https://languages.codidact.com/categories/36/feedNew Posts - Q&A - Languages & LinguisticsLanguages & Linguistics - Codidact2024-03-14T09:49:02Zhttps://languages.codidact.com/posts/277509Why "sommaren är kommen" rather than "sommaren har kommit" in Swedish?gerrithttps://languages.codidact.com/users/533122020-08-26T12:06:18Z2024-03-14T09:49:02Z<p>I have seen the phrase <em>sommaren är kommen</em>. What grammatical form is this and how is it correct? I thought it should rather be <em>sommaren har kommit</em>, for <em>summer has arrived<...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/281965Is it true to say that Lao script is a simplified version of the Thai script?deleted user#2021-05-31T07:29:51Z2024-03-04T16:11:12Z<p>Is it true to say that Lao script is a simplified version of the Thai script?</p>
<p>A criteria might be:</p>
<ul>
<li>Fewer letters</li>
<li>Fewer diacritics</li>
<li>Fewer tone markers</l...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290982Are Icelandic unstressed diphthongs in loanwords supposed to be reduced?Jirka Hanikahttps://languages.codidact.com/users/534582024-03-03T18:25:32Z2024-03-03T18:25:32Z<p>In Icelandic, certain accented vowel letters (especially ó, á) are consistently explained as diphthongs ([ou] and [au], respectively) in pronunciation guides.</p>
<p>Accented vowel letters are ...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290952What underlying principle is at play for how objective or subjective a natural language instruction is?Julius H.https://languages.codidact.com/users/573372024-02-26T15:51:26Z2024-02-27T15:33:17Z<p>I am interested in exploring a series of prompts for a large language model which move from instructions which have a clear-cut "correct result", such as the instruction to capitalize every lett...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290447What grammatical category does "Weihnachten" fall into?gmcgathhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/530032023-12-16T12:44:08Z2023-12-24T23:59:37Z<p>The German word "Weihnachten" (Christmas) is an odd one. It's a neuter noun (das Weihnachten) even though it's based on a feminine one (die Nacht, night). The traditional Christmas greetings, "F...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289989Has the word "humor" shifted meaning?matthewsnyderhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/613082023-10-12T17:42:55Z2023-12-21T12:58:15Z<p>The original meaning of <em>humor</em> of course refers to the obsolete theory of the four humors and their effect on human temperament. I'm not asking about that.</p>
<p>It appears that initia...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290456How does phonology-orthography correspondence affect second language acquisition?Eric Isaachttps://languages.codidact.com/users/659622023-12-18T16:16:07Z2023-12-18T16:16:07Z<p>One difficulty I’ve seen in learning languages is matching orthography to pronunciation - especially vowels.</p>
<p>English has several distinct sounds that a native speaker will describe as th...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289954What is "nift"?matthewsnyderhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/613082023-10-11T17:58:43Z2023-12-18T07:04:52Z<p>Everyone knows what "nifty" is. It's obvious, isn't it? A thing which possesses <em>nift</em>.</p>
<p>But what is this mysterious nift? Looking at things that are considered <em>nifty</em>, I c...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290214Vowel insertion phenomenonpureferret https://languages.codidact.com/users/606952023-11-12T11:14:41Z2023-12-03T15:43:36Z<p>When I, maybe Br.E speaker, pronounce adverbs ending '-bly' I find myself occasionally inserting an extra vowel.</p>
<p>So I say feeble-y, noble-y but I 'correctly' say 'nim-bly' and 'lim-ply' ...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290261Two reads of "murremestari"tommihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/534072023-11-21T08:18:06Z2023-11-21T08:18:56Z<p>In this quiz on Yle's website I met the nice word "murremestari": <a href="https://yle.fi/a/74-20058169">https://yle.fi/a/74-20058169</a></p>
<p>Obviously this means one who masters dialects, b...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289988Does humor always spring from surprise?matthewsnyderhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/613082023-10-12T17:22:50Z2023-11-12T11:57:33Z<p>It seems like a lot of humor has an element of surprise. Sudden meanings, unexpected turns of the plot, language unexpected given the context (impolite language in polite context, technical in a...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286735Possessive vs accusative case for nominalized clausesMoshihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/531962022-07-17T18:53:05Z2023-10-27T19:12:00Z<p>Consider the following sentences:</p>
<ol>
<li>"She was against his joining the team."</li>
<li>"She was against his joining of the team."</li>
