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I have a degree in English and Communications from a U.S. university and plan to pursue higher education in professional writing.
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Spanish
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EnglishNative
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- This is difficult to answer given the excerpt and its limited context, but I'll try to help. It sounds as though someone has confessed that the narrator is involved in something important and that the "Pre-State Bureaucracy" has taken note of the narrator's name for use later, possibly to interrogate or torture her. "Pre-State Bureaucracy" is probably referring to the organization's size, impersonal nature, and anonymity (I'm sorry if I used difficult words to describe a difficult word). "Chasing debentures in Istanbul" is also going to be difficult to explain. Debentures are bonds (loans between an investor and a business) that are made based on the business's credit. Related to your story, I think this means that the "counselor" who is an expert in "confession" is actually being referred to in a "tongue-in-cheek" way. This means that when they say he is a "counselor" who draws "confessions" from people, they actually mean that he is a creditor who hunts down people that have taken loans and then takes the money they owe back by force. Again, sorry if this is more complicated than you would like, but this sounds like a very complex book. I could be wrong in all of this, but I hope I helped somehow. Good luck.0 votedJanuary 22, 20170
- 1) First, you should know that these statements are using dialect and some informal English. "I ain't got abandonment issues" is an informal way of saying, "I am not afraid or uncomfortable with being left alone." "Truckers on the blacktop, making do" is an incomplete sentence, but it is a truck driver talking about driving on "black top" which is another name for the material a road is made of (asphalt), and "making do" is an expression people use when they don't have all of the materials or options they would like to have but choose to use what they do have. 2) First, you should know that tweets often have typos and mistakes. "He should say that" doesn't make sense within the sentence, so you are right to not understand it. I think that President Trump made a mistake when writing his tweet, but he is trying to say, "Even though Obama thinks he could have won against me in the election, he is too unpopular and has made too many mistakes for that to be true. Obama would have lost against me" 3) You are right that there are expressions like, "I am going out," I will go out there," and "time is running out." It might be common to hear "out" used as you did in your sentence, but a clearer sentence would be, "I only buy medicine that is a year away from expiring." Using the sentence you first wrote could be mistaken as meaning that you buy medicine only if it expired one year ago, which is unlikely to ever be said because that is a bad idea hahaha. Good questions. Keep up the good work.0 votedJanuary 22, 20170
- You are close and have the right idea for both sentences, but they can be improved. The first sentence might be better as, "Studying math and physics is a good way to develop logical thinking and benefit your life." The second sentence is fine and is only missing an "a" before the word "democratic": "The issue reported in the newspaper yesterday made koreans suspect that their country is really a democratic country." Good work.0 votedJanuary 22, 20172
- I have heard that graphic novels are a good starting place for new English learners because they add context to the words used. These can be as simple as American comic books or graphic novel versions of classic literature like "Moby Dick," "Great Expectations," "The Call of the Wild," "Romeo and Juliet," or "Don Quixote." I hope that you can find something that might help you in these options.0 votedDecember 25, 20160
- Both are technically correct. Past tense is normally used when conversationally discussing the actions, words, or thoughts of people who are now deceased. However, in English, when a person writes an academic paper for university or a journal they are expected to use the present tense when talking about a work of literature. So, if I was writing for university, my paper would need to read, "Karl Marx believes that animistic religion is a rigorous form of religion" or "In John Milton's epic poem, 'Paradise Lost,' Satan defiantly declares, 'I will not serve!'" I hope that this helps you.0 votedDecember 25, 20161
- "Some" mapo tofu means that you are offering them part of a whole batch of tofu. "A" mapo tofu gives the impression that you are selling tofu almost like you would a cake - as a single object. I am not sure how tofu is made, but I am assuming that "some" will be most appropriate for your situation. I suppose I'll have to visit your restaurant for tofu if ever I am in China!0 votedMay 30, 20163
- 0-1: "We have the name of another victim." 6-9: "The immortal serial killer" 10-12: "I've been waiting for you, Cole. I've got him." "We can end this thing right now." There is also something else being said over these last two lines, but I figured that was not what you were asking for.0 votedMay 24, 20162
- In the Southern U. S., where I live, it is not uncommon to hear "who" used in a situation where the word used should be "whom." This could be due to a variety of things like laziness, a bad habit that was never broken, or a person's genuinely not knowing the difference. I have even had some people tell me they do not prefer to say "whom" when it should be used because it makes them sound as though they are being arrogant compared to everyone else's use of "who." These issues might only be aspects of Southern culture, but I feel the need to tell you that it is better to learn to use them both correctly in their proper contexts. Sometimes native practice of English is not the best indication of what is grammatically correct (especially in the South).0 votedMay 23, 20161
- I can only think of one other preposition that might make sense in the sentence you have provided and that preposition is the word, "for." Both "of" and "for" are commonly used in sentences like the one you have provided. But, if you would like a reason why "of" was used rather than "for," it is normally due to the author or speaker's decision. Since there is no rule as to which is correct, the author may use whichever he or she likes. However, if you want to be more precise with your use of "for" or "of," there is a slight difference in interpreted meaning. "It was crude [for] him to say that," gives the impression that the thing he did or what he said was crude, but that he is not necessarily crude but only acted improperly in that instance. "It was crude [of] him to say that," makes it sound as though you are crediting the person's crude words to their character because "of him" gives the impression that you are associating the person's actions with who they are as a person. Native speakers are not likely to think this specifically about the differences and are most likely to use both words interchangeably. But, I thought I should mention that there is perhaps a small difference since that is what you asked. (Also, sorry for the long answer.)0 votedMay 23, 20161

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