Questions tagged [word-request]
This tag is for questions seeking a word that fits a meaning. Please demonstrate why you expect the word to exist in English. For example you could tell us a word that means the same in another language. Please use a bilingual dictionary and include the result of your research. Please include a sample sentence demonstrating how the word would be used. If you actually seek a phrase, or don't care, see the "phrase-request" tag.
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Is it called a doorway even if there's no door?
Example:
He moved to the doorway to the family room and peeked in.
Is 'doorway' used even if there's no door but just an opening into another room? Or would native speakers use another word for that?...
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2
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Is it correct to say "You must get on/off the motorbike from the left side"
When my children get on/off the motorbike, I want them to start doing it by standing on the side that doesn't have the tailpipe or exhaust because the tailpipe might be very hot especially when the ...
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6
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Are these Asian food establishments called a cafe or a restaurant or a stall?
In some Asian countries, you often see some places that sell food like this
This place is often inside a small building
It often sells a signature dish or common food.
There are waiters or ...
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What is a word (an adjective or a noun) saying a person who loves eating yummy food, shopping and can not live a simple life?
There is a person. If you give him food that is not delicious, then he will get angry. He also likes shopping and spends money on things that help him live comfortably.
He can not control his ...
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Formal term for pushing down the hourly rate by letting applicants undercut each other
Sometimes (a.k.a. pretty much every time for some), when a company looks for a contractor, the recruiter will inquire about the expected hourly rate. While there may be a few valid reasons to do so (...
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What is the phrase expressing that someone promised to meet you, but then canceled the meeting without telling you in advance?
You friend promised to meet you, but he didn't turn up. Or a boy promised to pick a girl up at school but she waited and waited but he didn't come.
This happens in many situations but we often see it ...
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2
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What is a word for “once filled with water”?
Imagine geologists in an undiscovered location looking at a crater. Because of some erosion they theorize this crater was “xxx” or once filled with water.
A canister with mineral deposits on the edge. ...
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2
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Word from an Australian speaker
This is a request for a few words (from an Australian speaker) I can't make out in a Youtube video.
Here is my transcript below, with the passage I didn't get in question marks.
This person, who is ...
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One word for highly frustrated/hopeless
Is there a stronger word for "highly frustrated" or "feeling very hopeless"?
So If I want to tell someone that I am highly frustrated by the work I am doing or convey that it's ...
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2
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Can we say "get on the ground/ floor" instead of "get out of the pool"?
We often say to our children who is in a pool "get out of the pool now" or "get out of the water now".
Now, if you are forced to say "get on", then what is the area on ...
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7
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Can we say "swimsuit" for any kind of swimwear (either gender)?
When searching for "swimsuit", I often see just 1 type that looks like this
But my daughter has a pair of pants and a top designed for swimming like this
Do we say "My daughter is ...
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0
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Plural nouns that fit in the construction "to be all (plural noun)"
I'm familiar with "to be all thumbs" and "to be all ears" but I recently came across "She was all smiles", which I thought was interesting.
I'm wondering whether there ...
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3
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A word for someone who only sees you as one thing
It could be your personality or maybe a physical trait that you have. I'm going to try to give an example.
For instance:
You're a gay man, and people around you don't see you as a human being anymore, ...
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2
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What is the name of a hole in the ice-covered lake
I live in the UK, and I asked a dozen people but no one has an answer.
What is the English word describing a hole in an ice-covered lake (cut, drilled or natural)? In Polish it is called "...
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1
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Is it called a water shadow?
The sun light or bulb light shines into the water in a pool and causes some moving pictures on the wall or ceiling.
Is it called a water shadow?
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0
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Is it natural to say "Turn the bike so that you and it are side by side"?
Looking at the above picture, I am sure we can say "the woman is sitting on a chair and there is another chair opposite the woman"
Now:
...
You were sitting at a table.
Your child parked ...
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1
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Do we have a verb expressing that we take out things that are floating on water?
After I squeeze juice out of an orange into a bowl. Some of the orange pips floats on the orange juice.
If we don't take all the pips out then we have to check for pips when drinking the juice.
Do we ...
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1
answer
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Is it correct to say "your hand got stuck in the helmet" or "your hand got stuck under the strap" in this situation?
I help my daughter to put on her helmet, but we got a situation like the above picture. Her hand rested on the strap like that.
I said sorry to her.
Is it correct to say "I am sorry, I got your ...
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1
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Is it correct to say "I pressed the wrong button in panic/ in confusion"?
I had this situation today.
I went into an elevator while a man was running towards the elevator. According to "elevator etiquette", I was supposed to press the button "<>" ...
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1
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Do we have a phrase expressing that you have to look around, back, down and up to make sure you won't fall, trip, sleep, or bump into things?
When my children walk on a road or a place with many objects around, I often tell them to:
look down: to make sure they don't trip over or slip on something.
look up: to make sure they don't bump ...
- 23.3k
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3
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Are these called "good cart" and "serving cart"? [closed]
Is this called a good cart" which is used to carry heavy things and often used in construction?
Is this called a "food cart" which is used to carry and sell food on streets? It might ...
- 23.3k
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3
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The functional opposite of "dispatcher"
I need a word which is the functional opposite of "dispatcher" (as a technical device, not as a person). The word needs to be used in a technical, engineering document, so the following are ...
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What is the word used to say the roads are very convenient for you to go because you don't have to changes lanes or many lanes?
If you don't have to change lanes or just have to change few lanes when going from A to B, it is very easy for you because changing lanes are dangerous and not convenient.
When I look for a school for ...
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1
answer
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Certain sort of cartographic maps
I cannot find the right word for the usual map that has enlarged areas due to
overwhelming usage of some aspect in that area.
