Questions tagged [sentence-meaning]
Use this tag for questions about meanings of whole sentences rather than phrases.
2,897
questions
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Meaning of “folksy side of the spectrum”
He unlocked the door, stepped inside, hit the light. The decor ran to the folksy side of the spectrum. Two badly done iconic Western scenes. A cowboy on a bucking bronco. Group of ranch hands huddled ...
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1answer
30 views
Construction of better sentence in comparative statements
Consider the following statement from a textbook
the undirected models also offer a different and often simpler
perspective on directed models, interms of both the independence
structure and the ...
3
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2answers
43 views
An envelope enclosed in a letter?
He tore open the creamy envelope that had been enclosed in the
letter.
This is an example of the word enclose found in Collins English Dictionary. I don't quite understand it. Does it mean there is a ...
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2answers
22 views
for a long time
Jane: He's been pressuring me to see them for a long time. I have also been pressuring myself. It's just not that easy when you're not feeling well.
(He = Jane's ex-husband)
(Them = Jane's and her ex-...
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32 views
Grammar rule about “I regret…”
I have a question about the grammar rule about "I regret". Have a look at the following sentence:
I regret not having learned English when I was young.
Does the sentence above mean that I ...
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1answer
31 views
Talk to/with me
I just want to know what I've done since you suddenly don't want to talk to me anymore.
Is "...talk to me..." natural if my intention with the sentence is this: "...since you suddenly ...
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0answers
33 views
“sending the device plummeting to the ground”
I am having problem in understanding this sentence, in particular this part "sending the device plummeting to the ground". Does "sending the device plummeting to the ground" ...
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1answer
38 views
About a Yahoo article line
Currently reading this article, I am afraid I don't understand the bold part.
It used to be “easy” to tell the American and Chinese economies apart. One was innovative, one made clones. One was a ...
2
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1answer
23 views
Substance meaning
Substance: a particular kind of matter with uniform properties
The New Oxford American Dictionary (Kindle Locations 528557-528558).
Oxford University Press. Kindle Edition.
Uni (prefix) - one
Uniform ...
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2answers
23 views
What does the one refer to in this paragraph?
I have the following paragraph:
The new shape should be compatible with the original shape. If an integer, then the result will be a 1-D array of that length. One shape dimension can be -1. In this ...
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2answers
52 views
“because a mistake can be very pricey with chargebacks that are issues clients may have”
You need to be a good developer yourself to have it communicate properly and not have any mistakes in there because a mistake can be very pricey with chargebacks that are issues clients may have. (...
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1answer
9 views
What does “The policies are designed to cover inadvertence and negligence.” mean?
What does "The policies are designed to cover inadvertence and negligence." mean?
Inadvertence usually means the quality of being not intentional.
Does it mean that the policies are well ...
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2answers
26 views
“…to stay safe.” Who will stay safe here?
Here is a sentence:
Alax feed the dog every day to stay safe.
My question is that who is expected to stay safe here.
Is Alex feeding his dog to stay safe himself or is he doing so to keep his dog ...
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1answer
23 views
“no longer assumed not endotherms” = endotherms or not endotherms?
I'm practicing integrated writing with a friend of mine, and I wrote a sentence that she found confusing, which is:
..., the writer discusses the fact that dinosaurs were no longer assumed not ...
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1answer
76 views
Meaning of “Teach her to screw with me” (from Modern Family)
This line is from a tv show Modern Family, and the context is that
the girl in the picture above(Alex) is the daughter of the woman in the car(Claire). Alex in this episode hurts her mom's feeling by ...
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2answers
17 views
Does “redirected” mean that the LWA(Lost Wage Assistant) is a success to the FEMA(Federal Emergency Management Agency)?
Currently reading this article,
There is a line saying
On August 8, Trump signed several executive actions in an attempt to bypass stalled negotiations with Democrats about a new stimulus bill amid ...
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2answers
27 views
“…is ours — to kill if we choose” grammarticality
In Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book I found:
The man's cub is ours -- to kill if we choose.
