Questions tagged [sentence-meaning]
Use this tag for questions about meanings of whole sentences rather than phrases.
3,238
questions
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what is the meaning of 'later' here or there is any misprint?
Bose had his eye on the result of the action. When war clouds
hung over Europe, he saw the situation as an opportunity to
take advantage of the British weakness. He believed in seizing
whatever ...
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1answer
41 views
'A man told him how much he admired.' - Who admired whom?
I think the verb admire usually takes an object, like 'I admire him.'
But, in the sentence below, there seems no object of the admire.
You mustn't mind your Uncle Joss. Some people find him strange ...
3
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2answers
128 views
How does “for” change the meaning of a sentence?
I have read this sentence in a story: "He had to see her for himself."
I would like to know what difference does "for" make in this sentence. If I omit it, would the meaning of ...
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0answers
17 views
“part of the time”, but “a good part of the day”?
Citation from Definition of "part" noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary:
We spent part of the time in the museum.
We spent a good part of the day rehearsing.
Question
Are ...
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0answers
10 views
Difference between “speak of her” and “speaking of her”
I have this sentence in the story: "You've frequently heard me speak of her."
If I replace "speak " with " speaking" (as it is a frequent action) would it change the ...
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2answers
30 views
Two questions about a line
Reading this article, there is a line,
In 2020, when the program launched, many businesses reported being shut out of the first waves of funding when hundreds of billions of dollars were allocated ...
1
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2answers
57 views
“Oh, that’s nice!” vs “Ooh, that’s nice!”
What is the difference between the following two sentences:
Oh, that’s nice!
Ooh, that’s nice!
I looked it up in several dictionaries and the definitions were similar, the pronunciation is different ...
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1answer
44 views
“I have been injured in the last two months” vs “…for the last two months” vs “…the last two months”
Do you think all three of these sentences correct and interchangeable? I am not sure if they are all correct.
"I have been injured in the last two months"
"I have been injured for the ...
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1answer
29 views
What is the difference between “closing the shop” and “closing up the shop”?
I read a story and found a sentence : they were closing up the shop.
As a learner of English if I have to write , I would simply write: they were closing the shop.
I would like to know what is the ...
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1answer
19 views
“Needs to apply themselves”
Please help me figure out the meaning of the sentence "Needs to apply themselves" in the following text from the description of the app Clusterduck:
You will see that every duck comes with ...
1
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1answer
25 views
Sentence Meaning of “I have lived in the land of Israel for at least half of the year over the last decade”
I am not a native English speaker, so I am confused about the simple sentence below.
I have lived in the land of Israel for at least half of the year over the last decade.
What does it mean? Does ...
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1answer
17 views
How do I understand “It doesn't work all the time”?
It doesn't work all the time
That doesn't negates is work all the time, so it means: it works sometimes, but not always.
It doesn't work all the time
Adverbial all the time modifies doesn't work, ...
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1answer
13 views
'worth the name' meaning? in following context
Several woman hardly had a married life worth the name, yet(at least among the higher castes) when their husbands died they were expected to commit sati.
0
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1answer
30 views
does it make any sense to say “it would be considered as my own personal opinion” in the below sentence?
I'd like to know if the below sentence is meaningful to you?
I don't want to do any review of the books because that
way, it would be considered as my own personal opinion. the only way to figure out ...
1
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1answer
13 views
Help to understand “be interpreted as also including hostility … ” in the sentence
A Marxist sociologist has argued that racism stems from the class struggle that is unique to the capitalist system -- that racial prejudice is generated by capitalists as a means of controlling ...
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23 views
Are these sentences okay to relate with pandemic and Star Wars? [closed]
I understand that it would be hard to comment because it is more about culture rather than grammar. But still I want to ask. Basically, I want to relate pandemic and immunity with Star Wars day.
May ...
0
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1answer
22 views
“intend that …” vs “intend for”
I intended that the sentence means "Meaning Of The Sentence Comes Here".
