English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

Anonymous

2:13 AM

@M.A.Ramezani It's possible some people might write tanks rather than thanks on purpose rather than by mistake

Robusto

@JohanLarsson I haven't quit it.

tchrist

2:36 AM

@Robusto Close enough, I'd say. Sometime saber is better translated as learn instead of know, like when in the preterite rather than the imperfect. Still the gist is fine, and it wouldn't be worth the time trying to pin more nuance to it. "How nice to hear from/learn of you,..."

It also means smell but not here. :)

Or taste. One of those chemical senses.

That version always takes saber a algo though, and the preposition changes everything.

Nicholas J.

5:35 AM

Hello?

Johan Larsson

8:26 AM

@Robusto ok just less frequent updates as you converge then

RegDwigнt

9:21 AM

@tchrist so... what does that all mean for translating saber wolf?

skill patrol

10:12 AM

My my grand ma what big teeth you have?

RegDwigнt

11:04 AM

Robusto

11:17 AM

@tchrist Thanks.

Gigili

@NicholasJ. No.

tchrist

11:37 AM

I bet they got snow in the mountains.

RegDwigнt

11:58 AM

> Accommodation arrangements for Embedded World 2016 are well underway!

I don't think they know what "be underway" means. Or "arrangements". Or both.

Robusto

1:00 PM

Pressure	29.81 in
Visibility	10.0 miles
Clouds	Few     1100 ft
Overcast        4000 ft
Heat Index	77 °F
Dew Point	60 °F
Humidity	60%
Rainfall	 -999.00 in

RegDwigнt

Volume 11

Edit count OVER 9000

Robusto

I just wonder where they got the -999.00 in figure

RegDwigнt

They bought it off the black market.

Robusto

@RegDwigнt Hey, you try lining up two columns in this stupid UI.

RegDwigнt

I will try lining up two columns in this stupid UI for $3000.

Robusto

1:02 PM

yawn

RegDwigнt

You should watch your yawn structure. The connected passed yawns in particular.

Here are some nice yawnings for you.

Robusto

Don't bother me with that crap. I'm trying to find a decent hotel for a trip.

I hate doing that. You never know what you're going to get unless you've stayed there before.

RegDwigнt

That's why in addition to HRS trips people invented LSD trips.

Have you ever used that airbnb thing yet?

Robusto

No. Should I?

RegDwigнt

No idea. I've not used it myself, nor do I know of anyone.

But I considered putting up a room there.

So naturally I checked what was already up, and was pleasantly surprised.

Robusto

1:08 PM

Hmm, looks interesting.

I know of airbnb because they publish a style guide for UI coding.

But I've never used their service.

RegDwigнt

I thought it'd be like crappy ratholes for $5 a night, or for a talk over a tea with a psychology student or something, but no.

Robusto

github.com/airbnb/javascript

RegDwigнt

It's interesting for me to note that some ten years ago I'd've first heard about the JS lib, too, but these days it's apparently the other way round.

I mean, I still only heard of the service like five years after everyone else on this planet. It's just that I hear about the JS stuff even later still.

Mitch

@RegDwigнt pfft crappy ratholes. You've just been to the few bad ones.

RegDwigнt

Which is correct grammer: rat hole or hat role?

Mitch

1:19 PM

Yes

RegDwigнt

Thank you. Additional question: what is this grammer and why to use?

Mitch

Why is a hard question to answer. It's easier to answer with how or what, or even rather or however

RegDwigнt

Thank you my friend. Last question, promise: is "watermelon sleigh" an type III adverb or prepositional idiom?

Mitch

Oh I see where you're going with this you clever clever man. No I don't have 'change' for a 'twenty'

RegDwigнt

That is change I don't believe in.

Mitch

1:25 PM

And since we're on that subject, can I have some of that watermelon? It's been a long day and it would be quite refreshing

RegDwigнt

You can have the watermelon from my cold dead sleigh.

For extra refreshment, get run over by said cold sleigh.

You sleigh me

Bob sleighs you.

Sez your uncle

Uncle Tom? Dick? Harry?

Mitch

1:32 PM

Ain't Jemima? Lady Di? Madame Tussaud?

RegDwigнt

Et tu, Saud!

Mitch

Sheik Yerbouti?

Get down tonight!

RegDwigнt

23

Q: Explain this pickup line: "If Bangkok invaded Djibouti, would Greece help?"

I was at an Model UN conference and often notes like the following get passed. As I'm not a native speaker, I assume that this has to do with some pronunciational issue. Can you please explain what's so funny about this sentence? (Djibouti seemed to be often used in such context.) If Bangkok ...

Mitch

Jamaica? I hardly knew her!

France? ... Um ... There's nothing really to say.

RegDwigнt

Some real pain for your sham France.

Mitch

1:40 PM

Kids these days. No Hungary and Turkey jokes?

RegDwigнt

Aug 13 '12 at 22:43, by RegDwight АΑA

►

Mitch

The French should feel guilty of their shame

RegDwigнt

Why, there's a kid these days and she's A-alright.

Mitch

Schamenfreude

Nicholas J.

@Gigili Why "no"?

Mitch

1:46 PM

And she's touring the facility

Nicholas J.

Hello, you lot.

Mitch

1:59 PM

Hey!

Nicholas J.

How's everyone?

RegDwigнt

An iPhone used as a teleprompter.

What Will They Invent Next?

Mitch

A selfie TelePrompTer

With auto content wizard

RegDwigнt

... that you can use to make telephone calls! OMG OMG OMG

Dis futcha is so eggciting.

