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February 2021

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about real self-talk, <acknowledging> ...

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Hello, everyone, Much has been written and said about positive self-talk_for example, repeating to ourselves "I am wonderful" when we feel down, "I am strong" when going through a difficult time, or "I am getting better every day in every way" each morning in front of the mirror. The evidence that this sort of pep talk works is weak, and there are psychologists who suggest that it can actually hurt more than it can help. Little, unfortunately, has been written about real self-talk,...Read More...
deepcosmos
Hello, David and Gustavo, Sincerely appreciate that you have shared me your time for this issue for two days. Now I have got your explanations with great thanks. Best RGDS,Read More...
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In your opinion is this quoted sentence below referring to two things or three?

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"Federal adjusted gross income shall not be reduced by the amount of a net operating loss carryback or carryforward." My question is, does this sentence refer to these three things: 1) net operating loss 2) net operating loss carryback 3) net operating loss carryforward Or these two things: 1) net operating loss carryback 2) net operating loss carryforwardRead More...
misterk
There was a problem when I was copying and pasting to create my question. The two instances of "net" that you highlight should not be there, and I have now edited them out. Thanks for your help.Read More...
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Punctuations

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Which is considered correct? 1 (a) Wow, that's a beautiful painting. Who painted it? (b) Wow! That's a beautiful painting. Who painted it? (c) Wow, that's a beautiful painting! Who painted it? (d) Wow! That's a beautiful painting! Who painted it? 2 (a) "No! It's not your calculator. It's mine!" yelled Peter. (b) "No! It's not your calculator! It's mine!" yelled Peter. (c) "No, it's not your calculator. It's mine!" yelled Peter. (d) "No, it's not your calculator! It's mine!" yelled Peter. (e)...Read More...
Posted
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Common noun & article the

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If I put the landlord name after the common noun Lanlord, do I need an article "the"? example: Re: Property 123 I, the principal tenant of the above property confirm that I have received the following keys from the Landlord (Adam Malik).Read More...
Gustavo, Co-Moderator
Hi, Tony, Yes, the article is correct there. However, it is usual for the parties to a contract to be preceded by the zero article once they have been defined at the beginning of the document. This has nothing to do with grammar but is only a typical practice in legalese: This lease is entered into by Tony C (Tenant) and Adam Malik (Landlord). [...] Tenant hereby promises to return the key to Landlord at the end of the lease.Read More...
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Possessive pronoun and article “the”

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Hello, Supposedly the company that I work for has offices in multiples cities e.g. It has offices in Arcadia, Artesia, Avalon. Is it correct to say, today, I will be working from the Arcadia’s office? Or is it more correct to say Arcadia office? Secondly, is Arcadia office a common noun or a proper noun, does it need to use the article “the”? Thank you and kind regards,Read More...
Gustavo, Co-Moderator
Hi, Tony, "Arcadia office" is the correct form. It is a noun phrase where the head, "office," is a common noun. "Arcadia" is a proper name that modifies "office." Alternatively, you can say: the office in Arcadia, our office in Arcadia.Read More...
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Reflexive pronouns

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Hi, Mr. David Hi, all A person who talks to ............ is not necessarily mad. ( oneself - himself ) I think ONESELF is the answer. What do you think ?Read More...
David, Moderator
That's a daring option. A safer option is to use the plural, with a plural subject: " People who talk to themselves are not necessarily mad. "Read More...
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so that I'd fall

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a. Tom pushed me such that I would fall, but I managed not to. b. Tom pushed me in such a way that I would fall, but I managed not to. c. Tom pushed me so that I would fall, but I managed not to. d. Tom so pushed me that I would fall, but I managed not to. Which of the above is correct if the intended meaning is Tom deliberately pushed me in such a way as to make me fall. Many thanksRead More...
David, Moderator
Hi, Azz—For that meaning, (c) is correct, but I don't know why you wouldn't just say " Tom tried to push me down, but I managed not to fall " instead.Read More...
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which sentence is correct?

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Question: Does the picture relate to any important event in our national life? answer: (a) Yes, the picture relates to the Language Movement which is an important event in our national life. (b) Yes, the picture is related to the language movement which is an important event in our national life. which sentence is correct? sorry for my any mistakeRead More...
ashik3140
thanks a lot sirRead More...
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Grammar help

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Hi, I'm not sure which sentence is the right one: "I had a lovely weekend so far" "I've had a lovely weekend so far" could someone help me?Read More...
Gustavo, Co-Moderator
Hello, itzklajdi, and welcome to the Grammar Exchange. "Grammar help" is not a good title for any thread here. You could have titled yours "So far." Please read the Guidelines, to which there is a link in the toolbar at the top. With "so far," we use the present perfect, because the weekend is still ongoing: - I' ve had a lovely weekend so far .Read More...
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glance up vs glancing up

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Hello, I hope everything is fine with you. I have a question about the bold part in the following sentence, which comes from British Council. - Everyone’s too busy checking their social networks and sending messages to have time to communicate face-to-face! People spend their lunchtime glued to their screens or barely glance up from their phones. Even during meetings people can’t resist subtly checking their phone, …. . The way it’s written is a bit vague to me. The writer probably created a...Read More...
Jack Milgram
Hello, Freeguy. I think the author differs two types of people: one can sometimes glance up from their phones while the others don't even bother to take a small break from them.Read More...
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Me or I?

