7
votes
Accepted
in four months / after four months / four months later
I would use "four months later" here. "After four months" is ok if you have a bit of context. For example, he was sentenced to death. After four months of failed appeals, he was ...
- 15.1k
7
votes
Accepted
I learned much of my English watching
Here are the correct explanations. They are not equivalent, contrary to some other 'answers'.
I learned much of my English vocabulary [while] watching Hollywood movies.
"watching Hollywood ...
- 1,468
7
votes
Is it grammatically correct to say 'I suspect this clause to be a bit sloppy English'?
We can say:
This pizza is a bit hot. Give it a minute.
but we cannot say
This is a bit hot pizza.ungrammatical Give it a minute.
When we modify the adjective with "a bit" (or "a ...
- 137k
5
votes
I learned much of my English watching
Yes, these are all idiomatic and equivalent. But note, not all of these work in other contexts.
I learned all my English from Fred. —right
I learned all my English by Fred. —wrong
I learned all my ...
- 18.4k
4
votes
How can I know when a present-tense verb has a future time implication not strictly a present time one?
You can't tell.
Often (but not always), if it's not obvious and it makes a difference, a native speaker will add a time adverb to the sentence.
For your example,
we are making some changes to the ...
- 3,409
4
votes
Putting a word between "every" and "day"
Yes you can.
Every exam day
every day there is an exam
Every cloudy day
every overcast day
Every rainy day
every day when it rains
Every other day
every second day
These all ...
- 66.4k
4
votes
a man tall and strong
Number 1
I talked to a tall and strong man like you.
This sounds a little bit awkward, and could mean that the speaker talked to a man similar to the listener. Since the speaker notes that the man ...
- 3,405
4
votes
while he was watching the game
We normally don't need a comma if the dependent clause follows the independent one. In our case here, the comma doesn't change the meaning of the sentence.
[I was writing a letter for an hour] while ...
- 22.1k
4
votes
while he was watching the game
It could be correct to use the comma, depending what the author means. The conjunction while can have two distinct meanings. One is “during the same time that” as in It’s never a good idea to inhale ...
- 11.3k
3
votes
in four months / after four months / four months later
"In four months", means that he was executed within the four months or that it took four months to execute him. Wouldn't really use this here unless you were talking about someone dying ...
- 432
3
votes
is it correct to say "at the lessons"?
It is usually more natural and idiomatic to say "in lessons" rather than "in the lessons". In your specific example, the word during sounds better still:
Children call each other names during ...
- 111k
3
votes
Accepted
for long vs. for a long time
No, the two are not interchangeable, and interestingly, they actually mean nearly opposite things. As was pointed out in a comment, there's actually a very good thread on wordreference.com on this ...
- 5,964
3
votes
Why the correct option is 'unless properly dealt with' rather than others?
Both A and C are correct and I don't think one is preferable to the other. C seems to be more common though.
Comparing the number of Google search results:
"unless dealt with properly": 749
&...
- 1,499
3
votes
Is a fronted phrase describing a state of mind a "fronted adverbial"?
Strictly speaking (which is a fronted adverbial), "feeling stupid" and "looking up at my car" are participial clauses functioning as adverbials (of time or reason). Being in front position, they can ...
- 4,146
3
votes
a man tall and strong
The post-position of coordinated adjectives can be an oral storytelling feature, and for that reason it can sound archaic:
They came to a dale deep and wooded.
But it occurs often enough in everyday ...
- 137k
2
votes
Putting a word between "every" and "day"
Yes. It acts as a restriction on the phrase "every day", meaning only those days to which that adjective or attributive noun applies.
Except if it's an expletive. Then it's just for emphasis. E.g. "...
- 22.9k
2
votes
How can I know when a present-tense verb has a future time implication not strictly a present time one?
Test whether you can add a future time adverb, like "tomorrow", without changing the time sense. For your example, try "We are losing the 'ocean' part tomorrow". That's still okay, so this can be a ...
- 742
2
votes
How to explain an adverbial modifier being between a verb and an object?
That statement in the dictionary is mostly accurate for the example sentence it describes, but it is a very poor universal rule.
？ She plays very well the piano.
Generally speaking, this is an order ...
- 36.4k
2
votes
"I use my phone to keep in touch with my friends asking them about homework."
This line was spoken, so you of course couldn't hear punctuation. Written out, the best punctuated sentence without ambiguity is
I use my phone to keep in touch with my friends, asking them about ...
- 18.9k
2
votes
Prepositional phrase or adjective phrase
I think [that we can make a step in the right direction].
The bracketed expression is a declarative content clause functioning as complement of "think".
I would advise you to drop the terms ...
- 17.3k
2
votes
"They live ten miles north of Boston."—Does it mean "10m from the north of Boston to the north" or "from the north of Boston to an unknown direction"?
From Boston (considered by the speaker to be a point-like location) go 10 miles north. Ten miles north of Boston would actually bring you to the little Lincolnshire Village of East Kirkby (unless you ...
- 231k
2
votes
Is it grammatically correct to say 'I suspect this clause to be a bit sloppy English'?
No, it isn't correct. "Sloppy" is used as an adjective directly modifying the noun "English". When you put an adjective before a noun you're saying it is that thing (eg "a ...
- 111k
2
votes
Is it grammatically correct to say 'I suspect this clause to be a bit sloppy English'?
I add to what has been said in the other answers which have explained why a bit can't be used in that manner. There's still this question: What types of adverbs work in
ADV + ADJ + NOUN constructions?...
- 22.1k
2
votes
Accepted
A war over Taiwan would entail many risks for Russia
for Russia is a prepositional phrase, a supplement in clause structure, specifying the country at risk. It is neither adjectival nor adverbial.
All of these variants are grammatical:
For Russia a ...
- 137k
2
votes
while he is away for a while
I am staying in his flat [while he is away for a while].
I am staying in his flat [while he is away] for a while.
(1) is more likely, that is,
I am staying in his flat, while he is away for a while.
...
- 22.1k
1
vote
Accepted
Is 'skeptical' an adverbial accusative in this sentence?
In your first example, "good" might be considered an adverb, although that use is relatively rare and often considered incorrect (or at least very informal). (See M-W's second "usage ...
- 15.4k
1
vote
as his father played pool
The sentence "As his father played pool, so did he" implies that he played pool because his father did. It suggests a relationship where his father's action of playing pool influenced him to ...
- 377
1
vote
as his father played pool
No, typically the phrase "as [someone] did" or "like [someone]" is used to indicate similarity or comparison in terms of behavior or action.
In this case, "As his father ...
1
vote
the document to analyse
It says that the purpose of sending them the document was so that the document was analysed. You may infer (though it isn't stated) that "they" will do the analysis. This is the common ...
- 231k
1
vote
Accepted
Is "that" omissible after "with the result"?
I believe that I have found the answer in CGEL, chapter 11 (content calsuses), under "optional omission of that" (page 953). It gives the following example as favouring retention
I didn’t ...
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible