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00:00 - 16:0016:00 - 22:00

00:09
-2
A: should we use "that" or any other conjection after "if"?

Davyd DinizAre you asking whether he is happy for having you with him? If so, 'that' wouldn't be the proper word for this, but 'because'. You meant: He is happy for having you - He is happy - because - you are with him. That's the reason that makes him happy, because you are with him. Because is the wor...

I think the main points were already discussed, mostly in comments.
But this sentence caught my eyes: Are you asking whether he is happy for having you with him?
"happy for having you with him" -- Hmm...
It sounds a bit odd, doesn't it?
Probably works in another language or in another century.
"I'm happy for doing it" is odd.
"I'm happy for someone" is fine.
"I'm happy doing it" is also fine.
FWIW, a tangential point about the because vs. that in the question, I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that doesn't mean I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid because I can't do that.
But it's probably too small a point to add to the question.
 
2 hours later…
Anonymous
02:00
I'm afraid (that) is a good example.
02:16
I'm afraid that you be hurt
Sounds weord
Uh. Weird + words
But it's fine. And can't use to be
If that happens, I'm afaid you go.
Ah. I'm afraid they do
What's the difference in meaning and usage between 'end up' and 'as a result' ?
Anonymous
02:34
There's too much to cover in a simple response. They aren't much alike.
Anonymous
One interesting point is that end up often has a negative connotation.
Anonymous
@JimReynolds You can't use be because it's an infinitive form.
Anonymous
When you say I'm afraid they do, you're using the plain present form. You can tell by changing they to he: I'm afraid he does.
@snailplane As often occurs, I know or can dig up enough to sort of answer a bit correctly with a good coating of nonsense.
But the only way to emotionally survive witnessing so much wreckage on the site is to realize that at least some kind of thinking and learning can occur. Can. Even while wandering through or creating the gore.
It's vital (that) he water the garden weekly.
03:52
@snailplane For example sentences: If it ends up rain won't visit you. If it rains I won't visit you. So, the sentence with 'end up' means as a result. Right ?
Cambridge says'To finally be in a particular place or situation. dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/end-up
Anonymous
04:07
@JimReynolds Yes, different words take different kinds of complements.
Anonymous
It's important (for him) to water the garden daily.
Anonymous
Sometimes you can choose between multiple patterns of complementation.
Anonymous
But we can pick out clear differences in some cases: *I'm afraid (that) he water the garden daily.
04:23
Good morning
04:39
@snailplane Thanks
@Quo Hello!
04:54
@JimReynolds Hello!
How are you? What's happening? What's on your mind? How do you do? What do you do? How do you do what you do? :D
Haha... It will take too much time to answer a all that question.
"What's happening? " Can we ask “What's up?” instead ?
Anonymous
Yep :-)
05:15
Or "What's going down?" :-) Have you heard that expression?
How are you?
Doing good.
What's happening?
Nothing much
What's on your mind?
A lot's of certain thing want to complete in single day. :
How do you do?
Fine and How are you ?
What do you do ?
I am learning at least one foreign language.
How do you do what you do?
??? May be I need your help for this question.
@JimReynolds no
Ah, yeah. There is so much I should do, too.
@Quo How do you do what you do?
That would mean ... if you are learning a language, how do you learn it?
What things do you do to learn a language?
What's going down? is another way to ask What's happening?
The reason we use up and down in these ways, I don't know!
06:25
Hi @Mick. Thanks for the comment on that answer. I barely grasp just a little bit of the grammar of the subjunctive. My answers to that and a similar question yesterday are mostly fairly weak attempts to understand it a little bit better myself.
@yubrajsharma Here are some grammatical and standard related expressions. If it ends up raining, I won't visit you. If it rains, I won't visit you. I didn't visit you as a result of the rain. ... as a result of it raining. For the last two, it's more likely to phrase it more like I didn't visit you because of the rain .. because it rained ... because it was raining.
To end up has a meaning that is certainly related to a result or eventuality. But to describe precisely and fully the similarities and differences in meaning and use is a somewhat big job.
