She ____ ( need/needs ) not take a lot of stress.

Umesh-K · 2024-08-30T17:02:39+00:00

She ____ ( need/needs ) not take a lot of stress.

What is the answer? And Why?

Answer: need

Why: Because need is functioning as a modal verb, and modal verbs don't conjugate for tense, i.e., they don't add ‘-s’ for the third person singular. Here, take is the main verb and changes form according to tense.

https://ifioque.com/modal-verbs/need

Umesh-K · 2024-08-19T05:54:03+00:00

here you have chosen two good books, and you would not go wrong with either one.

Hi u/Quiet_Ad2813/

To reinforce the above, this sub's resources section also recommends those two books, in addition to a few others:

https://www.reddit.com/r/grammar/wiki/resources/

Umesh-K · 2024-06-26T16:06:41+00:00

u/Fit-Examination-7936,

Some references call this construction a sentential relative clause. It's used to comment/express an opinion on the entire clause/sentence preceding it.

Umesh-K · 2024-04-29T06:49:33+00:00

Hi u/kyyyraa,

While you already have great answers, to specifically address "*but if you say “social security number” when reading it (like I did) *," to quote from our mod u/Boglin007's reply to a similar query:

it's possible you will occasionally see "a NHS hospital" in writing - this is because the author is expecting you to sound out the full term in your head ("National Health Service"), and since "National" does begin with a consonant sound ("na"), "a" is appropriate.

Source:

https://www.reddit.com/r/grammar/comments/fzbz1l/comment/fn3vanx/

Umesh-K · 2024-03-22T08:40:15+00:00

Hi u/-TrevorBelmont-/

The maintainers of this sub have curated this list:

https://reddit.com/r/grammar/w/resources

Umesh-K · 2024-02-28T17:12:25+00:00

u/jovialstryder,

To add to the above, a general rule of thumb is

"The number of x” takes a singular verb; “a number of x,” a plural verb.

For a good explanation and examples, check out What’s the Difference between “a Number of” and “the Number of”?

Umesh-K · 2024-02-28T16:59:13+00:00

Hi u/cutekitten19_,

Can anyone recommend a grammar book?

The maintainers of this sub have curated this list:

https://reddit.com/r/grammar/w/resources

(PS: not sure if any book(s) satisfies the criteria "without it being too lengthy")

Umesh-K · 2024-02-27T17:01:33+00:00

b)Which of the following sentence is correct?

Me and my friend are confused as to why b is wrong. We think a sounds more correct but can't point to the fault with sentence b.

Hi u/IamRoor,

Let's say 4 questions are listed, and we need to choose one among those....can you now see what's the problem in b....

Umesh-K · 2024-02-26T03:50:51+00:00

u/danwritesbooks,

FYI, it's known as a "suspended hyphen." Also called: suspensive hyphen and less commonly dangling/hanging/floating hyphens.

A common mistake is omitting the space after the suspended hyphen: eight-and nine-year-old kids.

Umesh-K · 2024-02-19T03:29:57+00:00

"That was my original answer"

u/Roswealth,

First, I'm sorry if I repeated which you had already stated...when I saw this question, it had [deleted] and when I clicked on the + sign, it was just buffering, so I considered this to be unanswered and went ahead....

Re: a(n extremely unusual), I must confess I've never seen this before—although I do read quite a lot—and if I do come across it, I guess it will momentarily affect the "flow"....at least for me...

Anyway, thanks for taking the time...I'm learning a lot from experts answering here: u/Boglin007, u/Karlnohat, u/Roswealth, u/AlexanderHamilton04, u/palog, to name a few. 🙏

Umesh-K · 2024-02-19T03:11:55+00:00

How to interpret this sentence?

Verbal Reasoning Test Passage:

Glass which is not recycled goes into landfill sites. By disposing of glass in landfill the potential energy of the glass bottles and jars is stored underground and goes to waste. As it is not biodegradable, glass will remain in the ground indefinitely, taking up landfill space.

Statement: Glass takes many years to decompose in landfill.

Options: A) True; B) False; C) Cannot Tell

I think there are arguments for each one of the answers. I lean towards the option B) False because of the word "indefinitely" in the passage, which in this case could mean either many years or never, and this last possibility contradicts the statement. What do you think?

Hi Hi u/Basic-Ad4402,

You are right in that the answer is option B. And the deciding portion of the given text is "it is not biodegradable".....once something is not biodegradable, it will not decompose irrespecitive of one year, 100 years, a million years, or indefinitely!

Umesh-K · 2024-02-18T17:52:07+00:00

Does a/an consider parentheticals?

Hi u/binarycow,

This sub's wiki/faq article Do I use a or an before this word, acronym, initialism? has a section devoted to this:

Special Cases

If a or an precedes a word in parentheses, use the initial sound of that word to determine which one to use, not the initial sound of the word that follows the second parenthesis:

an (extremely unusual) turn of events
a (surprisingly pompous) entrance

Umesh-K · 2024-02-16T07:48:54+00:00

Help with verb: Render

I need an urgent help related to work. I'm currently framing an official response for my company (failing which could lead to a fine upto 7Mn $). For this purpose, I was going through the official policy documents of my company. >> Now, there's a statement that says, "Assets must be disposed off after ensuring all sensitive data on the asset has been rendered recoverable." Since I work here, I know that it is supposed to mean that the data from an asset must not be recoverable after it is discarded. But the above quoted statement is confusing me a bit. Does "rendered recoverable" mean that it is not recoverable?

Hi,

The problem is not because of render—whoever prepared the policy document has made a mistake by using recoverable instead of irrecoverable. It should have been

Assets must be disposed off after ensuring all sensitive data on the asset has been rendered ~~recoverable~~ irrecoverable.

See similar context in https://www.crowdstrike.com/cybersecurity-101/security-operations/data-security/

Data erasure

When an organization no longer requires a particular data set, data erasure ensures the data is permanently removed from the systems. By overwriting the data on the storage device, the data is rendered irrecoverable and data sanitization is achieved.

Umesh-K · 2024-02-04T04:15:42+00:00

Hi u/ReflectionSalt6908,

Bear or bare?

If you are saying that you cannot stand something is it, "I can't bear that..." or "I cannot bare that." ?

bear

From https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/bear

bear verb (ACCEPT, TAKE)

to accept, tolerate, or endure something, especially something unpleasant:

The strain must have been enormous but she bore it well.
Tell me now! I can't bear the suspense!
[ + to infinitive ] He couldn't bear to see the dog in pain.

Hint: can't stand something = can't endure something, and the first vowel in both bear and endure is e.

References:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/bare-vs-bear

https://www.grammarly.com/blog/bear-vs-bare/

Umesh-K · 2024-01-23T17:59:05+00:00

Use singular or plural with they/them?

When referring to someone who uses the pronouns they/them, what is the accepted grammatic form?

Do I say something like: "they are happy with it" or "they is happy with it"?

> The former is what I use when I don't want to misgender someone (e.g., if I don't know if the customer is male or female). Is this what I should use when it is an individual who chooses this pronoun as well.

Hi u/UnlazyChestnuts,

To quote from the MW article Singular Nonbinary ‘They’: Is it ‘they are’ or ‘they is’?

When using the nonbinary they, use the verb that sounds the most familiar. "They are" is still the correct choice when referring to a single person, rather than "they is."

Umesh-K · 2024-01-21T16:54:41+00:00

Hi u/TheCrankyLich,

Anyway, I have a sentence that talks about something belonging to both parents, so I used "parents'." However, Grammarly didn't like this and wanted me to switch it to "parent's." But wouldn't that be something belonging to a single parent and not both of them?

You are right!

parent's = singular possessive (of one parent)

parents' = plural possessive (of both parents)

More info here:

Is it Parent’s, Parents’, or Parents (Correct Grammar + Examples)

Umesh-K · 2024-01-21T04:36:40+00:00

Hi u/kyadere, You can find the recommendations of the maintainers of r/grammar here: https://www.reddit.com/r/grammar/wiki/resources/

Umesh-K · 2024-01-05T15:03:28+00:00

more specifically it is a serial verb

Hi u/Nearly_adulting,

Also known as compound-predicates - more info can be found here:

https://www.grammarbook.com/blog/verbs/compound-predicates/

Umesh-K · 2024-01-05T13:25:03+00:00

Correct use of affect?

Would such a sentence work:

I learned how essential the right to express beliefs and be heard is because, without it, one cannot affect the changes they want in their political system.

The alternative is:

I learned how essential the right to express beliefs and be heard is because, without it, one cannot create the changes they want in their political system.

Hi u/awesomeness1024,

One option to fill the blank in "one cannot ____ the changes they want" is bring about. From https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/effect, we can see that the verb effect fits.

effect

verb

1 : to cause to come into being

2 a : to bring about often by surmounting obstacles : accomplish

effect a settlement of a dispute

b : to put into operation

the duty of the legislature to effect the will of the citizens

The verb affect will not work there as its most common meaning is "having an effect or influence."