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Hi there! I've a some pictures captions with these structures (though the examples are made up by me): "Me and my dear pet" "I and my pet" "My pet and I" "My dear friend and I" "Me and him" "He and I" "Me and he" Are these structures with "me" at the beginning correct/ informal? Could you please give me some explanation on the correct/ acceptable options? Thank you so much in advance.Read More...
Jack Milgram
Hi, JessyA. " I " is used as a subject pronoun and " me " is used as an object pronoun. My friend and I went to the store. - correct Me and my friend went to the store. - wrong My mum saw my friend and me in the garden. - correct My mum saw my friend and I in the garden. - wrong From Your Dictionary And note that in compound subjects we usually name other people/animals first and then put "I" or "me."Read More...
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Collective nouns

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I had a sentence on a test recently which said "The jury were able to test the results in turn" with no other context. I was wondering if it is grammatically correct and if "were" can be replaced with "was" because Jury is a collective noun. I'd love to get a source for the answer/justification. Thank you!Read More...
ahmed_btm
Hi, Alan, and welcome to the G.E, Yes, 'jury' is a collective noun and it can be followed by either 'was' or 'were' in your example. However, if you say 'the members of the jury', you will have to use ' were '. From 'a Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language', page 316, under the title 'Collective nouns': "The difference reflects a difference in point of view: the singular stresses the nonpersonal collectivity of the group, and the plural stresses the personal individuality within the...Read More...
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scholars and not...

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a. All those who are scholars and not members of the cult agree that the history presented by the cult has nothing to do with what really happened. b. All those who are scholars, and not members of the cult, agree that the history presented by the cult has nothing to do with what really happened. Which should be used if no scholars belong to the cult and which should be used if there are some scholars who belong to the cult? Isn't (a) ambiguous? Many thanksRead More...
Posted
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made of

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Hello. Is the following sentence has the correct preposition? - Pancakes are always made of flour, egg and milk. Thank you.Read More...
David, Moderator
Hi, Ahmed Imam Attai—The sentence would sound more natural with "made with": " Pancakes are always made with flour, eggs, and milk ." Those ingredients are used in the making of pancakes. "Made of" could be used in a special case, to indicate that the pancakes' composition is different from what it ordinarily is: "These pancakes taste as if they were made of styrofoam."Read More...
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if it was/ were

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Hello! I've learned that when I have a conditional we use "were" instead of "was" for I/ she/ he/ it. Although, I came across this sentence: If the stock price was lower, we could afford it. Should it be "If the stock price were lower, we could afford it."? I still see many cases similar to this one with "If I was", instead of "If I were". Do you think the former option may become grammatically correct in time? Thank you so much in advance.Read More...
David, Moderator
Hello, JessyA—In formal English, subjunctive "were" is used in Type 2 conditionals in which the verb "BE" is used in the "if"-clause. So, yes, the sentence you propose ("If the stock price were lower, we could afford it") is perfectly correct. That said, in informal (or simply less formal) English, the simple past is used quite frequently even by educated native speakers. For example, in the 1960s song " California Dreamin' ," by the Mamas and the Papas, there is the following line: "I'd be...Read More...
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Past Tense

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Hi all You were in Cairo. I want to know what..... (A) You have been doing (B) You had been doing I think both A & B are incorrect here in such a context. Am I right ? I think WERE DOING should be the answer. What do you think ?Read More...
David, Moderator
Hi, Dr Ahmed—If the sentence is supposed to mean "I want to know what you were doing while you were in Cairo ," then "you were doing" is the answer. But if the sentence is supposed to mean "I want to know what you have been doing since you were in Cairo ," then "you have been doing" is the answer. And if the sentence is supposed to mean "I want to know what you were doing before you were in Cairo ," then "you had been doing" is the answer.Read More...
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in the finite form(s?) of A, B and C

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Hello. Is that an error? I think it should be "forms". Thank you.Read More...
Gustavo, Co-Moderator
Thank you for mentioning the source (I knew it was Quirk but I wanted you to inform our community about it). The Guidelines have been there for a couple of months now. They used to be scattered throughout our threads and David and I decided it was time to publish them in a more visible place.Read More...
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press (v, n)

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Hello. 1- Is the verb "press" suitable and correct in the following sentence? - If you press two colours, you get a new one. 2- Is the noun "press" suitable and correct in the following sentence? - An orange press is used for extracting juice from orange. Thank you.Read More...
David, Moderator
In what context did this colleague of yours use the first sentence? The second sentence is fine. Sometimes such a press is called a juicer.Read More...
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A grammar question

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On a less benevolent level, mixed-race children in America _________ a hostile welcome from both white and black communities in the early days of the 1900s. A) used to receive B) have received C) were received D) have been receiving E) were being received imo its C but i dont understand what is the different between C and E ? Active-Passive ? i dont get it is this question needs active or passive voice?Read More...
Panko
oh im sorry for the title, thank you for the answer Professor !Read More...
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Adverbs

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In dictionaries the word " direct " can be used as an adverb but while googling ( look directly or direct at the sun) , I always find" look directly at the sun". My question is ( can we say: look direct at the sun ).? Thanks in advance.Read More...
Gustavo, Co-Moderator
Hi, Ahmed, There are some examples of "look direct at the sun" on the Internet, for example this one: ( Source ) Search for "look direct at" and you will find several good examples ( look direct at the camera, look direct at the audience, etc.)Read More...
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Quotation marks

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Maybe, one day I will hold up my hand, get your attention, ask, are you watching closely? Should I put the last part of the sentence in a pair of quotation marks? Maybe, one day I will hold up my hand, get your attention, ask, 'Are you watching closely?'Read More...
MNHD
Thank you so much.Read More...
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difference in meaning

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Hi there, Could you please tell me if there's any difference in meaning when I say: a) "This essay is well written." b) "It's a well-written essay." (ps.: should I use hyphen here?) Thank you so much in advance. All the best.Read More...
JessyA
Wow! Thank you so much! The more I get to know the English language, the more fascinated I get. Again, thank you so much for your enlightening explanation!Read More...
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