English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

Kit Z. Fox

00:15

Sometimes. Not often.

Mitch

Animals Can Be Jerks ✔

►

@JasperLoy jeffweintraub.blogspot.com/2006/10/…

MετάEd

00:36

@KitZ.Fox "I do not pretend to understand the moral universe; the arc is a long one, my eye reaches but little ways; I cannot calculate the curve and complete the figure by the experience of sight; I can divine it by conscience. And from what I see I am sure it bends towards justice." —Theodore Parker, Unitarian minister

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

01:06

@JasperLoy It may seem depressing, but lots of animals are actually really awful to their own kind. I'll spare you the examples. But take heart. Globally, our world is way less violent than it was even a century ago. As a species we help each other more and kill each other less than we used to.

Kit Z. Fox

@MετάEd That's very eloquent.

Mitch

01:45

@MετάEd optimism. feh.

Faheem Mitha

Is it correct or incorrect to say "please do such and such as urgently as possible"? The "urgently as possible" being the questionable bit.

This smells of "Indian English" to me, but I may be wrong.

Mitch

If you hadn't pointed it out, I probably wouldn't give it a second thought

but now that you have ...

I don't know.

urgently...that's a perfectly fine adjective right?

Faheem Mitha

@Mitch My quarrel is not with the adverb.

Mitch

what's your problem with then

Faheem Mitha

Well, I'm really more used to using urgent as an adjective. Not so much as an adverb.

Mitch

01:49

I need you to answer me urgently

Faheem Mitha

@Mitch Dunno. Maybe there's nothing wrong with the sentence. It's just a feeling.

Mitch

then what of 'urgently as possible' then don't you like?

please do this thing for me urgently.

that does sound a little off.

please so this urgently

Faheem Mitha

@Mitch The modifier. "As urgently as possible"?

Mitch

"I need help urgently"

Faheem Mitha

@Mitch That sounds fine.

Mitch

01:53

so it's more of a sentence adverb than a modifying need'

@FaheemMitha right

'as soon as possible' = 'urgently'

Faheem Mitha

Yes, I guess part of it is a modifier on top of urgently, which already conveys a sense of extreme haste. One dictionary describes it as:

1. Compelling immediate action or attention; pressing.
2. Conveying a sense of pressing importance: an urgent message.

Cerberus

07:46

These borders might work better.

globalresearch.ca/…

Not sure how reliable that article is, though.

Hassan Althaf

08:34

Hey. Could anyone help me out correcting my text?

It's a presentation and it contains less than 100 words..

Faheem Mitha

09:54

@HassanAlthaf You could paste it in here. Or provide a link.

tchrist

11:03

Quitters! :)

Why it was –4 yesterday and –10 today for what I think is the same event, I dunno.

Here's a question with a funny answer: how many syllables do you reckon that usuario is held to have in Spanish? It's just three: u-SWA-ryo.

Andrew Leach

How many syllables in the word suave in English? Or French?

I would probably have reached that pronunciation of usuario with a bit of thought.

user174558

11:27

I do not know what a syllable is, or where it starts or ends.

Matt E. Эллен

it's starts at the beginning and ends when it finishes

Andrew Leach

Let's start at the very beginning; a very good place to start.

Sajeetharan

hi guys

we are having an year end party at office, i need a catchy phrase for the competition

where people dress like a hollywood start and win prizes

Matt E. Эллен

@AndrewLeach true, but not popular, given how books and films start in medias res

Sajeetharan

any help?

Matt E. Эллен

11:29

What does the catchy phrase need to say?

Sajeetharan

above content

Matt E. Эллен

you want a catchy phrase for "we are having an year end party at office, i need a catchy phrase for the competition where people dress like a hollywood start and win prizes"?

Sajeetharan

yes

Matt E. Эллен

I don't think I can help you, sorry.

Sajeetharan

no need of we are having an year end party at office

user174558

11:31

A year, not an year, for a start.

Sajeetharan

i have some phrases "Come dressed as hollywood star"

"Be the start of the night and win prizes"

"Outshine among the shine and be rewarded"

@JasperLoy I need this specifically for a competition, so it should not be about the year end

@MattE.Эллен any idea?

Matt E. Эллен

your best option is to express yourself clearly and simply.

Christmas party costume competition: come dressed as your favourite Hollywood star. Prizes for the best outfit.

user174558

Most importantly, check your spelling.

Sajeetharan

ok

Andrew Leach

And your capital letters.

