In English grammar^x, Verbs^x, Idioms^x

I don't think anyone around here reads minds. Only Mr. M. can answer as to the reasons for his answer, and it seems to me that he already has given reasons. As for your sentences, I don't see anything problematic with them except as corrected below:1.They reached agreement, and the...

I thank both Clive and CalifJim for the excellent replies.It seems even if you are a native English speaker and an expert in English, you can't judge a given verb's transitive/intransitive nature.You should refer to a dictionary to make sure whether it is transitive or intransitive.This is my...

Hi ForbesThank you for your long reply. I do appreciate it. I would just like to say that I my opinion is based on the knowledge I have of the Germanic and Romance languages and it is of course very subjective. I fully understand that not everyone agrees with me and what I consider easy may be...

Jay_zzz0 wrote:I believe these are GMAT sentence correction questions. I don't think they are trying to test your ability to use commas. Instead, these questions can test you on all aspects of grammar. It all depends on the question writer.Jeff Sackmann, a GMAT tutor, said in his blog that most...

I believe these are GMAT sentence correction questions. I don't think they are trying to test your ability to use commas. Instead, these questions can test you on all aspects of grammar. It all depends on the question writer.Jeff Sackmann, a GMAT tutor, said in his blog that most questions focus...

Phrasal verbs drive me crazy. (Ah.... general English grammar, articles, idioms....they are all difficult!) I think idioms sometimes ignore general grammatical rules! Very confusing to me.

Hello everybody, If I understand well, I can always use "slowly" instead of "slow." Am I right? An Introduction To English Grammar wrote: Some words can have the same form for both the adjectives and the adverbs: easily, fast, hard, late, slow, quick, long, and words in –ly that are...

Hello Paco and Roro I hope you don't mind if I take a few steps back. I was struck by this passage on the Yates and Kenkel 'We're Prescriptivists. Isn't Everyone?' page: For example, one of the most notorious prescriptions is never to end sentences with a preposition. This style was given the...

If you mean "survive (the tortures of) English grammar", then, yes, it's correct to say "make it". I'll make it through my English course. (make it = survive) If I hurry, I think I'll make it to class just in time. (make it = arrive) What's next? How about this? Like the idiom "make it"...

Hi Miriam, Actually "had better" is NOT a modal verb. Some authors call it a "modal idiom" (The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield), or a idiomatic modal. There are many English Grammar websites that talk about "had better" as a Modal Verb. For...