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Bachelors have been subjected to penal laws

Hi, everyone, In " Bachelors have been subjected to penal laws and customs in many cultures in the past, mainly from ancient times through the 18th century" (from our local textbook) , could the tense " have been " be fit, considering " from ancient times through the 18th century "? Though I've already got the response - "We can use 'have been', because the part of the sentence up till the comma refers to what has been the case up till now. . . . Any of the three tenses ( have been / had...Read More...
David, appreciate your further explanation. The quoted sentence with the tense " have been " in my original post is all what I have in my textbook, at which I felt very awkward at first. To catch up with "something that has been true of bachelors in history.", if I rephrase it as "penal laws and customs in many cultures that have been characteristics of bachelors in history, and the ' have been ' denotes events that happened in the past and still have their impact or some connection to the...Read More...
Last Reply By deepcosmos · First Unread Post

‘other seismic event’

Hello, everyone, “When an earthquake, explosion, or other seismic event occurs, the Earth releases a wave of energy that spreads in all directions. The first kind of surface waves are known as Love waves: these move from side to side like a snake.“ (* source; our local textbook) I have two questions below; (1) In the first underlined part, I think “ other seismic event ” should be corrected into “ other seismic events occur ”, since “other“ without ”the“ is indefinite and can be with...Read More...
Hi, David, you provided me the best solutions. Appreciate!Read More...
Last Reply By deepcosmos · First Unread Post

enough - sufficient

Hello. Could you please help me choose the correct answer? Why? - All the money I have is (enough - sufficient) to buy the books I need. Thank you.Read More...
Hello, Ahmed Imam Attia—The sentence is rather awkward with either answer. Where does this sentence come from? Are you quoting a test question or a homework problem, or is the sentence one that you made up yourself? Here is a natural sentence: " I have enough money to buy the books I need ."Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

informational/explanatory Or expository

If you are reading a text that outlines how to use your new kitchen blender and it includes pictures and numbered steps for assembly, it is what kind of text? a) advertisement b) argument c) informational/ explanatory d) expository I think that (c) is correct because it includes pictures and numbered steps for assembly, and is an example of an informational/explanatory text . This type of text provides instructions or guidance on how to perform a specific task or use a particular product, in...Read More...
Hi, Muhammadbakr—Thanks for revising your question and title as I asked you to. You have chosen the correct answer, and for the correct reason. Good job! An expository text on blenders would be of a different nature. One could have an expository essay comparing and contrasting blenders in Egypt and the U.S.Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

I have a lot of things doing at the moment.

Could you please check if following conversation is gramatically correct? A) Would you mind helping me? B) Sorry, I can't. I have a lot of things doing at the moment. < Sentences were made up by me>Read More...
Hi, vegnlove—Your sentence doesn't work. "Doing" should be changed to "do": I have a lot of things to do at the moment. In "things to do," "to do" is a nonfinite relative clause in which "things" functions as the direct object of "do." If you wish to use a present participial modifier of "things," it will be necessary to choose a verb of which "things" can be subject: I have a lot of things requiring my attention at the moment.Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

Is a word like "regulated" a verb or adjective?

Consider the bold. Or consider all sorts of examples: "the forest was burned", "the dog was loved", etc. These words bug me a bit because I'm not sure if they're verbs or adjectives. Only the rights-based approach lets you conclude that a given outlawed contract should be invalid instead of merely regulated .Read More...
Hi, Andrew, Copulative verbs followed by past participles can indeed be interpreted as an action in the passive or as a state verb followed by an adjective, e.g. The window was broken. In the sentence above, the rules of parallelism indicate that, if "be invalid" is a state verb followed by an adjective, so is "(be) regulated."Read More...
Last Reply By Gustavo, Co-Moderator · First Unread Post

a place where vs. a place which

Hi, Could you please check which of the following would be correct grammatically? <Sentences were made up by me.> (1) We should work hard to make Korea a place where tourists wish to visit again. (2) We should work hard to make Korea a place which tourists wish to visit again. I think (2) is correct, since 'visit' need object, so it need 'which' (relative pronoun) instead of 'where' (relative adverb). What do you think? Thank you in advance for your kind reply.Read More...
Thank you so much!Read More...
Last Reply By vegnlove · First Unread Post

two more glorious nights

TV series Suits: Season 4, episode 5 Donna has acted in a play and has been wonderful and has had a glorious night. The performance was supposed to go on for two more nights, but an actor was injured and they want to cancel the two nights. She is asking Louis to act as a stand-in for the injured actors. That way she can have two more glorious nights. She says: I'm not a lawyer, Louis. This is my chance to shine. But I'm about to lose two more glorious nights. Source...Read More...

in love

Which is correct: 1) I have never been this in love. 2) I have never been this much in love. Gratefully, NaviRead More...

