Questions tagged [grammaticality]
Grammaticality refers to whether something obeys the rules of English grammar.
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Comparison between there and demonstrative pronouns
Comparison between there and demonstrative pronouns
Who claim there is a subject \ question tag ?
Though many books apparently tell that ( there or here ) is never the subject, but the noun that ...
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Grammaticality of sentence
Is this cleft construction grammatical?
It is from the metastasis of malignant tumours to form secondary tumours that ultimately causes cancers.
I feel that the 'from' here is superfluous, but I am ...
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1answer
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Which is the subject in the following sentence?
There are lots of reasons why the road shouldn't be built
Answer :
Lots of reasons = the subject ✔️
There is the subject ❌ ❌ ❌
There or here is never the ( subject ) many books confirm this idea
...
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How many types of starting sentences are there?
___ about payments and account balances should be directed to our billing department.
(A.): to inquire (B.): inquired (C.): inquires (D.): inquire
in the test, said was the right answer is (C.): ...
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to prove his guilt VS proving his guilt
There's no concrete evidence to prove his guilt.
There's no concrete evidence proving his guilt.
I know the first example is fine. I doubt whether the second one is grammatical.
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Specific question construction (couldn’t find anything on Google)
How do I ask why a person does not want a certain thing ?
If why don’t you is more like a suggestion, and why you don’t wanna…, as far as I know, is grammatically incorrect, what’s the correct way to ...
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I wants it V/S I want it
I was watching this movie called The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. I've found that someone said the phrase 'I wants it' instead of 'I want it'.
I've got confused. What does it mean?. Is there ...
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2answers
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seen from the helicopter VS seeing from the helicopter
Seen from the helicopter, the cars on the road are as small as insects.
We seeing the cars on the road from the helicopter, they are as small as insects.
Are both of the sentences grammatically and ...
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26 views
Should we use definitive article `the` before `Sirik` in "Sirik water reservoir"?
Sirik is the name of a city in Iran and so I believe that the usage of definitive article the is not needed before Sirik in the following sentences while Grammarly suggests me to add the
This report ...
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1answer
14 views
Should I use a comma before and (Comma Before And in Lists) in the following sentences?
Grammarly advices me to add , before and in the following phrases and sentences with the following comment
It seems that this sentence contains a series of three or more words,
phrases, or clauses. ...
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1answer
53 views
feel embarrassed vs feel it embarrassing
a. She felt embarrassed to be asked such a private question.
b. She felt it embarrassing to be asked such a private question.
Are both the statements grammatically correct?
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Singular/Plural dilemma in given context
The writers in that department write like they never read a book in their lives.
The writers in that department write like they never read a book in their life.
Is the second sentence grammatically ...
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My question is from grammar part whether we can use two conjunction or not like this?
Conjunctions are words which are used to link clauses which can be either dependent or independent clauses. Somewhere I have seen it's not appropriate to use two conjunctions in a single sentence. ...
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3answers
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Should I say, The president of the college, together with the deans, 'is' or 'are' planning a conference for the laying down a series of regulations
My question is what verb should I use in this sentence, The president of the college, together with the deans, (is)(are) planning a conference for the purpose of laying down a series of regulations. ...
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Grammatical error in sentence [closed]
Why is the following sentence wrong grammatically : "I have good knowledge of Spanish."
I can't find any mistake in here, and also "I have good knowledge about Spanish" would be ...
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1answer
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On using 'last' before past tense veb
I want to say the last time I checked something was on [date].
I last checked it on [date].
Is the above sentence using last correctly?
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1answer
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Using outweighed as a past verb
I want to say that we give more consideration to quality over quantity. I am not sure of my understanding of the word. Is my use of outweighed here correct?
We outweighed food's quality over quantity....
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What does it mean by "has tended" in the follwing sentence?
I was searching for some examples of "To Make progress", I mean I wanted to know how to use "To Make Progress" in a sentence. I ended up finding a website with some examples. But I ...
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is "If +past simple + would have+past participle" grammatically wrong?
Is "If I knew French, I would have spoken it" grammatically wrong? cause I think it doesn't fit into the those 4 types of conditionals. the closest one to it maybe the third conditional but ...
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1answer
280 views
All I got was/were macarons. All I had was a bruise and a cut
I need to ask what does "got" in this sentence mean?
All I got was/were macarons
Does it mean I "received" macarons or I have got (as in possession) macarons? And why did we used ...
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1answer
286 views
Meaning of "I'm harder to forget than I was to leave."
In Taylor Swift's I bet you think about me, a lyrical line says
I'm harder to forget than I was to leave.
I've been thinking about the meaning for a while and come up with the following explanation:
...
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Is there anything wrong with this sentence?
In December it'll be 3 years since I have been trying to learn this
language.
Is there anything wrong with this sentence? My friend said it, but I think it should be "In December I'll have been ...
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1answer
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Comparing “Zeroth” and “First Conditionals” in similar contexts
Hey! Do not touch the car. The alarm (go off) ______ if you touch it.
Can both “zeroth conditional” and ”first conditional” be accepted in this context?
Regarding their usage, zero type refers to a ...
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2answers
242 views
Can 'there' in 'there be' be replaced by an actual place?
I took this sentence from Oxford Grammar:
In the bath was the biggest spider I had ever seen.
I had always thought that the construction there + be is united before reading this example. I would ...
