
How did nominal come to mean "within acceptable tolerances"?
The aeronautical sense of nominal derives from engineering where the nominal value is the specified dimension and the reference point for tolerances. The Free Dictionary offers the following definition …
etymology - Why "hoist" in "Hoist with one's own petard"? - English ...
Sep 5, 2013 · He was hoist with his own petard is one of my father's favorite phrases. As a child I had developed a vague understanding of the idiom in which petard was a kind of flag, which is why it was …
"Experienced" vs. "seasoned" - English Language & Usage Stack …
Are these two words interchangeable? According to the Oxford dictionary, experienced means having knowledge or skill in a particular job or activity, while seasoned having a lot of experience in a
Why is the term “Engineer” often misused? [closed]
Nov 14, 2017 · I am a software developer by profession, but some people refer to me as a software engineer. There are lots of other fields that use the term engineer; for example, civil engineer. In my …
"Scholar" vs. "scientist" - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange
Aug 8, 2011 · 'Scholar' certainly is used for someone outside of the humanities (check the definition you linked to). 'Scholar' standing by itself does have the connotation of reading quite a bit, which is not …
What is the difference between "electric" and "electrical" and their usage?
So, generally, people do not say "electric engineer" unless the engineer runs on electricity; instead they say "electrical engineer". So, in the case of "electric (al) machine" from your question, since you are …
Is "actioned" a valid word? - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange
Business English may be the worst definition of what valid English is. The people sprouting it have exactly the wrong agenda (marketing as opposed to facts, trying to sound sophisticated). E.g. …
idioms - get up and running with something - English Language
Jun 4, 2022 · And gives an example: The engineer soon got the air-conditioning up and running again. Given this definition and example is the following sentence correct? In this lecture we will cover how …
What is a good, short, word to describe a software engineer?
Software engineer and computer scientist are more formal terms for those with degrees or other professional qualifications. SE is a commonly used abbreviation in speech for a software engineer, …
What is he? vs Who is he? - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange
Jul 24, 2018 · What is he? -- Does the question refer to what he is doing for a living? Who is he? -- Does it refer to his name? For example, he is Peter.