An example may be the poverty, spoken the Czech Language which would give ...
- 287
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1
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70
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Is "accommodation" in the sense 'adjustment' only used in AmE?
According to Cambridge Dictionary, "accommodation" can have the sense of 'a special arrangement that is made for a person or group that has different needs to others' – but, according to ...
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What is the disapproving word that expressed a woman who wears too much make-up?
When my son grows up, I want to advise him to stay away from women who wears too much make-up.
What is the disapproving word that expressed a woman who wears too much make-up?
For example, "Son, ...
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0
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1
answer
132
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What are small tiny pieces of paper of different colors that people often throw into the air at a wedding or when celebrating?
What are small tiny pieces of paper of different colors that people often throw into the air at a wedding or when celebrating?
Do we call these pieces "glittery tiny paper"?
Also, there are ...
- 23.3k
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1
answer
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Can we say "you're taking it so simply"?
We have this phrase
take somebody/something seriously
to believe that someone or something is worth your attention or
respect
As a teacher, it’s important that the kids take you seriously.
It’s only ...
- 23.3k
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2
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How to say more elegantly "to move the index in a disapproving manner"?
I am talking about the specific gesture of waving an index to show disapproval to a kid, often accompanied with the sound "tss". Is there a word or an idiom for that?
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What is the place with toilets, sinks, bathrooms in a swimming pool called?
A swimming pool might have a big room which has 4 or 6 small rooms for you to take a shower (like the above picture).
It also has some sinks or place to pee (see the above picture) and separate ...
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1
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How do I say that the tap water is back after it was cut off?
Due to a severe drought hitting my country, we have tap water only twice a week.
So when the tap water is cut off and then it's back, how do I express this?
In my mother tongue, I can say that the ...
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0
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What do you call duties that take place at a specific time each week?
I want to set up a meeting with someone in the next few weeks. I want to write something like this:
My only fixed-time duty in the next few weeks is a weekly Monday meeting at 4 pm.
I want to express ...
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Can we say "The mom is hatching her premature baby"?
Normally, we say "the hen is hatching its eggs".
I am not sure if we can say "The hen is hatching its chick".
A mom, who has a premature baby, needs to hug her baby all the time on ...
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1
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What do you call a document stating that you are entitled to support?
At my uni, students with disabilities are entitled to different kinds of accommodations, but in order to actually receive these accommodations, you need to have a document stating what kinds of ...
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0
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technical name of the small part from a large panel
I am not native and are writing an essay, I am trying my best to use the appropriate word to describe the product, could I call the small red circled one tab? or fragment I are not sure the precise ...
Bill
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Is it correct to say "Do you want to have your photo with your classmates taken?"?
I have a daughter studying at kindergarten.
One day her teacher said to me that the class was taking a photo of its students (like a photo of a group of students in the same class. it seems like ...
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2
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Can I use "work to" as a synonym of "make an effort to"?
In my native language, we use the verb for "work" + the infinitive marker to indicate that someone is making an effort/striving/endeavouring/trying to do something. To me, it seems that all ...
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do we say "sunbathe" when we sit in the sun in the very early morning to get some Vitamin D?
It seems Asian people seldom sit or lie in the sun to get their skin tanned. That's not so common.
However, they do have a tradition to stand or sit in the sun in the very early morning about (6-6:...
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votes
1
answer
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Word for people who take everything literally?
I’ve asked about this years ago and people took it the wrong way, every answer was about being intellectually challenged or not understanding figurative language. I don’t mean that. I teach Logic at ...
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Do we say "The man is bowing" in this situation?
When seeing a king, a peasant has to go down on his knees and bow like this.
Do we have a word to express this action?
Or Do we just say "The man is bowing"?
But if we say "The man is ...
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1
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What is the verb expressing that a child just wants their mom to be exclusively for them?
Now, a woman has a 5-year-old daughter and now she has just had a newborn baby. The daughter starts to get jealous of the baby because she just wants her mom to take care of her only not the baby.
...
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0
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What to Call a Document if It Has a Deadline?
There is a document that needs to be signed before a set date, and it will expire/become unusable if it's not signed before the set date. What to call this document?
I want to say "dated document&...
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What do we call a group of people who holds hostage for ransom?
I have watched the 2 films "Plane" and "Shotgun Wedding".
In these films, there is a group of people who holds hostage for ransom. And people in the films call them "pirates&...
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1
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Can "skills development" be used about abstract learning?
I need the English word for when you train to become better at something, and checking my bilingual dictionary, I get the word "skills development". However, I thought "skill" ...
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Is elderly friend correct?
How to say "My friend who is an elderly person" in one word? If we say "old friend" it usually means "A person who has been my friend for a long time". So what should we ...
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What are the normalized entries called on the table of contents of thefreedictionary?
For example, these multi-word expressions or lexical units can be listed in their very base forms on thefreedictionary.com:
leave one's mark
leave mark on
develop from
develop from someone
develop
...
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What's the name of this binding type where the pages of a book are bound at different locations?
In the book shown below, the pages are bound at five different locations:
What's the name of this binding type where the pages of a book are bound at different locations?
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Can "take office" be used for any profession, or what expression should I use?
According to Merriam-Webster, "take office" means "to begin the job or responsibility of one in a position of authority especially in the government" (my emphasis). Does this mean ...
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1
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Long lasting food category naming
What do you call a category of groceries that lasts long? Examples include food in cans, rice, pasta, cereals, chocolate.
Suggestions:
durables
durable food
durable food products category
long-...
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What do you call exams where students sit in a large room or hall and answer questions in writing?
As the heading suggests, I'm wondering what you call the kind of exam (at the university) where all the students on a certain course gather at a specific date and time in a large room or hall and each ...
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