Questions tagged [phrase-meaning]
Use this tag for questions about the meaning and/or usage of a particular phrase, which a dictionary cannot answer.
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What's meant by ". . . he went the pace extraordinary"? (go the pace ?)
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XX, published 1892)
Passage 319
But before he was out of long clothes, the cloven foot began to show; he proved to be no ...
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"Now" before and after the verb. Do they both have the same meaning?
Placing the adverb "now" before or after the verb brings some type of change to the meaning of the sentence, as in the example below:
Thank you for inviting me to your party and sharing this ...
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May I know the meaning of *Take some punches*?
May I know the meaning of Take some punches
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The meaning of this passage [closed]
If a new drug were to make even the most severe symptoms of the common cold disappear within seconds, most participants and investigators would correctly identify it as the latest wonder drug and not ...
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"I'm starving to death" or "I'm hungry to death" can mean "I'm very hungry"?
Is it acceptable to use the sentence "I'm starving to death" or "I'm hungry to death" just in the meaning of "I'm very hungry" (rather than of a real pathological ...
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Do Americans use the expression "it looks common"? If so, what does it mean?
Since the US is not based on a class system, is this expression used at all or does it belong to the peculiarities of the British language?
common adjective (LOW CLASS)
disapproving
typical of a low ...
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What does "single British English accent" mean in this particular context?
I found this sentence on the Cambridge website. It was provided as a description of a book. Please explain the phrase "single British accent."
You will gain confidence in all areas of ...
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So, captain Nares shipping company and Dodds/Pinkerton have signed a shipping charter agreeing to delayed payment post salvage profits
Related: Link to StackE Literature
The ill-omened Flying Scud was abandoned and wrecked at Midway Atoll by its unscrupulous owners who conspired to commit an insurance fraud (In the process they ...
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What does 'The oh-so-British affair touts its hats and projects charm with antique flair' mean? [closed]
I'm not native English speaker. So I have a problem with understanding this sentence.
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The lead has pinched right out
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XVI, published 1892)
Passage 251
“This is the end of me commercially. I give up; my nerve is gone. I suppose I ought to be glad;...
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. . . as sound a line as can be produced upon this coast
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XVI, published 1892)
Passage 250
God forbid a sensitive, refined spirit like yours should ever come face to face with a ...
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Differences in asking what the time is
What is the time?
What time is it?
What are the differences between the above two sentences?
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I don't take much stock in mercantile Jack
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XV, published 1892)
Passage 242
“Well,” said I, “I deliberately don't want one thing: I deliberately don't want to make a ...
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Meaning of “I didn't bring you ashore to sound my praises”
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XV, published 1892)
Passage 241
“We've been pretty good friends, you and me, Mr. Dodd,” he resumed. “We've been going through ...
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What is the difference between "for the rest of your life" and "for the rest of your existence"?
I am asking this question on behalf of a Japanese acquaintance.
In my opinion, "for the rest of your life" is a very common phrase, but "for the rest of your existence" is not ...
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Meaning of "That was a home word of Pinkerton's"
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XV, published 1892)
Passage 232
THE CARGO OF THE “FLYING SCUD.”
In my early days I was a man, the most wedded to his idols of ...
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Meaning of the phrase (probably archaic English) - "entreateth chefelie" [closed]
I am reading The Information: A History, A Theory, A Flood by James Gleick. I find mention of a certain text titled
The First Part of the Elementarie which Entreateth Chefelie of the right writing of ...
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Meaning of . . . "not one that has any mortal thing to do with Trent"
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XIV, published 1892)
Passage 224
“Captain,” I said at last, “there is something deuced underhand about this brig. You tell me ...
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What does it mean when someone asks "what's on the register?"
I was joking around with a friend saying I'm accepting wedding presents already despite not being prepared for marriage just yet, then she asked:
What's on the register?
I googled it and the only ...
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meaning of "having suffered someone ending a romantic relationship with you suddenly and unkindly"
In the Cambridge dictionary, the word jilted is defined as
"having suffered someone ending a romantic relationship with you suddenly and unkindly"
What is the meaning of "having ...
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Meaning of . . . "fill up on a clean break"
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XIII, Published 1892)
Passage 210
Thence we turned our attention to the table, which stood spread, as if for a meal, with stout ...
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What does it isn't hindsight means? [closed]
What does it isn't hindsight means? Can someone help me with this. Does it mean it isnt looking back in the past?
Bryce Spalding
Nobody likes Captain Hindsight, but the Angels legit might of set ...
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"Have something to eat" in American English
I wonder what "have something to eat" means in American English and whether the examples below are correct/sound natural.
Is it similar to "have a snack," "have a meal," &...
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What does "union down, at the main" mean in this context?
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XIII, Published 1892)
Passage 206
I climbed into the rigging, stood on the board, and eagerly scanned that ring of coral reef ...
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meaning: go on Ving
The following is taken from the classic novel The Count of Monte Cristo. Normally, I'd expect "go on Ving" to mean an action or state is going on without interruption. But here, it seems to ...
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"slip free in one clean piece"
When she was five, Harumi lost her parents in a car crash. It was an uncanny collision; a truck crossed over the median into their lane. Harumi was in preschool, rehearsing for a school play. She had ...
