Language Overflow

CowperKettle

00:03

Good early morn, all

5:00 am here

CowperKettle

00:39

> Hope springs eternal in the human breast;
Man never is, but always to be blessed:
The soul, uneasy and confined from home,
Rests and expatiates in a life to come.

What is "confined from home"?

Lawrence

03:02

@CowperKettle The idea is that it's 'kept' from 'home', but there is a sense of being imprisoned away from where it should be. Linking this with the last line, "confined from home" suggests that Alexander Pope was using home to refer to heaven.

Lawrence

03:54

Would it be unseemly for me to place a comment on this question that links to my answer to a very similar question on ELU?

Anonymous

05:14

I think it would be okay.

CowperKettle

05:26

@Lawrence Thank you!

Good late morning all

I still don't have the ELL T-shirt. It can't have travelled 50 days. Probably I entered something wrong in the form.

Anonymous

05:42

I don't yet either. Give it time, maybe :-)

Anonymous

Good early morning, @CowperKettle! :-)

CowperKettle

@snailplane (0:

We t-shirtless ELLers should unite and fight for our rights!

There are three of us!

Four, if we count Hagu.

Lawrence

06:34

@snailplane Thanks. I've made the comment.

Lawrence

06:45

@snailplane I'm thinking of rolling back this edit to my original. The rationale given by the commenter is that "serve" of food should be "serving" of food. ...

... Although that's supported by dictionaries, serve is now used widely as a noun. Using serve also avoids the gerund interpretation of "a serving of any menu item". What are your thoughts on serve vs serving in this context?

I also don't agree with the commenter's implication that "a serve of any (food) menu item)" refers to the whole order - or perhaps (s)he's referring to wording in the definition. I'd like your opinion - does my answer suggest to you that portion refers to the aggregated order?

(Hmm, it doesn't change my query, but the comment and edit were made by different users - MaxW and Max.)

Lawrence

06:59

@snailplane They give you ELL T-shirts? :)

CowperKettle

naked man apprehended by the police after walking through a large part of Yekaterinburg - he walked for at least 2 hours. I wonder how he did not freeze. I wear a hat and a warm jacket when I go out.

@Lawrence Yes, if you're in the top 20 answerers or something

Lawrence

@CowperKettle Wow, that's nice. :)

CowperKettle

Yep (0:

CowperKettle

07:17

LOL. I opened the comments section to the news, and one guy writes "Terminator was teleported into the wrong time and place".

Anonymous

08:19

@Lawrence I'm unfamiliar with serve in this sense.

Anonymous

Maybe it's regional?

CowperKettle

08:35

a serve of, a serving of

Damkerng T.

@CowperKettle I guess he won't get an ELL shirt!

@CowperKettle And was probably given the wrong name. :P

Damkerng T.

08:47

Hmm... I think N serves of X is legit in Australian and New Zealand English.

user62015

I am right, ——— ?
(A) amn’t I (B) am I (C) are I (D) aren’t I @DamkerngT.

Anonymous

@user62015 Aren't I is the proper way to form that tag question in most dialects. Some dialects allow amn't I, but I think whoever wrote that question is likely to consider it a mistake.

user62015

Answer is D

And let me ask if there is ain't with aren't in the options so what should we choose?

@snailplane Please check thr above point

Damkerng T.

09:04

@user62015 Between ain't and aren't, ain't is more colloquial, so it's still aren't in the tests, I think.

user62015

@DamkerngT. Thanks.

Damkerng T.

No problem!

Damkerng T.

09:45

I just heard this in an episode of NCIS LA and it reminds me of our discussion a couple days ago on prepositions:

> Bet he didn't buy that at the App Store.

cc @snailplane, @Lawrence

Lawrence

10:23

@snailplane Or just "I am right." :P

@DamkerngT. :) . "At the App Store" sounds fine.

Damkerng T.

@Lawrence That was fine with me, too. I wasn't sure at Amazon is really fine. I mean I think some speakers may day it, but probably not many.

Lawrence

@snailplane Interesting. I think I put up a couple of references in comments, but it seems I'll need to do a bit more digging, then.

Damkerng T.

I haven't checked anything further, though. It's just that that line in that series reminded me of our discussion. :)

Lawrence

@DamkerngT. It's ok with me as well. Maybe it's a regional thing. :)

Damkerng T.

Nice. I typed say as day! :P

Lawrence

12:03

@DamkerngT. I noticed, but kept quiet about it. :)

DEAD

12:17

@Cardinal Now that I look at it, it's from a deleted user who immediately accused you and everyone else of insulting. I guess it's not worth my time. Not yours either.

@DamkerngT. (ﾉ＾◡＾)ﾉ︵ ┻━┻ Since when?

@Cardinal Technically, a capsule isn't a pill.

So boo yeah, eat it

Damkerng T.

@Lawrence :D

@DEAD Hey, there!

DEAD

@DamkerngT. \o

Damkerng T.

Long time no see, eh?

Hope you were busying with your studying.

Lawrence

@DEAD Haven't seen you for a while. Hello!

Damkerng T.

