Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

General Q&A about specific languages, language in general, and linguistics.

Filters (None)
88%
+14 −0
Whence אֶת between partners' names?

The word אֶת /et/ is used with the following meanings: In Biblical Hebrew, it means "with". In modern Hebrew it survives, but only with a complement-of-the-preposition pronoun suffix: "with me", ...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by msh210‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by David‭

87%
+12 −0
What is the origin of the missing "to be" in sentences like "the car needs washed"?

I grew up in western Pennsylvania (US), where constructs like "the car needs washed" are common. I was taught (yes, in schools in that region) that correct formal grammar requires "to be" in this ...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Monica Cellio‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

86%
+11 −0
Why was Spanish the only Romance language to lose the initial "F" in Latin words?

Going through the History of the Spanish language article in Wikipedia, I read the section Latin f- to Spanish h- to null some interesting insight: F was almost always initial in Latin words, an...

0 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by fedorqui‭  ·  edited 3y ago by ArtOfCode‭

86%
+11 −0
Why did the letter K survive in Latin, though it was rarely used?

In classical Latin, the letter C is pronounced like K. Hardly any words use the latter K; even imports from Greek turned kappa into C. A handful of words, such as "kalendae," held onto their K. In...

1 answer  ·  posted 2y ago by gmcgath‭  ·  last activity 2y ago by Moshi‭

85%
+10 −0
Why "me too" and not "I too"?

I've been studying German lately, and came across something that sparked my curiosity: The way to say "me too" in German is "ich auch" - that is, "I too". A shallow glance at other Germanic languag...

1 answer  ·  posted 2y ago by Moshi‭  ·  last activity 2y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

85%
+10 −0
How to refer to a whole family in Icelandic?

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. For clarity, in majority of English speaking families there is just on...

1 answer  ·  posted 10mo ago by aminabzz‭  ·  last activity 10mo ago by Jirka Hanika‭

83%
+8 −0
What causes people to write compound words as distinct words?

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 people, ...

2 answers  ·  posted 2y ago by tommi‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by Lundin‭

83%
+8 −0
Has there ever been a situation of perfect bilingualism, without falling in diglossia?

In many places around the world there are different languages that coexist: some people speak one, some the other, and many can speak both. There are as many cases as situations: some of the langu...

1 answer  ·  posted 2y ago by fedorqui‭  ·  last activity 10mo ago by Jirka Hanika‭

83%
+8 −0
Why do Chinese people say "idear"?

In my experience of speaking with immigrants from China to the United States, it seems many of them pronounce the word idea with a final ɹ (even before a consonant). Why?

2 answers  ·  posted 1y ago by msh210‭  ·  last activity 5mo ago by Eric Isaac‭

83%
+8 −0
Calling another by name when one is exasperated

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) o...

2 answers  ·  posted 2y ago by r~~‭  ·  last activity 8mo ago by Lorenzo Donati‭

83%
+8 −0
How did "listen to" TV become "watch"?

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 this ...

0 answers  ·  posted 9mo ago by msh210‭  ·  edited 9mo ago by msh210‭

83%
+13 −1
Does English support three-word contractions?

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. I...

3 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by Monica Cellio‭  ·  edited 5mo ago by Moshi‭

83%
+8 −0
Why does the dollar sign precede the number in English?

In English, at least in USA, people write $3 and mean three dollars (rather than dollars three), while other units are written after the number; no c99, h13, min22, '5, etc. to be seen. Why is it $...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by tommi‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

83%
+8 −0
Does Japanese have pronouns?

It is often said that Japanese doesn't really have a pronoun word class, such as in the Wikipedia article on Japanese Grammar: Although many grammars and textbooks mention pronouns (代名詞 daimeish...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by curiousdannii‭  ·  last activity 2y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

81%
+7 −0
Why is linguistics limited in how much it can look back in time?

I've often seen that "we can only look back in time a short distance in linguistics". What prevents linguistics from deducing information far in the past? Is this limit something that can be pushed...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by user53100‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

81%
+7 −0
What is the origin (etymology) of the word مسدس (pistol)?

In Arabic the word مُسَدَّس refers to pistol when an arm is meant (see here on wikipedia). But it also refers to a hexagon (see here on wikipedia) -also سداسي أضلاع or سداسي- as it is a description...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Medi1saif‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Moshi‭

81%
+7 −0
What is the term for a word that is an instance of itself?

Some words are examples of the concept they name. Examples: "Word" is a word. "Noun" is a noun. "Eggcorn" is an eggcorn (a mistaken word that sounds like and has some connection to another wor...

2 answers  ·  posted 9mo ago by gmcgath‭  ·  edited 7mo ago by Moshi‭

81%
+7 −0
Possessive vs accusative case for nominalized clauses

Consider the following sentences: "She was against his joining the team." "She was against his joining of the team." "She was against him joining the team." Instinctively, the first just so...

1 answer  ·  posted 1y ago by Moshi‭  ·  last activity 5mo ago by Eric Isaac‭

81%
+7 −0
Where, here, and there: What is the origin, and can it be generalized?

