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Language Questions / Re: was not arrogant and...

« Last post by admin on Today at 10:13:45 am »

Not really. You need a "but" in there rather than an "and" - to provide the contrast...

Something like: He was not arrogant; but he was very helpful.

Even so it is a slightly strange concept as one would not naturally assume the two to be in contrast.

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Language Questions / Re: was not arrogant and...

« Last post by Britta on Today at 07:32:23 am »

I wouldn't rely on the comma.
 - He was not arrogant but (very) helpful (indeed). Indeed is probably a Briticism, though.
 - He was (very) helpful and not arrogant (at all).

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Language Questions / was not arrogant and...

« Last post by azz on April 18, 2021, 08:21:50 am »

a. He was not arrogant and helpful.
b. He was not arrogant, and helpful.

c. He was not arrogant and very helpful.
d. He was not arrogant, and very helpful.

Are the above sentences grammatically correct and correctly punctuated?

The 'not' is supposed to modify 'arrogant' only.

I think (b) and (d) work but the other two don't.

Many thanks

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Language Questions / Re: ---- bets Brown $20 at even money that Brown will be behind

« Last post by admin on April 13, 2021, 10:34:42 am »

Even money means that the winner wins the same amount as he/she bet. So, if each of you bets $20, the winner gets his/her $20 back plus $20 from the looser.
Here, Kind Friend is betting $20 that Brown will have lost money overall by the end of 36 plays of roulette.

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Language Questions / Re: mechanics of a game or contest

« Last post by admin on April 13, 2021, 10:31:45 am »

Yes, I am happy with that.

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Language Questions / ---- bets Brown $20 at even money that Brown will be behind

« Last post by t k on April 12, 2021, 07:28:32 am »

Mr. Brown always bets a dollar on the number 13 at roulette against the advice of Kind Friend. To help cure Mr. brown of playing roulette, Kind Friend always bets Brown $20 at even money that Brown will be behind at the end of 36 plays. (from this book, problem 7)

This is a part of a math problem.  Please explain "bets Brown $20 at even money that Brown will be behind at the end of 36 plays".  Thanks.  --- tk

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Language Questions / mechanics of a game or contest

« Last post by bookworm on April 11, 2021, 05:39:19 pm »

I've heard non-native speakers in my area use the word mechanics to refer to how a game or contest works. Please confirm if we can call the following conditions the mechanics of the contest:

1. Here's how you can win an all-expense-paid trip to Japan. Record yourself reading a Japanese poem and upload it on your social media account. The video must not exceed two minutes and must be shared to the public. The video with the most number of likes by the end of the month wins (April 30, at 11:59 p.m.).

2. There are only two schools in a small community, and each one will send their best speller to participate in a spelling contest organized by a local institution. There are two parts. In the first part, they will spell the words normally. In the second part, they will spell them backwards. The list of 100 words will be randomly and equally assigned to the participants. If one misspells a word, the opponent can steal.

The following definition seems to fit the context, but I'm not sure if it can be applied to contests:

mechanics
2.1 The way in which something is done or operated.

https://www.lexico.com/definition/mechanics

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Cafe / Re: GDPR

« Last post by emmadavid89 on April 09, 2021, 09:13:51 pm »

Great information shared on such a relevant topic.

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Language Questions / Re: I certainly did not.

« Last post by admin on April 06, 2021, 09:06:47 am »

Surely it is a combination of both. But, if it has to be A or B: then A.

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Language Questions / I certainly did not.

« Last post by beautyhero922 on April 06, 2021, 12:57:09 am »

Which do you think "I certainly did not." in the dialogue below means, (A) or (B)?

Tom: 　Lady, you cut right in front of me and hit my car!
Lucy: I certainly did not. You speeded up so I couldn?t
get in front of you. Then YOU hit MY CAR!!

(A) I certainly did not cut right in front of you.
(B) I certainly did not hit your car.

Thanks in advance.