:P

DEAD

12:22

@DamkerngT. You . . . remember? How much has changed since I was gone

@DamkerngT. Of course I was

That proposition may be false due to caching

Damkerng T.

@DEAD Somewhat, I guess.

DEAD

@Lawrence \o

@CowperKettle Oh. Wow

I can't even remember what I did that day.

Also it takes some time before I get used to my keyboard again.

Stack Exchange

12:37

0

Q: Why my most questions are marked as off topic?

I always refer my question source which is completely in text form I know my questions related to movies but in text form for this you don't have see the movie for answering my question, just read the synopsis which i include in the question is enough to answer my questions. no need to see the ...

discussion

Lawrence

@DEAD Have you been on holiday?

DEAD

Nope

Holiday is poisonous for someone looking forward to take an important exam.

You start having fun, and then realize you're ruining your life by not having fun and studying bull crap.

Færd

13:23

@Rubisco Many students are prone to depression and long-lasting disorders in the pre-college grade. Don't forget to take care of yourself and don't surrender completely to the hype and hoopla surrounding the importance of Konkoor and to those guidance counselors who see you only as a future rating.

And by depression and disorders I don't mean only those that are medically acknowledged as such. I mean ... it can change you in a bad way. I could be more specific, but maybe not without knowing you more.

Take care.

Cardinal

@Rubisco Hmm, shrewd point.

@Rubisco Rubisco? btw, I'm glad to see you again.

@Rubisco was in dormancy!

CowperKettle

@Rubisco \o Glad to see you, Rubi!

Lawrence

13:41

@Rubisco You've really changed since coming back. :P

Not so DEAD anymore.

Cardinal

13:58

2

A: If...would construction

I would appreciate it, if you left comments. I would appreciate it, if you would leave comments. With left we have backshifting of tense to mark the statement in the if-clause as a possibility, not an actuality. With would leave we have a modal periphrasis of the same idea. The main c...

> I would do this, if you would do that

Hmm, I have never used that pattern before

Evening guys.

Damkerng T.

> 262 if (7): other structures found in spoken English
262.1 would in both clauses
Conditional would is sometimes used in both clauses of an if-sentence. This is very informal, and is not usually written. It is common in spoken American English.

PEU

Good evening!

Stack Exchange

14:25

0

Q: After editing a question, what should I do if I understand that sentence is too broad or something?

I usually edit questions that are not very well-formatted. In specific, before reading a question, I instantly start to edit those kinds of questions. In fact, I read and edit the questions simultaneously. Recently, I even jumped to answer to a possibly too-broad question. As you can seen on that...

discussion editing flagging

Lawrence

@Cardinal Hello.

@DamkerngT. wasn't me :P

Man_From_India

15:18

I made my own contribution to that bounty question. It's a huge bounty! :D

0

A: Which word does the adverb 'usually' modify in 'In stories the witch is usually a homely woman'?

In stories the witch is usually a homely woman. The adverb - usually - is a CLAUSE ADVERB, and it modifies the entire clause - In stories, the witch is a homely woman. It's usual that in stories the witch is a homely woman. [N.B Oxford Modern English Grammar calls it CLAUSE ADVERB and...

Cardinal

@DamkerngT. I read that with a robot-voiced sound!

262.1 cashed.

Damkerng T.

@Cardinal Your action was commendable.

:-)

Man_From_India

16:38

From the most rated answer -

> In stories, the witch is a usually-homely woman.

It says usually modifies homely. I also thought about it carefully. But it doesn't make sense. Semantically it's not possible.

Damkerng T.

> A usually wealthy man who spends much of his time pursuing leisure and romance.

(an example in The Free Dictionary, in the definition of playboy)

Man_From_India

hmmmm

Now I see in that particular sentence it's possible. But in the sentence OP quoted, it's not possible.

Anonymous

@Man_From_India It makes sense to me. The woman who is a witch in stories is usually homely (= is homely in most of the stories).

Man_From_India

I mean in OP's sentence it can't modify the NP, I think.

@snailplane Right.

But in this sentence it's not possible to think of usually as a modifier of the NP.

> In stories, the witch is usually a homely woman.

(I think both explanations are possible. But as I read this sentence fast, I add a slight pause after usually. Almost making it seem like it's not attached to the NP)

Damkerng T.

Trending word of the day: Brangelina

Anonymous

16:50

@Man_From_India It doesn't modify an NP in the example I just described, either. In a usually homely woman it's a modifier in the AdjP usually homely.

Anonymous

> Usually, in stories the witch is a homely woman.
> In stories, usually the witch is a homely woman.
> In stories, the witch is usually a homely woman.
> In stories, the witch is a homely woman, usually.

Anonymous

If usually can appear in all these positions without a change in meaning, then it can't be modifying the NP.

Anonymous

In general, adverbs are modifiers of other-than-noun.

Anonymous

There are exceptions, but only a few. In particular, focus adverbs can modify whole noun phrases.

Anonymous

Usually is a frequency adverb, not a focus adverb.

Man_From_India

16:54

I think this one is wrong.

> In stories, the witch is a homely woman, usually.

