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No. 1 works fine, Coco, but please understand that it's in a very literary style. Nobody would actually speak like that. No. 2 doesn't work, at least not with such . You could say So great a liar was he that nobody believed him.Read More...

Comment, please.Read More...

Oh! Sorry, Rachel. I thought that this phrase put between two commas can be omitted. Now, I see the point. Thanks a lot.Read More...

You don't need = not necessaryRead More...

'As of' would be good here only if the verb 'hasn't' is changed to 'hadn't': 1) Iran's nuclear weapons program is ongoing, and it hadn't stopped as of 2003. 2) Iran's nuclear weapons program is ongoing, and it hasn't stopped since 2003. Sentence 1) means that in 2003, the program -- which had already started -- was still going on. In fact, it never stopped, that we know of. The last assessment was in 2003. We don't know what has happened since then. Sentence 2) means that the program is...Read More...

Yes,Mido is right. 'Guarantee' is a verb here. You could also say, 'What he really did was to guarantee...' This is another way to know that 'guarantee' is a verb.Read More...

Hello, my dear, Moderators, _________________________________________________________ The sentence has 'purpose.' With 'purpose is' we need an infinitive as complement. ___________________________________________________________ Interestingly, I was also certain that 'to reveal' was the right answer to it, not because I knew well, but just because it did sound natural to me. This is the usual thing that I say. It becomes a problem when I am asked to explain because I really don't know much...Read More...

I don't see anything wrong with it, Navi, except for the typo in country's .Read More...

This is a good question for somebody from the UK, I suppose. Perhaps Mr. Crystal can explain this.Read More...

Here's how we would say this idea in more natural, idiomatic language, my friend: The movie debuted * last week and was an instant hit . It led the box office nationwide. *Notice the spelling of debut in the simple past. By the way, the pronunciation is "day-byoo" and in the past, "day-byood."Read More...

Here are the corrected sentences: She wants to come to dinner if they have/make pasta. She wants to come to the party if they make/have a barbecue .Read More...

I really don't think that this has to do with parallelism ,Richard. I think it has to do with the subjective complement that renames "what" in a noun clause. If the subjective complement was an adjective, things would be easier : -What is strange is his behaviour. (not: what strange is). But the problem here is that the SC is a noun (terrorism). Mathematics might help: -What is x is Y.(what is his name doesn't concern you "incorrect" ) -What X is is Y. (what his name is doesn't concern you).Read More...

You need the infinitive verb, Welkins. You remind somebody to do something.Read More...

You're right, my friend. That's not going to work.Read More...

Yes, the sentence is fine. 'Had' is correct because it its tense is governed by 'said.' And 'said' is past because the main verb of the sentence is past: 'hoped.' If the reporting verb were in the present tense, the situation would be different: She hopes that she was not a little self centered if she says that 'she will go if they have chips and sodas for the party.' But, the sentence is about 'hoped.' The verbs are past: She hoped that she was not a little self centered if she said that...Read More...

Yes, Mido is right. 'Suffer' could take only a noun, which is 'death' here, or possibly an adverb like 'greatly,' which isn't a choice.Read More...

"The other one" must refer to the other child. She had one with her and the speaker brought up the subject of the other one. But if the other kid was a cousin, who is the kid with her now??? "Doing jumping Jacks in my head" means imagining yourself jumping up and down for joy. Jumping Jacks are actually a common exercise -- you jump in the air and land with your legs spread out while you clap your hands above your head. Then jump again and land with your feet together and hands at your side.Read More...

the parks department : is the agency/administration responsible for gardens, parks, trees, etc.Read More...

Thanks a lot, Richard.Read More...

And Rachel, do you know this disputable grammar point is often tested? And the answer is always Plural. He's one of the doctors who have helped a patient in this way. The explanation is: He is one of the doctors. The doctors have helped a patient in this way. So when we combine, WHO refers to the doctors. This explains why the verb is plural.Read More...

The person who wrote this piece came up with that descriptive way to say that the employees are always very tense when the boss is around. You're right in calling it a figurative way of describing this feeling, Nammy. Understand that this is not a commonly used figure of speech; it's this writer's unique way of describing how the employees feel around the boss. As for that other sentence, it's perfectly correct. There's a bit of ellipsis in the sentence: The man never recognizes anyone for a...Read More...

Probably 'a road sweeper' would be correct. This would indicate that it's a job ; there are two or more road sweeper jobs in existence. It could be the job if the speaker is referring to the only existing road sweeping job. And, it could be just road sweeper (without any article) if it is a certain job, but usually an office held at a high level, as in He's now president of the company . So, in this passage it's possible that any of the three might be used. Since the man who's offering the...Read More...

With the names of languages, we always use 'speak.' Your sentence is this: I speak French. It's often difficult to know which verb to use: say, speak, talk or tell . A discussion of these verbs is attached below.Read More...

Thanks a lot.Read More...

Thanks Rachel! That is what I thought tooRead More...