Matt E. Эллен

11:38

:D

Andrew Leach

There. Fixed that.

user174558

12:18

Matt Ellen sounds like a medallion.

user174558

Kit Fox sounds like a kit fox.

Matt E. Эллен

:D

user174558

Is it true Italians usually have black hair?

user174558

I am now obsessed with O Surdato Nnamurato.

user174558

Such a beautiful song.

Mitch

12:46

When I see movies about Scandinavians I'm always annoyed because most everyone has brown hair, ruining all my preconceptions about blond northerners.

That said, Italians are more likely to be black haired the furthers south you go, to where in Sicily almost everybody has black hair.

But I knew a Sicilian who was blonde. Except her mom was from Iceland. So there you go.

I know some people from Texas who have no cattle and no hat. What a shame

tchrist

I think that out of penance, I really should write a Portuguese answer every time I write a Spanish one.

Mitch

13:48

@Cerberus sure about kurdistan sort of, but it's not so categorical. any designation is 'primarily' not 'entirely'. The areas are very mixed, lots of kurds and shiites in sunnistan,etc etc.

but there's no need to split up Saudi arabia. a border in the middle of desert is useful if the are enclosed on the other side is different. But East and west (and central and south etc) arabia are not different.

user174558

15:27

Hello @kit, it is raining heavily.

Kit Z. Fox

16:26

@JasperLoy It's chilly and clear here.

Cerberus

17:52

@Mitch Sure, but you have to draw the boundary somewhere.

Saudi Arabia sucks, so it would be good to split it up anyway.

Isolate the most extreme Wahabists.

MετάEd

@tchrist I think that out of penzance, you really should write a Pirate answer every time you write a Portuguese one.

@KitZ.Fox MLK liked it. He borrowed it a lot.

Kit Z. Fox

@MετάEd He was a good man. He understood that racism was an anti-union tool. I wish more people understood that.

user174558

I just had a lovely cold shower.

user174558

Linux Mint 17.3 Rosa has been released.

user174558

18:08

I now remember that the picture was a present from Reg.

Kit Z. Fox

Yes. I miss him.

user174558

It's strange he doesn't want to come here anymore.

user174558

I don't understand what the big deal is.

Kit Z. Fox

I don't think it's very strange.

He had a bunch of random people come in and flag his stuff.

And they searched through the transcript looking for things to flag. That's really not cool.

user174558

Have you divined who the flaggers are?

Kit Z. Fox

18:09

Then they went into Rob's side room and flagged him there.

Really not cool.

@JasperLoy I can't talk about it.

I'd like him to return, but I can understand why he hasn't.

user174558

I would just ignore those flaggers.

Kit Z. Fox

It's more complicated than that.

But yeah. I wish he would.

user174558

Now I am wondering if they are actively reading the transcript and trying to flag others.

Kit Z. Fox

It doesn't seem that way, does it?

user174558

I don't know. The first thing that comes to my mind is Muslim extremists.

user174558

18:12

Once, Gigili said 'I am awesome like that' in the Islam room, and they flagged her, total nuts.

user174558

They want to make the entire world like them.

user174558

First it was Rathony suspended, now it is Ricky suspended. I smell a fish.

user174558

Ricky also praised Rathony on meta. They must be brothers or something.

Mitch

@JasperLoy People are idiots

SmokeDetector

[ SmokeDetector ] Few unique characters in answer: Can you say "are not we all?" instead of "aren't we all?" by user150683 on english.stackexchange.com

Mitch

18:20

@SmokeDetector Few unique characters? Are you willfully discriminating against binary? Goddam binarist.

user174558

23 days to 2016. I hope I make it this time, to start studying on 1/1.

Mitch

@Cerberus Be vewy vewy quiet. we awe hunting Wahhabiststs

@JasperLoy Which brings up an important question: which do you find better, 1/(1+e^(-x)) or e^x/(1+e^x)?

Be honest.

user174558

@Mitch I prefer the latter, if no further context is given.

Mitch

@JasperLoy Can you explain your reasoning (the point is to see what the contexts are)

user174558

@Mitch Well, I just don't like to have the negative index in the denominator, but if there is a good reason for it to be there, like to be consistent with other expressions in a problem you are working with, then it's OK.

user174558

18:32

Well, this is all a matter of taste for notation, nothing more than that. Just use what you like.

Mitch

so a negative exponent is more ... weird or inscrutable than having two instances of an exponential?

the question is all about taste.

user174558

Yes, in my subjective eyes. Maybe tomorrow I will feel the opposite, but that is how I feel now.

