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English as a Second Language/Questions Answered by Expert Christopher M Salisbury
| Subject | Date Asked |
| meaning of "if to little else" | 12/10/2011 |
| Q: Please take a look at below sentence and tell me what "if a little else" mean: He consented to ... A: This is a dependent prepositional phrase and all that it does is add extra information to the ... | |
| Linguistics | 3/2/2011 |
| Q: For my graduation paper I'm researching English adverbial verbs of movement (e.g. to limp - to walk ... A: "I dragged myself out of bed." - meaning I did not want to or could not easily get out of bed. "He ... | |
| in or at | 2/16/2011 |
| Q: 1)in a hotel, in a restaurant, in a shop 2)at a hotel, at a restaurant, at a shop Which of the ... A: Being in a hospital (or jail, prison) means that you are staying there as a patient. Being at a ... | |
| in or at | 2/15/2011 |
| Q: 1)in a hotel, in a restaurant, in a shop 2)at a hotel, at a restaurant, at a shop Which of the ... A: It is, as with all things, entirely contextual. Use "in" when you want to describe a situation that ... | |
| Inquiry | 2/14/2011 |
| Q: This is just a hypothetical question - How important is it for a language teacher to know the ... A: It all depends on the level of the students being taught. If the students are absolute beginners, ... | |
| TEFL | 2/6/2011 |
| Q: Despite having a degree in an unrelated field (law) I have spent the last 3 years teaching English ... A: Honestly, I have no idea. Sorry. My MA is in Applied linguistics; I avoided TESL like the plague. ... | |
| determiner | 11/20/2010 |
| Q: salam Somtimes I find it really difficult where I should use "the" and where no article please tell ... A: Articles only get used with nouns. There are two types of nouns: Common (man, state, country) and, ... | |
| .... | 11/13/2010 |
| Q: what is the difference between these 2 sentences?; 1- if i will go abroad , i will get a good job. ... A: "will" is a modal of definite action, but the sentence is a conditional, created by the preposition, ... | |
| conjunction "which" | 11/3/2010 |
| Q: I need help understanding the following statement: "Every judge of a superior court shall, before ... A: Your confusion stems from the fact that "which" is not a oonjunction; it's a pronoun or an ... | |
| Oriental and Asia | 10/29/2010 |
| Q: I was most horrified on Sat. while in NYC, I happened to use the word Oriental referring to a ... A: There's no literature of which I am aware that can "tell" you what to do or say around other people. ... | |
| oject and complement | 10/21/2010 |
| Q: What is the main difference between an object and a complement as use in sentenced pattern?Can a ... A: Objects, or at least direct objects, are the receiver of the of the main action in a sentence; ... | |
| preposition | 10/18/2010 |
| Q: salam, Dear sir, Which phrase is correct or better to use? What is the difference?- "sit in the ... A: "sit in" and "sit on" are prepositional phrases and "although" and "though" are conjunctions so they ... | |
| Interrogative-negative questions using WHY | 9/27/2010 |
| Q: Is it correct to say: "Why aren't I surprised?". It does not sound right but technically, it follows ... A: The former, "Why aren't I surprised." sounds OK because you are contracting it. However, if you ... | |
| Correct punctuation for Massachusetts | 9/22/2010 |
| Q: I am in the 5th grade and have a project due on Massachusetts. If I use the sentence "The American ... A: You are correct in your use of the apostrophe, "'". The apostrophe is always grammatical and in ... | |
| English Grammar | 9/18/2010 |
| Q: In the phrase 'running shoes', is the word 'running' a noun, an adjective, a present participle, or ... A: I need more context to correctly answer your question as the word "running" could be a lot of ... | |
| use of correct word | 8/26/2010 |
| Q: Which is correct? FROM Tuesday onwards, I haven't met her OR Since Tuesday onwards, I haven't met ... A: Actually, the entire sentence does not make sense. If you have not met someone, then you have not ... | |
| will or would? | 8/23/2010 |
| Q: I heard somebody spoke the following two sentences, first one is using "will", but the second one is ... A: Will and Would are both modals, auxiliary verbs. Will is used always to indicate a future action. ... | |
| English equivalent of 'tutoyeren' | 8/18/2010 |
