22
A "rise" is an increase in number, size, amount, or degree.
A "raise" is an act of increasing something.
Rises can happen naturally, or incrementally, such as a rise in temperature or a rise in unemployment. Raises are deliberate increases, such as raising someone's salary or raising an imposed limit.
If you look at the dictionary definition for raise as ...
16
Personally, I think OP's first example is non-standard (particularly for Brits), because we usually use rise rather than raise as the noun form in such contexts (and here's the proof of that, in an NGram chart). Offhand the only really common noun use I can think of for a raise is when it means a wage increase (that's in American English only - British ...
answered Jun 10 at 13:18
FumbleFingers Reinstate Monica
52.3k2 gold badges62 silver badges144 bronze badges
16
It'll take us four hours to get to the coast, so you can sleep while I drive.
Here, while can (but does not necessarily have to) mean whereas.
If said alone without more context, I would interpret it as "I will drive for the full four hours whereas you can sleep."
It'll take us four hours to get to the coast, so you can sleep while I am driving.
Here, ...
15
As has been pointed out, in some contexts, while can mean whereas / on the other hand / contrariwise. But no native speaker would interpret OP's cited example like that without a couple more words to make it obvious exactly where the contrast lies (between what speaker and addressee are able to / must do)...
1: ... so you can sleep, while I have to / must ...
answered Jun 11 at 14:35
FumbleFingers Reinstate Monica
52.3k2 gold badges62 silver badges144 bronze badges
14
Meanings
Brutal
Brutal is the word most associated with violence here.
When old McDonald kills a cow he can:
Give it an overdose of sleeping drugs to gently kill it
Cut it up with a chainsaw, smash it t pieces with a slegehammer, etc
Method 2 is brutal. It involves a lot of (unnecessary and excessive) violence.
If you know Mortal Kombat, you probably now ...
10
It depends if you are speaking about a "day" as a calendar date or a time period.
We always say "on" a particular date or weekday, for example:
it happens on Mondays
It's on the 4th of July
When we are speaking about a time period, we use "in" or "within", for example:
it happened twice in 24 hours
it happened twice ...
5
In most cases there will be no difference in meaning between the two phrases. They both can be used interchangeably to indicate that you may sleep while I sit behind the wheel of the vehicle and pilot it. Identifying subtleties of meaning may be insightful but they cannot interpreted to establish any type of rule. Zhantongz's answer does illustrate one of ...
5
They can both mean confronting someone you have a problem with, but "have it out with" can suggest an argument or even a fight, whereas "clear the air" is more positive and suggests seeking a resolution.
True, an argument can lead to a resolution, but not always. Stating your intention to "clear the air" certainly sounds like ...
3
The phrases overlap, but using "blew me off" indicates that the speaker feels they have been treated with contempt. The first version is softer, though saying "canceled on me" also indicates that one feels ill-treated. A more neutral expression would be simply "...she canceled."
3
When a verb acts as an adjective, it is called a participle adjective. Sometimes verbs or verbal phrases in English can act nouns. These are called gerunds.
You can usually tell the meaning from the context of the sentence.
The cook prepared a four-star meal. [Prepared is the verb]
The meal was prepared yesterday. [The verb is "was prepared"...
3
Raise requires an agent. Rise does not (unless you're a magician or god).
What this means is that someone or something has to raise X, but X can rise by itself.
Also often there is the implication that X is being held by something or someone, if it is being raised. With rise, the implication could be that it might be on a surface that is also moving up.
...
3
This is an American answer. Terminology might be different in other regions.
1 and 2: If meant for cycling, they're called cycling shorts. If used for running or other sports they're called compression shorts.
3, 4, and 5: These are tights. When worn by women, they could also be called leggings.
6: These are pantyhose or nylons.
Stockings normally cover the ...
3
Both sentences are grammatically correct.
From a connotation standpoint, I would use the first if apples were on the family shopping list: "I bought apples" means that that particular item (apples) can be crossed off of the shopping list.
"I bought some apples" connotes a more impromptu motive: I was at the store for something else, ...
3
"Think of" is asking for an opinion. That could be quite simple "I think it's good", for example.
"Make of" is asking for an interpretation. It implies that the person asking the question is having trouble understanding something.
I'm trying to read about Kant, and I'm finding it hard to understand. You've studied philosophy, ...
