Wordwizard

1) He has lived in London since his father passed away. 2) Since his father passed away, he has lived in London. I think those sentences can be used in two different cases: a) He started living in London when his father passed away and has lived in London since. b) He was living in London before hi...

1) The theory has to be simple enough to be worth having. That is, it must predict some things that are not in the theory itself (otherwise it is just a list of facts). But neither can the theory be so simple that it cannot explain things it should. Source: What’s universal grammar? Evidence rebuts...

Are these correct:

1) I didn't take the umbrella in case it rained. I took it to protect myself against the sun.
2) I'm not taking the umbrella in case it rains. I'm taking it to protect myself against the sun.

Gratefully,
Navi

Thank you very much, Erik, for all your replies, I am indeed exploring this construct, and it is complicated. One more question: Which one of the following are correct: 7) We are more technician than engineer. 8 ) We are more technicians than engineers. 9) Tom is the most technician of all our emplo...

Which are correct: 1) Tom is more technician than engineer. 2) Tom is more a technician than an engineer. 3) Tom is more of a technician than an engineer. 4) Tom is more technician than Harry. 5) Tom is more a technician than Harry. 6) Tom is more of a technician than Harry. I think '1' is informal ...

Thank you very much, Erik,

1a) These movies are more comedies than anything else.
3a) These movies are more comedies than thrillers.

I think they are correct, but I think they'd be wrong with 'of'.

Gratefully,
Navi

Thank you very much, Trolley,

2) I had altogether a lot of fun writing this talk.

Would 'altogether' mean 'on the whole' or 'entirely' in '2'?

Gratefully,
Navi

Thank you very much, Erik,

It seems to me that '1' and '3' could be put in the plural, but '2' and '4' cannot.

Am I correct?

Gratefully,
Navi

1) I had altogether too much fun writing this talk. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qG1GHs7CBQ 14:47 to 14:50 approximately. My problem is with the way she uses the word 'altogether'. I am not sure I understand her correctly. To me, 'altogether' in '1' would mean 'on the whole', 'all thing...

Which are correct: 1) This movie is more a comedy than anything else. 2) This movie is more of a comedy than anything else. 3) This movie is more a comedy than a thriller. 4) This movie is more of a comedy than a thriller. Is there a difference between the meanings of '1' and '2'? Is there a differe...

Which are correct:

1) I said things that I didn't know were true or not.
2) I said things that I didn't know whether they were true or not.
3) I said things about which I didn't know whether they were true or not.

Gratefully,
Navi

1) Tom at the post office told me his wife was pregnant. 2) Tom, at the post office, told me his wife was pregnant. 3) Tom who works at the post office told me his wife was pregnant. 4) Tom, who works at the post office, told me his wife was pregnant. 5) The Tom at the post office told me his wife ...

If someone uses the term 'toxic masculinity' does that indicate that he or she necessarily believes that there is a form of masculinity that is not toxic? Could someone who thinks all masculinity is toxic use the expression 'toxic masculinity'? And if someone says: We witnessed disgusting sexism in ...

Can one use: 1) John at the post office told me that his wife was pregnant. instead of: A) At the post office, John told me that his wife was pregnant. Can one use: 1) John at the post office told me that his wife was pregnant. instead of: B) The John at the post office told me that his wife was pre...

Which are correct: 1) This is the pitcher of which I broke the handle. 2) He was watching the movie of which I had seen the end. 3) This is a political party of which Tom organized the cultural committee. 4) This is a political party of which Tom served on the cultural committee. Gratefully, Navi