It might be useful to relax and search for examples of different ways that the two items are used, and then see what conclusions you can form.
07:10
@JimReynolds Ok and I can say now I am learning a foreign language , I can say myself that I am really need more work on my grammar. I am reading most of chat over here and try to write more identical text it may easy to understand for everyone.
Anonymous
07:29
@QuokMoon Sure, just try to imitate native speakers :-) We learn language by imitation.
Anonymous
Learning grammar explicitly is a way to draw your attention to things you haven't managed to pick up naturally.
07:57
0
Q: Why can I not layer my hats?

PeterIt would seem a lot of fun if it were possible to layer hats, some combinations would be hysterical! It also doesn't seem possible to change the avatar for my profile during this time, or am I missing something?

 
1 hour later…
09:01
and jump on to window-sills. What does this movement mean? Standing on the window -sill or near the window?
Is there snow during Christmas time in Britain?
Thanks!
09:22
Shakespeare quote of the day: Let me embrace thee, sour adversity, for wise men say it is the wisest course
10:20
@learner Are you sure that the sentence in the Longman dictionary (I don't know which one) really is You are great help to me? I'm guessing that it might be You are a great help to me. — Damkerng T. 16 secs ago
I can feel the difference (between "something is of great help" and "something is a great help"), but I wonder if I only imagine it.
FWIW, in the latter, that something is the help itself. In the former, that something is something that can help.
@JimReynolds Thanks for the reply. Can I say 'end up' is used only to mean 'To finally be in a place and in a situation" as mentioned in Cambridge? There's no other usage or meaning beyond this ?
@yubrajsharma You make it sound like a trick question!
"Can I say 'end up' is used only to mean 'To finally be in a place and in a situation" as mentioned in Cambridge?"
Anonymous
Like I said before, it often has a negative connotation. This is secondary to its actual meaning and inferred from context, though.
Anonymous
We ended up getting stuck in traffic and arriving twenty minutes late.
"Can I say 'airplane' is only used to mean "a powered flying vehicle with fixed wings and a weight greater than that of the air it displaces" as defined in a dictionary?" "Hmm... what if it's a toy? It wouldn't be a powered flying vehicle, right? Now can we still call an airplane toy an airplane? Hmm..."
Anonymous
10:28
In my example the negative connotation comes from the idea expressed by end up of finality, which here refers to how a situation turned out, something the speaker can't fix now and may regret.
Anonymous
But the regret meaning is secondary and depends on the context, so it isn't always present.
Good evening, @snailplane!
(It's in the evening over here, and I'm about to heading off to my garden. :-)
Anonymous
Usually when people say end up, they're expressing something unplanned.
Anonymous
Good evening :-)
Anonymous
And often, but not always, the situation they're expressing is undesirable.
10:34
See you after dinner! -- Oops, *'about to head off'!
Anonymous
You should look through some examples to get an idea of how it's used.
Anonymous
Have a nice meal!
Thanks! o/
10:48
How does he eat with his head off?
11:38
Is it a riddle? :)
Very carefully.
Nods...
Good Evening! @snail @Dem @JimRey
Anonymous
Good morning :-)
Morning !
11:55
Hi.
@snailplane you said "
16:17
Usually when people say end up, they're expressing something unplanned." What is unplaned in the sentence "If it ends up rain I won't visit you."?
I don't know If I am using 'end up' correctly in the sentence, though.
Anonymous
It's something that happens outside the control of the speaker.
Anonymous
But that doesn't have to be true to use end up – it's just something that is often true.
Anonymous
Since they don't control that aspect of the situation, there's an element of finality or irreversibility associated with it.
But @JimReynol said " If it ends up raining, I won't visit you". Here 'end up'+verb ing.
Anonymous
12:02
Yes, you must use -ing there. Your version without -ing is ungrammatical.
This sentence seems to be expressing 'If it happens to rain, I won't visit you. I can't say it for sure, though.
Anonymous
Yes, it's similar in meaning.
Anonymous
But without end up there's no longer that note of finality that often leads to the secondary negative meaning, so the happen to version is a little more neutral.
Nods...
It would seem that 'end up' refers to something which always happens to be at the end or finally through the series of events. As it happens finally, It's unplaned or outside the control of speaker. Right ?
13:03
@yubrajsharma Yeah, you could say that.
I wanted to have a salmon steak, but the shop ran out of salmon, so I ended up having a tuna steak.
13:18
@yubrajsharma You can even say "If it decides to rain, I won't visit you." Yes, the weather can make decisions.
!!translate/หน้าทองขาว
th: หน้าทองขาว
en: white pages
Aww... that's not right! In English, they're called "points"!
@DamkerngT. Nods....
Anonymous
A contact breaker (or "points") is a type of electrical switch, and the term typically refers to the switching device found in the distributor of the ignition systems of spark-ignition internal combustion engines. == Purpose == The purpose of the contact breaker is to interrupt the current flowing in the primary circuit of the ignition coil. When this occurs, the collapsing current induces a high voltage in the secondary winding of the coil, which has many more windings. This causes a very high voltage to appear at the coil output for a short period—enough to arc across the electrodes of a spark...
13:28
@Mick What a strange ! How can weather make decision? Is it like something that it seems cloudy?
@snailplane Hmm... now I'm a bit confused, is this points singular or plural?
@yubrajsharma It's destiny! :P
@yubrajsharma The Cambridge Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs explicitly mentions "...especially without having planned it" in the definition of "end up".
There's another phrasal verb, "end in (something)", defined as "to finish in a particular way".
Anonymous
@yubrajsharma It's personification.
Anonymous
People don't usually talk that way, but once in a while they might :-)
13:33
@yubrajsharma It's just an idiom: if it decides to rain, if it decides to snow, if the sun decides to come out. You can also say "the sun has decided to come out", etc.
!!translate/โชคชะตาฟ้ากำหนด
th: โชคชะตาฟ้ากำหนด
en: Destiny Blue set
Haha!
Machine translation is always funny! :D
"Wind up" is defined in the same way as "end up" in two meanings.
(โชคชะตาฟ้ากำหนด is literally "destiny, the sky decides")
13:35
@DamkerngT. "Adjusting the [contact] points" is something that I remember having to do on my first car. It is always plural.
@Mick I see. Because they come in pairs, I suppose.
(Thanks, BTW!)
@DamkerngT. I guess so.
Anonymous
Points is another one I don't know about. (I'm a snailplane, not a snailcar!)
Hehe!
You could transform yourself into a snailcar, if you wanted to, some day! :-)
Hmm... IIRC, maybe it's written 'someday' in AmE.
"While there are many stationary applications, most Internal Combustion Engines are used in mobile applications and are the dominant power supply for vehicles such as cars, aircraft, and boats."
No excuse.
13:48
Nods...sounds good !
Anonymous
Oh, now I need a better excuse. I hope someone has one for me. :-)
@snailplane A better excuse for what?
Apparently the singular and the plural of "aircraft" are syncretized.
Anonymous
@user2684291 Yeah, following craft.
13:51
If I said 'sounds good/great' It means I'm pleased or feeling right for it. Right ? My intution says so.
Anonymous
@yubrajsharma What are you responding to with "Sounds good!"?
Anonymous
If we have context we can tell you if it's appropriate in that context and what it means.
I also hear people say "sounds like"
Anonymous
Sounds like what?
Anonymous
Sounds like a great idea!
Anonymous
13:53
That sounds like a great idea!
Yes !
Does it mean 'Seems like'?
If You said "I have won a lottery, I would say 'Sounds great! Am I using it correctly ? My intution says I'm on the right path.
That's cool/great/awesome/etc.! is probably better. (Assuming that the meaning of the first sentence is "I won the lottery!")
BTW, on the right track is better than on the right path.
For me, sounds involves some sort of judgement.
unmatched and inconsistent quotation marks are grating on this user
Anonymous
@user2684291 Yes, they're making yubraj's text hard to understand.
Anonymous
I was thinking about saying something about that again.
14:03
Nods....I am using mobile device. So, I'm having difficulty with typing and editing. But I'm just managing it.
