'cousin'? or do you call them 'sister' or 'brother'?
(Not about how I call them to their face ...
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Can't we say "don't/doesn't got" while we can say "I got", "He got", "They got" etc.? (American English)
I am used to hearing the positive version of "got" when it is used for meaning "have".
For example, I mean we can say "I got a car.", "He got three children.", "I got no money." etc.
But I am not ...
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The correct expression of 'follow his way (or method)'
I asked a question on a forum, and somebody (let's say his name is Bob) answered it (but not completely solve the problem). Based on this answer, I have the problem solved.
I want to write the answer ...
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Difference between “he kissed me” and “he had kissed me”
I believe, I understand what is difference between the past simple tense and the past perfect tense. As per my knowledge, we use the past perfect tense to show the much old action in the past when two ...
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Is there any "official" level test focused on American accent?
The courses and level tests which I know are only focused on British English, like Cambridge or Oxford, especially for the listening tests. Just for curiosity, I would like to test my level of ...
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When is using the past perfect tense not necessary?
Is it more natural to speak in simple past or past perfect when explaining past events to a friend? It seems like Americans use more simple past in everyday life than past perfect. I found this ...
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In American English, can we flap the /d/ in the phrases "Where did", "Where do", "Where don't" and "Where does"?
I am 99% sure Americans quite often flap the /d/ sound which comes right after /r/ in the phrases "Where did", "Where do", "Where don't" and "Where does" (I am talking about the initial /d/'s), and I ...
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20 years on, they have done OR did it again?
I am not sure that I heard the CNN reporter (American Speaker) well when he was talking about the winner of the world cup 2018, He said: 20 years on, they have done it again. Isn't it more appropriate ...
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Do I have to pronounce the letter "l" as light or dark when there is a double "l" followed by a vowel in a word?
It is known that when the letter l is followed by a vowel then it is pronounced as light, and when it is at the end of a word or is followed by a consonant then it is pronounced as dark. But it is ...
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What does the word “potential” describe, “products” or “impact”?
Has an assessment been conducted to evaluate potential products impact due to this nonconformity?
This is a sentence written by an American . I would like to know what does the word “potential” ...
CommunityBot
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Can I just say "Watch" instead of "Watch where you are going"?
Can we just say "Watch." instead of "Watch where you are going."?
Example Context: Let's say somebody hit me on the sidewalk.
Note: I know that it can be rude to say these sentences. You don't need ...
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Does Jessica Lange's character in "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof" accurately portray a Southern US accent?
Jessica Lange was born and brought up in Minnesota.
It seems to me that her southern accent in the movie is a bit too exaggerated (read overacted) compared to that of Tommy Lee Jones. Am I mistaken?
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Got with present perfect tense and possessions
"We got a dispute already open for that trade."
(An automated response to me trying to "re-open" an already opened dispute)
Is it an appropriate usage of got (past tense) with the present perfect ...
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"More than convinced " meaning?
"Im more than convinced, she didn't attend the class."
What does this phrase mean here? I googled it too, but the effort went all in vain.
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"It does not get released" vs. "it does not release"
Please check both sentences and let me know what exactly difference is between both sentences.
It (a movie) does not get released
Or
It (a movie) does not release.
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How to interpret "up to at least"?
So I'm reading a set of formal project specifications written by an American.
Among the specifications of the cool device that I'll be making I have a requirement that says that my device needs to ...
J.R.♦
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How to use the word Imagine in the sentence
I heard a friend saying
“it takes an hour by a car imagine a bus”
Is imagine used correctly here?
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(Bell pepper, capsicum, chilli, pepper) What's the difference?
I would like to know the meaning that comes to your mind when you hear the four words as a native speaker. If you don't know the difference between two of the words, please let me know instead of ...
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Meaning of - "smaller planes have now given way to bigger planes" [closed]
Can you please explain the meaning of planes in the below sentence?
Over the years, smaller planes have now given way to bigger planes. Air travel is expensive but the number of people travelling by ...
J.R.♦
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Meaning of - "I will mind my row"
I saw the following question in a book.
Question: What will you do if the teacher is not in the class?
Answer : I am row leader so that's why I will mind my row.
Can you please explain the meaning ...
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Asking who is someone
I have a doubt about a situation.
If someone shows me a family picture, can I ask:
Who's this?
And would be ok if the answer is:
It's Mary
I think using "this" and "it" feel a little weird ...