I saw this kind of construction for the first time.
Does it mean:
"The man's cub is for us to kill if ...
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1answer
35 views
What does “bloc” refer to in “oversees the sprawling arm of the bloc that negotiates trade deals and commercial policy”?
Currently reading this article, I am confused "which bloc" the line mentions if it is the bloc of the Ireland or the EU.
Hogan’s appointment to the role, which oversees the sprawling arm of ...
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1answer
30 views
What is the meaning of the phrase “trading the sensible for the pat”?
In the following paragraph, what does the highlighted phrase means?
In Don Giovanni, what is perhaps Mozart’s best-known opera, there exist two distinct endings, a phenomenon not entirely unknown ...
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1answer
17 views
What does 'relate' mean in this context? [closed]
The ordinary people relate to divinity and the sacred through the means provided by the religion.
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1answer
25 views
would have usage
I know that the usage of would have carries two main meanings: one is often paired with but, say, I would have loaned you the money, but I didn’t have any; the other is used in conditional sentences ...
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0answers
9 views
Meaning of “By which one may see through deceit”
What is the meaning of the following sentence?
Understanding history gives clarity of vision
By which one may see through deceit.
My understanding:
Having the understanding of history(or knowing ...
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2answers
54 views
“if it weren't for you” meaning in context
Lucy: My parents don't let me go to the movies on my own, and they
don't want to go with me either. What should I do?
Austin: Have you asked your older brother to go with you?
Lucy: Hm, thanks... okay....
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1answer
24 views
What does “pay out at right angles” and “drew away the white material…” mean?
What does "pay out at right angles" and "drew away the white material...it fell back over the shoulders and became part of the clothing of the visitor mean?
Mr. Eglinton in a state of ...
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1answer
19 views
Trying to understanding logic of some transforms
I wanna learn logic of how meaning changed. Is it possible? Should I memorize or learn logically?
An example:
Have -> Own
Have to -> Obligations
How has transformed the meaning that sentence ...
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2answers
40 views
What does “long of the short” mean?
I was reading a question from another SE site — I fell for the sugar daddy scam:
So, long of the short. They offered to pay off my meager credit card debt. I was able to cancel all the payments but ...
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0answers
26 views
Who does “they” refer to in this sentence?
“I never wanna be the guy who stops loving someone for loving the way that they want to love”
Who does "they" refer to, "the guy" or "someone"?
P.S. This sentence is ...
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1answer
45 views
What does “The Hercules play comes in there” mean?
What does "The Hercules play comes in there" mean?
On April 8, 1907, the alleged spirit of Myers, through Mrs. Piper, said to
Mrs. Sidgwick:
"Do you remember Euripides? Do you remember ...
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0answers
38 views
What is the meaning of “Not since”?
For example, "I can't get in touch with him, not since he said he would bring them back."
Does "not since" mean "from that point forward"/after?
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1answer
20 views
The meaning of “if that's what it takes”
I have watched a movie named [To All The Boys I've Loved Before]
and there's a conversation in the movie:
(1). A: If you had a boyfriend, maybe you wouldn't have to drive at all, 'cause he would take ...
1
vote
1answer
21 views
Meaning of “the policy was a step too far.”
Could someone help me to understand the following sentence?
For many ethnic Mongolians, who see their language as one of the last surviving markers of their distinct cultural identity, the policy was ...
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3answers
51 views
Unable to understand the extact meaning of 'OR' in a sentance?
I'm applying for a home loan and there is an sentence which is quite confusing for me. Please help me to solve this confusion. Here is the sentence -
As per the same, the maximum amount of loan ...
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0answers
28 views
What is the meaning of “serves as” in this sentence?
I read this on a website: "Joker is a 2019 film that serves as an origin story of The Joker."
I don't understand the meaning of the sentence. I searched "serve as(something)" and ...
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1answer
14 views
What does the sentence “I don’t believe that there is much of what you describe.” mean?