Anonymous

@Man_From_India Oh, I see. Well, I would accept it. :-)

Man_From_India

:-)

I have written a few lines at the end of my answer as a proof that usually doesn't modify the verb is. I just need to know if those are correct.

Anonymous

I think adverbs can often appear at the end of an utterance as parenthetical adjuncts.

Man_From_India

So usually is an adjunct, and not a complement. Semantically the verb - BE - here doesn't add anything. Grammatically it just links the subject with it's complement. So it's not reasonable to think that there should be a modifier of such entity.

Anonymous

Usually is definitely an adjunct, not a complement.

Man_From_India

16:58

One such example is there. We can add modifier with there when it adds some meaning, for example, when it's used as a locative complement. But we can't add any modifier when there is used as existential pronoun.

Anonymous

He is is fine as a complete utterance if we have post-auxiliary ellipsis (VP ellipsis) licensed by context:

Anonymous

> Alice: Is he home?
> Bob: He is.

Anonymous

But without that sort of context, He is doesn't work.

Man_From_India

Of course.But as a stand alone. No previous link it doesn't make sense.

Anonymous

Yes, I just wanted to point that out because your answer doesn't mention it.

Man_From_India

17:00

@snailplane yes.

CowperKettle

0

Q: Is there ANY relation between Pennsylvania and Transylvania?

Like the title asks, is there ANY relation between Pennsylvania and Transylvania, historically or otherwise, or are the names simply very odd coincidences?

place-names

Anonymous

@Man_From_India Aside from that, your answer looks good to me :-)

Man_From_India

@snailplane And thanks for that edit. I almost overlooked those errors.

V.V.

@Man_From_India nice answer, cograts.

Congratulations.

Man_From_India

@V.V. Thanks.

Anonymous

17:12

@Rubisco Hello! Welcome back to ELL chat :-)

Rubisco

\o/

CowperKettle

Good avatar, Rubi!

Rubisco

Good avatar, Cowper!

CowperKettle

@Rubisco It's not good, it's the best, because it was made by Snails.

Rubisco

Point

CowperKettle

17:16

I'll drop asleep now. Was trying to understand mass spectrometry

Rubisco

Yay

56 secs ago, by Rubisco

Point

CowperKettle

> The obtained samples were dried in **a** Thermo SPD SpeedVac **unit** (with no heating) for 2 h.
(Can we say simply "The obtained samples were dried in Thermo SPD SpeedVac (with no heating) for 2 h."?)

@Rubisco The best of luck with your exams or tests or whatever

Rubisco

@Færd I get ya. I guess people get a bit sad when they see that the world isn't the candy land they believed it to be when they were kids.

CowperKettle

17:39

> Well, World, you have kept faith with me,
Kept faith with me;
Upon the whole you have proved to be
Much as you said you were.
Since as a child I used to lie
Upon the leaze and watch the sky,
Never, I own, expected I
That life would all be fair.

Cardinal

18:07

ell.stackexchange.com/q/104210/21666

"A toothache" or "toothache"?

CowperKettle

@Cardinal we can try Ngram on this

Rubisco

@Cardinal A toothache

user62015

@DamkerngT. @CowperKettle @Cardinal @Rubisco Hi, can anyone help me?

Rubisco

@user62015 I guess so

user62015

Okay.

I have two questions for you.

(A) He / (B) entered in to / (C) the hall. (D) no error could you please tell me which section of the question has grammar error? @Rubisco @CowperKettle

CowperKettle

18:21

I'm not sure. Maybe "in to" should be "into"?

user62015

I think, we shouldn't use into here.

He entered the hall.

Rubisco

Yeah, that works.

CowperKettle

Yes, maybe you're right

> He entered the hall.

> He entered the room.

Rubisco

Also "entered in the hall"

Maybe

He halled the enter.

user62015

But I have next question for you which is completely different. Please have a look A) He / (B) entered into / (C) an argument. (D) no error @CowperKettle @Rubisco

CowperKettle

18:22

> He entered into an argument

Looks okay

Rubisco

Hmm, okayish

CowperKettle

@user62015 You can check such things using Google

Rubisco

Got into an argument is a thing, so

user62015

So when we can use into after entered and when we can't use?

CowperKettle

@user62015 Just google for "entered into an argument" (with quotation marks!)

user62015

18:23

Fine. I understood.

Thanks.

CowperKettle

> He was entered into the Hall of Fame

Good night!

Rubisco

Night

Damkerng T.

18:51

Fat N' Furious

^An interesting title for a TV show!

Rubisco

@DamkerngT. 'tis for when Diesel gets old and retired

Damkerng T.

Heh!

Their Delorean looks cool, though! discovery.com/tv-shows/fat-n-furious/photos/…

Rubisco

A living toy car!

Damkerng T.

:D

Cardinal

20:21

I have two toothaches! => That sounds hilarious to me!

Cardinal

20:37

Collocation of the day: latent talent

Anonymous

21:20

@Cardinal That really does sound pretty odd :-) It is countable though, in that it does combine readily with the cardinal numeral determinatives one, two, three and so on: I've had two toothaches this week is grammatical, and it isn't strange in terms of meaning like I have two toothaches is.

Cardinal

21:44

nods

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