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.
7,554
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A word like "science/scientific" that can be used for ALL academic fields?
In my native language we have an adjective and a noun that translate roughly as 'scientific'/'science', but which refer to any academic field, rather than specifically to the natural sciences. But ...
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Is it correct to say "write down the words, leaving one cell between them" or "..., leaving one cell between each of them"?
My daughter has a book with cells like the above picture. She has to write down the word "e" several times like that.
Note: In Vietnam, a workbook has cells like that for students to write ...
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What's the most idiomatic word or phrase for the address that you refer visitors to?
My bilingual dictionary suggests "visiting address" for the address that you refer visitors to, as opposed to a postal address, but I haven't been able to confirm this in any monolingual ...
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word choice: [enroll in or register for]
I have made up the sentences below.
(1a) I will enroll in the next job search workshop next week.
(1b) I will register for the next job search workshop next week.
(2a) I will enroll in a job placement ...
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Is the word "done" needed in "what I done found"? [duplicate]
There is a dialogue in Killers Of The Flower Moon (2023):
Ramsey: Whoo-hoo. Partner. Look what I done found in the possum hole.
Is the word "done" needed?
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Check my poetry please [closed]
Check please this lyrics for making sense and mostakes . Have I used the words "flair", "looney", "stubbled face", "take a hike guy", "saddled", "...
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Is there any difference in what these sentences mean? Is there any reason to use one over the other? Are both sentences grammatically correct?
"His health problems can be attributed to not eating well."
"His health problems can be attributed to him not eating well."
Are both these sentences grammatically correct? Is ...
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Are games where you pretend to be something called by the name of the venue/building?
On TV, I heard when children are thinking of what game they should play, one of them said:
We will play hospitals.
From this sentence, I think that maybe the names of games in english -in which you ...
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surprisingly vs surprising
Over its long history, the Supreme Court has ruled on many contentious legal issues: slavery and racial segregation, free speech and religious freedom, abortion and marriage equality. Perhaps it is ...
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Do you say "I can't sleep" for repeated event and "I can't fall asleep" for one specific occasion?
When you say "I like tea", you mean I always like tea because that is my habit or repeated event.
But, when you say "I would like some tea", you mean I want to drink some tea at ...
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Using WOULD vs simple past to talk about a person
(KCRA news)
More than a decade before she would become the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris was making a run for statewide office in California in a close contest.
(FORTUNE news)
Mike Lynch was ...
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Which is correct "… than what you have" or "… than you have."?
I am looking at sentences containing "than" and "than what":
I have more chocolate than you have
I have more chocolate than what you have
Which is more correct?
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A song line of mine
Can I say "let's restart it all" in a song. We kinda broke up with my girlfriend or just had a quarrel, so I would like her to come back. I could've said "let's start it all again" ...
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Help me choose a verb. — If biologists say people belong to mammals, then biologists "VERB" people to mammals. — What verb would be natural here?
I need a verb meaning something like "to ascribe something into/to/in some category".
my own sentences:
(1a) Biologists say people belong to mammals.
(2a) Some linguists say "not" ...
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Are "lie low" and "keep a low profile" interchangeable?
In Oxford dictionary
lie low (informal) to try not to attract attention to yourself
In Cambridge dictionary
keep a low profile idiom to avoid attracting attention to yourself:
He's been in a ...
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Kyoto is a famous tourist destination/area/site/spot in Japan
(1) Kyoto is a famous tourist destination in Japan.
(2) Kyoto is a famous tourist area in Japan.
(3) Kyoto is a famous tourist site in Japan.
(4) Kyoto is a famous tourist spot in Japan.
These are my ...
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Is there a word for suicide that's caused by discrimination, harassment, or abuse?
I've tried to find a word for suicide that's caused by discrimination, harassment, abuse, or isolation, but I can't find it, there's bullycide but it's not very accurate, does anyone know what's the ...
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Do you use "frame somebody" or "set somebody up" in these 2 situations?
Situation 1, Bob was driving when he got stopped by a police officer. The police, then, opened the boot of the car and saw some drugs. Bob didn't know why the drugs got there.
Situation 2, A man ...
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Ramification vs Repercussion. Can a "ramification" be positive?
I'm trying to differentiate ramification and repercussion. According to CD, it seems that ramification is more neutral, while repercussion is mostly negative. In other words, ramification ~ effect and ...
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"The rmaining 3 parcels" Vs. "The rest 3 parcels"
If I need to get 9 parcels today, and so far I got 6. So:
During the day I'm supposed to get the remaining 3 parcels?
Vs.
During the day I'm supposed to get the rest 3 parcels?
One of the above, ...
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Elongate - Word usage
Person 1 - I never cry for more than a few minutes.
Person 2 - You should elongate your crying. Crying for a long period helps release endorphins.
Is the first sentence used by person 2 grammatically ...
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"Flair" x "Phlegm". Do they have the same meaning here? [closed]
Do the expressions "flair" and "phlegm" have the same meaning in this type of text?
I agree that he is much older than her and that she has never been interested in older men ...
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Reason why native speakers don't say "make someone speechless/useless/unconscious"
Here's the link to another post of mine about the difference between render and make. There, people said native speakers say:
"render someone speechless/useless/unconscious", but not "...
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seek vs look for a job
I'd thought they both meant the same thing (except that seek is a little more formal), but I was told that "seek a job" is not as good as "look for a job". Is this a matter of ...
