English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

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1:33 AM

Is there a nice way or fancy word to describe the new growing of leaves on a tree? The word I'm looking for is something like "Leafing" or "Foliaging". I've also come across this, which to me sounds even more ridiculous: Leaf-out or Bud-out. Any other cool words or creative options to express ...

single-word-requests

2 hours later…

Feeds

3:50 AM

Q: Term for alternative spelling, which is not incorrect, but very sparsely used

First to be clear this is not a shameless plug for my company, for that reason, I will only use the first word even though the full question should include the 2nd word to provide the better example. When I came up with my company name using the word "Eutopian", I thought I was just playing wit...

single-word-requests terminology orthography

Q: A word that captures the feeling of seeing someone else have an idea that you had before

Like if you have an idea for a movie, and then you may do nothing with the idea, but then a movie comes out that has a very similar premise.

single-word-requests

SmokeDetector

4:23 AM

[ SmokeDetector | MS ] URL in title, bad keyword in body, bad keyword in title, blacklisted website in body, blacklisted website in title, +2 more: musclebuildingbuy.com/vidhigra/ by Predtern on english.SE

7 hours later…

Feeds

11:20 AM

Q: Is there a word for the act of checking an id / passport?

I am wondering if there is a word, or words, for the act of checking/validating a piece of identification, like a passport, or an id card? An example would be the customs police officer sitting in the airport arrival section. When that person checks you airport, does that act have a more specifi...

single-word-requests phrase-requests idiom-requests

2 hours later…

Feeds

1:21 PM

Q: How to order a different shape of bread in English?

For example, I am in the shop and I want a sandwich, but not with the long(?) bread. I want the round one, how should I indicate that? Thanks in advance

single-word-requests food

Feeds

2:13 PM

Q: Short-term parking costs

Could somebody please help me out with the following? Is this ok: "The average short-term parking costs are €2.10 per hour in the municipality". Or should I write one of the following: "The average short-stay parking costs are €2.10 per hour in the municipality". "The average costs for shor...

single-word-requests word-usage british-english phrasing

Robusto

2:49 PM

@tchrist: From a Strava comment in a French friend's feed: "Moi j adorrrreeeee le venttttttt danssssss leeeeeee dosssssss !" I'm pretty sure this is a stylized version of "Moi j'adore le vent dans le dos !" This makes me wonder if dropped ending letters in French (like the /s/ in dans) are pronounced when a French person lengthens syllables for dramatic effect. To my mind lengthening the vowel would be more likely, but I really don't know. This could just be a transcription error.

@terdon: Perhaps you know? ^

terdon

Huh. I would say that they're not pronounced. If you pronounce the final, silent letters, the word changes completely. I can't think of an example off the top of my head, and these aren't such cases, but it can also change to a different extant word.

For instance, I read the dansssssssss as daaaaaaaaaaaaaaans by default. Doesn't make sense to my, non-native, ear to say dansssssssssssss.

Oh, there you go, it sounds like danse, which means dance.

Robusto

I suspect that this is a matter of poor transcription, then. People do that in English all the time when writing down lengthened words.

Similar to "I kidddddddddddd you nottttttttttt!" ...

There would be no way to lengthen the t and the d in those words.

terdon

3:04 PM

Exactly.

And we do the same with silent letters. I think. How would you say lateeeeeeeee or gapeeeeeeeeeeeeee?

I think I default to ignoring the repeated letters.

Well, or saying latteeeeee, as in the coffee.

Robusto

Well, I don't think English-speaking people would lengthen a silent letter like that, unless they wanted them pronounced.

terdon

Yep, and I don't think the French would either, for the same reason.

Robusto

Which brings us back to the original question.

This one did.

terdon

aye

Still, there's no way of pronouncing the words without changing their meaning, so I would expect the repetitive letters to either be ignored or that the reader would lengthen the word in whatever way comes most naturally.

Cerberus

3:22 PM

I would not expect the t and s to be pronounced in that example.

But I can't prove it.

Robusto

Yeah.

Interesting, though. If we apply the same logic to this as we do to theories about historical pronunciation based on spellings in poetry, we arrive in a different place.

Cerberus

3:35 PM

@Robusto It depends.

Where rhyme is concerned, for example, there's not that much room for different interpretations.

Spelling in general was less of a concern in the vernacular languages before the modern age.

Although there is a lot of variation between languages.

Robusto

3:48 PM

True.

caub

4:00 PM

I ran
I rack
I slam a bad KO, wait!
I tally, Chill I?
U rug way
U cryin, no way
O Man

Feeds

I am writing a piece where multiple seemingly disparate (even juxtaposed, without a common mission) government organizations are combining their efforts in somewhat of an unpublicized task force. This collaboration is not necessarily classified or secret, but it doesn't become known until when t...

single-word-requests

Robusto

@caub: See if you have any thoughts on this comment, please.

@caub Also, so many countries, so little time.

caub

4:39 PM

@Robusto for 'adoooorrrre' it makes sense (youtu.be/nLN8pvR8hDg?t=20) but for 'danssss' the s is silent, should more be like daaaaans. It's goal was just emphasizing each word

warning: the youtube song is brutal :p

Spencer

@EdwinAshworth You have severely misinterpreted my comment. "'Nuff said" doesn't mean what you thought it did. Instead, it means "this is likely to spiral out of control, so I'm not engaging you on this subject anymore." Which it is, so I'm not. Goodbye.

caub

fair nuff

Robusto

5:09 PM

@caub: By the way, are you on Strava? strava.com

caub

5:54 PM

@Robusto I do a bunch of kilometers (mostly sunday morning), but no GPS, my bike is quite basic (not a pure road bike), but still light, and good for what I do (I just go at a small but steep hill, and repeat it and bunch of times)

the 'old way' :)

my strava data wouldn't be very interesting

it's fun because near that hill, there's a fitness center, and I see people on those indoor bikes, that must be boring, compared to a free, simple and fun ride

I think I'm doing close to 2km vertically, it's crazy, I only like going uphill, like a drug

2 hours later…

Feeds

8:00 PM

Q: What is the term for someone who provides robbers with the information on the victim?

Is there a noun in English, indicating the person whose specific role in a robbery is to direct the robbers towards the likely target? He does not commit the heist himself, but only provides the information. I need something more specific than an accomplice or a co-perpetrator, if such a word exi...

single-word-requests

NotThatGuy

I can't figure out whether and where this sentence needs punctuation:

> What are the differences between the e-print archives for scientific papers viXra.org and arXiv.org?

Robusto

8:23 PM

@caub Yeah, it can be addicting. And it is a drug: see Endorphins.

Educ

9:06 PM

Please could we paraphrasing

everytime i think i'm out they pull me back in

Seinfeld - Every time I think I'm out...

►

3 hours later…

Mitch

11:50 PM

@Educ It's a cultural reference that has had a number of generations. It started with a line from the Godfather II movie (Michael Corleone is trying to get his family to leave the criminal side of his family business). Then there is the Seinfeld use (making fun of thinking like they're gangsters but they're not). Then the Sopranos version which is more like the Godfather thing but they're making fun of it because they're -not- leaving the business.

paraphrased: Every time I think I have done enough to leave the business, something happens which necessitates me unfortunately rejoining in the problematic activity

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