Mitch

how would this kind of question go over in the math room?

user174558

They would tell you similar things. People will state their tastes, that is all.

user174558

Or they might just ignore you completely.

Mitch

18:34

wel, I mean would people respond to the question.

user174558

You can try.

Mitch

I will.

(in a little bit)

Kit Z. Fox

18:57

I just had a co-worker tell me he doesn't go to "winter bashes, [he goes] to Christmas parties".

I gave him a very dry look and told him to have fun.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

He's a veteran in the War on Christmas (tm)

You should have wished him "Happy holidays"

Kit Z. Fox

I hope the "asshole" was implied.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

I read an article where the author, a Jew, was railing about things like "holiday parties" and "happy holidays"

user174558

Everyone's ass has a hole. So everyone has an asshole. QED.

Kit Z. Fox

I don't understand why it is even an issue. I'm not celebrating the holidays with my colleagues. It's a party for the end of the year.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

19:00

@JasperLoy "has a" is fundamentally quite different from "is a". That's one of the most important distinctions to make.

Kit Z. Fox

We're not celebrating the birth of Jesus any more or less than we are celebrating the miracle of lights or the rebirth of the sun.

user174558

What is the rebirth of the sun?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@KitZ.Fox Didn't you hear that evil leftist PC atheist SJWs have taken Christ out of Christmas?

Kit Z. Fox

So why has anyone got to be in a snit about not calling it a Christmas party?

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 What's SJW?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

oh god you don't know!

Kit Z. Fox

19:01

@JasperLoy Solstice/Yule.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

you're better off

But Missouri loves company, so...

user174558

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Denial is a river in Egypt.

Kit Z. Fox

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Are they just now noticing that Christmas is hugely secular?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

SJW = "Social Justice Warrior", it's meant to be an offensive term for people who take action against sexism or racism or whatever.

Kit Z. Fox

Oh. Hahaha.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

19:02

@KitZ.Fox You're trolling me, right?

you know about the war on Christmas, right?

Kit Z. Fox

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 No, I don't look at stuff anymore because I get too worked up about it.

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I've heard rumors.

I assume it's the usual stupid people shouting loudly.

user174558

Well, to me, Christmas is just a nice time of the year with lights and presents.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

So basically some paranoid Christians think there's a conspiracy by the Left to totally secularize the holidays including, and especially, Christmas.

Kit Z. Fox

Because that's something new that just happened last year?

Who do they think Santa is?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@KitZ.Fox yes. But unfortunately, the "usual stupid people" is like 80% of Republicans and all of Fox News.

Kit Z. Fox

19:04

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Still. They're freaking out because they are no longer a majority.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@KitZ.Fox Well, Christians are still a pretty big majority.

What's happening is that the Religious Right is becoming more and more distilled.

Kit Z. Fox

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Christians maybe. Crazy Christians, not so much.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

It's like there's some kind of law, "Conservation of Religious Fervor"

Kit Z. Fox

Fewer people being more crazy.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

Yes, exactly!

You heard about the Starbucks cups, right?

Kit Z. Fox

19:06

Yeah, I think so. Boycott them because they don't have Jesus on them or something.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

yeah

tchrist

Jingle cups, jingle cups?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

as if they ever did

tchrist

Jeez.

Kit Z. Fox

Right. Stupid. Because disposable coffee cups are what I think of when I think of sacred items relating to the baby Jesus.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

19:07

sadly, like everything else in the religious Right these days, it makes NO EFFING SENSE

Kit Z. Fox

Well, if it isn't belted out and on public display, how will everyone know how pious you are? Think about it. That's what Jesus did -- he plastered up signs and decorations everywhere.

Exhorting people to turn to God and be saved.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

He invented the Christmas tree, after all.

That's why we call it that.

Jesus wore sandals, which is why we hang stockings on the fireplace, because you can't mix socks and sandals.

tchrist

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Not kosherly at least.

Kit Z. Fox

Being saved isn't a deeply personal decision based on reflection and soul-searching. Being saved is what happens when you make sure all the other people are happy and enjoying the crappy weather for the right reason, which is Jesus.

tchrist

To everything there is a season, and it's usually winter.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

19:11

Normally Jesus and his merry men ate fish and bread. But for his birthday, they splurged on turkey and cranberry sauce.

Kit Z. Fox

@tchrist I thought the sheep laid down with the cow, and that means wool and leather can be worn together, at least in the snow?