| Q: I'm looking for the right English expression and/or English equivalent for 'tutoyeren'. In French ... A: There is no equal in English as English does not do this and never really has, with the exception of ... | |
| parallel structure | 7/30/2010 |
| Q: Which sentence is correct? 1- Not only my sister but also my mother is here. 2- Not only my sister ... A: Your first example is correct; "but" is a conjunction and conjunctions conjoin clauses and phrases. ... | |
| grammar | 7/27/2010 |
| Q: which is right: an action film or a action film? in my Oxford Word Skills Book, "an action film" has ... A: Articles are almost always used in front of common nouns; dog, cat, apple, etc.. The indefinite ... | |
| English pronciation | 7/21/2010 |
| Q: What is the pronunciation of @? A: I think you are referring to the @ symbol on the keyboard, such as in email addresses: bob@bob.com ... | |
| Sentence diagram | 7/15/2010 |
| Q: English isn't my second language, but tonight it feels like it. Can you explain the following ... A: Not sure what you mean by "subjective complement" unless you mean subjunctive or subject complement. ... | |
| Direct object and indirect object | 6/21/2010 |
| Q: I was teaching my niece "direct object" and "indirect object" when I couldn't explain a grammar ... A: The correct response would be: "The student asked a question of me." But we rarely use that ... | |
| Word with only Adverb form? Possible? | 6/17/2010 |
| Q: I'm curious to know if there are any words in the English language that can only have an Adverb form ... A: Adverbs are referred to as "the dust bin of the English language". In other words, when grammatical ... | |
| Verbs | 6/15/2010 |
| Q: I heard a song over the radio the other day with this line> <I write the songs that make the whole ... A: I am not sure, from the example you gave, where you see To hear as the main verb. The main verb is ... | |
| bilingualism | 6/14/2010 |
| Q: We have a 9 year old daughter who from birth has had two languages. My husband is German and he only ... A: Nope. It's entirely up to her so don't pressure her or she might repress the German. Much to their ... | |
| How to diffentiate? | 6/11/2010 |
| Q: Could you help me for the following sentences? >>> In the event that a person loses the mental ... A: May is used in legal context and is also strictly, grammatically speaking, used for permission: ... | |
| "Have had vs Had" | 5/24/2010 |
| Q: Is there any difference in these two sentences? I have had breakfast before I went out. I had ... A: Yes. One uses present perfect, the other simple past. Your first example is in the present perfect ... | |
| past perfect | 5/5/2010 |
| Q: I am reviewing English grammar these days and have two questions about the tenses. Would you please ... A: Regarding the firstI was not clear enough with my explanation; as I mentioned, normally the PP is ... | |
| a/the minimum | 5/4/2010 |
| Q: Christopher M Salisbury, I'm at a loss because I can't get the difference between the following two ... A: A/An are indefinite articles, The is a definite article. Indefinite articles can point to anything ... | |
| past perfect | 5/3/2010 |
| Q: I am reviewing English grammar these days and have two questions about the tenses. Would you please ... A: I'm not entirely sure why you would want to use the past perfect (PP) in this example. Normally, ... | |
| A problem in the present | 4/28/2010 |
| Q: my name is Ghadeer jdeed and i'm just a student in the national center of destinguished (N.C.D) in ... A: Present Perfect Continuous (PPC) is used to refer to something that was being d0ne (continuous) up ... | |
| grammar question | 4/21/2010 |
| Q: what is the correct way to say: I told him that he should have realized....or I told him that he ... A: "I told him that he should have..." The main verb always carries the tense and you can not have ... | |
| reading skills | 4/12/2010 |
| Q: What is the difference between making inferences,drawing conclusion,and predicting outcomes?? A: When you make an inference, you infer. That is, the understanding of something, usually said, ... | |
| what does the adverb "periodically" refer to? | 4/9/2010 |
| Q: welcome back. This is urgent for a translation assignment: "librarians partnered with students to ... A: Grammatically this sentence does not make sense and so I understand your confusion. In fact, the ... | |
| Grammar | 4/5/2010 |
