Help with English

Doesn't want to touch something (be involved with something) even at a distance. Saying is also 'won't touch it with a ten foot pole'
 
NMSquirrel said:
I’d rather you --------------- present when we signed the agreement.
1) would be
2) had been
3) could be
4) were
______________
I am torn between "I'd rather you had been" and " I'd rather you were" -- leaning towards 'had been'
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I agree. "Were" is appropriate when the event has not yet occurred, or when it is just starting, at a time when it is still possible to hope that the person will arrive--or to be wistful about his apparent absence. This is the conditional mode, although verb modality is rather haphazard in English since we lost most of the German verb paradigms (and many of its other grammatical complexities) during the Norman occupation.

This event has already occurred (the agreement is already signed), so the past perfect is appropriate: "had been." Again, this is just a faint echo of proper German grammar.

Nonetheless, these niceties are so arcane that most Americans struggle to get them right... or don't bother at all. So quite a few people would use "were" instead of "had been." Everyone will understand it, and only a pedant like me would consider correcting their grammar--and, after due consideration, would choose not to do so. :)
 
Saint said:
the straw that broke the camel's back = the last fatal error ?
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Bloody brilliant! :)
Not sure if it describes that phrase exactly, but it sure is appropriate sometimes.
WIKI says this......
The idiom the straw that broke the camel's back, alluding to the proverb "it is the last straw that breaks the camel's back", describes the seemingly minor or routine action which causes an unpredictably large and sudden reaction, because of the cumulative effect of small actions.

This gives rise to the phrase "the last straw" or "the final straw", meaning the last in a line of unacceptable occurrences, provoking a seemingly sudden strong reaction.
 
Saint said:
the straw that broke the camel's back = the last fatal error ?
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It refers to the pre-industrial era when draft animals (horses, oxen, camels, elephants, donkeys, llamas, etc.) were used for carrying heavy loads. Some of these animals were hitched to wagons, carts or carriages which carried the load (food, other commodities, or people), while others simply had the load strapped to their back.

If I'm not mistaken, elephants, llamas and camels cannot be used to pull wagons for various reasons. So if you use a camel for transporting a load, it will be strapped to the camel's back.

If your load is a bundle of straw to be used in construction or agriculture, you have to decide how much straw your camel can carry, since they differ in size and strength.

An unkind owner will try to put as much straw on the camel's back as the camel is capable of carrying. If he overestimates, the result will be that the camel lies down, or even falls over. The phrase "break the camel's back" is a colorful exaggeration. I'm 100% certain that no camel ever had its back broken by having one more straw added to its load.

But I'm sure many camel owners were bitten or kicked for attempting to overload their animals. Camels are famous for not tolerating cruelty--and their definition of "cruelty" is not very generous. ;)

Anyway, back on topic... "The straw that broke the camel's back" is a metaphor. It means that someone overloaded a process, a machine, etc., and caused it to break down.
 
Looking tense, Tsipras was driven into European Commission headquarters through an underground garage to avoid the usual arrival statements, and given only a perfunctory handshake by Juncker before plunging into the afternoon meeting.
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perfunctory handshake = not a warm handshake?
 
If I can use Latin to answer a question about English, "pro forma" = "just for appearances".

I think perfunctory literally means 'minimally acceptable', but I'd have to consult one or more online sources of ancient wisdom to be sure.

I always enjoy correction in my use of the language: Please fire away!
 
Saint said:
perfunctory handshake = not a warm handshake?
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The dictionary defines "perfunctory" as "hasty, superficial, performed merely as a routine duty, indifferent, apathetic, unenthusiastic, devoid of care or interest."

A perfunctory handshake is one that is performed because it is expected, not because there is any enthusiasm or sincerity.
 
Because rats are generally considered to be unsavory creatures. To 'smell a rat' means to suspect something is wrong.
 
Saint, if you don't mind my asking, what is your native language and area of origin? Social and geographic context can be a big help in things like this topic..

I am always fascinated by how words flow from one language to another, and why. :)
 
1. Both the parents and teacher have the responsibility to teach children ethics.
2. The parents and teacher both have the responsibility to teach children ethics.

Which is better?
 
European leaders and policymakers, wrong-footed by Tsipras's shock announcement of the referendum in the early hours of Saturday morning, warned that it would be a plebiscite on Greece's future as a member of the single currency.
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plebiscite = referendum ?
 
Yes.
From the Latin roots: pleb, plebs - common person; and scitum - decree (which comes from sciscere - to vote for).
 
Saint said:
1. Both the parents and teacher have the responsibility to teach children ethics. -- 2. The parents and teacher both have the responsibility to teach children ethics. -- Which is better?
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AlexG said:
Either one is perfectly acceptable.
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And both are actually not quite correct. "Both" refers to two things or people. The parents and the teacher are three people.

Nonetheless, everyone talks this way. ;)
 
Can't a set of things be referred to in the singular?

Both the sheep and and the shepherd must pass the stile.
Both the goats and the goatherd must pass the stile.

Do I pass on style? :)
 
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