Questions tagged [closed-questions]
The closed-questions tag has no usage guidance.
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Replacing our "research" close reason
Background
We have a massive problem with close votes. There's no sense in placing blame — we've been on this path since before even I joined the site, and we all thought what we were doing was best ...
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Should there be an increasing number of close votes required to re-close a question that has been reopened?
This question was closed with three votes for "insufficient research" - although I'm unclear why, because even after doing all the "research" suggested in the answers, the correct ...
CommunityBot
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Why was my question about word definitions and differences closed by mods and downvoted by readers?
I have a question about my English Language & Usage Stack Exchange post,
What's the difference between backward(s) and backwardly?
Why was my question closed and why are the mods refusing to ...
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Should we update our site's policy against helping programmers choose names to use in their software?
There are only two hard things in Computer Science:cache invalidation and naming things. ―Phil Karlton
Today we received yet another request for naming help: Is there a term which covers both bank ...
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Check to reopen a perhaps wrongly duplicate-closed question on the right indefinite article before a slash phrase (or before a parenthetical phrase)
I have already flagged it to a moderator who asked me to edit the question and ask to reopen it on meta. I ask the seniors here to think about reopening this:
A or an before slash phrase? A or an ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 101k
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1
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Migrations are stuck
It looks to me like all ELU migrations elsewhither are stuck, and have been so for a day or so. This includes any migrations from ELU to ELL as well as here to our own Meta.
What's happening is they ...
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What is the reason that this question is considered as 'off-topic'?
I posted the below question, and there were a couple of helpful answers.
Is 'dead on arrival' a slang?
As of now, this question has been closed as an 'off-topic' question.
https://english....
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Since frequency of the use of words or other linguistic phenomena are the measuring stick of defining what is and what isn’t part of a language
…hence indisputably, this question is on topic.
I would like to know any reasons, if any, based on which that would not be deemed the case on this SE site, and the reason why.
I am substantially ...
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4
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Question deleted in 2011 is on-topic in 2022
I suggest that the following question, which is deleted and invisible to users with less than 10K reputation, ought to be undeleted.
What is the English equivalent to the Russian proverb ""...
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Unlock "Why use singular they?" then reopen
You may be able to read the question I'm referring to at Why does English use singular they instead of making up a new word for this? (currently re-reopened).
Sometime a while ago there was a ...
LaurelMod
- 65.4k
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Should this oxymoron question be reopened?
Oxymoron pronunciation
This question is closed for not including research. Is this because the specific dictionaries are not cited?
I think the question is fine, if that is the only problem.
I think ...
LaurelMod
- 65.4k
7
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1
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Why was the question "Why are English words are so hard to spell?" closed as POB, and how can it be fixed?
The recent question on Why are English words are so hard to spell? was initially closed as being opinion based, which is a little strange.
Perhaps people seeing that it could not be answered simply ...
tchristMod
- 134k
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Please help me improve my question on 'dishonest mistake' (re the term 'honest mistake')
The question: There's the term 'honest mistake', so what is 'dishonest mistake' synonymous to?
I am not really sure I have anything to say in the body besides the link except that ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 101k
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my Question about adjective-adverb "double duty" got closed
The post desriptor as simultaneously an adjective and an adverb, retaining truncated into one-ish. E.g.: "ornate, ornately furnished" ↦ “ornate, -ly furnished” got closed on the basis of ...
tchristMod
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Closing a question: tag specificity and the merits of viewing the question in a vacuum
I'm referring to this post I had from earlier: Collocations for litigation.
Judging by the comments, which were helpful, let there be no mistake about that, I appreciate any and all such input.
To get ...
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My questions are wrongly closed and I am not allowed to ask questions, even before my questions were answered [duplicate]
I have a question about my English Language & Usage Stack Exchange post: If an apple is bad and there are 5 apples (of the same type of the apple mentioned before) that are bad, then which of the ...
tchristMod
- 134k
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2
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Why is the culture here so broken?
My first question here, When and where did the new sense of "normalize" begin?, has been closed due to being "off-topic."
TL;DR summary of the question: There is a recent sense of ...
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Is this synonym request truly unanswerable with facts and citations? Does it need to be edited? If so, how?
Term for wavelength-restricted or filtered light having a fairly pure color besides "colored light"? has been closed with the advice to
Update the question so it can be answered with facts ...
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Should this question about the meaning of "a friend to all is a friend to none" be reopened?
The question "A friend to all is a friend to none" - Aristotle. What does this exactly mean? was closed five years ago, roughly a week after it was posted. The argument in favor of closing ...
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Why was the question “By the end of today” or “By the end of the day” closed as opinion-based?
The question “By the end of today” or “By the end of the day”: which expression is is correct? was closed as opinion-based. However I don't see any opinion there: the OP is just asking for which ...
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Can my question be re-opened now that it's edited?
I've updated my question Is there a better word for "boss” in this sentence? as requested, explaining why “boss” is not suitable.
Please check and vote to re-open.
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What makes a question about historical usage of a word off-topic?
The question about the historical usage of men to refer to human beings generally was closed as off-topic. It seems to fall under usage and perhaps even etymology, two of the listed acceptable topics....
Andrew LeachMod
- 101k
5
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Why was this question about a single word's pronunciation ("whinge") closed as off-topic?
I noticed that How is "whinge" pronounced? was closed as being off-topic.
I once noticed somebody spelled "whine" as "whinge" and thought it was an egregious and ...
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Why did this question showing research was closed with the reason "Please include the research you’ve done"?
The question Where does the use of "deck" to mean "set of slides" come from? shows research. However, it was closed with the reason "Please include the research you’ve done&...
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Why can edits to a closed question be rejected as "should have been written as a comment or an answer"?