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 Ham. It's ham at Christmas, just like Jesus had on his birthday.

Mitch

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I never understood that. Like it's supposed to be a bad thing.

tchrist

@KitZ.Fox I always wondered what those signs about frequent cattle and sheep crossings were about.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@Mitch yeah don't get me started.

Kit Z. Fox

@Mitch omg you "free thinker"! You "defender of innocents"!

Anyway. I'm digressing. I was just appalled that I work with people who are that level of ignorant.

Mitch

19:13

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 slips out of sandals, takes socks off, sips sandals back on

user174558

My mum once thought that the sun was inside the earth. I laughed and told her she was very creative.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

I've heard actual Christians tell me it's offensive when people write "X-mas" because they're crossing Jesus out of Christmas.

user174558

I am very offended by religions which tell me that if I don't believe I would go to hell, very offended.

Mitch

@JasperLoy Well, it is if you do a inverse with respect to a sphere slightly larger than the earth

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 what if you're not christian?

Kit Z. Fox

@Mitch Then you shouldn't be celebrating it. Which is fine by me.

Mitch

19:15

So you have heart attack symptoms. Do you pray first or go to the ER first?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@Mitch I dunno. But the thing is that the X in X-mas is a friggin' Christian short-hand for Christ.

user174558

Maybe Jesus said some good things and people wrote down other things. Christianity is not necessarily what the real Jesus intended.

Mitch

@KitZ.Fox you mean I can't write xmas of christmas if I'm not celebrating?

user174558

Then again, maybe Jesus did not even exist.

Mitch

whimpers My presents!

Kit Z. Fox

19:16

OK. I think we covered it, and I'm feeling a tad uncomfortable with the conversation. Let's steer toward something more solid.

@Mitch You can still have presents. We'll celebrate the solstice together.

user174558

Yes, like solid waste, lol. I had a good shit just now.

Kit Z. Fox

@JasperLoy No, that's over the line.

Wrong direction.

user174558

How should I watch the 6 Star Wars episodes? In which order?

Kit Z. Fox

How about words ending in -c, are these a class of words? Manic, panic, fennec, um...

@JasperLoy Oh. I have opinions about that!

Mitch

I thnk I say this for everyone in the entire world when I say that it's the 21st effing century, what's with all the talking about fairy tales as adults?

user174558

19:20

Hi @Caleb, you don't talk much in this room, do you?

Kit Z. Fox

skip Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, Revenge of the Sith, Return of the Jedi.

user174558

And just watch 7 next week.

Mitch

@KitZ.Fox the winter solstice? That should be the most depressing of all depressingnest days of all. Shortest day of the year and, i repeat and, the worst of 2 months of winter is still to come.

Kit Z. Fox

@Mitch You've got the wrong perspective. It is a victory in the War on Lengthening Night. Doesn't get any longer than that.

Mitch

@JasperLoy the quality of 7 I expect will lead us to reconsider that 1,2 and 3 aren't so bad

Kit Z. Fox

19:22

It's symbolic of the triumph of knowledge over ignorance.

Mitch

@KitZ.Fox What? You mean we were supposed to be battling against the shortening of days? flips through to do list

Kit Z. Fox

@Mitch There are plenty of people who use their faith to do good works and I respect that. It's the provincial ones that I don't know how to deal with.

@Mitch Rage, rage, against the dying of the light.

Mitch

It's not here! flips through papers randomly on desk

hyperventilates

@KitZ.Fox O rage O desespoir O viellesse ennemi. O shit I pooped my pants

Kit Z. Fox

It's OK. You're OK. Take a deep breath and blow it out slowly into your cupped hands.

Mitch

@KitZ.Fox What? That is disgusting.

Oh. You mean my breath.

anyway, sayonara xmas haters in hell. Code brown, I gotta go change my pants.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

19:33

@JasperLoy The correct order is "4, 5, 6"

user174558

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 And then 1,2,3?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@JasperLoy what are those

all sniping aside, I've heard it said that you should do: 4,5,6,1,2,3, or 4,5,1,2,3,6, or 1,2,4,5,3,6. If you've never seen them, that is. Otherwise any order is fine.

Let's just say, there is a major plot twist in 5 that is spoiled in 3.

user174558

Hmm, I think I will watch 1,2,3,4,5,6, LOL.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

And it's often best to consume material in the order it was made, rather than the supposed chronology

@JasperLoy Have you never seen them?

