By Expressions, Word order

Clive wrote:Please at least inform us of the present situation.Please inform us of at least the present situation.Please inform us of the present situation at least.At least please inform us of the present situation. I wouldn't say any of these are incorrect, although #2 would be less common.....

What does "net effect" mean? (Note the word order.) It's the final effect resulting from a combination of many different effects, some of which add to the final effect, some of which detract from it. It's the final result after all the positive and negative components are combined. A...

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...

As a rule, you can safely put even before the word/expression it qualifies:Even he bought a book.He even bought a book.He bought even a book.CB

Eeuw! Melted brains are so unsightly! You said that "loved" can refer to the present. Can it also refer to the pastYes. There is always an end to the backshift process -- the point where you run out of tenses that refer to an even more distant point in time! In this case I wouldn't feel...

Hi allIt would be interesting to hear from nonnative speakers of English in particular what influence English exerts on other languages nowadays. What English words and expressions are used in your language? Does English grammar or syntax have an influence on your native language? Where is this...

I have problems with the pronunciation and with the style of the whole language. For me, it is especially in English a problem to make a correct sentence, with the correct word order and so on... Also the right way of expression...btw: do you know how I can this practise?

Hi Hela My comments are in the quote. Hela wrote:1) When we have a couple adjectives describing the same thing (e.g. material) don't we list them in alphabetical order? No - a Concrete and Glass building That was your word order. You could also say "a glass and concrete building"...

Hi,I've used this phrase without thinking in a conversation today:...the present I wished for...Is this "expression" common and natural? What about "the present I hoped for"? Are there any other ways of saying the same thing?Thanks.P.S. Is the word order in my first sentence natural? To be...

What is the matter? This asks for the subject I reject this premiss. It doesn't ask for the subject. And (surprise, surprise!) it doesn't really ask for the complement either. It's an idiomatic expression that says "Talk to me about what is bothering you" or "Tell me the problem". The...