Sample Q&A's from our students
A: Although function and capability have similar
meanings, you cannot always use these two words interchangeably.
Capability generally refers to what something can do
or what it has the ability to do. This ability is usually
independent of any action by the user. Function refers
to what something does do or is intended to do.
A function is often (but not always) selectable by the
user. For example, I might use either of the following sentences
to indicate that a certain type of camera can take multiple exposure
photos:
The first sentence merely indicates that the camera is able
to take multiple exposures on one negative. The second sentence
has essentially the same meaning, but it seems to imply that someone
(the photographer) must perform an action to somehow activate
this function. For example, "To activate the multiple exposure
function, turn the dial to "M" and press the
button by the viewfinder. Use the thumb dial to select the number
of exposures you want to make."
Note that if you are talking about a capability that is
not part of the object's intended purpose, then you cannot use
function. For example, if the camera were durable enough,
you could say, "This camera has the capability to
hammer nails into wood," but such an action would certainly
not be an intended function of the camera.
A: The preposition on before a specific date is usually
optional. It is therefore correct to include on in the
sentence you mentioned or to omit it. Both versions are correct
and sound natural. In certain structures and phrases, English
speakers sometimes omit certain prepositions when the meaning
of the preposition is clearly understood from the context. Omitting
the preposition by when referring to an increase or a decrease
in a percent or an amount is another example of this practice:
A: There is no difference between about and regarding.
You can use them interchangeably without changing the meaning
of a sentence or phrase. Regarding isn't as common as about,
and it is usually found in more formal contexts. However, you
will find about in formal contexts, too. My suggestion
is that if you have a choice between the two words, choose about.
It will always be appropriate in both formal and informal contexts.
A: In many cases it can be hard to decide if you should use contain
or include. In some cases, these words can be used interchangeably.
Generally, include emphasizes that something is one part
of a whole.
In the above sentence running three miles a week is one part
of an entire exercise program.
We usually use contain when emphasizing that something
holds something else inside of it.
In the following example, you can use either contains or
includes:
In the above sentence, contains emphasizes that the kit
holds these two things within it. There may or may not be other
things besides the compass and ax. Includes emphasizes
that the compass and ax are not the only things in the kit. Usually,
in a longer document, the surrounding context will help you decide
which word is more appropriate.
A: Some English speakers use the phrase "in operation"
to emphasize the activity or function of a device or machine.
However, in most cases, the phrase "in operation"
doesn't add meaningful emphasis, so you can usually delete it
without changing the meaning. The only cases I can think of where
"in operation" might be important is to
contrast a device's "operation" mode with another
mode (such as when the machine is off or less active), or to contrast
a machine's actual performance with what it can do theoretically:
A: There are no rules governing the plural forms of Latin words.
People have to learn which form to use as they see and use the
word for the first time, and must become aware of any variations
in usage that may exist. In cases where there is a choice between
two possible plural forms of a certain word, most good dictionaries
will list both plural forms. In many cases (but not always), the
classical plural (the one based on the original Latin use of the
word) is more technical, academic, or formal, and the other plural
(formed by adding -s or -es), reflects the more common or popular
usage.
Several words that were borrowed into English from Latin no longer
are used in their original singular forms. For example, the words
datum and agendum are now extremely rare in English.
Data is now commonly used as a singular, uncountable noun,
and agenda has become a singular, countable noun (with
the plural form agendas).
With certain other Latin words, we use a different plural to convey
a different meaning. For example, if there is more than one appendix
that gives information at the end of a book, we can either use
appendices or appendixes. However, if we are talking
about multiple examples of the body part attached to the intestine,
we only use appendixes. Similarly, we use antennas
to refer to more than one radio antenna, and antennae
to refer to the feelers on an insect's head.
Click here for a list of other Latin words
and their common plural forms.
A: We commonly express large monetary amounts above one million
dollars in the following format:dollar sign ($) + numeral
+ spelled-out multiple (i.e. million, billion, or
trillion): $1 million. The numeric figure can include
a decimal fraction, as in $3.5 million. However, this fraction
is rarely carried past the first digit to the right of the decimal
point. Thus, in the case of a more specific amount like $1.9346
million, it would generally be better to write the entire
amount in numeric figures: $1,934,600.