| Q: .." clause relate to for e.g. "care" or "take care" as in " I take care of the cat" Does "of the ... A: The preposition "of" is not alone; it is tied into the verb which preceeds it, making that verb ... | |
| Prepositions Dilemma | 4/3/2010 |
| Q: I am an ESL student who loves English very much.As a hobby,I read Reader's Digest.I've found a Quote ... A: For one thing, you have to understand that there is something known as "poetic license" which allows ... | |
| whose | 1/28/2010 |
| Q: Can you say: "Whose green scarf is that?" or should you say "Whose is that green scarf?" I mean can ... A: Prescriptive grammarians will tell you that you should not end a sentence with a preposition, and ... | |
| meaning ? | 1/26/2010 |
| Q: How have you been doing so far? I hope everything is going fine with you! Would you please help me ... A: This is a bit difficult without the full context, but in general, the phrase, "in nature" means that ... | |
| Is it a correct use | 1/26/2010 |
| Q: I have a dispute with my colleague. Is it correct to start the text of an email with: "Hereby please ... A: I suppose there is nothing technically wrong with using "hereby" to open an email, but it is rather ... | |
| past tense | 1/21/2010 |
| Q: Is this sentence grammatically correct?"Yesterday he was telling me that tomorrow my ten days will ... A: I'm sure most people would not really have a problem with it, but using the past continuous in this ... | |
| TEFL | 1/17/2010 |
| Q: I am currently doing an online course of TEFL. I am stuck on an assignment which I am unable to ... A: You should look into child language learning; nobody ever really teaches us anything about our ... | |
| I don't get the meaning of this sentence | 1/16/2010 |
| Q: "love is not the passion...but the will of the self in devotion to the other". I don't know what the ... A: Will is your desire, your ambition and your ability, but mostly what is known as your inner ... | |
| reading aloud to college students? | 1/12/2010 |
| Q: I teach English at a university in Japan. I find that many students in reading classes have to ... A: I really don't know as I've never had to teach to that level of English learners. I can relate to ... | |
| Prep. | 12/27/2009 |
| Q: Would you please help me to find out the grammar rule in the sentence below? >>> From those early ... A: A lot of times words are left out that are already implied. Usually both speaker/writer and ... | |
| Is this sentence correct? | 12/25/2009 |
| Q: I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2010. Would you please help me clarify the usage ... A: I'm not sure where you got this from, but it seems like a transcript and if so, then spoken to ... | |
| definition of "mean" | 12/21/2009 |
| Q: What is the definition of "mean" in the following sentence? "What does friendship mean to you?" A: From dictionary.com: –verb (used with object) 1. to have in mind as one's purpose or intention; ... | |
| may and might | 12/19/2009 |
| Q: Sir i am confused with this question : translation in Hindi is: Aaj barish ho sakti hai what is the ... A: Actually, I've answered this question before, twice I believe. That being stated, the real semantic ... | |
| Is this sentence correct? | 12/16/2009 |
| Q: Would you please help me to clarify the following sentence? >>> Being committed to your goals, you ... A: As far as any grammatical rules are concerned, they really only apply to very formal writing, ... | |
| can preposition be modified? | 12/12/2009 |
| Q: This time I want to know if it is acceptable in formal English to modify a preposition, as in the ... A: Nothing modifies a preposition. You are confusing the placement of adverbs and adjectives; normally ... | |
| Use of "...ing which" | 12/10/2009 |
| Q: Would you please help me to clarify following grammar rule? >>> Nakheel, a unit of Dubai World, has ... A: -ing gets used in English to do two things; create a progressive tense or to create a gerund. A ... | |
| adverb or adjective | 12/6/2009 |
| Q: Please help me figure out how "even" is used in Sentences 2 and 3. I understand "even" in Sentence 1 ... A: Even is one of those multi-purpose words that English is fraught with. It can be used as an adverb, ... | |
| question; meaning of "burden of history", "dynamo" and "defied the global slump" | 12/5/2009 |
| Q: I read an article from Time Magazine and was confused about the meaning of the following words or ... A: Everything is contextual and nowhere more so than in journalism, especially American and English ... | |