I told my friend an idea and described what the idea can achieve. My friend is a native English speaker and he said this to me:
I don’t believe that there is much of what you describe.
I am not a ...
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2answers
24 views
“Putting the number billion in a tangible way blows your mind” is this sentence correct?
So I want to convey the message that the number billion when expressed in a realistic example that even a layman can relate to using the word tangible. And how can I say the same thing using the word ...
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1answer
33 views
I can't break down this sentence “The rules capture practices generally held to be beneficial”
This is full of the sentence (from Effective Java, by Joshua Bloch):
The rules capture practices generally held to be beneficial by the best and most experienced programmers.
I can't break down The ...
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1answer
34 views
about meaning of “for”
While mass inoculation has done far more good than harm, there are instances of vaccines for diseases such as polio and swine flu being rushed out, only for pernicious side effects to emerge later.
...
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1answer
33 views
Meaning of “so that the weight of destiny no longer bore on the current problems of my life”
At night I lay awake looking at the darkness, listening to the silence,
prefiguring the future, picking out of the past the scraps I had overlooked,
those rejected events which now came to the ...
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0answers
19 views
Using the suitable tense in a context with the word “whether”
I'm confused a little bit about what tense to use in the following context:
1-Learning this skill will benefit you whether you will travel or not.
2-Learning this skill benefits you whether you travel ...
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6answers
99 views
Can we say “I'm going to the bathroom” to mean “I'm going to take a shower / bath”?
To me, "going to the bathroom" means "going to use the toilet" although the word "bathroom" can mean both places, which is why I always try to clarify and say "I was ...
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1answer
19 views
What is the meaning of “hold himself” and “in reverse” in this text?
He knew when to attack and when to remain upon the defensive, when to press on the enemy and when to hold himself in reserve and let the enemy follow his own devices.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/...
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1answer
31 views
How does the meaning of a sentence change depending on the position of “just” in it?
I would like to learn where in a sentence the word "just" can or can't be placed and how the sentence meaning will change depending on the position. Below are some sample sentences I made up ...
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1answer
46 views
Is this a valid sentence?
I have an argument about this with two friends. We are not native English speakers. We read a sentence and are not certain if it is a valid sentence. We can all understand it but we do not agree if it ...
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1answer
34 views
Meaning of “whose auditory effects were achieved by his wireless”
The other room on the attic floor, smaller still, looked out on the garden.
It was occupied by a medical student, William Todd, whose auditory effects
were achieved by his wireless, frequently ...
1
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1answer
35 views
“They have harmed oneself” is wrong in this sentence?
They have harmed oneself? It should be better instead they have harmed themselves? Or it's referring to they are harming someone in the highlighted part?
retaliation NOUN
mass noun
1The action of ...
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1answer
30 views
What means supporting surface in this sentence?
I interpret ambiguously the highlighted phrase (supporting surface), what really means?
lie1 /lī/
I. verb — [no obj.]
1. (of a person or animal) be in or assume a horizontal or resting position on a ...
4
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1answer
72 views
“With no jobs Bobby would be happy.” and “With no jobs would Bobby be happy.” What's your interpretation of these?
For this couple of days, I'm reading a book titled English sentences Japanese people always get wrong (Written by Toshiya Echizen), and have some questions regarding the interpretation of some example ...
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3answers
45 views
Does 'in 20 years' indicates time in the past or future
ABC city sees a doubling of air pollution in 20 years.
does this 'in 20 years' mean the past 20 years or the next 20 years to come?
I have found a similar structure in news titles, see quoted:
With ...
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2answers
22 views
all that vs what vs that which
What’s the difference among these three usages?
All that glitters is not always gold.
What glitters is not always gold.
That which glitters is not always gold.
Are they interchangeable? What kind ...
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2answers
35 views
Understanding a long sentence with parenthesis (example)
I would like to ask for help with the following sentence:
It was a compound of unusual
esthetic and intellectual elements, and was somehow closely allied in
my thoughts with the same fascination that ...