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"Life happens"-what it implies?
Life Happens, But Only the Strong Survive.
"Life happens" is it an idiom or a fixed phrase having a special meaning. How I can understand this semantically?
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"What you won't do for" something
Does "What you won't do for something" mean that if you want something you have to sacrifice something, for example - your time, or does it not make any sense?
What you won't do for love
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the meaning of on-the-nose lines
They’re not really characters, but mouthpieces delivering on-the-nose lines—“The only man I let walk all over me is you,” Emily says—leaving Dynevor and Ehrenreich, both capable actors, lost in their ...
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What are the various meanings of the expression "North America"?
My understanding is that anglophones take it to mean any of the following depending on context:
Canada and the U.S.: by far the most common usage in most contexts, the default definition.
Canada, the ...
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Meaning of "a rap on the knuckles"
How do you perform the action of "a rap on the knuckles" physically? Would you perform it on one's forehead as a slight and not serious punishment or warning? In China we call such an action ...
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Meaning of . . . "I can make it up to her"
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XI, published 1892)
Passage 179
“Well, and talking of Mamie?” says I.
Jim paused with his trousers half on. “She's the ...
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Meaning of "Dear as it is"
'Do you give the children Daffy, Mrs. Mann?' inquired Bumble, following with his eyes the interesting process of mixing.
'Ah, bless 'em, that I do, dear as it is,' replied the nurse. 'I couldn't see '...
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What does "If you need to cancel your stay, you will receive a complete refund if you contact us 30 days in advance of your booking." mean?
I am doing a Reading IELTS reading test and I don't get the meaning of this phrase "you contact us 30 days in advance of your booking" In this sentence:
"If you need to cancel your stay,...
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Meaning of . . . , "I'm laying a little dark"
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter XI; published 1892)
Passage 176
“Well,” returned Nares, with the same unamiable reserve, “for a reason, which I guess you ...
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What is the meaning of "what goes to" in this context
Screenplay
Husband and wife are talking about their ill son:
A: He can hardly eat anything and here we are, wasting our time with this shit.
B: Oh yeah?
Like you have any idea what goes to feed him.
...
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Is there any difference between "character traits" and "personality traits"?
As far as I understand, they are synonyms.
Is it so?
If not, then what is the difference between them?
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What does "get on a list" mean?
It's part of a song/lyrics. Extract: "Mama, they say I'm a terrorist, what? I did nothing wrong, but I got on a blacklist".
My first guess is that it means: "to be added to a list"....
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What does "be blown upon" mean there?
I've looked up several dictionaries but didn't find this phrasal verb actually.
"Well now, and what did you think of Bellair?" he asked.
"Very little indeed." said I.
"I may ...
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What does "stick to one's guns" mean there? [closed]
"Any advance on fifty thousand dollars? No advance on fifty thousand? No advance gentlemen? Going at fifty thousand, the wreck of the brig Flying Scud - going - going - gone!"...
At the door ...
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Why does "a different-coloured ink" make sense? I can find meaningful only "different-coloured inks"
oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com:
(1) The words are written in a different-coloured ink.
To me, "a different-coloured ink" is nonsense because:
one colour corresponds to one ink;
different ...
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What is the meaning of "where it counts, you don't really know"?
Can somebody explain what "where it counts, you don't really know" means in the following text?
The trouble with the ordinary approach is that we think about change at the higher, conscious ...
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What do you take "buy over our head" to mean in the following context?
(Auction sale of the wreck of the "Flying Scud" in San Francisco)
. . . The auction will take place in the Merchants' Exchange at ten o'clock.
. . .
(Loudon to Pinkerton) "You seem to ...
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growth of 11 million vs an 11 million growth
I want to know whether a/an X million growth is the same as a growth of X million.
The year 2001 witnessed a growth of 11 million in the number of households that live in a rented accommodation.
The ...
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What does "a certain way' modify in this sentence?
I think chewing on a leaf a certain way is flirting.
Is it modifying "is," suggesting 'in a certain sense' or 'to some degree,' or is it modifying "chewing," implying 'in a ...
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What does mean this sentence? "the sweep of his arm took in most of Main Street"
"the sweep of his arm took in most of Main Street"
What does this "sweep of his arm" mean?
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What does it mean if the floor of a house "fall through"? Does it mean it goes down onto the next floor down?
"Jaefer says he was at home with his wife and three children when the earthquake struck and "the floor fell through". Earthquake in Morocco
In terms of falling physically, I have seen ...
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Does "want to be" mean 'tending to be so' or 'having such inclination'?
This is from the episode "How We’re Learning To Talk To Animals" of the podcast Stuffyoushouldknow :
Josh: We're gonna go forward to Klaus Zuberbühler
Chuck: Great name.
Josh: who is Swiss ...
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Tone and meaning of phrases that start with "I thought I said"
I have heard this phrase often when people are irritated if not upset about what had happened despite them making it clearer that they don't wish for it.
Eg:
I thought I said NO.
I thought I said no ...
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What is the meaning of "cross" in the following example?
Huawei's copy for their new smartwatch:
"Fashion, never stops.
Pushing boundaries through technology.
To cross, to sport, to explore".
What is meant by "cross" in this example?