| Place of Adv. | 12/1/2009 |
| Q: Would you please help me to find out the correct positioning of adverbs? Mainly should I place the ... A: Typically, adverbs follow the verbs they modify. The prescriptive grammarian will tell you that ... | |
| being definite is important when using? | 11/20/2009 |
| Q: One of my friends told me that we can use “would, might, could” when we would like to be “less ... A: You are referring to modals: can/could; shall/should; may/might; will/would, etc.. These can be ... | |
| take & undertake | 10/12/2009 |
| Q: Could you please explain the difference between the verbs take and undertake? i.e. take an exam & ... A: The difference is that you don't undertake an exam. "Undertake" has an underlying sense of the same ... | |
| grammar question; I have eaten / I have already eaten | 10/2/2009 |
| Q: If somebody asks you "Have you eaten?", is there any difference in meaning between answers one and ... A: Not really. In the end, all you are really saying is, "Yes."; the rest is just extra information. ... | |
| grammar | 9/22/2009 |
| Q: I`d like to know which answer is correct and why,if you please: The sentence is,I was thirsty.Iwas ... A: English has two types of articles: definite and indefinite. "A" and "An" are indefinite, while ... | |
| apostrophe | 9/19/2009 |
| Q: What is the correct way to punctuate this sentence? I have three doctors' appointments. I have ... A: The second is correct. Think of it this way; what are you doing? Going to some appointments. With ... | |
| Is this sentence correct? | 9/13/2009 |
| Q: How’s it going? I hope everything is fine!!! 1) Would you please help me to find out whether or not ... A: There really is nothing technically wrong with any of the examples you have provided. You seem to ... | |
| word formation | 9/13/2009 |
| Q: sir please tell me when we add 'ing' with a word .does it change it's meaning. for example "help" ... A: Any time you add anything to a word you change its meaning. In this case, "To help" still retains ... | |
| grammar | 8/23/2009 |
| Q: Hi I am Dane .How are you. Would you pleas help me in answering the followingWhat are the modals ... A: While not all auxiliary verbs are modals, all modals are known as auxiliaries or AUX in semantics. ... | |
| Related words | 8/15/2009 |
| Q: I would like to ask a question about the following sentences, which involve related words: (a) He ... A: I think you are getting hung-up on the word "success" which is a noun that has verbal qualities to ... | |
| Is this sentence correct? | 8/8/2009 |
| Q: The sentence below was said by David Beckham earlier this week. >>>> But if it HAPPENS again I ... A: First off, unless you want to get into sociolinguistics (which this question really is about), ... | |
| English | 8/6/2009 |
| Q: You are kindly requested to answer myHow can I learn conversation in English? awaiting your ... A: I am asked this question quite a bit by non-native English speakers, especially those in the Middle ... | |
| grammer | 8/5/2009 |
| Q: how do we distinguish between "ing"form and gerund? A: English is an SVO, or Subject, Verb, Object language. A gerund is a verb that is acting like a ... | |
| differences | 8/5/2009 |
| Q: What is the difference between "continually" and continuously?? What is the difference between short ... A: As to your questions regarding the differences between the similar words, I am going to refer you to ... | |
| Modal Verbs with Probability’ and the ‘If Clauses – Type 2 / 3 (Unreal Past) with Probability’ | 8/2/2009 |
| Q: I would like to ask you a question about the difference between ‘Modal Verbs with Probability’ and ... A: Yes. And no. For the future, this is far too much information for a format like this. You seem to ... | |
| Help with syntax | 7/30/2009 |
| Q: Which is correct: "the balance of the funds is to be distributed" or "the balance of the funds are ... A: Whenever you run across something like this and can't decide on subject/verb agreement, try to find ... | |
| grammar questions | 7/30/2009 |
| Q: I have two grammar questions. I know that you can say that you "grow bored with someone". Can you ... A: The original definition of the verb, "to serve" meant literally, to attend to someone, to wait on ... | |
| grammar questions | 7/28/2009 |
| Q: I have two grammar questions. I know that you can say that you "grow bored with someone". Can you ... A: 1) I don't see why not because you often say things such as; "I've become bored of doing this." or ... | |