Tense with 'in the past'

What tense should I use with in the past ? 1- In the past, I worked for this company but now I work In another company. 2- In the past, I have worked for this company but now I work In another company.Read More...
Hello, deepcosmos—If you don't mind, I would appreciate it if you would start a thread of your own. Using the same example or a fresh example, make it very clear exactly what your questions are concerning the sentence(s). Thank you.Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

When/while/at the time of

Have I used the words in bold correctly? Are they all natural? 1- Can you keep your eyes open when/while/at the time of sneezing? 2- Can you keep your eyes open when/while/at the time you sneeze? 3- During summer I get tired when/while/at the time of cooking. 4- During summer I get tired when/while/at the time I cook. 5- I watch TV when I do my homework. 6- I watch TV while I do my homework.Read More...

Which is correct ? informational/explanatory Or expository

If you are reading a text that outlines how to use your new kitchen blender and it includes pictures and numbered steps for assembly, it is what kind of text? a) advertisement b) argument c) informational/explanatory d) expositoryRead More...
Hello, Muhammadbakr, and welcome to the Grammar Exchange. Please have a look at our Guidelines . If you request an answer to a homework problem, you need to tell us what you think the answer is. Also, please do not titles like "Which is correct?" The rest of the title you have used is fine. Which answer do you think is correct, and why?Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

due to/because of/through/by

Which are correct: 1) His theory did not become popular based on any intrinsic value. It became popular due to propagandistic methods. 2) His theory did not become popular based on any intrinsic value. It became popular because of propagandistic methods. 3) His theory did not become popular based on any intrinsic value. It became popular through propagandistic methods. 4) His theory did not become popular based on any intrinsic value. It became popular by propagandistic methods. 5) His...Read More...

where what

1 I haven't decided (what/where ) to eat for dinner. Could you tell me which one is correct? 2 I have been owning this car for 5 years. Is this sentence correct?Read More...
Hi, duaieken—I agree with Ahmed about both of the sentences. Regarding the second, "own" is a verb that basically never occurs in the progressive tenses, except when it signifies something other than mere possession, as in the idiom "own up to": "He has been owning up to his mistakes."Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

How does the "X-challenging" construction work?

See below. The bold could actually mean that multiple institutions are being challenged, right? If I say that there's "animal-killing pollution" then "animal" is actually refer to animals (plural), right? Or I might say "dogma-shattering research"; "dogma" is referring to dogmas (plural), right? The ideological spectrum has—when it comes to the big institutional questions—narrowed to the point where challenging our employment system might seem bizarre. We should include—in our political...Read More...
Hi, Andrew—In each case, there is not necessarily one or more than one thing or person involved. Either interpretation is possible. If one has an orchestra-conducting housemate , for example, it could be that one's housemate conducts one orchestra, or that he conducts more than one orchestra.Read More...
Last Reply By David, Moderator · First Unread Post

tense

Hello, there! I'd like to say "you can sometimes make friends even with total strangers simply because you are reading the same book as they are". If I change the tense, is the meaning same? For example, "you can sometimes make friends even with total strangers simply because you were reading the same book as they were." Or "you can sometimes make friends even with total strangers simply because you have read the same book as they have." Thank you so much for your response! MikaRead More...
Dear Mr. Gustavo, Thank you so much for your kind reply! I understood that the present tense is appropriate in this sentence. If the sentence involves the adverb which means the past, is it grammatical? For example, I think that the sentence such as "I am thinking about the story which I read earlier" is grammatical. If so, is the following sentence grammatical? You can sometimes make friends with even with total strangers simply because you read the same book as they did before . MikaRead More...
Last Reply By mika · First Unread Post

too ~ to do +preposition

Hello. I am confused with the preposition when I rewrite the following sentence. I had difficulty getting to sleep, because the house was very noisy. →The house was too noisy for me to get to sleep in. →The house was so noisy that I had difficulty getting to sleep in. Is the preposition "in" required in the above sentences? Thank you so much for your kind response! MikaRead More...
Dear Mr. Gustavo, Thank you so much for your kind message! It is so helpful for me to clear up the problem. MikaRead More...
Last Reply By mika · First Unread Post