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Render vs Make. Does "render" imply something negative?
Reading examples of "render" in the sense of "make" in M-W, it occurred to me that "render" is often used in a negative light. For example:
Depression can render a ...
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"a less frequency" or "a lower frequency"
Is there an English adverb that describes a less/lower frequency
than "occasionally" and does not have a negative connotation?
Which sounds idiomatic in this sentence, less or lower?
I have ...
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Is there any difference between 'should' and 'be advisable that'?
Both words imply that somebody should do something. Is there any difference between them? For example:
People should stick to their boring jobs until they have overcome their most urgent financial ...
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Is my differentiation of these words correct: engender, lead to, result in, bring about?
First, let's ignore the fact that lead to implies there are several steps between the cause and the outcome.
After some research, this is my attempt to differentiate these words:
engender: making a ...
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How to name a text with a line in the middle: strike-through, struck-through, struck-out, crossed-out, crossed-off or maybe something else?
How to name this text?
(1) a strike-through text
(2) a struck-through text
(3) a struck-out text
(4) a crossed-out text
(5) a crossed-off text
or maybe something else?
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would last x could last
In the context of the text below, can either of these two expressions be used to say that a relationship was not expected to last longer than it actually did?
Example 1:
Our relationship was fun and ...
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using ignorant as a positive word
"ignorant" simply means "unaware"
Like when I say he is ignorant of the facts, it means that he is not aware of the facts. But in general, the word ignorant has taken up "...
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what is the difference between "ship", "deliver" and "send", e.g. "we will ship/deliver/send the item to your house"?
According to my study, it seems "to ship" means to take an item to a carrier who will "deliver" it to your house.
If a shop said "we will ship the item to you/ your house&...
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The right word for ___
I'm looking for the right word for the sides of a water body like a pond, tank, and river and NOT sea, where usually the creepers and aquatic plants, reeds and others grow thick.
I want a generic ...
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Substitute for "has turned into"
Is there any verb, or even slang, that can be used in place of "has turned into" when talking specifically about something that has changed for the worse, as in the example below?
It's sad ...
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Individuals vs People. Is it correct to use "individuals" to refer to people of a particular type in a positive light?
individuals (sense 4): (informal, usually disapproving) a person of a particular type, especially a strange one.
I'm trying to know when I can use individuals to replace people to avoid repetition in ...
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What word would you call something sticking out from a surface? (see photos inside)
What word would you call something sticking out as in the pictures below?
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
I found some words in dictionaries: "projection", "ledge". But I don't know which one ...
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Differences between Solely vs Only as Adverbs
Solely: only; not involving somebody/something else
Examples in the dictionary:
She was motivated solely by self-interest. Selection is based
solely on merit. He became solely responsible for the ...
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I’ve already called her four times ________. Why not before?
I’ve already called her four times ________.
today
again
before
yesterday
Why is the answer today not before?
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Do you really distinguish the difference between "the shirt's rumpled" and "the shirt's wrinkled" and "the shirt's creased"?
I can not tell the difference between "the shirt's rumpled" and "the shirt's wrinkled" and "the shirt's creased" by just looking at the definitions in dictionaries.
In a ...
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Why is it ‘lived’ instead of ‘live’ in: "I'm surprised I lived”?
My first language isn't English, so I'm confused why people use lived instead of live in sentences like:
I'm surprised I lived.
I know that lived is past tense but I don’t understand why they use it ...
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Is it correct to say "the baby can walk 4 steps today" or "the baby can take 4 steps today"?
A dictionary says "The baby took her first steps today."
They use "take steps" but not "walk steps".
Another dictionary says we can have a noun after the verb "walk&...
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Is it correct to say "don't eat walking around" or "don't walk around eating"?
I want my children to stay in one place and eat rather than walking around while eating.
So, if we want to emphasize a word, we put it before other words right?
I don't know which action I should ...
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can we say "the fan turned off by itself"?
Britannica says
2 turn off (something) or turn (something) off : to stop the
operation or flow of (something) by pressing a button, moving a
switch, etc.
She turned off the alarm/heat/lights/water.
...
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School of thought VS Notion
Notion: an idea, a belief or an understanding of something
School of thought: a set of ideas or opinions that a group of people share about a matter
Given the increasing rates of deaths caused by ...
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Is "conversational" used correctly in this context?
I wonder if the 'conversational' used in this context is correct or not:
If you get an interview, study the job description like you're studying for a final exam. If there's anything in the job ...
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What is the difference between "the worst" and "the most extreme"? [closed]
Consider the following hypothetical: Alice and Bob are talking about tormenting childhoods. It's now Alice's turn to talk about her childhood. If Alice says "Being made a clotheshorse by my ...
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another vs remaining
I used another because I learned in the comment section of this question that another should be used. But the freelancer who edited my text changed it to remaining. I think remaining is not correct ...
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What is the movement called when you put out a cigarette on the ground with your foot?
Like for example when you move your foot side to side. I don't know what that's called and I need help for writing a story.
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"Via vs Through vs By vs Using"
For the context, this is for the title of a dissertation. In essence, it is called "(Doing investigation) through (property of the object being investigated)". The exact title of my ...
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"Fitting for the start" x "Fitting for the beginning"
In the song "Can't Stand Me Now" by The Libertines it is said:
An ending fitting for the start
You twist and tore our love apart
Your light fingers threw the dark
Shattered the lamp and into ...
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