Although a long-time reader of various SE sites, I'm new to active participation and still learning the rules and conventions. My question here is about the possible stock reasons for rejecting edits ...
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Linked question is absent in "This question already has answers here" banner [duplicate]
I came across this question:
Should personal pronouns always be placed at the end of a list?
This question was closed eight years ago as duplicate of some other question. That question is not visible. ...
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Why was a question about the origin and meaning of a phrase closed because the origin is known?
Note: The question in question has been reopened.
The question 'What’s the origin/meaning of “from belt buckle to shoe sole”?' was closed because
Mr Biden consistently gives the origin - his uncle. ...
- 32.7k
2
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1
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question ban not lifted even after 6 months
Last year I asked a few questions related to proofreading. I was a newbie and did not know about this question ban related thing. I have been wanting to ask one question from last one month but cannot ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 101k
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2
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Coming soon: improvements to close-voting
For those of you who have been following or peripherally aware of the drama around the network the last few quarters, a new chapter has opened, and it seems a brighter one.
The company hired a new ...
- 38.4k
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Close reason. Unclear
My meta-question is about this question
Please pardon me for any mistake and kindly correct me.
I believe Unclear is synonymous with Vague.
I do not understand how is my question vague.
Am I not ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 101k
-1
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1
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What is the appropriate state of this question regarding feminizing girls?
Is there any verb for making a girl more girly? is closed, but I am having difficulty placing my finger on just why that is. I am not suggesting that it is a great question, but it does seem to meet ...
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About closed questions
I am a new member. Can I answer an unanswered closed question? If so, how? I have an answer for a closed unanswered question
- 21.4k
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Is my question regarding all of the different meanings of 'as' fixed?
I asked the question What do all the different meanings of 'as' share in common?, which originally finished with the three following questions:
How did "all so" or "so" (alswa) proliferate to ...
- 4,541
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Hell is hot, but is it funny?
On August 27 of last year, a poster on the main site asked "What does the idiom “funny as hell” mean?" Four days later, the question was closed for a familiar reason:
Please include the research ...
- 162k
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Should "What Does Mansplaining Mean?" be reopened or migrated? (Reopened)
The question was originally closed for the lack of research closure reason. Hotlicks voted to close with the claim that the answer could easily be found with a google search, and Dan Bron voiced ...
- 4,541
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"Masters degree" vs. "Master's degree" is not the same question as "Master's degrees" vs. "Masters' degrees"
I would like to request more reopen votes for the following question: Does a person have two “masters’ degrees” or two “master’s degrees”?
As described clearly in the question post, it is not ...
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Do questions about emoticons belong on ELU?
A question was published recently in which the OP asked about the proper style for usage of emoji, which as it turned out I guess he meant emoticons since he was talking about using punctuation marks.
...
LaurelMod
- 65.4k
18
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2
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Why are etymology questions that show research getting/staying closed?
I noticed that the community doesn't really agree with itself on the subject of what's on topic and off topic when it comes to the amount of research needed. I'm seeing this on questions that would ...
CommunityBot
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Why is my question locked?
I asked the question: Is Post Script (P.S.) still relevant in the age of email? on ELU few days back which resulted into closing and locking of the question.
My version: Why it happened?
Closing ...
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About controversial questions
I'd like to propose a way to deal with controversial questions.
Current state of events.
Every once in a while a question pops up that by itself is flawed when set against site rules, but at the ...
- 90.3k
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The "bare/bear with me" question: what should we do with it?
Is it "bear" or "bare" with me?
There's been a lot of discussion on Meta in the comments about this question recently, but it's actually not the main topic of any of the recent ...
- 90.3k
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Difference between "locked" and "closed"
After reading the Winter Cleaning question, I took a look at some old questions to see what could potentially be closed/removed. I found this proofreading question, which, being a proof-reading ...
- 90.3k
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Why can't I up-tick comments on a certain closed question?
A question was migrated from Writer.SE to our main site. There it was placed on hold for unclear. I agreed with a comment placed there from Lawrence (from our own community), but when I tried to up-...
CommunityBot
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Not all "whom" questions are interchangeable duplicates
I can understand the impulse to vote to close any new question about the use of whom as a duplicate, since most of them are. However, I don't think that any two questions about whom are necessarily ...
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"...the person or body who/which..." is not only a question about whether to refer to companies with "who" or "which"
"...the person or body who..." vs. "...the person or body which..."
As far as I can see, this question does not ask only about whether to refer to companies with "who" or "which". ...
Andrew LeachMod
- 101k
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Shall we reopen this helpful question?
This question, What exactly is an adverbial phrase, which did not originally show much research, seems to actually be a very useful and helpful question. I've put the text here for your convenience:
...
CommunityBot
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Is the question asking about the "AmEng meaning" of two phrasal verbs a duplicate?
The question: Is there a difference in meaning between "fill {something} in" and “fill {something} out” in American English?
was closed as a duplicate of "Fill out a form" or &...
CommunityBot
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("on hold" again) Why is this question closed, when the reason listed does not seem to be correct?
My question is listed below. I have made necessary changes and I do not think it should be put on hold.
Non-vulgar alternative to “Don't care a ____” [today placed "on hold" for the 2nd time]
As for ...
CommunityBot
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What should be done with the emoticon/emoji comparison question?
So this regards the question What is the Difference Between Emoji and Emoticon?
This question was closed as gen. ref., because it lacked research. I do not necessarily feel as this was appropriate at ...
CommunityBot
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Holds, duplicates
Right now, thirty of the fifty questions visible on the first page have been marked as holds or duplicates, with two or more others apparently awaiting final judgment from whatever local Fates have ...
LaurelMod
- 65.4k