<li>"She was against him joining the team."</l...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/277108Does English support three-word contractions?Monica Celliohttps://languages.codidact.com/users/80462020-08-06T01:04:18Z2023-10-27T15:15:02Z<p>In English certain pairs words can be contracted with an apostrophe, such as "I've" (I have). I don't know if there are strong rules for which words can be combined in this way and which can't....https://languages.codidact.com/posts/283817How to say in Thai "There isn't a necessity to think in the pattern of X"?deleted user#2021-08-29T02:46:02Z2023-10-23T21:42:19Z<p>I want to know what is a useful proper way to say in Thai:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>There isn't a necessity to think in the pattern of X</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Google translate brings (words separa...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/288307Why do some people say "idea-r", "draw-r-ing" and "china-r"?matthewsnyderhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/613082023-06-11T22:43:23Z2023-10-21T12:41:21Z<p>English speakers from certain areas, in particular British, seem to add an extra <code>r</code> sound after vowels. For example:</p>
<ul>
<li>Idea -> idea-r</li>
<li>Drawing -> draw-r-i...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287840Why do Chinese people say "idear"?msh210https://languages.codidact.com/users/81062023-02-01T18:29:42Z2023-10-18T15:41:38Z<p>In my experience of speaking with immigrants from China to the United States, it seems many of them pronounce the word <em>idea</em> with a final ɹ (even before a consonant). Why?</p>
<!-- g: j...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/290041How do linguists identify the origins of verbal habits that originate from other languages?Eric Isaachttps://languages.codidact.com/users/659622023-10-17T21:40:05Z2023-10-17T21:44:13Z<p>When an observed verbal habit has more than one potential source, and that source is likely to be a different language or dialect, how do linguists determine the most likely origin?</p>
<p>For ...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286040How can fulsome constitute "a case of ironic understatement"? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-03-01T03:06:37Z2023-10-12T16:59:28Z<p>Pretend that you're Devil's Advocate. 1. How can you possibly contend that <em>fulsome</em> is "<strong>a case of ironic understatement</strong>"?</p>
<ol start="2">
<li>
<p>What's ironic?</p...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289955Is "pervalue" an antonym of "devalue"?matthewsnyderhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/613082023-10-11T18:03:49Z2023-10-11T18:03:49Z<p><em>Devalue</em> is commonly used to mean <em>diminish value</em>.</p>
<p>Seems like the prefix <em>re-</em> is sometimes used with opposite effect to <em>de-</em>, as in <em>reinforce</em> mea...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289901What's a "road colony"?msh210https://languages.codidact.com/users/81062023-10-05T07:49:50Z2023-10-08T17:42:24Z<p><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Sanders">Lawrence Sanders</a>, <em>Caper</em>, 1980. <a href="//www.worldcat.org/search?q=isbn%3A042510477X">1987 paperback edition</a>, page 61:</p>
<...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289610"Lock" and "close" in Germannteodosiohttps://languages.codidact.com/users/579742023-09-06T14:42:27Z2023-09-06T15:54:08Z<p>I was trying to explain to someone that my door can only be opened with a key, regardless of whether the door is locked or simply closed.</p>
<p>I figured <em>schließen</em> would fail to expre...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/288754What is the term for a word that is an instance of itself?gmcgathhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/530032023-06-28T11:45:46Z2023-08-17T16:01:23Z<p>Some words are examples of the concept they name. Examples:</p>
<ul>
<li>"Word" is a word.</li>
<li>"Noun" is a noun.</li>
<li>"Eggcorn" is an eggcorn (a mistaken word that sounds like and h...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/289305Is there a freely available sentence patterns search engine?Lorenzo Donatihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/529912023-08-09T08:48:00Z2023-08-14T06:02:33Z<p>As the title says.</p>
<h4>Background</h4>
<p>I often find myself in the need of building an English sentence that I <em>almost</em> know how to get right.</p>
<p>The scaffolding is there, bu...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286172Calling another by name when one is exasperatedr~~https://languages.codidact.com/users/534102022-03-29T22:42:12Z2023-08-09T09:33:12Z<p>In my English-speaking culture, when two people are in conversation, usually we don't bother addressing each other by name—or even by any substitutive term of address, like ‘sir’/‘ma'am’ (formal...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/288998How can I un-translate these humourous 'translations' Windows terms, from Bengali?pureferret https://languages.codidact.com/users/606952023-07-15T15:18:15Z2023-07-18T08:46:54Z<p>Here's the image of the humourous 'translations', and my wife has helped me 'untranslate' some of them, but we're stuck on some:</p>