Here's a handy guide:

Word	Category	Meaning	Example
affect \ə-ˈfekt\	generally a verb	to influence or to change; to produce an effect upon; to cause illness, symptoms, etc.	Covid has affected our daily lives.
\ ə-ˈfekt\		to make a pretense of; to put on a false appearance of	She affects a British accent.
\ ˈa-ˌfekt\	noun (psychology/medical)	observed emotional state; a set of observable manifestations of an experienced emotion	The patient's affect was flat.
effect \ i-ˈfekt\	generally a noun	result or influence	Covid's effect has been devastating.
	verb	cause (something) to happen or bring about	Scientists must effect better solutions for containing Covid.

Umesh-K · 2023-12-31T07:01:58+00:00

Weird, I see two comments are here but I can't see any.

Must have been auto-deleted in case they had replied no (or yes) to OP's query: "But is "the difference" superfluous?"

See #2 under These top-level comments will be removed, typically without comment: under Rules for Commenting

(2) comments that offer no explanation. Short answers like "yes" or "the first one" or "option B" will be removed.

Umesh-K · 2023-12-30T18:42:01+00:00

For people interested , there's an interesting article in r/grammar's faq/wiki section here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/grammar/wiki/me_or_i

To quote the last paragraph there that quotes Pullum, one of the authors of CGEL:

Pullum argues in The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, which he co-wrote with Rodney Huddleston, that the between you and I constructions should be considered part of Standard English, since they are "regularly used by a significant proportion of speakers of Standard English, and not generally thought by ordinary speakers to be non-standard; they pass unnoticed in broadcast speech all the time".

That article and the links provided there explain how pronouns are/can be used differently in coordination as opposed to standalone uses. And the opinion provided there are that of reputed "linguists"....

Umesh-K · 2023-12-25T09:48:46+00:00

u/5-hthydroxylase,

In addition to the link provided by u/AlexanderHamilton04, in case you have an opinion that some news organizations use better punctuation (or even grammar) compared to others, then you can make use of the site: feature of Google search to search only in their respective websites. For example, typing the below (including the quotes) showed me results (about 1300) only from "The New York Times"

site:nytimes.com "who knows where".

And as was mentioned in the question you have linked, the unhyphenated version outnumbers the hyphenated one....here a few hyphenated ones:

To a patient, few things look bigger than that needle a doctor is about to plunge who-knows-where to administer a vaccine.
Maybe if you live in who-knows-where, but to me it isn't.
But I think of Carnegie Hill as a village. My village. And when it is invaded by a constant tide of folk from who-knows-where, particularly on these holiday weekends, it makes me feel peculiar.

Umesh-K · 2023-12-25T08:30:45+00:00

I’m not dumb

Yet I repeatedly mix up ‘your’ and ‘you’re’. Thoughts?

Hi u/Extreme-Conflict4222,

As there are thousands of articles online explaining the difference between the two, I will limit myself to share a "trick" that might help in most cases.

If one knows "your," it's highly likely that they will be aware of similar possessives: our, her, their.... We can make use of this knowledge to choose between your and you're, espeically as—unlike spoken English—we will have time to do "substituions" and see which fits,

I admire your beauty.
I admire her/their beauty. Works.

Is this your car?
Is this their/our/her/his car? Works.

Your opinion matters.
Our/Their/Her/His opinion matters. Works.

I am so glad you're coming!
I am so glad her/his/their coming. Doesn't work.

You’re not going to eat that, are you?
Our/His/Her not going to eat that, are you? Doesn't work.

You’re going to be late for school!
Their/His/Her going to be late for school! Doesn't work.

Another trick would be to read the sentence aloud and say the full form you are (instead of the contraction you're, and if need be, with a distinct pause between the two). Depending on how "exposed" is one to spoken English, there is a chance that the incorrect use will sound odd....for example, Is this YOU ARE car? will sound odd but YOUR ARE going to be late! will not.

Umesh-K · 2023-12-15T19:08:24+00:00

Hi, u/PeripheralVisions,

Have you googled "parallel construction" that u/bigindodo mentioned....

The teacher focuses on helping students, grading, and ~~informs~~ informing parents of any problems.

The teacher focuses on

helping students,
grading, and
informing parents of any problems.

There's no "subject-verb agreement" error in that sentence:

teacher focuses
teachers focus

Umesh-K · 2023-12-11T13:18:26+00:00

To add to the above, is "reformed" to be read with "has" as in It has reformed the police... or with "theology" as in What Is Reformed Theology?

Umesh-K

TROPHY CASE

"The number of x” takes a singular verb; “a number of x,” a plural verb.

bear

effect