| until and by the way | 7/25/2009 |
| Q: can we use until and by the time in present tenses like simple present? A: Yes. Their use depends, contextually (usually), upon things happening in the future: "Until you ... | |
| grammar question | 7/23/2009 |
| Q: In the following sentence, what does "would" mean and why is "would" used instead of "will"? "I ... A: "Would" in this case is being used as a conditional; IF the speaker wins the lottery, THEN they ... | |
| want vs wish | 7/17/2009 |
| Q: when someone wants someone else to do something, usually he will use verb "want" : "do you want me ... A: The primary difference between the verbs, "want" and "wish" is that the latter has a connotation of ... | |
| language | 7/16/2009 |
| Q: I have heard about you from a friend. I would like to ask you some questions concerning English ... A: Technically, all the words mean essentially the same thing as the other. For a better, semantic ... | |
| English idiom | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: What does "I feel naked without it" mean in the following sentence: I feel naked without my watch. A: What would it feel like to be naked in public? That is the context in which the phrase is based. ... | |
| articles(a-an-the) | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: how can we use them? A: All nouns usually require an article of some sort, however, if a word has an article in front of it, ... | |
| countable and uncountable nouns | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: How can we differentiate between countable and uncountable nouns? A: As you probably know, nouns are persons, places and things. Count nouns are those which can be, as ... | |
| Aspect | 7/8/2009 |
| Q: I'm confused about the aspects of verbs. So far, what I think I know about the subject is this: all ... A: Most languages "mark" aspect on their verbs in some way. English does this in two ways; ... | |
| How do I begin teaching someone ESL? | 6/28/2009 |
| Q: I'm spending the current summer in Eilat, Israel, a place with many Sudanese refugees. One expressed ... A: Wow, what a question. Well, first, whatever is fundamental to English is fundamental to any ... | |
| Take off | 6/23/2009 |
| Q: One has put a wrong word in a sentence. Would it be OK to say " take that word off"? Or "take that ... A: Again, it's all contextual. You may instruct someone, a child perhaps, to "Put your bag away", or ... | |
| Take off | 6/23/2009 |
| Q: One has put a wrong word in a sentence. Would it be OK to say " take that word off"? Or "take that ... A: Yes. But, like anything, it's all contextual. Most times you would simply instruct someone to ... | |
| the+family name+s | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: In English "s" following a family name preceded by "the" refers to the entire family, e.g., the ... A: Both the "s" and the apostrophe are part of the English lexicon and hold semantic value. However, ... | |
| english grammar | 6/16/2009 |
| Q: but how about this example:you [shouhd-must]be careful when you cross the road.also .....be careful ... A: Again, the use of any word depends upon context and this is no different when selecting which modal ... | |
| english grammar | 6/15/2009 |
| Q: please I want to know the difference between should and must in advice[should] and strong ... A: You are referring to the class of words known as modals. Modals are "helper" or auxilliary verbs; ... | |
| english grammar | 6/13/2009 |
| Q: hi I`d like to know the answer to this question I enjoyed watching the film as i saw many places ... A: For the first example given, the correct selection is; "I enjoyed... I've never been to." We GO to ... | |
| III conditional | 6/11/2009 |
| Q: Could you be so kind and answer my question ? In the third conditonal if I want to use negative ... A: Well, to be honest, it all depends upon context; conditionals are based upon what would have or ... | |
| Some questions | 6/9/2009 |
| Q: I have some questions. 1) Is a "dangling participle" wrong from a grammatical standpoint? 2) ... A: 1) Dangling participles, or dangling modifiers as they are more commonly known, are abhorred by ... | |
| Grammar | 6/6/2009 |
| Q: Christopher, Please help me. What is the meaning 'The meeting was called to order.' Dinocatty A: If you watch enough American movies or television, eventually you are bound to see one which has a ... | |