Note that the above rule also applies in non-monetary contexts
(simply omit the dollar signs). Look at the following example:
"There are over 6 billion people on the Earth. An
estimated 1.2 billion live in China. The United States
has over 265 million people. Japan has a population of
about 125 million."
A: Many of our students have asked about when to include the word
of after quantifiers like several, many,
most, some, and each. It's helpful to think
of phrases like several of my staff members as having two
parts. The first part consists of the quantifier (several)
and the noun it modifies (staff members). The second
part consists of the preposition of and a determiner (usually
the definite article the or a possessive pronoun, such
as my). The most important thing to be aware of is that
you cannot separate the elements of the second part p; in
other words, you cannot say several of staff members or
several my staff members.
The difficulty for most Japanese students is determining when
to include of + determiner in these types of phrases. This
decision is based on several factors, such as whether the noun
has modifying words or phrases and whether the reader has previous
information about the noun being used. Generally, a writer will
omit of + determiner if he or she is making a general statement
about the noun, and include of + determiner if the noun
is somehow specific or already known to the reader. In some cases,
the meaning of the sentence is the same regardless of whether
you include of + determiner or omit it. In other cases,
however, it's necessary to include of + determiner to clearly
convey the intended meaning.
A: By far, the most common name for this country is "the
United States." This is the preferred term to use in
business and technical writing. It is also acceptable to refer
to it as "the U.S." and to use "U.S."
as a modifier (for example, "U.S. automobile production,"
"the U.S. hockey team," "the U.S. presidency,"
etc. We rarely use the complete name "The United States
of America" except in government or legal documents.
"USA" (usually written without periods) is also
uncommon in everyday speech, although you might hear it in certain
poems, songs, or other patriotic contexts. A notable exception
is the "USA TODAY" newspaper, which prefers to use "USA"
to refer to the U.S. as a matter of style throughout its pages
(probably because "USA" is part of the paper's
name). However, in common usage, "the U.S." is
the much more common abbreviated form.
A: We usually use hyphens to either separate the bases of a compound
word or to separate the prefix of a word from its base. However,
the rules about hyphens are fairly complicated, and their usage
is not very clear, even to native speakers of English. Perhaps
because of this, hyphens are being used less, especially in American
English. Many short compounds are now written with no division
between the words, as in: "weekend," "takeover,"
"sunbathing," "laptop," and "highlighted."
Others are commonly written as two words: "living room,"
"paper bag," "fan belt," "face guard,"
and "soul mate."
However, it's not unusual to find some words written in any one
of these three ways. Examples include "bookshop," "book
shop," and "book-shop," and "taxpayer,"
"tax payer," and "tax-payer." Although "book
shop" and "taxpayer" are probably the most commonly
used variations, it wouldn't be wrong to hyphenate these terms.
As for "long range" vs. "long-range," I think
either version is acceptable. These two words are used so often
together, I don't think English speakers would be confused by
(or even notice) the missing hyphen. You are right that the two
parts of "long-range" together as a unit, modify "plans."
It is therefore correct to hyphenate this word. However, other
commonly hyphenated words like "high-gloss" (paint),
"jump-start" (the car), "low-budget" (film),
and "self-portrait," are sometimes written without the
hyphen, even though including the hyphen is technically correct.
According to the grammar book Practical English Usage by
Michael Swan, a good rule of thumb, if you are not sure whether
or not a hyphen belongs between two words, is to either consult
a dictionary or to write the words without the hyphen.
A: Americans generally prefer to use singular pronoun "it"
to refer to words like "company," "firm,"
"board," "class," and "jury," as
long as the words are being used to collectively refer to the
group as a whole. If words like "company" are being
used to refer to the individuals who belong to the group, then
it's correct to use the pronoun "they" to refer to these
people who belong to the group. Surrounding context will usually
help you decide which pronoun is more appropriate. The following
examples illustrate this concept: