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Request to reopen a closed-as-duplicate question: Can you write "... me's" (the possessive)?

Note: The question has now been reopened. I have added further examples of the group genitive to my answer to the question. This should help to distinguish it further from the hyphenated compound ...
Shoe's user avatar
  • 33.1k
6 votes
0 answers
147 views

What should be done with the questions that ask about the reason behind adjective order?

There are a bunch of questions that ask about adjective order, and most of them are closed as dupes of the original What is the rule for adjective order? asked 12+ years ago. There are three questions ...
Heartspring's user avatar
  • 8,592
10 votes
1 answer
200 views

"Why don't we close these duplicates?" vs "Why do we not close these duplicates?" vs "Why do not we close these questions as duplicates?"

I found a bunch of questions about these grammatical formulations: "Why don't we close these duplicates?" (Negated question using a contraction) "Why do we not close these duplicates?&...
Laurel's user avatar
  • 66.2k
-6 votes
2 answers
111 views

Can we get this unlinked?

Word that describes a stand in or a frontman? was referred to another question, Word for Powerless Position?, which apparently did not answer the question, as the questioner selected my response as ...
GArthurBrown's user avatar
  • 2,532
1 vote
0 answers
39 views

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....
cpit's user avatar
  • 514
2 votes
1 answer
42 views

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. ...
Severus Snape's user avatar
8 votes
2 answers
293 views

Is this word order question a duplicate of this AAVE question? If so, how?

The question Why you're laughing vs Why are you laughing? asks (paraphrasing): Is the word order "Why you're laughing?" acceptable in colloquial spoken English? The question African American ...
Tanner Swett's user avatar
  • 3,143
3 votes
1 answer
95 views

Why do we allow a question to be marked duplicate when the "duplicate question" is much wider in scope than the original?

So I'm researching the difference between "prefer to do" and "prefer doing", and came across this question which asked about the difference in meaning between those two specific forms. It was locked ...
Lou's user avatar
  • 1,729
1 vote
2 answers
88 views

How to change a closure from "proofreading" to "duplicate"?

Ed Chu's question Is ā€œI was having a walkā€ correct? has been closed (with just one vote plus mod) for supposed "proofreading". I think the proofreading flag was inappropriate here, as the question is ...
Chappo Hasn't Forgotten's user avatar
5 votes
0 answers
154 views

Why are all the can/may questions marked as duplicates of the question about the weird sentence ā€œCan/may/will you help me with this?ā€

I'm familiar with the idea of choosing one question as an (informal) "canonical" target for duplicates, but I was surprised to find that for questions about the difference between "can" vs. "may", the ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
2 votes
2 answers
75 views

Should "What's the difference between tense A and tense B?" questions be marked as a duplicate of something generic?

It seems as if I see a question like this at least once a day. What's the difference between "X is" and "X will"? Should I use "X is" or "X was"? Between "X was" and "X had been," which is ...
Jason Bassford's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
77 views

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 ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
3 votes
1 answer
75 views

When considered writing an answer to a question, do I have a responsibility to search for duplicates before answering?

Recently a question came up as to whether it's our responsibility to look for previously answered questions on our sister site, English Language Learners. The consensus was no. But someone commented ...
aparente001's user avatar
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3 votes
0 answers
75 views

Not even close to a duplicate

I see here question about duplicates that it is OK to post here when one's question is falsely marked duplicate. This is the case with my question ā€œI was late, and so I got fired.ā€ Can we use two ...
Chuckk Hubbard's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
108 views

Question marked duplicate when it isn't (in my opinion)

I asked this question with very specific examples of people describing what they like using redundant adjectives (specifically things like "I like well-written books" or "I like tasty food"). I'm ...
JJJ's user avatar
  • 7,148
0 votes
2 answers
182 views

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 ā€œfill {something} outā€ in American English? was closed as a duplicate of "Fill out a form" or &...
Mari-Lou A's user avatar
  • 91.1k
4 votes
2 answers
146 views

Can moderators change a close reason from 'Please show your research...' to 'Duplicate of...'?

Last week, I asked this question: Can moderators redirect links from badly chosen duplicates to actual duplicates? The answer (from moderator MetaEd) was Moderators have the ability to edit the ...
Sven Yargs's user avatar
  • 163k
8 votes
1 answer
118 views

Can moderators redirect links from badly chosen duplicates to actual duplicates?