| "about what" | 6/1/2009 |
| Q: Is it a correct sentence? "About what is your question?" if not, how should it be corrected? A: According to strict prescriptive grammarian rules, you can not end any sentence with a preposition, ... | |
| correct sentences | 5/29/2009 |
| Q: .!!!English is my Second Language and I would like to know if this sentence is correct: He wants to ... A: Please, no private questions; it is not fair to me or to others who may have similar questions. ... | |
| business communication email | 5/23/2009 |
| Q: I need to know which sentence is the most correct and most polite: Please find the meeting minutes ... A: First off, no private questions please; it is not fair to others who may have the same question as ... | |
| What does "down to the discretion" mean | 5/21/2009 |
| Q: First of all I appreciate for being as an expert here to solve other ppl doubts. Could you please ... A: First, no private questions; it is not fair to others who might have the same questions and it is ... | |
| Motivation | 5/21/2009 |
| Q: How to get more motivation in order to acquire English as a second language ? A: It's hard to "get" motivation; you either have it or you do not. If you don't want to learn ... | |
| DOUBTS ABOUT ENGLISH | 5/20/2009 |
| Q: "Dear sir, Could this sentence "This is the place in which children work in factories" be converted ... A: No. "this" is an article and points to some noun, "this apple", "this house", etc.. In the example ... | |
| Helping Verb BE | 5/20/2009 |
| Q: Be and other forms of the verb is used as helping or auxiliary verbs in a sentence. They are also ... A: The English "to be" is a very popular verb; every language has it; it is probably the first and main ... | |
| English Grammer | 5/9/2009 |
| Q: How many verb tenses are there in English? Is 'Future in the Past' a tense? A: Off the top of my head, I'd say there are at least 12 tenses in English. Not sure what you mean by ... | |
| Grammar-Adverb Phrases | 5/4/2009 |
| Q: Can you please explain clearly what's an adverb phrase? Please give some examples of adverb phrases ... A: An adverbial phrases, or adverb phrase as you refer to them, is any set of words, more than one ... | |
| generation gap | 5/3/2009 |
| Q: i'd like to know your viewpoints on the following: 1.Why is it hard to understand the other ... A: First off, no private questions; it makes it unfair to others who might have the same question(s) as ... | |
| Expression | 4/26/2009 |
| Q: What does "spring his knee" mean? I came across this expression on a baseball game TV program when ... A: Not sure without more context. I've never heard of this expression, but people do "sprain" things ... | |
| the difference | 4/26/2009 |
| Q: Is there any difference between "early nineteenth century" and "earlier ninteenth century"? cheers A: Not entirely sure what you are getting at due to lack of context, but yes, of course there is a ... | |
| englsih | 4/23/2009 |
| Q: this smells like coffee. in this sentence why we have used smells instead of smell. A: Not entirely sure what you mean by "we have used", but the article "this" refers to some object, a ... | |
| negative transfer | 4/16/2009 |
| Q: I apologize to you. My questions are many, but I just want you to explain several ... A: 1) This is called immersion; it is always better to learn a language in that language's country. ... | |
| Factors of Negative Transfer "2" | 4/15/2009 |
| Q: you have taught me a lot in your last answer. pleas if you can Explain to me "Age - Focus - Limited ... A: First off, no more private questions; I have written about this more than once; it's not fair to ... | |
| " 's " | 4/8/2009 |
| Q: why do some people put " 's " as plural for an abreviated nouns or nouns that have a hyphen, in ... A: I don't know of any abbreviated words, as you refer to them, that have the "'s" after them unless ... | |
| Auxiliary verb agreement | 3/30/2009 |
| Q: What specific rule is applied in auxiliary verb DOES when uased as aDOES HE NEED TO BE THERE? Since ... A: Ah, do-support... it's one of those little tricks of English. In this case, what is happening is ... | |
| Grammar: future with "will" vs. present progressive | 3/29/2009 |
| Q: Please, what's the difference between present progressive and future with "will" for scheduled ... A: Well, as you probably are already aware, use of the present progressive always requires another ... | |