What's this book for ? It needs buying, anyway.
I suppose most of us wouldn't want to buy this book set. It's very expensive.
But it's an awesome book (set)!
14:19
What are your guys daily routine?
@yubrajsharma From the OED (for "sound"): "To convey a certain impression or idea by the sound; to appear to have a certain signification when heard (or read)."
@DamkerngT. Coo! I'll look out for it in my local charity shops. It's amazing what some people give away.
@Mick Oh! If only there was such a place near me!
@DavydDiniz We talk about language, discuss some questions on the main site, casual chat, post pictures of our pets, among others. :-)
@DamkerngT. How do I see the others chat rooms?
@DamkerngT. I can't find it :/
I think I need to Google for that expression. I will then come back.@user2684291
14:24
@DavydDiniz Click on "info", and then "rooms".
I'm off to a meeting. Back later. See ya!
@DamkerngT. looking for correct pronounciation of words or phrases in audio. For example we can find it in a dictionary. For example in end up Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary (http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/end-up)
Is there collection of correct American or British pronounciation of words or phrases in internet which can be used by downloading ?
@Mick See you soon!
@yubrajsharma Dictionaries would be a good starting point.
@DamkerngT. Thank you, I wasn't informed that this room chat was created in order to talk about English topics, I found it was an entertainment room
14:26
@yubrajsharma I'd use "sound", not "seem" with a (usually) immediate impression of what I heard/read.
@DavydDiniz Haha!
Casual chat is fine, though. :-)
@DamkerngT. Thank you, just one quick question: This chat room is completely about English, right? Word usage, phrasal verbs.. ? So it means if I have a quick question about a phrasal verb, I can ask here?
Yes, you can ask about them. This chat room is the main chat room of ELL.
@yubrajsharma ldoceonline.com is pretty good — you can even hear example sentences said by native English speakers.
But we can talk about things in other languages, too.
(Hence the name "Language Overflow")
Keep in mind that if you think your question is worth asking on the main site, you may want to ask your question on the main site.
14:30
@DamkerngT. Oh, so this is the name of the chat room, I kinda take a while to figure things out. Haha
@yubrajsharma I'm sorry, I may've misinterpreted it: you want a collection, not individual words. I don't know about that.
@user2684291 That's what I was trying to say. I would also use it as immediate expression when I heard something good or impressive. But I don't know If I'm on the right track.
@DavydDiniz Hehe!
Yeah, I was just referring to simple question, such as: What does run off mean? etc.. Thank you :)
You're welcome!
Anonymous
14:31
People often say "That sounds like a good idea!" when another person suggests doing something, and they want to agree.
What does dirt cheap mean?
As cheap as dirt!
Anonymous
Very cheap. Dirt is an example of something very cheap.
Anonymous
Cheap in the meaning 'inexpensive'.
Let's say I expected a new phone would cost, say, $400. If I found the same model selling at $40, that's dirt cheap!
14:34
@snailplane What abount using it as immediate expression if I hear something good or acceptable ?
Anonymous
You need to give an example.
Oh, thank you.
Damkern T, tell me where you found a phone that costed 400$ for 40$? I want one too
LOL -- I wish I knew that too!
hahaha
I asked a question here yesterday, it was: why is a pig called pork after it has been killed and not dead pig?
Does it also happen to other animals?
14:36
Dem said : I'm going to visit USA. I said: sounds great! @snailplane
@DavydDiniz Yeah, beef, mutton, etc. -- But I don't think calling a dead pig pork is technically correct.
(I mean, a dead pig is a dead pig. Pork is just the meat.)
@DavydDiniz Mu.
If I remember correctly, the names of the meats come from french, and the names of the animals are germanic (I think)
why does English have to come from so many different languages, it gets so annoying to memorize D:
What are your main languages?
English?
@mike According to the starred comment by Mick: "Farm animal names derive from the Anglo-Saxon (cow, sheep, pig), whereas the names for the meat derive from Norman French (beef, mutton, pork)."