Do you know the plot twist in episode 5?

user174558

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I have seen a bit of some of them but forgot everything.

user174558

19:37

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 No, I do not.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

Well def watch 5 before 3 then.

Matt E. Эллен

the plot twist is that Bruce Willis was dead the whole time.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

either 456123, or 451236, or 124536

dammit!

orcs always ruin EVERYTHING

just look what happened to Saruman's carefully laid plans.

MετάEd

@KitZ.Fox I despair of humanity sometimes.

Matt E. Эллен

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 "Ruiner of Worlds", that's what they'll call me :D

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

19:41

I dunno, that's ambitious, even for an orc.

probably you'll need orc henchmen

they'll ruin your plans too

Matt E. Эллен

The funny part is where Danny Glover cuts open an ATAT to put Bruce inside to keep him warm. He says "Ugh and I thought they were metallic on the outside!" lol

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 I'll just grow really really big

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@MattE.Эллен "Good, Bad, I'm the one with the Light-saber"

Matt E. Эллен

How do you work this thing?

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

"Where's the kaboom? There was supposed to be an Alderaan-shattering kaboom!"

Matt E. Эллен

:D

Poor Vader, always being outsmarted by eewoks

Kit Z. Fox

19:54

Speaking of Star Wars, I need three names of teams that are based on the Star Wars franchise.

I was going to do Team Jacob, Team Edward, and Team Bella, but I got shot down.

user174558

Team Yoda, Team Vader and Team Leia.

Kit Z. Fox

I should stay away from the dark side, I think. Or embrace it. Otherwise, I'll look like I'm making a statement that I don't want to make.

Or maybe: Empire, Republic, Bounty Hunters.

user174558

Without darkness, there is no light, LOL.

Matt E. Эллен

Team Princess, Team Slave, Team Bounty Hunter

or was Luke the bounty hunter?

user174558

Team Episodes 1,2,3; Team Episodes 4,5,6; Team Episodes 7,8,9; ROFLMAO

user174558

20:00

I am going to eat something.

Kit Z. Fox

Tango, Havoc, Negastrike? That could be cool.

Maybe Gold, Green, and Rogue?

MετάEd

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 They're pretty good at orchestration.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

20:11

@KitZ.Fox Team Han Shot First, Team Greedo Shot First, Team Who Cares Who Shot First

Kit Z. Fox

Hahaha

I decided to go with Green, Gold, and Rogue.

tchrist

@KitZ.Fox alfa romeo foxtrot delta

Kit Z. Fox

I like Tango, Havoc, and Negastrike better, but it's way more obscure.

@tchrist hahaha

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@KitZ.Fox yeah even I don't get that one

Kit Z. Fox

Team Greedo Shot First, Team NOOOOOO!!!, and Team What's Star Wars?

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 It's from the games/extended universe.

Michael Kjörling

20:13

How about Team What's This About Teams? :-)

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

@KitZ.Fox You forgot Team Jar-Jar

Team Blue, Team Green, Team Purple

Team Lucas, Team Kershner, Team Marquand

Kit Z. Fox

Team Night Sisters, Team Inquisitors, Team First Order

I can't believe how nervous I am about this damn party.

user174558

20:33

Relax. Just add some booze to the party.

cornbread ninja 麵包忍者

Are you still on the corporate retreat?

user174558

I am on the chair.

user174558

20:48

Wow, that killed the conversation.

Mr. Shiny and New 安宇

strike it down and it will become more powerful than you can imagine.

user174558

Mr Shiny is a Jedi master.

Mitch

21:49

@KitZ.Fox wha?? What are those?

Leuchte

22:30

Hello everyone again

Is there a more subtle way of referring to "the individual you are greeting", by any chance?

"...their different styles of greetings which usually require inclinations or ‘bowing’ rather than the customary hand shake where the angle of the inclination indicates your degree of respect towards...??"

Would "the intended recipient" be a good equivalent?

Faheem Mitha

23:16

@Leuchte Complete sentence?

The phrase "I also inform you" seems a bit stilted. Is this correct English?

"I also wish to inform you" seems a little more natural, but it's also more wordy.

Or "I want to inform you".

terdon

@Leuchte the person you are greeting?

Cerberus

@Leuchte The "addressee"?

Anonymous

23:38

@Mr.ShinyandNew安宇 But isn't it mean to make someone watch all six Star Wars movies? :-(

user174558

@snailboat Is it really that bad?

Anonymous

@JasperLoy When I was a teenager, I was made to watch all three Star Wars movies. They weren't necessarily bad as far as movies go, but I wasn't accustomed to watching entire movies at that point in my life, and the movies kept putting me to sleep.