I intended for the sentence to mean "Meaning Of The Sentence Comes Here".
Are above sentences correct and ...
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2answers
37 views
Were Vs Had been
In your opinion do these two sentences have the exact same meaning?
John had a fight with Alex last week, I wish you had been there to stop them.
John had a fight with Alex last week, I wish you were ...
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1answer
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Do they have the same meaning?
Assume you earned a million dollars last year.
You've doubled the income of last year.
You've been twice the income of last year.
You've earned money twice as much as last year.
You've earned money ...
0
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2answers
39 views
Using the sentence sorry to hear that
I have noticed many times like if a person says to someone that one of my relative passed
away the other person replies Sorry to hear that
I don't get the meaning of this reply. Sorry is used for ...
1
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2answers
25 views
What is expeditionary affairs in this context?
So it seemed to us. It was an agreeable and therefore a readily
acceptable idea. We imagined the Franco-German War of
1870-71 and the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78 were the final
conflicts between ...
1
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1answer
25 views
The application of tense agreement
Do the rules of sequence of tenses apply to an adjective clause? Can the tense of an adjective clause be different from the main clause? The examples are as follows.
The latest preliminary report I’...
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2answers
36 views
He's not very good. - What does “very” do to the statement? [duplicate]
He's not good. 2. He's not very good.
What does "very" do to the statement? Does it make him sound less or more good compared to the first sentence?
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0answers
27 views
What is the meaning of “May I also take this opportunity of…”?
What is the meaning of the following sentence in simple terms?
May I also take this opportunity of welcoming you on board at our company.
I searched the web but couldn't find something similar.
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1answer
16 views
What does this sentence “there could be a return to near greenhouse conditions for the next generation of counter-terrorism threats” mean?
What does this sentence "there could be a return to near greenhouse conditions for the next generation of counter-terrorism threats" mean?
John Raine, who previously worked at a senior ...
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2answers
88 views
What does “I put the X in XYZ” mean?
I've recently faced the expression "to put X in XYZ" in a post (which I think was promoting a product). And I found out this is kind of a popular expression in some memes and also there is a ...
0
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1answer
25 views
Don't hurry. vs Take your time
I wonder if you could explain me these sentences might have the same meaning? Are they interchangeable?
Don't hurry.
Take your time.
0
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1answer
41 views
The meaning of “Nuclear scientists are not themselves aware”
I am an ESL and preparing GRE exam. In one choice of a question of a reading comprehension passage, there is a sentence like
(A) Nuclear scientists are not themselves aware of all the facts ...
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2answers
37 views
Is this question trying to find out “whether or not the action was done” or “who did it?” A: Did you plant that tree.? B: My father planted it [closed]
This is from a British film. In a farm, two friends are working heavily and finally they removed an old and dried tree trunk from the soil and then took a break, sitting on the ground and drinking ...
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1answer
20 views
Like/liked - meaning difference in given context
If you get someone a book for a present and want feedback on whether they liked/like it, do you say "Let me know how you like it." Or "Let me know how you liked it."
What's the ...
0
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1answer
18 views
Have to and be+going to difference
As far as I understand, both "have to" and "be + going to" are used in future action.
So, for example I have an exam in 2 hours, which one should I say?
I think I have to study ...
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3answers
61 views
Help to understand this sentence from the foreword of The Lord of The Rings
Or to take a less grievous matter: it has been supposed by some that "The Scouring of the Shire" reflects the situation in England at the time when I was finishing my tale. It does not. It ...
2
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1answer
52 views
Who is 'they' in following passage?
European travellers mention the commodious and well-built houses in
which the wealthy merchants of Agra and Delhi lived. But the ordinary sorts
lived in houses above their shops. The French traveller, ...
0
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1answer
14 views
What is the meaning of the sentence? I could not understand how the “know” word is used
Know the Village of Tree does not fear them!
0
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1answer
27 views
to silence/to quieten
The police had managed to silence the protesters.
The police had managed to quieten the protesters.