14:43
ah - I didn't see the comment, but that sounds about right
@mike Yeah mike, you answer got highlighted on the right side of the screen
@DavydDiniz mike ≠ Mick
@user2684291 oh, they are different persons, damn
@DamkerngT. I asked you a question about collection of audio for words and phrases. Do you mean only the dictionary?
Is there collection of correct American or British pronounciation of words or phrases in internet which can be used by downloading ?
@yubrajsharma It depends on your specific needs. Without anything specific, I'd say you should try dictionaries first.
@yubrajsharma Some dictionaries are downloadable, but it will cost you some money.
14:48
Nods...
If the internet bandwidth isn't a problem, I'd recommend viewing video clips on the web. You can hear how real people speak and pronounce things.
I'm talking about audios of words or phrases.
Ok I will.
This is a great resource: youglish.com
I'm sure there are some apps out there that can help you with this, but I don't know how good they are.
@JimReynolds I was looking for that website myself, thank you.
14:52
@JimReynolds nods -- It's indeed better than dictionaries, because there are more examples for each specific word and phrase, but it's probably not what @yubrajsharma wants. He wants to download everything to his phone or his PC, I think.
Anonymous
Why?
That's a very good question! I wonder why, too!
Search me, haha.
My guess was, maybe it's something about the internet package and bandwidth.
Nods....I checked the link suggested by @jim , It was helpful.
Anonymous
15:02
I find it slightly easier to type with proper punctuation on mobile.
Anonymous
It's easier to do things like typing en dashes and such :-)
Anonymous
Aside from that it's about the same for me.
what does "slightly" mean?
"a little bit"
15:04
Snai you asked "why" for what ?
@JimReynolds I wonder how they curate the accents.
They claim that they have "more than 15M tracks" (I'm guessing that means 15M clips.)
It's basically impossible to label all that by hand.
Audio collection of word or phrases with correct pronounciation. Just like it's in dictionary. @JimReynolds
I don't know. Voice to text?
I find it quite amazing
I think they crawled as many YouTube clips as they can. Throw away all clips that have no manual transcriptions.
That would be the start.
Automatic transcription is not quite reliable.
15:10
Ah.
Even with the manual transcriptions they're using, there are some discrepancies between what the speaker really is saying in the clip and the transcription.
Nods....I am not taking about text to voice like TTS reader.
(Most transcriptions seem to delete stuff like "--ah, um, ...")
Another weird thing: is has 1800199 examples on their site, while 's has only 20844.
That doesn't sound right.
For example: In the dictionary, there is a voice or audio for each words or phrases. That's what I'm talking about. But Downloadable.
I entered a query into it's command line logical processor ...
Anonymous
15:15
That wouldn't be useful for text-to-speech.
It said Damkerng T. doesn't sound right.
:D
Anonymous
You can't string together a bunch of words in citation form, pronounced carefully in isolation, spoken by different speakers, and get anything like text-to-speech.
@JimReynolds Heh! :)
Anonymous
Oh, I see. You edited your message to say that you're not talking about text-to-speech.
Anonymous
15:18
@yubrajsharma What do you want to do with the audio?
Anonymous
I still recommend the Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. You can use it on your computer.
Anonymous
It was assembled by John Wells, one of the most prominent phoneticians working on English.
II'm afraid I don't have computer. Longman pronounciation dictionary is only available online , Right ?
Anonymous
What are you planning on downloading the audio to if you have no computer?
Downloding on phone.
Anonymous
15:23
You don't need to be online to use the LPD (it is not available on the internet), but you do need a computer to use the CD-ROM version and listen to the audio files.
Or, just saving on drive.
@DamkerngT. I wonder if my pronunciation of "wonder" (vs. "wander") is correct; would anyone care to listen to a recording and tell me how to improve it? (I don't know if this is appropriate here.)
@user2684291 Sure, but don't forget that we have several better English ears than mine here. :-)
If I saved it on my phone or in my drive. would listen whenever I need to.
I used to use WordWeb Audio Dictionary on iPad. It's available on Android, too. But it's not free.
15:26
@DamkerngT. All right.