Robusto

So i just made my first airbnb booking. Looks pretty good. Better accommodations and at a fraction of the price of a hotel.

Mitch

2:12 PM

Wha... I just nodded off... What happened in the movie? Was it everybody who is Kaiser Soze?

Robusto

If it doesn't work out, I'll hold @RegDwigнt personally responsible.

@Mitch The name gives it away: Keyser -> K -> Kevin, Soze -> S -> Spacey.

RegDwigнt

@Robusto muwa, haha, haha, and also ha.

@Robusto oh and there I was thinking Keyser = Kwatsch, Soze = Soße.

Quatsch mit Soße

== Quatsch mit Soße (Deutsch) == === Redewendung === Alternative Schreibweisen: Quatsch mit Sauce Schweiz und Liechtenstein: Quatsch mit Sosse Worttrennung: Quatsch mit So·ße Aussprache: IPA: [ˈkvaʧ mɪt ˌzoːsə] Hörbeispiele: Quatsch mit Soße (Info) Bedeutungen: [1] umgangssprachlich salopp abwertend, emotional verstärkend: (eine Behauptung oder dergleichen) zurückweisende Entgegnung im Sinne von „großer Unsinn“, „völliger Unsinn“, „unsinniges Gerede“ oder interjektiv im Sinne von „So ein Unsinn!“, „Welch ein Unsinn!“ Herkunft: Seit wann genau die Redewendung in Gebrauch ist, darüber gib...

Cerberus

3:42 PM

0

A: Politer word to refer to a 'cleaner'

Some people might find it subtly insulting to call them "custodians" or "facilitators" or whatever when they are really cleaners, as if their true job were shameful. If you clean, you're a cleaner, and there is nothing embarrassing about it that needs to be concealed. Further, euphemisms and beat...

I'm sure @tchrist and @Robusto will agree with me here.

RegDwigнt

Yes, those two custodians always facilitate you.

Cerberus

And you, of course.

I am the custodian of the Underworld.

RegDwigнt

No, I only mute commies. Every single day.

Cerberus

Now?

RegDwigнt

In about eight minutes.

Cerberus

3:45 PM

Next thing, they will be calling me a cleaner, because custodian is deemed too embarrassing.

Nicholas J.

Hey, sorry. Can somebody help me out?

RegDwigнt

@Cerberus I will call you the recordian of custods.

@NicholasJ. bring it on. I'm sure someone will. Me, I only have two minutes, so make it quick.

Nicholas J.

Thank you. I was wondering which sentence is correct: "... can cause pain, swelling and possibly infection" or "...can cause pain, swelling and possible infection".

RegDwigнt

Both are equally correct. But both are equally hideous.

Both "possibly" and "possible" are completely uncalled for. "Can" already means "possible".

Remove the word.

Nicholas J.

I'm still having a hard time grasping the meaning of the first one. I ask, because I found it while I was revising for my TOEFL test, the original sentence contained possibly but to me it sounded a little bit off for some reason.

RegDwigнt

3:54 PM

You'll get used to it.

It modifies the verb.

It can possibly cause.

Nicholas J.

Although possibly was underlined as a possible mistake, the correct answer was another one.

RegDwigнt

(Which, again, as I said, is saying the same thing twice over.)

Nicholas J.

Thank you, though.

RegDwigнt

No probs.

Your best course of action is two-part. (1) learn the required dumb things to succeed at the dumb test, (2) immediately after passing the dumb test forget absolutely every dumb thing you ever learned for it.

Then you will be a happy person, and your English will keep on improving.

If you fail at part (2), you will suck at English, and your life will be very sad. Just a fair warning!

Nicholas J.

Why do you say so?

RegDwigнt

3:58 PM

Because that is the truth.

Nicholas J.

And by dumb things you mean...

RegDwigнt

Anything at all you learn for the test.

No native speaker, ever, has reached fluency in their mother tongue by learning something for some test.

Cerberus

What if you learn Shakespeare for the test?

RegDwigнt

If you want to achieve native-speaker-level fluency, you will have to do likewise.

Nicholas J.

^

RegDwigнt

3:59 PM

@Cerberus Shakespeare, too, never read Shakespeare to achieve fluency. He achieved fluency before Shakespeare even existed.

Cerberus

I hear Commies talking.

RegDwigнt

Very right. I am too late already.

Bye!

Cerberus

@RegDwigнt What are you going to do about them Commies?

Nicholas J.

Well, I know that for sure. I learned the basics on my own and thethen proceeded to just talk to native speakers tto improve my English.

Cerberus

Good.

Nicholas J.

4:01 PM

But my head always betrays me with an explanation for everything though. Specially in languages.

Which leads me to another question, can I?

Robusto

@Cerberus Yup. I'm always in favor of calling things what they really are.

Cerberus

4:23 PM

@NicholasJ. Always!

@Robusto I knew it.

Nicholas J.

So. I was wondering if there is in fact a difference between the 'always' in a sentence such as " I can always count on you." And when you say for example "you can always lie to her if you don't want her to find out.". I just get the impression that in the first one, always just indicates the frequency, but in the second or, not precisely... but I'm not sure if what I'm asking even makes sense though.

One*

skill patrol

5:01 PM

To me the second "always" suggests the constant presence of an alternative.

tchrist

@NicholasJ. IMPERSONATOR!

Oh
the
horrible
ignominy
of
it
all.

Nicholas J.

@tchrist Oh come on, now. Not again.

@skillpatrol is there a name for it or...

skill patrol

Sorry, I don't know if there is or not, but you could always ask on main :-)