| negative transfer factors | 3/29/2009 |
| Q: Excuse me. Do can helped me about "negative transfer factors" I study English language as 2L. When ... A: First off, no private questions; it's not fair to me or others who wish to know the same ... | |
| Grammer | 3/27/2009 |
| Q: What is the difference between Did you know or Do you know? ANSWER: Can you give me more context? ... A: Essentially they both really represent the same thing; a question regarding what someone might or ... | |
| question | 3/25/2009 |
| Q: i got 1 question what does it mean when someone has said are you crazy? ANSWER: Could mean a lot ... A: Honestly, I really can not answer this question as it is just not clear enough for me to do so ... | |
| Follow up question | 3/24/2009 |
| Q: Let me be brief: I've always refrained from using the word "before" as in "He did not care too much ... A: In short, the use of both "before" and "in the past" in these examples really stand for and mean the ... | |
| "before" vs "in the past" | 3/23/2009 |
| Q: Let me be brief: I've always refrained from using the word "before" as in "He did not care too much ... A: Yes. It's all conetextual, of course, but theoretically, when you are speaking with or writing to ... | |
| Grammar | 3/19/2009 |
| Q: I also read this sentence: "Water boils at a temperature of 100°C." Why do they use "a" and not ... A: Good question and I am not sure I know the answer to this one. It might have something to do with ... | |
| Grammar | 3/19/2009 |
| Q: I read this sentence on this site http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/attract "I guess it was his ... A: What is really being discussed is the attraction, not necessarily the eyes per se. What is it that ... | |
| Adjective | 3/16/2009 |
| Q: To say Wowful or Wow - is that an adjective or is it rather best said when you marvel at something?? ... A: First off; in the future no more private questions please. It's not fair to others who might have ... | |
| Pronounciation of "data" | 3/12/2009 |
| Q: How do you pronounce DATA: DAH - dah? Or DAY - dah? I think I've heard both and I can never decide ... A: It doesn't matter; people use both freely and as far as I know, region does not seem to have an ... | |
| If you will | 3/10/2009 |
| Q: I was just wondering if "if you will" and "if you like" are the same thing? Thanks for your answer ... A: In this case, yes. But again, they mean slightly different things: Because in the one sense, you ... | |
| If you will | 3/10/2009 |
| Q: I was just wondering if "if you will" and "if you like" are the same thing? Thanks for your answer ... A: No. Although they could presumably be used in the same context; "Will I be helping you this ... | |
| Negative Question | 3/6/2009 |
| Q: I have a question in regards of the "negative question" in English. For example, Q: Didn't you ... A: You're right, this is tricky. Instead of truncating the sentence, let's examine it at length: "Did ... | |
| Clause | 3/4/2009 |
| Q: Why are the answers different for "number of..." and "list of..."? In "They will have to consider ... A: Ok, you really need to be more clear in your questions in order for me to answer them as best I can. ... | |
| Clause | 3/4/2009 |
| Q: Why are the answers different for "number of..." and "list of..."? In "They will have to consider ... A: 1) In "The number of goods sold has increased." "sold" relates/refers to "number of goods". Isn't ... | |
| Clause | 3/3/2009 |
| Q: Why are the answers different for "number of..." and "list of..."? In "They will have to consider ... A: I am going to break your question down into several parts: 1) Why are the answers different for ... | |
| Near | 3/3/2009 |
| Q: I read this sentence but I did not understand it: "We are no nearer an agreement than we were six ... A: I'm assuming it is the word "near" with which you are having an issue? "Near" is an adjective, ... | |
| Grammar Tense enquiry | 2/27/2009 |
| Q: i would be grateful if you could help explain why the second sentence uses the Past Perfect Tense, ... A: You are correct in your understanding of what past perfect indicates; that is something which ... | |
| english_grammer | 2/27/2009 |
| Q: sir please tell me the use of "would have" in elglish grammer.sir please tell me. A: Ok, first off; please, no more private questions. I have made that clear in my profile; it is not ... | |
| elglish grammer | 2/26/2009 |