That's the problem. @DamkerngT.
Anonymous
I don't think WordWeb is a very good dictionary.
Anonymous
I don't know about its audio component, though.
@snailplane nods -- It was before I joined ELL, I have to admit. :-)
@snailplane Its audio feature is quite okay, though.
I don't know why I can't download or save the audio from dictionary.
15:29
With these dictionary apps (assuming you picked a right one), you can use the audio feature even when you're offline.
If I were able to do so, I would save each audio.
Anonymous
That would take a long time :-)
@DamkerngT. How ?
@yubrajsharma These apps comes with audio clips, so the clips are already on your phone once you install the app.
@snailplane I would save only the ones which I had difficulty to pronounce with.
@DamkerngT. Which app ?
15:31
5 mins ago, by Damkerng T.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.wordwebsoftware.android.wordwe‌​baudio&hl=en
And many others, I think.
a.clyp.it/iyk3aypp.mp3 "Hmm. I wonder as well. I'll wander and find out." Does it sound OK?
@yubrajsharma It takes 313MB of space on my iPad.
@user2684291 Sounds quite okay to me. (^_^)
BTW, I wish it was louder, maybe by about 30dB! :-)
I'm using Android mobile.@DamkerngT. Is it free ?
@yubrajsharma No, about $4.
    What is the right one?

    I hope Jesus lights up the way for you
    I hope Jesus lights the way for you
15:37
@DavydDiniz Hmm... I don't know much about that phrase in the religion, but I think either should be okay.
@DamkerngT. All right then. My machine is away from me quite a bit, so it may be that, and I don't have a separate microphone. Maybe next time.
@DamkerngT. Hum, I was referring to the phrasal verb light up, is it ok to say only light or is 'up' also necessary? Wht do you think?
Does he turn on the lamp posts?
@DavydDiniz I wasn't really sure about the intended meaning.
It's a bit cultural/religious, I suppose.
@DamkerngT. Can you share me that for free ? I will cost more than 420 Rs for me.
15:39
@DamkerngT. So, let me change this a little bit, I hope he lights up the way for you - I hope he shows you the right way
you got it noww
@yubrajsharma I can't. I have only its iPad version.
@DavydDiniz In that meaning, I'd say either is fine. Don't forget that biblical phrases aren't exactly like everyday English.
I would try installing it if it works with android too.
@DavydDiniz Technically, both work. But religious prose has its own idioms, so ...
@yubrajsharma I'm afraid it doesn't work that way. :(
15:42
BTW, wouldn't the internet connection cost you even more than the price of the app?
> He saw the mountain and began slowly to gain altitude.
> fishermen began gradually to use improved equipment
> we forget simply to appreciate his company
> forgetting earnestly to remember your audience
(from COCA)
Putting the adverb outside the to-infinitive structure. Hmm.
I would prefer to split the infinitive.
The punctuation (or the absence of) is also interesting.
In what way?
In such a way that it makes the whole thing look like a run-on to me.
15:49
@DamkerngT. No, cause I'm now on wifi.
I don't consult COCA about punctuation rules or routines. I don't know if it's a reliable source in that regard.
@yubrajsharma I see.
what is the difference between scream and scream out?
@yubrajsharma You could do it a poor man's way, then. Just use the standard voice recorder to record everything you want to hear again.
Hmm... one has out?
(I know, I know. It's a lame answer. :-)
@yubrajsharma Have you tried downloading each website?
15:53
Sorry please!
@DamkerngT. And good still.
Pardon please!
@user2684291 No I didn't.
Do try.
@user2684291 Website can be downloaded ? Fo what ?
Fo' later?
15:57
> He's easy to please
> ...
> Easy, difficult and impossible cannot be used in this structure when the subject of the clause is the subject of the following verb.
> * Iron is easy to rust.
(PEU, 284.4)
Hmm...
Detect anything suspicious about this grammar point?
Why is it restricted to those three adjectives?
@DamkerngT. I was using this I thought you might like this app: play.google.com/store/apps/… app TTS Reader.
00:00 - 16:0016:00 - 22:00

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