English Language Learners Stack Exchange
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1500 questions
46
votes
12 answers

Agnostic vs Atheist

Every time l look up the meanings of the two words agnostic and atheist in the dictionary l become more confused. For me, both refer to someone who doesn’t believe in God. Is there a simple, straightforward definition for these two words?
Mido Mido
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8 answers

Is it rude to say "I'd appreciate if you could reply as soon as possible"?

Recently I have emailed my teacher and asked for my transcript. I've thought that I asked for it politely, but my teacher emailed me back that he was currently busy and "your tone was quite rude" I discussed this with my friend and she said "I would…
Maimai123
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4 answers

What is understood if I say "I'm an English teacher"?

What is understood if I say "I'm an English teacher"? "I teach English", or "I'm a teacher coming from England"?
German Martinez
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45
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3 answers

"An hour" or "a hour"

Which indefinite article should precede hour — a or an? an hour a hour Does the usage of an vs a depend on the pronunciation — a history, a hobby, but an hour, an honor?
user20
45
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5 answers

Using 'very' to emphasize a 'noun' where emphasizing is NOT possible!

Quite clear to me is the use of very before an adjective. It emphasizes. But then, when very is used before a noun, it confuses me. Furthermore, if it's before the noun which is not definable in degrees or intensities, is using 'very' okay? In other…
Maulik V
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3 answers

What is the meaning of "prairie-dog" in this sentence?

I read a sentence in Word by Word by Kory Stamper which was: People prairie-dog over the tops of their cubicles and call to their co-workers: "Hey, you going for a walk at lunch today?" Although I don't want to, but I feel that the word has been…
kelvin
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5 answers

“I had a flat in the centre of town, but I didn’t like living there, so …”

I had a flat in the centre of town, but I didn’t like living there, so … Why is there no article before “town”? (The quotation comes from Murphy’s “English grammar in use” 4th edition, page 318).
Zak
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45
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6 answers

Is "she don't" sometimes considered correct form?

Recently I was exposed to a lot of uses of "She don't + infinitive" (3rd person singular + don't), instead of "she doesn't + infinitive" (3rd person singular + doesn't). I'm not sure if it is a mistake or just accepted usage sometimes. I found it…
Virtuous Legend
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3 answers

What does it mean? "I can't people today"

There is a shirt with a sentence written on it. The sentence is : I can't people today What does it mean? I've seen this link and I know that "people" can be a verb but in this special case, I don't get the meaning of the phrase.
Arman Malekzadeh
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6 answers

Do you really answer “How do you do?” with “How do you do?”

I'm a non native speaker of English. In our learning we were told that when we say hello to someone we use equivalent phrase: How do you do? In response we do say: How do you do? But I'm unsure about the usage in the USA or UK. I haven't heard…
Sudhir
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What do we call 'ketchup', 'cheesy dip' , 'oregano' and things like that collectively, as they aren't side dishes?

With most of the Indian dishes, we are served with something other than side dishes i.e. salads. Since most of the users here come from different countries, I come up with stuff that is internationally known. So, for instance, if we have a pizza,…
Maulik V
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44
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1 answer

Why did he reject my thank you?

I know "No, thank you" means rejection. Me: Hey, Bob. You want some drink? Bob: No, thank you. But I was involved with this kind of conversation Me: Thanks, Mr Jordan for teaching me. Mr.Jordan: No! Thank you! Did he reject my thanks? Does this…
Realdeo
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5 answers

"The Jesus who said" - why is there a definite article before the proper name "Jesus"?

The system doesn't seem to be providing for the well-being of all the people, and that's what makes it, almost in its very nature, something contrary to the Jesus who said, "Blessed are the poor. Woe to the rich." (source: a documentary…
Eddie Kal
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5 answers

What does the expression 'seven for seven thirty ' mean?

I get invites which tell me I am expected at 7 for 7.30. What time should I arrive?
Robert Colledge
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"A boiled egg in the morning is really hard to beat" - explain the pun please

It's from The Last of Us video game: A boiled egg in the morning is really hard to beat. I don't get it. Here are more puns if somebody is interested. I managed to understand the rest of them though.
Aleksander Alekseev
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