"Only in Queensland do people brag about the weather as if they built it themselves."     Wouldn't it sound better or make more sense by simply omitting it?     "Only in Queensland people brag about the weather as if they built it themselves."   Or is it doing something like:     "Only in Queensland is where people brag about the weather as if they built it themselves."   Can someone, please, explain? Is it adding some sort of different emphasis?
120807
I saw this sentence and thought shouldn't "will" be placed after "You" instead of before it?     Only by defending against your opponent's threats will you be able to successfully carry out your own strategies.
73172
Concerned paragraph:  [Background: a master and his servant (a water tubewell technician) have been living happily for several years. The master owns seven farms spread across a large river. The master "became familiar with this ubiquitous man, who not only accompanied him on his tours of inspection, but morning and night could be found standing on the master bed rewiring the light fixture or in the bathroom poking at the water heater". Now, on this one day, the servant has hesitatingly said this to his master]  [i've redacted the proper nouns for these people's names with "the master" and "the servant" to avoid confusion]     “Sir, as you know, your lands stretch from here to the Indus, and on these lands are fully seventeen tube wells, and to tend these seventeen tube wells there is but one man, me, your servant. In your service I have earned these gray hairs”—here he bowed his head to show the gray—“and now I cannot fulfill my duties as I should. Enough, sir, enough. I beg you, forgive me my weakness. Better a darkened house and proud hunger within than disgrace in the light of day. Release me, I ask you, I beg you.”   Question asked related to this quote     The servant's comments primarily serve to:    flatter the master by mentioning how vast his lands are. boast to the master about how competent and reliable the servant is. emphasize the servant's diligence and loyalty to his master. notify the master that the servant intends to quit his job tending the tube wells.     My question:  Notice the lines of the paragraph: "now I cannot fulfill my duties as I should" and "Release me". Don't they clearly indicate that the servant intends to quit his job? Hence, option 4 should clearly be correct.  However, option 3 has been given as correct by KhanAcademy, saying that option 4 is incorrect because "The servant doesn’t say he intends to quit his job, asking instead only for help doing it"  So, my question is:     Isn't the above a clear example of misinterpretation of the paragraph by KA?     All options with KhanAcademy's explanations - for reference   Even though it initially highlights the vastness of the master’s lands, it primarily focuses on the servant’s dedication and service to the master. This emphasizes not that the servant is competent and reliable but that the servant feels he is no longer able to adequately fulfill his duties. The main purpose of the servant’s comments is to highlight the labor and service he has provided for the master over the years. the servant says “there is but one man, me, your servant” to take care of the tube wells on all the master’s vast lands and that the extensive work has resulted in the servant earning gray hairs on his employer’s behalf. The servant doesn’t say he intends to quit his job, asking instead only for help doing it.
108280
I'm reading a book, and I found a sentence where I don't understand the grammar. It seems as the writer wants to write a statement, but uses the structure of a question. The sentence is highlighted in the following paragraph:     In the first ten paragraphs, he touted his engineering skills, including his ability to design bridges, waterways, cannons, armored vehicles, and public buildings. Only in the eleventh paragraph, at the end, did he add that he was also an artist. "Likewise in painting, I can do everything possible," he wrote.      Isaacson, Walter. (2017) Leonardo da Vinci.   Shouldn't that sentence start with "he added" instead of "did he add" since it's not a question? If it's correct, is it something people usually use when they speak, or is it more like something you would find in books?
124017
What I write should mean the following: "There is this blog, but I don't remember its name."   So I thought I have to write it this way to achieve the meaning in a short way: "This blog."   But is this correct? Does is mean what I want to say? Because I've learned at school that "this" points to something specific. But I that's not what I want to achieve.   Sorry if the question is unclear. But I have no idea how to explain it differently.
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Is it right to say   He was telling me that he will go on a vacation next week.  while recounting your experience?  Even though "he told me that he is going..." seems more appropriate, I would still like to know if the above mentioned expression sounds okay or not.
24254
I've been having an argument with a colleague about this sentence, could you please let me know which one of us is correct:     There are no shortage of applications for our product in this   space.   She is convinced that are should be replaced by is, and I think it should stand as it is. Thanks for your help!