J.R.♦
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Confusion about the U.S after secondary level educational system's words
When I am practicing listening, particularly when it comes to university stuff, I'm getting a bit confused how to use the words appropriately. Items are below.
Undergraduate
"Mostly" meaning to ...
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Is father-in-law to be correct?
Bride-to-be and groom-to-be are pretty much commonly used. My question is can we say father-in-law to be or mother-in-law to be? Or if that's not correct, what do we say here?
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How often is the expression "get on well" used? Is there any difference with "get along"?
I have been talking with a person from US and when I said something like this:
They do not get on well with others
She didn´t understand me at first, but later she said that was a funny sentence ...
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What does "cash me outside" mean?
I was watching random videos on Youtube and one of them took my attention. I heard a girl saying 'cash me outside'. In fact this video got really popular on Youtube, but I'm not able to make out what ...
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Difference between "mother to" and "mother of"?
I hear people saying both. What's the difference between these two? And yeah, once I heard aunt too as well. It confused me alot. Could someone please state the meaning of these? Ive heard people ...
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Why is "I've read this book for two hours" wrong?
A grammar book that I've been using showed this sentence as incorrect.
I've read this book for two hours.
This sentence is apparently incorrect in present perfect. Why is this sentence wrong? If ...
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Are "maternal uncle" or "cousin brother" commonly used in English?
Expressions like "maternal uncle" (meaning mother's brother) or "cousin brother" (meaning male cousin), used commonly in e.g. Indian English, define more subtly the relationship between people in ...
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I have a problem with the past tense narrative
So, I have some issues about tenses in a story I'm writing in past tense.
[Jack and Bill sat at the table, eating their meals.]
(This is to mean that they are currently sitting and eating.)
Does the ...
Hittfler
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What is the job title of a professor who teaches Classics?
Someone who is qualified to teach history is called a History teacher
Someone who teaches music is a Music teacher
… who teaches English to native speakers is an English teacher
… teaches English as ...
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Traffic become lighter or loosen up?
What's the most natural way to say(USA) we want to wait for the traffic become lighter? I can think of following but neither sounds good to my ear.
Wait till traffic becomes lighter.
Wait till ...
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Which one should I use: fell off/ have fallen [duplicate]
Situation: I am sitting in my class and seeing that magnetic pin is falling off the board down on the floor! Now I’d like to describe what just happened!
The magnetic pin have fallen from the ...
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Does "the other side of the receipt" sound natural in American English
Kindly, look at the other side of the receipt. You will find a link
through which you can rate our service.
The aim of this sentence is to make a customer pay attention to the link because it is ...
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"Do you have English?" and "Do you know English?"
Are these questions natural?
"Do you have English?"
"Do you know English?"
In this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXhDlYREJyo at 0:26, the subtitles read "Do you have Irish". Is that ...
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Pronunciation of "are"
In these sentences below, can I pronounce the "are"s as /ər/ instead of /ɑr/? I am talking about American English.
Sentences:
1) "Problems of most people are not big."
2) "People who smoke ...
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"Black"/"brown"/"yellow"/"red" people -- are some of these accepted (in the US)? [closed]
A co-worker and I just discussed whether "brown people" (for people with Latin American origin or perhaps Middle-Eastern origin?) is acceptable in the US, as I read this phrasing more often now, e.g. ...
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To be past participle
Please tell me, the below sentences are correct or not?
Work is to be done.
Work to be done.
As per my knowledge, there is nothing like ‘be+ to be+ past participle ‘
1st sentence can be written as, ...
CommunityBot
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Please help me for corrections [closed]
**I will available up to 1.00 pm PST.
So, you can knock me between 9 am to 1 pm PST.**
I am a little bit confused about my mistakes.
Please help me
Thanks
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Can I make an unaspirated /t/ sound in the words like "best", "chest", "belt" etc. in American English?
As far as I know, if there is a vowel before the final /t/ or if there is the letter /n/ before the final /t/, we can make an unaspirated /t/ sound in American English. For example: "hot", "cut", "...
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"match with" or "match in" in phrase like "Match with skills"?
Suppose there's person whose some qualities match with you. You have to write this in a phrase to show percentage. What I mean is this:
Match with/in/not sure quality_1: 78%
Match with/in/not sure ...
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When should I use "to" before "home"
I have read that we do not use to before home as home is an adverb here:
I am going home.
You come home.
He goes home.
We can use to before home in some cases:
I am going to his home.
...
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"At the back of your mind" or "in the back of your mind"
Is there any difference between these two expressions: at the back of your mind and in the back of your mind?
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