<p><img alt="image transcription below" src="https://languag...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/288158Effectiveness of input-only learningMoshihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/531962023-05-25T05:09:03Z2023-07-11T08:16:49Z<p>While learning a language, there are a surprising (to me at least) number of people who say that you should never output until fluent - that is, as long as you get enough input, you will eventua...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/288538How did "listen to" TV become "watch"?msh210https://languages.codidact.com/users/81062023-06-19T19:09:52Z2023-06-19T19:11:10Z<p>It seems that people used to say "listen to" and "hear" television, a holdover from radio, and that that gave way to "watch" and "see" over time. Has anyone any information on the timeline of th...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286610Has there ever been a situation of perfect bilingualism, without falling in diglossia?fedorquihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/81032022-06-18T07:13:04Z2023-06-16T16:49:29Z<p>In many places around the world there are different languages that coexist: some people speak one, some the other, and many can speak both.</p>
<p>There are as many cases as situations: some of...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/288389How to refer to a whole family in Icelandic?aminabzzhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/624082023-06-13T12:05:32Z2023-06-14T12:16:37Z<p>Hi. I'm learning Icelandic and planning to visit the country a few months later. But there is a thing I can't figure out yet.</p>
<p>For clarity, in majority of English speaking families there ...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/284731How did syn + ek + dekhesthai compound to signify 'synecdoche' (a figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole)?PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662021-10-31T23:32:08Z2023-02-20T22:49:17Z<p>How do <em>syn</em>, <em>ex-</em>, <em>dekhesthai</em> appertain to the Modern English definition of <a href="https://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/wlf/what-synecdoche">synecdoche</a>? I am baffl...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287690What semantic notions underlie fūrunculus (Latin for 'petty thief') 🡺 furuncle?PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662023-01-11T04:29:16Z2023-02-20T22:08:10Z<p><a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/furuncle">Wiktionary</a> doesn't expound how furuncle (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSbDFWSEmes">"1 cm tender red papule or fluctuant nodule"<...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/283340What causes people to write compound words as distinct words?tommihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/534072021-08-12T08:29:28Z2023-02-15T12:03:16Z<p>In many Germanic and Finno-ugric languages there are many compound words. One does not write "yhdys sana", but rather "yhdyssana". Learning to write these correctly is notoriously hard for peopl...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287685Why is the third person singular conjugation different in the past tense?Moshihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/531962023-01-10T16:47:21Z2023-01-22T21:14:47Z<p>Generally speaking, German verbs inflect with the following table</p>
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>Person</th>
<th>Inflection</th>
<th>Example</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>ich</td...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287538When would a sentence consist of "terdiri" with "atas" or "dari"?General Sebast1anhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/541142022-12-06T10:40:47Z2022-12-08T12:29:08Z<p>The Indonesian word "terdiri" meaning "consist/s (of)" is an interesting word as it uses two words along with it: "atas" ("on/top/above") and "dari" ("from" / "than" in some cases). Every time I...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/279683How can a prepositional phrase shift to become a verb? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662020-12-02T06:30:31Z2022-12-01T08:56:27Z<p>I don't know why, but the embolded semantic shift for <a href="https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=agree">agree (v.)</a> below unsettles me.</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p><em>a gré</em> is a prepositional...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287472The use of the past simple and the past perfect in these scenariosuser11QQhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/579482022-11-25T09:58:23Z2022-11-25T09:58:23Z<p>1
-- Are you a member of GE?</p>
<p>-- No, I was a member for 9 years.</p>
<p><strong>I think Correct</strong></p>
<p>2
-- Are you a member of GE?</p>
<p>-- No, I had been a member for 9 y...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/284877How's inVEST semantically related to VEST? How did the "idea of dressing your capital up in different clothes" arise?PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662021-11-14T05:46:51Z2022-10-29T01:27:30Z<p>Isn't "the idea of dressing one’s capital up in different clothes by putting it into a particular business, stock, etc" batty? This semantic relationship would never cross the mind of an amateur...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287270Plural agreement with a syntactically singular subjectMoshihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/531962022-10-18T03:42:40Z2022-10-19T07:21:05Z<p>Many quantity words trigger agreement with their object rather than themselves. For instance, syntactically, "<strong>a</strong> lot, "<strong>a</strong> bunch", "<strong>an</strong> amount" see...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287164How did rǣda work syntactically, after shifting from 'advise' to mean 'interpret and understand the meaning of written symbols'? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-10-06T03:59:43Z2022-10-06T03:59:43Z<p><a href="https://languages.codidact.com/posts/28708">Old English <em>rǣda</em> semantically shifted from ‘advise, consult, guess’ to mean ‘interpret, interpret letters, read’</a>.</p>
