Unanswered Questions
8,729 questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
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Is there dialectal variation in the weak form of "on"?
This question is related, but not quite identical, to a previous one and to another similar one.
In a recent video, phonetician Geoff Lindsey claimed that the words "off" and "on" ...
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7
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0
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912
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Earlier sources or identity of person who coined the term "neutrois"?
A lot of work I've been doing recently has been around the emergence of various gender identities. "Neutrois" recently came to my attention, with more information about it here:
Nonbinary ...
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6
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2
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260
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What is the origin of the expression "seeing red" in reference to "being angry"?
What is the linguistic or cultural origin of the English idiom "seeing red" as a metaphor for anger? Does it stem from psychological, physiological, or historical influences?
CommunityBot
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6
votes
1
answer
276
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How do you pronounce "trilean"?
Reading an answer on another Stack Exchange site I've discovered the word "trilean", which I had never heard of. I understand its meaning (the context is computer science; boolean logic has ...
CommunityBot
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6
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How are /ɪ/ and /ʌ/ realised in the Nottingham (East Midlands) accent?
I've got a sample of a few words pronounced by a Nottingham accent representative: https://youtu.be/2fCSeDEZeVU
My ear is far from perfect and this is why I'd like to ask for your help in this ...
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5
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0
answers
96
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Whispered voiced sibilant fricatives / z ʒ / (e.g., cee vs zee)
Are whispered voiced sibilant fricatives devoiced to the point of being indistinguishable from their (whispered) voiceless counterparts, /s ʃ/ ?
For example, Asher = azure, mesher = measure, buses = ...
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238
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What is a Google Tree? (used in a book from 1898)
The phrase Google Tree appears in St. Nicholas: An Illustrated Magazine for Young Folks from 1898 (starting on p. 35, or p. 49 of the pdf file):
Both madly loved the Lily Maid,
And better to decoy
...
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5
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Is there any implication of drunkenness in "high lonesome" as used in the term "high lonesome sound"?
Wiktionary has the following entry for "high lonesome sound":
high lonesome sound (music) An expressively emotional, powerful and earthy style of musical expression associated mainly with ...
5
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There’s one letter (for you) to sign
The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language by H&P says (Page 1394):
(d) Infinitival extensions
[11] i a. A few replies are still to come. b. There are still a few replies to come.
ii a. One ...
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5
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313
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Where does the phrase "cheater caught, Peter red" come from?
Growing up in Pakistan, I heard variations of either:
Cheater caught, Peter red; or
Cheater cock, Peter red
I assumed it was about a cocky boy named Peter who was either caught red-handed or turned ...
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5
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1
answer
263
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Why are some Russian names Anglicised but not others?
For example, we speak of "Peter" the Great, "Nicholas" II, and "Joseph" Stalin, but no one ever spoke of "George" Gagarin, "Theodore" Dostoevsky, or &...
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5
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3
answers
703
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Is there a word equivalent to "sighting" but for hearing?
I'm trying to write a sentence like
Nobody goes near the caves because of monster noises.
"Nobody goes near the caves because of monster sightings" doesn't work because people have not ...
CommunityBot
- 1
5
votes
2
answers
1k
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"With probability", "with a probability", "with the probability"?
As a mathematician, I often write and read about probabilities. In the literature, I've seen versions of all the sentences below. Which one is correct?
This happens with probability (of) 30%.
This ...
5
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3
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my car was broken into
The same clause in bold has different meanings in a. and b.:
a. Last night, my car was broken into.
b. I came home last night, and my car was broken into.
The clause in a. means that somebody broke ...
- 48k
4
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answers
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Where did "sprocket" sprout from?
Sprocket originally referred to a carpenter's tool, but its usual meaning now is a toothed wheel that drives a chain or gear.
Etymonline says 'of obscure origin':
1530s, originally a carpenters' word ...
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