Impersonal verbs for objects

Hi, I have a question for a few English verbs. I understand that there are impersonal verbs and this is where the subject is something undefined e.g. *It* is raining. However, in English at least, I have noticed that we have a few verbs where the object is similarly undefined e.g. "let me explain *it* to you" "I recommend *it* to you". The reason I ask is that I have noticed people who speak English as a second language often do not speak this way (e.g. they say "let me explain you"). Do...Read More...
Hello, Grumio, and welcome to the Grammar Exchange. Those are transitive verbs that require an object. The referent of the object "it" is to be found in the context.Read More...
Last Reply By Gustavo, Co-Moderator · First Unread Post

Do I need to write "of it" after "criticism"?

See below. My worry is that "criticism" will be vague if left all alone in the first sentence. (1) Regarding Knight, it seems like he was trying to defend the human-rental system against what he considered the strongest criticism. (2) Regarding Knight, it seems like he was trying to defend the human-rental system against what he considered the strongest criticism of it .Read More...
Hi, Andrew, I agree with you that, for "the strongest criticism" to have a referent, you need to add "of it." Alternatively, since there is no agent that can be replaced with "it," the determiner "its" would also be valid in my opinion: (3) Regarding Knight, it seems like he was trying to defend the human-rental system against what he considered its strongest criticism.Read More...
Last Reply By Gustavo, Co-Moderator · First Unread Post

How can "in a way that" be used?

I think that the bold might be an interesting usage. It's not actually about the "way" that X was done in the sense of "X could've been done in multiple ways but it was done in this particular way". It's instead being used in a different sense, correct? Is there any writing about this particular usage and how it works? The point isn’t that there’s necessarily anything good about him—the point is instead that Western media turns him into a cartoon in a way that dumbs us down and makes...Read More...
Well, there it seems to me that it was the person's attitude when turning off the light that bothered the speaker. One thing is clear, at least in the sentences provided: "in a way that" introduces a relative clause with a resultative meaning.Read More...
Last Reply By Gustavo, Co-Moderator · First Unread Post

no other + singular noun or plural noun?

Hi Grammar Exchange members! I've read the following sentence in the modern fable titile "The Richer, the poorer" written by Dorothy West. (a) Bess had a beau in the school band, who had no other ambition except to play a horn. I think that because of "other" the noun "ambition" should be plural. I'm wondering if I can use the plural noun "ambitions" in the sentence above. I'd like to know the grammar rule about the expression "no other~". Thanks in advance. KDogRead More...
Thank you so much for you reply. Even though I have many grammar books that I can consult with, it's often hard to get the exact information that I want to know from them.Read More...
Last Reply By KDog · First Unread Post

Why does "Usually" seem to not need a comma?

See below the two examples. In the first example, the first word seems to need a comma after it. But in the second example, no such comma seems to be needed. (1) Usually they went to the store. (2) Unfortunately, they went to the store.Read More...
Thanks! That makes sense!Read More...
Last Reply By Andrew Van Wagner · First Unread Post

Should I use an "-ing" construction?

See the bold below. The bold "transfer" is a thing that has never actually happened; it's a strictly hypothetical notion that a government could permit people to transfer their votes to others. Not sure if "transfer" or "transferring" would be appropriate. How many of the three contracts—that we’ve already outlawed—are irreversible? I’m also curious about the transfer of one’s vote to someone else in exchange for money—would that be irreversible? I think people might get hung up on...Read More...
Thanks! I appreciate the help on this!Read More...
Last Reply By Andrew Van Wagner · First Unread Post

More well-known than or better-known than?

I have this sentence that I can't answer "No other Egyptian footballer is as well-known as Mohammed Salah. " This means that (a) Mohammed Salah is better-known than other Egyptian players. (b) Mohammed Salah is more well-known than other Egyptian players. (c) the answer is both [a&b]Read More...
Hi, Nada, and welcome to the Grammar Exchange, The comparative adjective of the compound adjective 'well-known' could be either 'better-known' or 'more well-known', so c) a & b is the correct answer.Read More...
Last Reply By ahmed_btm · First Unread Post
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