2
Technically yes, you're right. Hailing a taxi involves standing on the street and trying to get their attention with your arms or similar. Calling a taxi probably involves using a phone (though if there was a taxi rank nearby that you could call out - i.e. shout - to, that would be a suitable use of the phrase too).
That said, "hailing" is a fairly ...
2
Preposition uses are sometimes more customary than logical. Here are some examples of idiomatic choices:
on the same day
on the same night
on that occasion
the thief came in/during the night
at five o'clock the same day
during the day/night
in/at that instant
in/at that moment
at that time
in that time (different meaning)
in/during that year
"Once upon a ...
2
They mean the same thing. Really, it's not so much the noisy aspect I think of with these words. If there's any difference, I'd say "munch" doesn't necessarily imply eating noisily.
Sally: Whatcha looking for?
Bob: We got anything to munch on?
Here it just really means "eat" or "snack." On the other hand, with "chomp" I think more of eating ...
2
"Yeah", "yeh", "yup", and "yep" are all informal variants of "yes".
In an informal setting (i.e., in casual conversations — talking to your friends, colleagues, and family members), you would be just fine using any of them. Only in a very formal setting, would the use of the informal variants be frowned upon. "Yes" works in any setting, but it may be ...
2
Listening means paying attention to what someone is saying and hearing also means someone telling you something that is not important to you but because you don't leave that person you just stand to hear what he or she is saying
2
One test is that most adjectives can be modified by an adverb placed before it: It's very cold or It's absolutely freezing. Most verbs can be modified by an adverb placed after it: It's thawing slowly or It's freezing quickly (eg, in an industrial blast chiller). That test doesn't totally help because we can also say It's slowly thawing or It's quickly ...
2
This is a British answer.
Tights are a close-fitting opaque covering for the lower body and feet, worn by acrobats and ballet dancers, for example.
Leggings are similar, but don't cover the feet - now fashionable casual wear for women.
Stockings were originally (separate) knitted or fabric coverings for the feet and lower legs. In the 20th century, as women'...
2
Yes, 'in' is less formal, and also someone could be 'in' (i.e. present in the location) but not able or willing to speak at the time, so saying 'not available' is often used to indicate that the call cannot be connected without revealing anything to the caller about the desired person's presence or willingness to speak. In my office we often say 'I'm afraid ...
2
There is no real difference in usage, but catch has a heavy connotation of a mis-deed of some sort, i.e. that you think that sleeping this late is wrong, whereas find is completely neutral.
In your longer example, I would indeed use catch rather than find since it is clear that you regard it as unacceptable.
2
Compare these two sentences:
I walked into my son's bedroom and found him reading a book
I walked into my son's bedroom and caught him looking at porn.
(the obvious conclusion is that I should have knocked!)
Catch implies to encounter someone who is in the act of doing something that is considered wrong.
So, is your brother aware that sleeping late is a ...
2
Big inheritance is grammatically correct but is not the habitual collocation.
2
Historically, "mankind" was never a gender-specific word. It was long accepted that "man" could refer to all "humans", not just males.
However, many changes in language and culture today are an attempt to address a previously perceived imbalance, and the word "humankind" is preferred by those who view "mankind&...
2
I would personally use pushed which sounds more natural.
You actually have to push the button i.e. in most cases you can't just touch it (you have to apply force to it) - the button has to physically go in a bit to register the floor you want.
Pressed does sound less forceful and I wouldn't use it in this context. I would press something on my phone for ...
2
Both are common, but searching for "press|push a|the button" on the GloWBe Web database shows that in North American sources, "press" is somewhat favoured over "push" (US 200:172, CA 54:46) whereas in most other places, "press" is strongly favoured: (UK 299:151; IE 48:25; AU 87:55; IN 54:31; ZA 28:12.) New Zealand is ...
2
It's a good question. A dictionary will tell you that "have to" is an order that implies some obligation to obey, but often when it is used the speaker has no actual authority over the person they are saying it to - it is just to make the statement more emphatic.
You should stop eating that much.
"Should" implies that there would be ...
2
Yes, there's a small difference of emphasis. When you "go over" something, you examine it. When you "go back over" something, you examine it again.
Looking specifically at the given context, if you are about to have an exam on something, you will have seen the material before, so saying that you should "go over" it means that ...
Only top voted, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible
