Questions tagged [word-choice]
This tag is for questions which a dictionary cannot answer about the several possibilities available for a particular meaning, and which one of them would be the most appropriate.
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What are the nuances in the meaning of the bolded sentence, if the word 'even' was moved?
I am translating the 2002 book, Phantom: Ein by Gen Urobuchi and co-written by the company REACTION from Japanese to English. I have already decided on which of the following two sentences I'm going ...
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1answer
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“It is the fifth anniversary of his death” vs “This is the fifth anniversary of his death”
If I want to mean today is the fifth anniversary of someone’s death, are these two sentences interchangeable?
“It is the fifth anniversary of his death.”
“This is the fifth anniversary of his death....
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1answer
30 views
Is “stuffed” correct and natural here?
Is "stuffed" correct and natural here?
The shed was so stuffed with things that you could barely enter it.
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1answer
31 views
A man is “seated” or “sitting” at a table?
A man is seated/sitting at a table, having a meal. He's the only customer.
Is there any difference between "seated" and "sitting" here? What is preferred?
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1answer
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Single word for `Number of times of use`?
I need to created a database column to define Number of times of use, is there some single word for this? If not, what's the common word for this? numberOfTimesOfUse ?
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“She picked up the male [puppet], examined the thick wooden handle with the finger grooves.” p.388 Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
I have a short question,
finger grooves? Can somebody explain or try to explain what the author meant?
Thanks.
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18 views
What is the difference between “comprehension”, “perception” and “sensation”?
I searched these words but there is no information comparing these three words at once. I probably should post the question in a psychology forum.
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2answers
21 views
Is X et al. one word or multiple words?
as you know in in-text citation, we use this format to cite a reference of more than two authors. For example, if the first author's name is X, we write:
As stated in X et al. [1], ...
Because ...
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1answer
30 views
“Orange” is a countable noun, can we say “he is eating orange or some orange” when we mean “he is eating some segments of an orange”?
or‧ange 1 /ˈɒrəndʒ $ ˈɔː-, ˈɑː-/ ●●● S1 W2 noun
1 Image of orange[countable] a round fruit that has a thick orange
skin and is divided into parts inside
Peel the oranges and divide ...
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1answer
15 views
By how, With how or Through how?
I was thinking about this type of construction that is in blank:
Oh my! I am amazed ____ you did this!
There is only three options to my head:
By how
With how
Through how
What is the difference ...
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going to (become): which form in past?
When talking to someone, and he doesn't listen to you, even though you repeat it, do you ask him:
"Do you went deaf?" or "Did you go deaf?" or "Do you became deaf?"
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15 views
Is there an umbrella term for sanitary plastic equipment such as hair salon aprons, gloves, etc?
So, I'm looking for a general term/phrase to refer to sanitary plastic equipment. Suppose there's a manufacturer which produces plastic products such as hair salon aprons, gloves, masks, and so on, ...
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1answer
38 views
What word expresses both actions “to spring & catch a prey”?
catch [transitive] catch somebody/something to capture a person or an
animal that tries or would try to escape
The murderer was never caught.
Our cat is hopeless at catching mice.
How ...
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1answer
15 views
Opposite of Behind schedule
What is the opposite of 'Behind the schedule?. How to say if we are ahead of the schedule or exactly on the schedule?
Can I say we are ahead of schedule or on the schedule?
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1answer
19 views
Is 'you might look but won't see' correct? [closed]
When your eyes are open but your mind closed, you might look but won't see.
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1answer
25 views
Do you say “the pillow is stained with some substance” when you don't know if it is sweat, water, milk or tea, etc stained it
stain 1 /steɪn/ ●○○ verb 1 [intransitive, transitive] to
accidentally make a mark on something, especially one that cannot be
removed, or to be marked in this way
Be careful you don’t ...
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28 views
Is it idiomatic to say “to push your poo” when you mean “to try hard to push the waste out of your bowel when you are constipated”?
constipated adjective: unable to get rid of waste material from the
bowels easily
You should eat more fibre and fruit if you are constipated.
Suppose that your child is constipated and is ...
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All of these may be related to
Talking about beliefs of a writer I want to say:
"his contradictory ideas are probably formed before his view change"
Through:
"all of these may be related to the time before his change"
Does it ...
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1answer
18 views
'be fit for', 'fit', or 'be fitting for' what is the correct usage and why?
After checking the old post, I found this Difference between 'it fits something' and 'it is fit for something' -- "The key fits the lock" vs. "The key is fit for the ...
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1answer
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“Affected neighboring topics” sounds wrong
I found in our documentation the phrase affected neighboring topic. It looks unfamiliar to me. Is affected related topics a better way to introduce a list of issues, which are influenced by this topic?...
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2answers
23 views
Which preposition should I use when saying “Idea of” or “Idea on”
Which preposition should I use when asking someone about their idea on/of something in a formal manner? Saying "idea on" sounds too informal, but "idea of" doesn't sound correct.
For example, which ...
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2answers
24 views
Do you say to a kid “Don't smear the ink of the marker all over your hand. It sticks hard on your hand. Now I have to scrub / wipe it off your hand”?
smear [transitive] to spread an oily or soft substance over a
surface in a rough or careless way SYNONYM daub
smear something on/over something The children had smeared mud on the
walls.
...
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1answer
22 views
How to express the state of a chair that has 1 leg or 2 legs a bit shorter than the others: uneven?
Sometimes, you sit on a chair has 1 leg or 2 legs a bit shorter than the others. You can push your body back and forward to rock the chair side to side, which makes it hard for you to sit because you ...
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1answer
34 views
Do we say “This paper cup is deformed or crumpled” in everyday English?
crumple [transitive, intransitive]: crumple (something) (up) (into
something) to press or crush something into folds; to become pressed,
etc. into folds
She crumpled the letter up into a ball ...
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1answer
26 views
is it idiomatic to say “turn the chair to face the outside” in this situation?
face [transitive, intransitive] to be opposite somebody/something; to have
your face or front pointing towards somebody/something or in a
particular direction
face somebody/something She ...
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1answer
25 views
Is “gradually” used correctly?
The shooting goes on for a while, then gradually stops. Howie peeks his head up/out from behind the couch and sees bodies all over the place.
Questions.
Is "gradually" used correctly?
Is "up" and "...
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2answers
28 views
Occupied or preoccupied?
Lenny is strolling around the park, bored, when he notices a squirrel jumping around in a tree. He sits down on a bench to watch it.
Then something else happens somewhere else.
Back in the park, ...
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1answer
21 views
is it okay to say “push somebody/something over” when your action is “pulling”?
push somebody/something over
to make somebody/something fall to the ground by pushing them
Sam pushed me over in the playground.
pull somebody/something over
(of the police) to ...
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1answer
15 views
In a casual conversation to a child, is it okay to say “a skirt” when you are actually referring to “a shift or pinafore or jumper”?
According to Oxford Dictionary
This is a shift
The black one in this picture is a jumper or pinafore
And a skirt normally doesn't have the top as the blue one in this picture
And say you are a ...
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2answers
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is it okay to say “don't step your slippers on the mat”?
step 2 ●●● S3 W3 verb (stepped, stepping) [intransitive always +
adverb/preposition]
1 to raise one foot and put it down in front of or behind the other
one in order to walk or move
...
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Can the word 'destiny' be used in English in reference to the past?
Can the word 'destiny' be used in English in reference to the past?
A teacher (not a native English speaker) gave my son the following written task:
Think about Taiwan's destiny from Dutch period ...
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1answer
33 views
Is “Let her go. Right now!” a request?
"Let her go. Right now!"
The man just laughed at his request.
Is request the most appropriate word to use here?
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1answer
24 views
Is “pulled down” ok instead of “took down”?
There was hanging a collection of ancient weapons on the wall. I pulled down a spear and looked at it.
Is "pulled down" ok instead of "took down"?
Is it optional whether to put "down" before or ...
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1answer
21 views
Is it ok to say “to tie your finger with a rubber band”, “to wrap a rubber band around your finger”?
tie [transitive] to attach or hold two or more things together using
string, rope, etc.; to fasten
somebody/something with string, rope, etc.
tie something + adv./prep. She tied the ...
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2answers
23 views
Is “might” good here?
Is "might" good here? Could the sentence be phrased better?
I might be in a wheelchair, but I'm not going to let it stop me from chasing my dream.
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4answers
62 views
Wording for three different behaviors for a count-down timer hitting the maximum range
Imagine you have a timer that is set to a certain number of hours and minutes to elapse before going off. Now, if there's a button above the hour window and minute window and you click it, the value ...
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1answer
20 views
Economy of smallness?
He also missed the fact that there might be great economies of smallness in some industries, as Apple’s transformation of the computer industry in the 1980s and the dot.com transformation of retail ...
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1answer
36 views
What the most natural way to refer to a dead human body?
(Sorry for the macabre subject)
I was wondering which of the following is the most natural way to refer to a dead human body in this sentence:
The detective kneeled down to inspect ....
...
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22 views
'Didn't“ vs. ”did not" when asking a question
Examples:
Did he not check up on her?
Didn't he check up on her?
Do they mean the same? Or they have slightly different meanings?
If they have the same meaning, which one is more common?
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15 views
“It was not” or “it wasn't”
I've been reading a novel which original language is chinese and in the translation a there's a part that I don't know if its the correct:
[...] "This butterfly was extremely intelligent. Not only ...
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1answer
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Is “flies off” natural when talking about a cut off arm
She strikes him with the lightsaber and his arm flies off.
Is "flies off" natural here?
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1answer
17 views
How to narrate a story or a situation?
When I want to narrate or tell someone about a conversation that I or some people were involved in, it seems wrong to me to represent the participants with, for instance,
Sam said...blah blah blah
...
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23 views
Do you say “don't slap in the pee to make it be smeared all over the floor and splash it into my face”?
slap 4 [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] to hit a surface
with a lot of force, making a loud sharp sound
slap against
Small waves slapped against the side of the boat.
Today, my ...
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1answer
24 views
Is “Harshly” the opposite of “Gently”? Is it okay to say “Please don't type harshly on the keyboard” instead of “Please type gently on the Keyboard”?
gent‧ly /ˈdʒentli/ ●●○ W3 adverb 1 in a gentle way
‘You go back to bed now, ’ he said gently.
She kissed me gently on the cheek.
Gently cook the peppers for 10–15 minutes.
Rain ...
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1answer
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“Little”/“Less' instead of ”not a lot"
We are getting very little orders these days.
We are getting very less orders these days.
What sounds likely a replacement for "we're not getting a lot of orders these days."
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Are “condition” and “situation” interchangeable in the context?
1) He has been in a coma for three months. His condition/situation is still very complicated, but we're not ready to give up on him yet.
2) He has been in a coma for three months. His condition/...
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1answer
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Is “then” completely natural here to connect the sentences?
I didn't hear anything for a few months, so I assumed she wasn't interested. Then last week she called me to my surprise and asked if I would go out on another date with her.
Is then completely ...
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1answer
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You wouldn't do this, would you?
From "Rick and Morty" S01E02:
Jerry: You wouldn't by any chance have some sort of crazy science
thing you would whip up that might help make this dog a little
smarter, would you?
While the ...
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2answers
33 views
What word would you use for “Artificial Intelligence and Humans”?
My first guess was "Creatures" (I'm not a native speaker), but I have a strange feeling about this word. I also checked "Entities" but for me, it has a mystical meaning that is hidden in the word.
...
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Better stylistic choice for “triggered”?
In a conversation on Quora I used the following expression.
I don’t feel that you’re getting my point and I start to worry you got triggered, possibly recognizing own conduct, hence getting ...