I know that "silence" is no sound at all while "quiet" is almost no sound, but ...
1
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1answer
19 views
Cannot understand the Subject of this sentence?
My problem is to know who is the Subject of setting and it the following sentence:
When it is invoked, our new function simply invokes the original function that was passed in, setting the original ...
0
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1answer
25 views
“I felt calm and more composed than I had in a long time” interpretation
"I felt calm and more composed than I had in a long time"
What does this sentence mean, especially in terms of "in a long time"? The meaing of "in a long time" and what ...
1
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2answers
43 views
What role does this phrase (“for reasons of parsimony and relevance”) play in the sentence?
What role does “for reasons of parsimony and relevance” have in the last sentence? Is it a feature of “abstention”? And is “or parsimony and relevance” adjective for “reasons”? If so, then what does ...
0
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1answer
26 views
What does “a resolution on disarmament” mean exactly?
Definition of adopt (verb) from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary:
The government adopted a resolution on disarmament.
Which of the following does the sentence mean?:
The government made a ...
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1answer
18 views
chain conditional sentences
If he’s not here by 2:30, I’ll call his parents.
If you sent a message, I’ll reply.
If Jane’s fever hasn’t gone down, Anna will take her to the hospital.
If the client is here, I’ll be sure to ...
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0answers
15 views
Doubt in a particular newspaper extract with regard to the COVID-19 vaccine
Here to quote from the newspaper "The Hindu",it says that,"They assume that the vaccines which are gene based agents will 'remain entrapped in the circulation, and may be taken up by ...
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2answers
35 views
Clarifying “The man saw the woman with a telescope.”?
Cited from p. 12 of Introduction to Mathematical Thinking by Keith Devlin:
The man saw the woman with a telescope.
Who had the telescope, the man or the woman?
My question
Who, the man or the woman,...
0
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0answers
21 views
"The Fox defendants do not get a do-over with their (new) reporting now that --> because they have been sued.”?
Currently reading this article, there is a line, saying,
The election technology company Smartmatic pushed back Monday against Fox News’ argument that it had covered the aftermath of the 2020 ...
1
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1answer
28 views
What does this phrase mean: “for a dominion superior to any visible bond kept him tied to the trunk of the chestnut tree”?
An excerpt from One Hundred years of Solitude:
He stayed there, exposed to the sun and the rain, as if the thongs were unnecessary, for a dominion superior to any visible bond kept him tied to the ...
asked Apr 13 at 12:46
HypnoticBuggyWraithVirileBevy
1,8251 gold badge7 silver badges24 bronze badges
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1answer
34 views
Use of 'lost' as an Adjective
'Lost' is past and past participle form of verb 'Lose'. It's also a pure adjective as it passes the test of Adjective category. So, we can write
I am lost. (Lost as Predictive Adjective)
I have been ...
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1answer
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What does “You get this endless downward ratchet” mean here?
What does "You get this endless downward ratchet" mean here? Does it mean "we always get downward progression"? This is from a fortune.com article
“In economic booms, it always ...
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1answer
31 views
“ It happened that she was out when we called.” ('called' here means what?) [closed]
It happened that she was out when we called.
'called' means visited or phoned?
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11answers
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Possible meanings of “IN CASE OF FIRE, DO NOT USE ELEVATOR.”
Background
Below are cited from pp. 14-15 of Introduction to Mathematical Thinking by Keith Devlin:
You often see the following notice posted in elevators:
IN CASE OF FIRE, DO NOT USE ELEVATOR.
...
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1answer
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Explanation of “The absence of evidence, they say, is not the evidence of absence.”
What does this statement mean? Please explain
The absence of evidence, they say, is not the evidence of absence.
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0answers
25 views
Meaning of “He rounded her up, sidling and dancing with his arms out in their big curve”
Dexter made the presentations.
‘We can’t stay, I’m afraid,’ said Elizabeth in her grand manner. The
closed door next to the stove must lead to the bathroom: she could hear the
dull splatter of a ...