<p>But is...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287080What semantic notions underlie 'to advise, counsel, guess' (rǣda) 🡺 'peruse' (read)? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-09-26T10:01:42Z2022-10-06T03:59:30Z<p>How did ‘advise, consult, guess’ semantically shift 🢂 <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/read#Etymology_1">to signify ‘interpret, interpret letters, read’</a>? How do they semantically app...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/287163What semantic notions underlie 'anger, agitation' (PIE *ǵʰéysd-) 🡺 'ghost'? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-10-06T03:20:42Z2022-10-06T03:21:20Z<blockquote>
<p>On October 31 2016, Kevin Stroud wrote</p>
<p>The connection between “ghost” and “guest/host” is mentioned on page 303 of ‘The Horse, The Wheel and Language” by David W. Anthony <...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286796When does "me-" go on verbs?General Sebast1anhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/541142022-07-24T03:08:08Z2022-09-24T00:45:13Z<p>So I started learning Indonesian through a Duolingo course for 2 weeks now, and I've gotten to the "Me- Verbs" part as I'm writing this question.</p>
<p>I have already learned a few verbs from ...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286741How did in- + partire compound to mean "communicate as knowledge of information" (impart)? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-07-18T02:36:34Z2022-09-17T17:03:40Z<p>What semantic notions underlie <em>in-</em> + <em>partire</em> 🡺 with "<strong>communicate as knowledge or information</strong>"?</p>
<p>This semantic shift flummoxes me, because <em>in-</em> +...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286912What does Etymonline mean by 'to raise (someone) out of trouble'?PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-08-21T20:22:54Z2022-08-21T21:54:53Z<p>I have never heard of "<strong>to raise (someone) out of trouble</strong>"! What does this mean?</p>
<blockquote>
<h3>relieve (v.) <a title="Origin and meaning of relieve" href="https://www.et...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286883What semantic notions underlie 'con-' + 'sign' 🡺 with "deliver or transmit (goods) for sale or custody"? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-08-17T06:16:41Z2022-08-17T06:23:21Z<ol>
<li>
<p>How did <em>con- + sign</em> semantically shift 🡲 to this modern sense in Commerce?</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Why did <em>con- + sign</em> shift so radically, but NOT 'sign'? In Modern En...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286843How did 'rendre' semantically shift from meaning 'give back' to 🡺 1. 'make, cause to be' 🡲 2. 'represent, depict'?PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-08-07T05:53:56Z2022-08-07T20:56:58Z<p>What semantic notions underlie "<strong><code>give back</code></strong>" with</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p>🢂 "<strong>make[,] or cause to be in a certain state</strong>"?</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>🡪 "<strong>...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286825If assūmptiō = 'take up', then can ad- (prefix) = 'up'? But why, when super- = 'up'? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-08-02T06:38:01Z2022-08-07T05:39:17Z<ol>
<li>Are these definitions correct? Even though p. 262 below (bottom scan) doesn't list "take up" as a meaning of <em>assūmptiō</em>?</li>
</ol>
<blockquote>
<p><a href="https://philosophy....https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286794Isn't lībra pondō circumlocutory? Because both lībra and pondō meant "weight"?PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-07-24T00:05:41Z2022-07-31T21:49:45Z<p>Isn't <em>lībra pondō</em> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redundancy_(linguistics)#Rhetoric">redundant</a>? It feels <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleonasm">pleonastic</a> and ...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286704Is obrigado used in case of unclear gender of the author?tommihttps://languages.codidact.com/users/534072022-07-11T14:31:34Z2022-07-31T14:59:21Z<p>In Portuguese a male speaker thanks with an «obrigado», while a female with an «obrigada».</p>
<p>I am reading a text (some thank you notice for buying some mass-produced industrial product wit...https://languages.codidact.com/posts/286814What semantic notions underlie "inmost, innermost" (intimus) 🡲 with "make known, announce" (intimo)? PSTHhttps://languages.codidact.com/users/535662022-07-30T16:45:42Z2022-07-30T16:48:03Z<p>How did <em>intimus</em> <strong>"inmost, innermost, deepest" (adj.)</strong> semantically shift to 🡺 <em>intimare</em> <strong>"make known, announce, impress"</strong> ?</p>
<p>These meanings ...