| Q: sir please tell me the use "may have" in english grammer.sir please tell me A: From the phrasing of your question, it is a little difficult for me to know precisely what it is you ... | |
| Grammar | 2/23/2009 |
| Q: In " The number of hours that we are allowed to work has decreased." To what does the clause ... A: No offense, but you are asking the same questions, just rephrasing them. Everything, in every ... | |
| The meaning of "an embarrassing question" | 2/23/2009 |
| Q: I teach English in Tokyo, Japan. If you ask someone an embarrassing question, do you mean that the ... A: Yes. You may have heard the expression, "I feel stupid for asking this..."? There are situations ... | |
| The meaning of "an embarrsing question" | 2/23/2009 |
| Q: I teach English in Tokyo, Japan. If you ask someone an embarrassing question, do you mean that the ... A: This is a picture of me tapping the tip of my nose with my index finger. In other words, yes; you ... | |
| Grammar | 2/22/2009 |
| Q: In " The number of hours that we are allowed to work has decreased." To what does the clause ... A: These are all basically variations upon the same theme; everything is referring to "number of ... | |
| meaning | 2/22/2009 |
| Q: I wonder what the meaning of “parade of language” and “busy scrutiny” is. I would be so grateful if ... A: See there; context is everything! OK, for your first question, regarding the phrase, "parade of ... | |
| BY + with or without (,) | 2/21/2009 |
| Q: Christopher M Salisbury As far as I know that we use “by” (one of the ways of using it) to show ... A: Please, no private questions in the future. Your assumptions regarding the word "by" and its usage ... | |
| Grammar English language | 2/15/2009 |
| Q: Could you please explain to me if the following sentence is grammatically correct and why " I should ... A: To be honest, you could put it in any way: "I never should have..." "I should never have..." "I ... | |
| Grammar English language | 2/15/2009 |
| Q: Could you please explain to me if the following sentence is grammatically correct and why " I should ... A: Yes it is grammatically correct. English is an SVO language, subject, verb, object; "I ate the ... | |
| What's difference between the two? | 2/15/2009 |
| Q: Karan may've gone for the trip. Karan might've gone for the trip. By the way, how should I ... A: First, no more private questions please. Second, there really is no difference between may and ... | |
| meaning | 2/12/2009 |
| Q: Will you please paraphrase 'never be happy' in the last sentence? What does that mean here? ... A: Although I'm pretty sure this is a homework question, I'll go ahead and answer it here because there ... | |
| May or Might? | 2/1/2009 |
| Q: Salisbury, I have trouble separating "may" and "might". I thought "may" means to have permission ... A: Legally speaking, you are correct; "may" would denote permission, "might" would denote possibility. ... | |
| confused from a along time | 1/31/2009 |
| Q: when do we use modals would be, would have been , would have? can you explain me with suitable ... A: Modals are like helper verbs; they can add emphasis. They are usually used with imperatives; "You ... | |
| Grammar | 1/30/2009 |
| Q: Please help me use the correct preposition below. 1. For three weeks we were in/on/from the book of ... A: I think what you are trying to state is that you were reading the book of Romans for three weeks? ... | |
| by some estimates | 1/25/2009 |
| Q: Salisbury, -------------------- http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=vYW2SD-rHuM Time: 00:59 ... A: Yes and no. Estimate is a guess, but it carries the conotation of more accuracy than a simple guess ... | |
| treat | 1/24/2009 |
| Q: Salisbury, Nice to meet you. ------------------------- ... A: Yes. In English we use the word "treat" all of the time; we have treats for our pets, we buy our ... | |
English as a Second Language
Answers by Expert:
Christopher M Salisbury
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
I can answer almost any question within the field of second language acquisition (SLA) and pedagogical theories in second language teaching.
Experience
As part of my MA in linguistics, I have taken several classes in SLA and as well, I have been a teacher and tutor of English and English as a second language (ESL).
Education/Credentials
I have a BA in English and an MA in linguistics.
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