I have heard the term "PR" used as a verb, but have not found this in the dictionary. The way it was used seemed to me to be a derogatory way to imply the use of public relations techniques in a less than honest or straight forward way. Example: "Joe from the Acme Corporation is … Read more
What I mean is “someone of old” that people could be drawn to. One who is stuck in the past and in his ways and dislikes the future. Something like: • an originator • an innovator • a predecessor • an uncaused, time-traveler. Edit: This character also could have nefarious, mysterious, dismissive or even obsolete … Read more
What is a commonly used expression meaning "at every hour", e.g. 10:00, 11:00, 12:00 but not 10:18, 11:18, 12:18? "Every hour" does not seem to distinguish between the two cases. Also it seems that "round hour" is not used similarly to "round number". And "every exact hour" does not seem to be commonly used either. … Read more
It seems to me that it is better to use ‘over the past decade’ at the start of this sentence rather than the end, although I am not too sure why! "There is an ever increasing number of people deciding to pursue their post graduate education in Taiwan over the past decade." "Over the past … Read more
I am looking for expressions that can substitute for as soon as as in the following context. What is important in this context is that the melting of snow happens extremely simultaneously and instantly as it reaches the ground. (Please excuse me, if the example sentence is clumsy. I am not a native English speaker … Read more
So, the rule I have been taught is that ‘for’ and ‘since’ must be used with perfect forms, i.e. I have been living in London for 3 years/since 2017. This presents two problems for me: 1.- What if the action is finished? For example, what if I have already left London after spending 3 years … Read more
For example, if someone said They want it to be finished before September. Does that mean the work should be finished by Aug 31 or Sep 30 at least? Answer It means that the work should be finished by August 31st. Think about it like any other time frame. If you asked me to come … Read more
What is the difference between them: He started climbing at the age of 11. He has been climbing since he was 11. For me they are same and I don’t see difference. Answer He started climbing at the age of 11. He has been climbing since he was 11. The meaning is almost identical, but … Read more
ABC city sees a doubling of air pollution in 20 years. does this ‘in 20 years’ mean the past 20 years or the next 20 years to come? I have found a similar structure in news titles, see quoted: With Covid surge, Karnataka sees cases doubling in 10 days It seems the indicated time refers … Read more
Can I say something like, The movie became famous in the 2015s I want to use it as an approximation; it’s not really 2015 but somewhere around that period. Answer No, you can’t say “the 2015s”. You could instead say “around 2015”. Ronald Sole’s comment is talking about the unrelated “possessive” or “genitive” construction, which … Read more
