In Nouns^x, Idioms^x, Countable nouns^x

WOW - Firstly - put down the thesaurus and stop trying to sound smart! Just be yourself! When writing in ANY language it is ALWAYS best to be simple, crisp, clean and concise! Honestly - I got lost halfway through your rambling. So far as I can tell, you want to know whether or not...

Yes, it's odd way not to use "a". Indeed, "any=some" implies itself plural noun to be used. So the difference in translation some of constructions in English seems to be slightly smoothed between two meanings you mentioned above. At least it's so in my language.

You can do that too, but it is not common, it's only used sometimes for emphasis. It's easy to build odd sentences that way, so I personally prefer to avoid using it that way, as a learner. When talking about one thing, using the article "a" (or "an") is the common...

Thank you, CalifJim and Mr. M. No, no. I wasn't trying to put anyone who answers my question in a dubious position as having to prove or disprove anyone in an excellent standing like Mr. M. I was trying to find an answer to this question, which I consider important to know the answer to. You...

Hi Tanit, prescriptivism is not for me, but I can be prescriptive on demand! Yes, in theory it should be fewer, but only if you really want to refer to "hectares", which is plural and countable. But as you know (hopefully you do know, lol), quantities followed by plural units of...

Should I just accept the fact some uncountable nouns, especially those that have abstract meanings, do not go well or don't not fit with a verb showing possession such as 'have'? Yes, you probably should accept that. It's probably a lot easier to memorize idioms with have plus a noun than...

Another help please, My teacher told me to compose essay with the topic "American Education.. where is it leading?" Can you help me what does it mean: "where is it leading" Does he want me to tell about the situation of Vietnamese Edu or something?? Second, I'd like to ask you what does this...

Hi, I have writeen two sentences that contain the above-mentioned phrases and want to know why the words that follow those phrases do not seem to have articles when they appear to be countable nouns. 1.A quail is a type of small bird which is often .. (Why not, a quail is a type of (a...

Hi guys, Idioms are tricky. You often have to use the exact wording to avoid sounding odd or unintentionally funny. The idiom for this light-hearted expression is When I kick the bucket .. and not When I kick my bucket ... Best wishes, Clive

Hello Jacek 'Jockey for position' means something like 'play tricks to gain an advantageous position'. 'Position' is used mostly as a countable noun (i.g., 'apply for a position', 'compete for a position', 'look for a position', 'run for a position', etc.). So if we make the phrase strictly...