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1answer
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"Match has been delayed/postponed for two days"."He has been jailed/punished for two years"
"Match has been delayed/postponed for two days"."He has been jailed/punished for two years"
I need to ask whether "subject+has been+past participle+for two years" ...
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1answer
22 views
Make sure he painted the room
Can we use "make sure" with past tense or past participle tense eg "make sure he painted the room" "make sure he had already painted the room when you left for london ...
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You could have told me that he had taken the taxi
"You could have told me that he had taken the taxi back home" Is this grammatically correct? By the way "had taken" is not used here as back shift of "has taken". "...
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1answer
24 views
Come to terms with
Why do we use "come" after "have/has" in "to have come to terms with sth"?
Shouldn't we use "came" instead of "come" due to the present perfect ...
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0answers
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hear someone + gerund / infinitive / bare infinitive
I was wondering whether all the following constructions are correct? If so, how they differ in meaning?
If the aren't, then which one is incorrect and why?
a- You never hear her bad-mouthing someone ...
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1answer
47 views
Does "I am married/engaged" depicts status or action/happening?
I know that "I got married/engaged" means "I was married/engaged" as in action/happening instead of status and " I am married/engaged depicts the status but can "I am ...
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When should I put "the", "a" and "an"
Zero coupon bonds with a par value of £1,000 have maturity of 2 years, and required rate of return of 2 percent.
Zero coupon bonds with a par value of £1,000 have a maturity of 2 years, and a ...
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2answers
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Passive forms in English
From what I know perfect continuous tenses don't have a passive form , but could we construct a sentence using the same structure as perfect continuous tenses , I mean instead of 'be' we can put 'get' ...
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1answer
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Using "due" without specifying the time
Context: Let's say I want to tell a classmate about that I need to do the homework due the next day. Do you think it is okay to say these sentences:
I need to do the due homework.
I need to do the ...
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1answer
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Verb tense with "already"
Can you please check the answer of this question?
A test for the disease …………… already, but the new one will be quicker and cheaper.
a. exists
b. has existed
c. is existing
d. has been existed
I ...
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46 views
Idiom and grammar
The day was like any other day but the different thing it was me.
Do you know any idiom for this sentence?
And is this sentence right?
How can I make it better?
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2answers
61 views
How is "take free" grammatical?
How is take free grammatical? Adverbs modify verbs, not adjectives. take free should be take freely. Correct?
take free feels ungrammatical. Humans can't just take free. free must modify a noun. ...
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3answers
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"respectively"—should only be used if your sentence would be unclear without it?
Should we use in academic writing the word "respectively" for the following case:
Consider circles 1 and 2.
These circles have radii r1 and r2, respectively.
Maybe because it is obvious ...
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'In contrast' at the beginning of a sentence
Can 'in contrast' start the sentence and be used without 'to' or 'with'? For instance, is the following construction possible?
For the product A the procedure X is typically used. In contrast, for the ...
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"azure blue sky" and "azure and blue sky"
I'm wondering if there is a difference in acceptability or naturalness between the following phrases:
the azure blue sky
the azure and blue sky
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1answer
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After the game, we went out to eat, went to the movies, and then went home. Is it a simple or compound sentence?
After the game, we went out to eat, went to the movies, and then went home.
Is that a simple or compound sentence?
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2answers
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'Not' before a noun subject in a question
We know that if we don't use contraction, the structure of a negative question is as follows:
Auxiliary verb + subject + not + verb ...?
e.g., (1) 'Does he not go to school everyday?'
(2) 'Does the ...
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2answers
18 views
What is the appropriate word to use between learnt or taught in some sentences?
I am conflicted with the use of learned and taught in some sentences.
I understand that "teach" is to instruct someone or to pass on knowledge, and "Learn" is to gain knowledge ...
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1answer
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"It provides opportunity for" vs. "It provides the opportunity for"
I came across this expression in this newspaper article:
"It provides opportunity for a small nonprofit organization to be
competitive with a major brand with huge marketing budget."
I was ...
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1answer
68 views
"There has to be" vs "there have to be" [duplicate]
Which form to choose for the verb "have"?
There have to be other solutions...
There has to be other solutions...
Somehow, both sound correct. I chose the first one, but isn't the second ...
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1answer
20 views
'Let not + noun/pronoun' vs 'Let + noun/pronoun + not'
I know that the sentence "Do not let him go" sounds okay. Now-a-days the phrase "Let not" is, however, old-fashioned ("Let me not to the marriage of true minds" sonnet ...
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1answer
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‘noun + likely to + verb’ and ‘likely to + verb + noun’
Are the following sentences grammatically correct? If yes, which one does sound more idiomatic?
Modularization by design decision likely to change.
Modularization by likely to change design decision.
...
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1answer
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Can coats button themselves? (Active vs. Passive)
While doing copywork today, I came across this sentence:
Tall and well made, the men dressed in dark silk coats that buttoned down the sides of the chest and were elaborately embroidered in silver or ...
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The general difference between 'is no' and 'is not'
Even though there's already a similar question here, mine is a bit different. I want to know if they can be used interchangeably.
This question came to my mind, actually when I was playing Duolingo. I ...
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ability and inabilty (Positive and negative)
Context: I am not good at drawing, so which sentence should I use?
Don't judge me by my ability to draw
or
Don't judge me by my inability to draw
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Why does "Don't you Dare" equal "Do not you dare"?
"Don't you dare" makes grammatical sense but why does "Do not you dare" not make grammatical sense?