I found this sentence from my exercise book (Oxford Grammar): I felt lazy, and because I didn’t have any real work to do, I took the afternoon off. The execise instructs me to guess whether it’s correct or not. The key answer is correct, but I have a question. Why isn’t this sentence written like … Read more
How can I describe covering your eyes from bright sunlight? Like putting up one of your hands over your eyebrows horizontally to prevent the sunlight coming into your eye? Answer As a native British English speaker, I would probably say "I shielded my eyes from the bright sunlight". You could be more specific if you … Read more
You usually use urge that clause, but do you sometimes omit that in that structure? I looked up several dictionaries, but I couldn’t find the example sentences without that. The charity urged the government to reconsider its decision. ( ○ ) The charity urged that the government reconsider its decision. ( ○ ) The charity … Read more
It seems to be relatively common to speak of "scientific beliefs". If I turn to science to inform myself about what it has to say on some topic, does science "provide" such beliefs? In other words: Is the following sentence awkward? "Science provides us with the best justified beliefs available on this matter." If it … Read more
We can say ‘A brother of mine is a doctor.’ The more common way of saying is ‘One of my brothers is a doctor.’ But in a case where a listener knows my brother or I have only one brother. Should we write ‘the brother of me is a doctor.’ Using ‘mine’ is wrong here … Read more
I want to tell my friend that bus didn’t come today (in the morning). Which of the following sentences are acceptable: There was no bus today. There was not a bus today. I know first one is right because I have heard many sentences like this. But is second one right? Thank you. Answer The … Read more
The below sentence makes me confused. is "Reorganized boxes in the attic" and "Rearranged his tools in the shed and moved the Saab’s winter tire to a new place" correct complete sentence? I can’t find the subject. Put new screws into the handle of the door from the kitchen to the veranda. Reorganized boxes in … Read more
There are two men in the hairdressing salon. There are two men at the hairdresser’s. For me, the first sentence is quite clear, but is the second sentence also correct? Is it OK to use "there are" with the end of the sentence "at the hairdresser’s"? Maybe, I can only say: "Two men are at … Read more
1. The thing which you need is a good sleep. Which you need: relative clause The thing: subject A good sleep: complement 2. The boxes come from what I believe was a Javanese illuminated manuscript painted on wood I saw at the library. The boxes come from the thing which I believe was a Javanese … Read more
This question has already been answered here: How to properly ask for store hours on phone? However, I have one question. Can I ask the question like following? How long does the restaurant stay open? Answer That’s correct, and understandable, but I’d probably prefer the slightly simpler "When do you close?" – You aren’t really … Read more
