In Numbers^x, Conversations^x

It's just a register difference. Stick to must unless (as in this case) you are deliberately trying to use a lower register to sound more slangy. The numbers below are my impressionistic guesses. (AmE) You must be kidding. R2.1 You have to be kidding. R1.9 You...

CalifJim wrote:Well, I wouldn't even dream of trying to hold a conversation in Italian any more complicated than "How much does it cost?" unless I knew at least 10,000 words of Italian. In fact, when I was studying Italian, I only started to be able to converse a little better than...

I doubt you'll need more than 7,500.Well, I wouldn't even dream of trying to hold a conversation in Italian any more complicated than "How much does it cost?" unless I knew at least 10,000 words of Italian. In fact, when I was studying Italian, I only started to be able to converse a little...

English does have a lot of words compared to many other languages, but speakers of English use about the same number of words in everyday conversations as the speakers of any other language. So English really isn't that hard to learn after all! If you can handle 10,000 words well, you...

Well, this is my first try. please read this and suggest me how can i make my writings even better. Alone I sit and remember. Remember those days when we used to be together. Me and her, hands in hands, we used to spend most of the time with each other. She used to be the reason for my...

CalifJim wrote: For example, in ordinary conversation, I tend to treat "none of" as number transparent, but this is a big no-no for most (prescriptive) grammarians. So do I. If I remember correctly, the OED traces the plural usage back to OE. So we're not alone. MrP

Arggghhh! I've created a monster! This is a box of tools that was left here by American soldiers. (the box was left)This is a box of tools that were left here by American soldiers. (the tools were left) Exactly! This has nothing to do with number transparency. You know, I don't think...

Hi KooyeenThere is nothing to forgive! I am certainly not in the least offended by your post. In fact, I enjoyed reading it tremendously! I even agree with you to some extent on some of the points you made. I am the first person to admit that my knowledge of English isn't as good as that of a...

It's grammatically correct, but it's not the way you would say it in natural conversation. "How many floors are there?" - "There are twenty-five" It's hard to imagine a natural way in which the tortuous question "What is the number of floors in the building?" would come up, but the answer...

Taka wrote: MrPedantic wrote: "So numerous" here implies "readily available in such numbers"; while Y ("one can neglect...store") implies "one need not take any trouble to collect more". So going back to the original interpretation question, is the literal meaning of the sentence something...