The question Subject-verb agreement when using singular they? recently popped up in the Reopen Votes queue because the poster returned and edited it in hopes of getting it reopened. It had been closed ...
Sven Yargs's user avatar
  • 163k
5 votes
1 answer
106 views

How to Mark a Question as a Duplicate of Multiple Questions

This evening I came across this question. In the comments, sumelic has indicated three potentially related questions. They are obviously better equipped than I to handle any duplicate closing in this ...
vpn's user avatar
  • 2,192
7 votes
1 answer
87 views

Difference between Flags "A Duplicate" and "Should be Closed... Duplicate of"

For awhile I've been confused by the two flagging options for duplicates. What is the difference between selecting a duplicate... versus selecting should be closed... then duplicate of... ...
vpn's user avatar
  • 2,192
6 votes
0 answers
95 views

What's the word for someone who doesn't appreciate what he has and wants more? - Not a duplicate

What's the word for someone who doesn't appreciate what he has and wants more? What's the word for someone who is ungrateful/ not appreciative of the things he has but wants more lavish things? ...
Eliot G York's user avatar
  • 5,220
8 votes
1 answer
127 views

How does the Community user close a question as duplicate?

I did search but couldn't find an answer... so hope this isn't an exact duplicate... as that would be rather embarrassing. I saw a question closed today by two users, and Community ā™¦. At what ...
Gary's user avatar
  • 9,703
1 vote
1 answer
123 views

Flagging a Question as a Duplicate of an ELL Question

I came across this question today and was going to flag it, but I wasn't sure what flag category to use. It is fairly basic, so it likely belongs on ELL. However, in the comments, a user mentions a ...
vpn's user avatar
  • 2,192
16 votes
2 answers
302 views

Undercutting the old duplicity

Recent, well-formulated questions may be closed as duplicates of older, more poorly formulated questions. The answers given for the latter may pose as answers for the former. However, a well-...
JEL's user avatar
  • 32.8k
4 votes
0 answers
228 views

'Duped' again...is that a "real word"?

My question, titled what does the phrase "a real word" mean?, from Sept 2015 has been closed as a duplicate of What are the criteria to adopt new words into English?, from Feb 2011. Aside from the ...
JEL's user avatar
  • 32.8k
4 votes
0 answers
147 views

Let's change the canonical question about forming possessives for words which end in 'z' [Completed]

I voted to close the question https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/362525/when-a-name-ends-in-z as a duplicate of Possessive form for a surname ending with "z" (Q1). Unfortunately, ...
user avatar
10 votes
0 answers
101 views

We should have a better dupe target for questions about pronoun order

We receive a large number of questions about the proper use of pronouns, which in turn means that many of these questions are closed as duplicates. These aren't all duplicates of one another, though: ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
6 votes
1 answer
159 views

Reasons for dupe-close on question with the tag question-tag?

Can someone tell me why this question on question-tags was closed as a duplicate of this other one? As far as I can tell, the new question (though not particularly well-written by the standards of ...
AndyT's user avatar
  • 14.8k
9 votes
4 answers
218 views

Project Reduplication of Deduplication - English

Stack Exchange recently started a collaboration project with the University of Melbourne, in an attempt to improve the automatic detection of duplicate questions. More information on the project and ...
Monozygotic's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
242 views

What should be done with "Another" vs "other"?

So I noticed that there is a bit of an editing dispute between Rathony and CuriousDanii regarding the question "Another" vs "other" regarding which version of the question should ...
Tonepoet's user avatar
  • 4,541
1 vote
0 answers
62 views

Duplicate Question Confusion [duplicate]

I recently posted this question and it received very good answers. One user suggested a dupe for this question, and I agree with the designation. However, I much prefer the answers on this question ...
AAM111's user avatar
  • 1,441
0 votes
1 answer
78 views

Is this actually a duplicate?

Is this question Why are ships always female? really a duplicate of the Pronoun question: referring to inanimate objects as 'he' or 'she' second? While there are some general remarks ...
Helmar's user avatar
  • 5,437
7 votes
0 answers
114 views

The answer to this question is great! But the question is closed and a bit hard to find

"Put me in touch with whomever created it"? I think F.E.'s answer here is very good and complete--the best overview on the case of fused relative pronouns that I've seen on this site. But ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
5 votes
1 answer
329 views

Should "Why can we use inadequate but not 'inspecific'?" be reopened?

I've been considering asking this question here on Meta-English Language & Usage for the past few days pursuant to help-center guidelines and after just having asked several users about it, have ...
Tonepoet's user avatar
  • 4,541
6 votes
1 answer
262 views

Should the question about "I am [who/whom] G-d made me" be reopened?