112217
Where did they go?   Where do they went?   Can you please advise which of above forms is correct?  I'm pretty sure that first one is fine but wondering about second one.   Can I use a second form as well or it's incorrect?
19624
how are you?  Well, my biggest doubt at the moment is the difference between these two tenses. Actually, the more I study the more I have doubts with these tenses.      /         These similar threads helped me to clarify and reiterate my previous understanding.   I'm not posting in these threads because the site suggests avoiding asking for clarification (I don't know why because it would avoid new threads with the same content).  My main doubt is as follows:     I've lived in New York for two years.   In my understanding, the sentence above implies (1) that I lived in NY for two years and now I live in another place; or (2) I'm moving to another city after two years living in NY; or (3) I lived in NY for two years, then I moved to another place for some period and, finally, I'm returning. Is that correct?     I've been living in New York for two years.   Whereas the sentence above, in my understanding, implies that I lived in NY for two years and I still living there.  Anyway, many sources that I've already read say that these two sentences have the same meaning and are interchangeable. Therein lies my question. Is that correct? Because if these two sentences are interchangeable, it destroys all my understanding.  Thanks in advance.
7943
When I write something like this:     I am a man that is doing these things.   Is it correct to shorten it like this?     I am a man doing these things.   And does it require commas?
110446
Someone introduced himself to us.  After that, when we look back and say what he said, which is right to say?     What did he say his name is?      What did he say his name was?   I think the first one is plausible because his name is always XX, but I'm not sure. Please tell me which is allowed.
98871
I have seen the word 'only' placed both before and after a noun. Where should the word 'only' go in this sentence? Is it the writer's choice?   If you have attended every lesson, only the songs need to be rehearsed at home. If you have attended every lesson, the songs only need to be rehearsed at home.
96795
In 1999, I was living in Cuba.      In 1999, I lived in Cuba.   Do both sentences seem grammatically correct?   My teacher had told that the first sentence, which is with past continuous, is incorrect. I don't know whether or not the first sentence is correct. It indeed seems natural, doesn't it?
113098
Repeating the indefinite article. Is it a matter of style? If so, which quote is more natural [or maybe sounds better]?     My name is Amy Purdy, I am a survivor, snowboarder, founder of   Adaptive Action Sports, globetrotter and daydreamer.   vs.     My name is Amy Purdy, I am a survivor, a snowboarder, a founder of   Adaptive Action Sports, a globetrotter and a daydreamer.   Source: Amy Purdy Note: the first comma is from the source. It should be replaced by a period.
20969
In this sentence:     The commission commanded that work on the building should cease.   Why isn't the used before the word work? It seems that the work is specified by on the building.  Another example is,     Construction of the building will start next week.   I understand construction here is something like putting up the building, and so the construction isn’t general in meaning. But the definite article isn’t used here, either.  I’ve asked about this several times, but none gave me a good answer.
62544
Could you correct the comments in parentheses, please? Are they right?        I have lived in Los Angeles. (A completed action; the person does not live there anymore).   I have lived in Los Angeles my whole life. (The person is still living there, or spent her whole life in Los Angeles, but is currently   living in another location).    I have been living in Los Angeles. (She doesn't live there anymore, but was living there recently, or is still living there).   I have been living in Los Angeles my whole life. (The person is still living there or spent her whole life in Los Angeles, but is   currently living in another location).      Thanks
39069
I believe the sentence in the title is grammatically correct.   Recently I've seen too many people writing it this way:     I'm not sure what is the right way.   Is it grammatically correct as well? Maybe in a different sense? Or simply misuse by non-native speakers?
69976
Here's the situation: I meet a friend and I tell her about yesterday:     “Hey, John!”   “Hi, Sarah!”   “How was yesterday's trip?”   “It was great. Karl took me to the countryside to show me his new house. It reminded me of the/a house I rented in Oxford.”    “...a house I rented in Oxford.” indicates one of the (multiple) houses I rented in Oxford? “...the house I rented in Oxford.” indicates I rented only one house in Oxford?