Discussion Forum
This is a forum to discuss the gray areas of the English language for which you would not find answers easily in dictionaries or other reference books.
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Latest Posts : Expression
Why sister? Why not “brother company”?
In the following sentence, which is correct: has or have.
The ranks of the liberal weblog community (has or have) increased by one.
When is “trouble” a countable noun? In what context, would you say “a trouble” or “troubles”?
“He is trouble.” “He gave me a lot of trouble.”
In both cases above, I’m tempted to say:
“He is a trouble.” “He gave me a lot of troubles.”
Every media organization had its pick. The implication for each is quite interesting.
1. War in Iraq: This implies that it is a war that is happening in Iraq, almost as though it just happens to be happening IN Iraq. It manages to stay neutral on the political and ideological stance of the war.
2. War on Iraq: This sounds strong. It is almost equivalent to saying “war against Iraq.” It implies either that the enemy is Iraq as a nation or Iraq as the regime. The latter being the preferred implication of the Bush administration.
3. War with Iraq: Now, what does this imply? “With” is a funny preposition to use, because it makes it sounds friendly, like, “We are doing this together.”
Journalists are now either “embedded with...” or “embedded”. Shouldn’t it be “embedded in a troop?” Not quite sure how this phrase should be used -- it is indeed a terrible replacement for simply saying: “so-and-so is with the 3rd Cavalry division.”
I was under the impression that “20 something” meant someone in his/her early 20s. Would a 29 year old be still considered “20 something”? When did this expression start?
The newspaper headlines read:
“Dell Dude Arrested with Pot ON the Lower East Side”
“The Lower East Side” is a name of the neighborhood. You would not say he was arrested ON Chelsea. Why would you use “ON”?
“I argued that McDonald’s is good for you.”
Should it be:
“I argued that McDonald’s was good for you.”
Do I need to match the tense between “argued” and “Is” or “was”?
It seems odd that you say, “take sides”. Wouldn’t it make more sense to say “take a side”? Why plural?