This question ("I am [who/whom] G-d made me") was marked as a duplicate of these questions ("Whatā€™s the rule for using ā€œwhoā€ and ā€œwhomā€ correctly?", "When to use what or who"), but I don't think ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
15 votes
1 answer
333 views

Are all questions about the reason a word is spelled/pronounced the way it is duplicates of one another?

As a hypothetical example, should we close Why are "put" and "but" different in their pronunciation? as a duplicate of Why is "chore" pronounced differently from the &...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
6 votes
0 answers
149 views

Review the duplicate linkage between the 'token list' question and the 'user account' question

The following questions are duplicates: should a list of tokens be called a "token list" or a "tokens list" "User accounts" or "users account" The accepted ...
Lawrence's user avatar
  • 38.5k
6 votes
1 answer
147 views

Why must we assume that earlier answers are better, especially when they are not even related?

This concerns a specific example of a more general procedural issue that bothers me. A recent question is headed Idioms for a 'obvious' or 'needs no explanation'. Its well-stated core is a matter of ...
Captain Cranium's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
36 views

Related questions that I think were incorrectly merged

Word meaning coincidence of reference to the unusual Phenomenon of learning a new word that you've never seen before, and then seeing it being used (currently merged with the above) A single word ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
3 votes
0 answers
84 views

How to respond to duplicate suggestion when I feel no edit is needed?

I have a question that is suggested as a duplicate and says I should edit the question to make it non-duplicative. If I feel it is not a dup, but I feel the question already, as written, is not a dup,...
WilliamKF's user avatar
  • 641
2 votes
0 answers
68 views

Should a moderator merge the questions about the pronunciation of the name "Sean"?

Why do we pronounce Dean as /diĖn/ but Sean as /ŹƒÉ’n/? Why is Sean pronounced Shawn? I think I was the first one to vote for closing the first as a duplicate of the second, and now I feel stupid for ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
2 votes
1 answer
84 views

What if the dupe is on another site?

We have a sister site, ELL, as far as I understand. (So, to some extent, do other sites, such as Theoretical Computer Science (Computational Science) or MathOverflow (Mathematics). I wonder whether ...
anemone's user avatar
  • 6,216
15 votes
0 answers
259 views

Why is my question about the stress of "uroboros" a duplicate of the one about the stress of "stigmata"?

Sorry to make a post about "why my question was closed," but I'm having a hard time understanding it. The question about "uroboros" asks about two things: descriptive information about the history ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
2 votes
0 answers
49 views

Three duplicates that I think should be merged (pronunciation of "coN-" words)

I don't see any value in keeping the following three questions distinct. However, there are some valuable answers to each of them (but not too many answers). So, I think all of the answers should be ...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
-5 votes
2 answers
276 views

How does one deal with the problem of the phantom upvoter?

I've just 'cancelled' (downvoted as a counter-measure) an upvote for what is essentially an old chestnut {Gender-neutral pronoun other than singular they} (ie I'm not aware of the previous question or ...
Edwin Ashworth's user avatar
10 votes
0 answers
350 views

Can we switch to a better canonical question about using pronouns in compound possessives?

We get a lot of questions about coordinating pronouns with nouns for joint possession, along the lines of "my wife's and my dinner," most recently: "you," "your" or "yours&...
herisson's user avatar
  • 81.8k
10 votes
1 answer
425 views

Please change the canonical 'ordinal question' to one which is more informative

Preface We get many questions along the lines of "how do I frame a question in order to elicit an ordinal number as a response?". And, inevitably, they are all closed as duplicates of: What ...
Mari-Lou A's user avatar
  • 91.1k
8 votes
2 answers
226 views

Is it a bad thing to have your question marked as a duplicate?

This morning I had my question closed and, upon browsing through the answers to the proposed duplicate, I did find half of an answer to my question. This leads me to wonder about some things: Is it ...
Dog Lover's user avatar
  • 6,445
14 votes
1 answer
459 views

Lots of questions on the plurality of collective nouns, sets, and organizations

I came to EL&U today wondering about the correct way to use plural verbs in regard to nouns that imply plurality (such as "group"). While I did find answers, I found many questions that were ...
zeel's user avatar
  • 165
-2 votes
1 answer
93 views

Seriously though, how is this a duplicate?

This question, which asked: You've got macaroni spilt all over your house. Which one would be a correct version? These are too much macaroni. These are too many macaroni. It's too much macaroni. ...
phenry's user avatar
  • 18.3k