Anonymous

These days I've spent a lot more time watching movies :-) And I think episodes 4 and 5 are probably pretty okay.

Anonymous

Eventually episodes 1 2 and 3 came out. I think episode 1 is eminently skippable.

user174558

I can't even remember which parts of which episodes I watched.

Anonymous

23:43

I liked episode 2, although there were parts that weren't so good.

Anonymous

And episode 3 was kind of meh.

Anonymous

But out of the six movies, there's probably around two and a half good movies in there somewhere.

user116848

Good morning.

Anonymous

Morning!

user174558

Oh, then why did they make so much money?

Anonymous

23:44

I'm not sure. Is making money the new criterion for goodness?

user116848

Hello snailboat. How have you been?

Anonymous

@KitZ.Fox What does the chat bot do? Is it the one that posts limericks?

Anonymous

I'm doing okay, you? :-)

user116848

@snailboat I'm fine thanks for asking :-)

user174558

@snailboat The one that defines words, for example.

Anonymous

23:47

@JasperLoy Oh, I think the define: feature works in every chat room without a special bot.

Anonymous

perlative

Adjective: perlative ‎(not comparable)

(grammar) Describes a case, in very few inflected languages, that expresses movement through or along a referent noun

Noun: perlative ‎(uncountable)

(grammar) The inflective case...

Anonymous

I typed define: perlative

user174558

snail

Noun: snail ‎(plural snails)

Any of very many animals (either hermaphroditic or nonhermaphroditic), of the class Gastropoda, having a coiled shell.
(informal, by extension) A slow person; a sluggard.
The pod of the snail clover.

Verb: snail ‎(third-person singular simple present snails, present participle snailing, simple past and past participle snailed)

To move or travel very slowly

user174558

boat

Noun: boat ‎(plural boats)

A craft used for transportation of goods, fishing, racing, recreational cruising, or military use on or in the water, propelled by oars or outboard motor or inboard motor or by wind.
(poker slang) A full house.
(chemistry) One of two possible conformations of cyclohexane rings (the other being chair), shaped roughly like a boat.
boat
boat n (pl boaten)

Verb: boat ‎(third-person singular simple present boats, present participle boating, simple past and past participle boated)

(intransitive) To travel by boat.
(transitive) To place in a boat.
boat
boat ‎(1701, used in the form berboat)

Anonymous

Boaten!

Anonymous

23:49

You know, I don't think define: works terribly well :-)

Anonymous

There's no indication that boaten is West Frisian in the thing it pops up.

MετάEd

@snailboat You boaten me to it.

Anonymous

Well, we boaten are experts on boaten.

user174558

I don't use Wiktionary because there are more reliable sources of information.

Anonymous

That's fair. I use Wiktionary sometimes, not because I think it's a reliable source, but because it has a lot of information and sometimes that information is hard to find in other places.

MετάEd

23:51

@JasperLoy I think of it in the category of Urban Dictionary.

Anonymous

Yeah.

Anonymous

That's a good comparison.

user174558

But I think Wikipedia is pretty good.

Anonymous

Wikipedia is not in any sense reliable.

Anonymous

But it has lots of information.

user174558

23:53

So far, I only found out one factual error in it.

MετάEd

@JasperLoy Wikipedia? Or Wiktionary?

user174558

@MετάEd Wikipedia.

Anonymous

I wouldn't recommend anyone try to learn about grammar or linguistics more generally from Wikipedia.

user174558

Yes, we should use your 200 books instead.

Anonymous

It's a huge mixture of different frameworks presented in a mish-mash, often without any differentiation or indication that a term belongs to framework A or framework B, often misusing technical terms, with bad descriptions and recordings of pronunciation and such . . .

Anonymous

23:54

It often contradicts itself.

Anonymous

That doesn't mean it's entirely useless.

Anonymous

But you have to already know about the topic to figure out what's useful or not.

Anonymous

So if you do know something about the topic and you can judge how useful the information on a given page is at a given time, you might choose to link someone to it.

user174558

I did not imagine such a project would succeed.

user174558

But it turned out very well.

Anonymous

23:56

And there are linguists who are working to make Wikipedia a better resource. (And Wiktionary.)

Anonymous

And it's not like it's wrong about everything. (Though it's often not even wrong . . . )

Anonymous

But yeah, there are some serious issues there.

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English Language & Usage: Multi-Layer…