Why is "behead" the term for removing a person's head rather than "dehead" or "unhead"?
Other words that begin with the "be-" prefix seem to be opposite in meaning to the idea of something being removed or coming off (e.g., become, begin, besmirch, befuddle, bestow, belittle).
Irrespective of whether 1st generations are the ones who are born first in the new country vs. the ones who immigrated, [See the previous post] what would your child be if say you are 1st generation and your spouse is 2nd generation – Is your child “second and a half”? Curious to know what people under such circumstance (or similar) call themselves?
I have read that at one time in the American South, it was not common to use an apostrophe to form a contraction of words. Some examples used in the article were you're spelled as youre, don't as dont. The implication was that the change was part of Reconstruction and a way of forcing conformity on the southern states. I cannot remember where I read this nor what sources were cited as reference. Where can I find information to prove or disprove that such was the case?
Genius has no ‘o’ in it and yet ingenious does. Why the difference in spelling?
According to the Oxford English Dictionary…
forum n. (pl. forums)
1) a meeting or medium for an exchange of views.
2) (pl. fora) (in an ancient Roman city) a public square or marketplace used for judicial and other business. Origin ME: from Latin, lit. what is out of doors.
But everywhere else I've looked, it seems that forums and fora are interchangable. I personally prefer to use the word forums, when referring to a group of workshops and meetings.
I want to argue for this at my work because the term fora is being used and I want to know if there's more evidence that I'm actually correct, besides what the Oxford English Dictionary tells me.
I never paid this much attention until my dad mentioned today that it’s never sounded right to him when people say “hey” instead of “hi” or “hello”. I’ve been using it this way for at least 20 years, but I looked it up in various dictionaries and haven’t yet found a definition consistent with this usage. Most references just define it as “an interjection used to call attention” or something similar and leave it at that. Any thoughts or references that might shed some light?
Below, is the speaker B sure of who the person is? If so, why not say “That is Julia Roberts”?
A: Who’s that woman over there?
B: That would be Julia Roberts.
Hi All
On another forum, two native English speakers insisted that the questions shown below were incorrect English. Please tell me why, if the affirmative forms (answers ) shown are allowed, the question form is not allowed.
What does psychology study?
What does solid state physics study?
What does quantum mechanics study?
…………….
-Psychology studies the relationship between environments and human behaviour.
-Psychology studies the human psyche, behavior, and mental processes. This diverse field has roots in biology, medicine, philosophy, religion, and history. …
-Solid state physics studies the processes taking place on surfaces and semi-conductors. –
-Theoretical physics above all examines the theory of quantum fields, gravitation and quantum information.
-Quantum mechanics studies the behavior of atoms and the particles that make them up.
Thanks
I am trying to figure out if there is a definite pattern in when ‘th’ is voiced (as in ‘the’) or unvoiced (as in ‘thin’). Someone has commented that sounds are to a large degree determined by the sound that comes after them. This doesn’t explain to me why the ‘th’ in ‘with’ and ‘myth’ are pronounced differently as they have the same ’sound’ preceding them and nothing after. Can anyone shed any light on this for me?
Thanks
What does the “o’” in “o’clock” stand for? I’ve heard it means “of the”, but that sounds odd. “I’ll meet you at two of the clock”. Perhaps it means “on the” which makes more sense to me. “I’ll meet you at two on the clock”