I recently stumbled upon this wikipedia page and it got me thinking. Take a look at the following table (terms are lifted from the Wikipedia page) W (interrogative) H (proximal) T (medial)...

0 answers  ·  posted 2y ago by Moshi‭

81%
+7 −0
What's a "road colony"?

Lawrence Sanders, Caper, 1980. 1987 paperback edition, page 61: We saw crumbling walls, decayed ceilings, cracked plumbing fixtures, exposed electrical wiring. We saw one room that appeared to h...

1 answer  ·  posted 6mo ago by msh210‭  ·  last activity 6mo ago by Jirka Hanika‭

81%
+7 −0
Does humor always spring from surprise?

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 no...

1 answer  ·  posted 6mo ago by matthewsnyder‭  ·  last activity 5mo ago by Eric Isaac‭

80%
+6 −0
Vowel insertion phenomenon

When I, maybe Br.E speaker, pronounce adverbs ending '-bly' I find myself occasionally inserting an extra vowel. So I say feeble-y, noble-y but I 'correctly' say 'nim-bly' and 'lim-ply' (I've plac...

1 answer  ·  posted 5mo ago by pureferret ‭  ·  last activity 4mo ago by Eric Isaac‭

80%
+6 −0
What grammatical category does "Weihnachten" fall into?

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, "Froh...

1 answer  ·  posted 3mo ago by gmcgath‭  ·  last activity 3mo ago by gmcgath‭

80%
+10 −1
Why is it "pronunciation" and not "pronounciation"?

Generally speaking, when adding a suffix to a word in English, while the last letter(s) may undergo changes to accommodate the addition, the rest of the word is left unchanged. As examples in that ...

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by DonielF‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by nobodyImportant‭

80%
+6 −0
Using adjectives that are related to taste for describing emotions

You might have seen that most of the adjectives that are related to taste are used to describe emotions. It is very common. Salty, sour, sweet, bitter etc. We use these adjectives to describe peopl...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Melancholy‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

80%
+6 −0
Is it really true that all Chinese words have one syllable?

I'm sure a lot of people have heard it before: the statement "All Chinese words are one syllable (or character)." And because someone is going to ask, no, this is not just a Western thought - my Ma...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Moshi‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Sigma‭

80%
+6 −0
Why are there different suffixes for people of different countries in English?

I never thought about it too much until now, but in Hebrew, the only suffix, if I'm not mistaken, to refer to a person from a country is to add the letter Yod to the end of the name of the country ...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Harel13‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Moshi‭

80%
+6 −0
What sound did the letter ℵ encode in ancient Hebrew, and why did it morph into the greek vowel Α?

Here are two claims I've often heard or read: The Hebrew language originally did not write down vowels. The Greek (and subsequently the Latin) alphabet developed from the Hebrew alphabet....

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by celtschk‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

80%
+6 −0
Swedish verbs with the meaning of mixing

I do a research on Swedish verbs with the meaning of mixing something. I struggle with some of words. There are two words 'blanda' and 'röra' which are usually used with prepositions, like 'om', 'i...

1 answer  ·  posted 2y ago by Supermiledi‭  ·  last activity 2y ago by Lundin‭

80%
+6 −0
What is "nift"?

Everyone knows what "nifty" is. It's obvious, isn't it? A thing which possesses nift. But what is this mysterious nift? Looking at things that are considered nifty, I cannot quite come up with a g...

1 answer  ·  posted 6mo ago by matthewsnyder‭  ·  last activity 3mo ago by Jirka Hanika‭

80%
+6 −0
Is obrigado used in case of unclear gender of the author?

In Portuguese a male speaker thanks with an «obrigado», while a female with an «obrigada». I am reading a text (some thank you notice for buying some mass-produced industrial product with no obvio...

1 answer  ·  posted 1y ago by tommi‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by Quasímodo‭

80%
+6 −0
When does "me-" go on verbs?

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. I have already learned a few verbs from past lesso...

1 answer  ·  posted 1y ago by General Sebast1an‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by General Sebast1an‭

80%
+6 −0
Why is the third person singular conjugation different in the past tense?

Generally speaking, German verbs inflect with the following table Person Inflection Example ich -e sage, arbeite du -(e)st sagst, arbeitest er/sie/es -(e)t sagt, a...

1 answer  ·  posted 1y ago by Moshi‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

78%
+9 −1
Why does German use the third person plural for the second person polite?

German has three sets of pronouns for the second person: the familiar singular (du), the familiar plural (ihr), and the polite singular or plural (Sie). The polite form is identical with the third ...

2 answers  ·  posted 1y ago by gmcgath‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by Keelan‭

77%
+5 −0
Plural agreement with a syntactically singular subject

Many quantity words trigger agreement with their object rather than themselves. For instance, syntactically, "a lot, "a bunch", "an amount" seem to all be singular. However, as a native speaker, "T...

1 answer  ·  posted 1y ago by Moshi‭  ·  last activity 1y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

77%
+5 −0
"Lock" and "close" in German

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. I figured schließen would fail to express that unambiguous...

1 answer  ·  posted 7mo ago by nteodosio‭  ·  last activity 7mo ago by samcarter‭

77%
+5 −0
Why is "djinn" the plural of "djinni"?

Most reliable sources say that the Arabic-derived "djinni" is a singular word and its plural is "djinn." (Or "jinni" and "jinn," if you prefer.) The dropping of a final letter or syllable to plural...

1 answer  ·  posted 2y ago by gmcgath‭  ·  last activity 2y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

77%
+5 −0
What is the Arabic "praise/censure grammar" (e.g. !ياله من رجل رائع) called in Arabic?

I'm trying to edit this question at Chinese Stack Exchange: Does Chinese have an equivalent to Arabic-style praising grammar (translates to 褒贬句)?. The user originally wrote: In Arabic we have a ...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by becky82‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Medi1saif‭

77%
+5 −0
Is there a difference between when I should use "אוטו" vs "רכב"?

I speak Hebrew as a second language, and probably worse than most people expect - I live in Israel, but my Hebrew is still not that great. I ride with a cycling team, and one thing that we do is to...

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by Mithical‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by deleted user

77%
+5 −0
Should we use "por que" or "porque" in "las autoridades se sentían estafadas *por que* se escaparan"?

I read this sentence in a book ("La Guerra Civil española", by Paul Preston): La tortura explicaba el gran número de suicidios que se registraban en las cárceles, y las autoridades, que se sentí...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by fedorqui‭

77%
+5 −0
Why is the word here "HaNofelet" and not "HaNofalet" when there's a grammatical pause?

When reading this section of Amos on Saturday, something struck me about this verse (Amos 9:11): :בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֔וּא אָקִ֛ים אֶת־סֻכַּ֥ת דָּוִ֖יד הַנֹּפֶ֑לֶת וְגָדַרְתִּ֣י אֶת־פִּרְצֵיהֶ֗ן וַהֲרִ...

0 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by Mithical‭  ·  edited 3y ago by msh210‭

77%
+5 −0
~ません versus ~ないです

As far as my knowledge of Japanese goes, there are two ways to form polite negative forms of verbs, the direct conjugation ~ません and the plain negative conjugation ~ない with です added. Take for insta...

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by Moshi‭  ·  edited 3y ago by Moshi‭

77%
+5 −0
What does "se" mean in Micah 6:8, "Ya se te ha declarado..."?

What is the purpose of "se" in the following text from Micah 6:8 (Nueva Versión Internacional)? ¡Ya se te ha declarado lo que es bueno! Ya se te ha dicho lo que de ti espera el Señor It doesn't s...

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by Nathaniel‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by DonielF‭

77%
+5 −0
Is "estar de buenas" a widespread way to say "to be in a good mood"?

Recently I read in Breaking Out of Beginner's Spanish that the phrase "estar de buenas" is a common way to say something like "to be in a good mood." I've found a bit of evidence of this online in...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Nathaniel‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by fedorqui‭

77%
+5 −0
Why past tense in imaginative play in Finnish?

When playing house with a child, they say things like "Nyt se meni nukkumaan." when they mean that I should have the toy I am playing with go to bed. Similar use of the simple past / imperfect tens...

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by tommi‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by viäränlaenen‭

77%
+5 −0
Are there any examples of neopronouns for non-binary or third gender people being fully incorporated into a language's grammar?

Many non-binary people now request that new third person pronouns (neopronouns) be used to refer to them, for example xe or ze. These have not been widely used by English speakers yet, but it's sti...

2 answers  ·  posted 3y ago by curiousdannii‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Conrado‭

75%
+4 −0
Why no "to"-infinitive in pual and huf'al?

One of the infinitives in Hebrew is translated "to [verb]" and starts with ל, l. For example, ללמוד, lilmod, "to learn", and להשאר, l'hishaer, "to remain"; it's used often. But two of the verb cons...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by msh210‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

75%
+7 −1
'Caution' and 'cautious' with ʃ or ʒ?

I know some people pronounce caution with an /ʃ/ and others with a /ʒ/, and the same is true of cautious. I wonder if anyone can provide information on who says each (by region, time, etc.).

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by msh210‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Jirka Hanika‭

75%
+4 −0
How were ת & ט pronounced historically?

In Sephardi or Israeli Hebrew today, ט and ת are pronounced the same, at least to my non-native ear, something like /t/. In Ashkenazi Hebrew, on the other hand, sometimes ת is pronounced like ס (...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Monica Cellio‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by msh210‭

75%
+7 −1
Order of pronouns

In an examination in my country (India) I had a multiple choice question on the order of pronouns. Q: Please try to remember when I, you and my wife were talking there. Options: A. you, I and ...

1 answer  ·  posted 3y ago by Severus Snape‭  ·  last activity 3y ago by Severus Snape‭