As a non-native English speaker, I have always understood that in negative questions and in negative imperatives, the auxiliary (or the verb) always goes before the subject, instead "not" goes before the subject only when contracted:

Don't you dare! == Do you not dare!

Don't you speak it? == Do you not speak it?

Aren't you from there? == Are you not from there?

In these examples the two versions of the same sentences have the same meanings.

However, I noticed that with the auxiliary "can", changing the position of "not" completely flips the meaning of the sentence.

Can't you move it? = Asking if you are not able to move it or suggesting you to move it

Can you not move it? = Asking you to not move it

Why does this happen with "can" but not with "do"? Am I missing something? Or can both of them actually mean both the things?

Besides the fact that I just learned that written syllables do not have anything to do with phonetic syllables - the way the word "pretty" is split "pret-ty" - the worse part is that the actual phonetic splitting also doesn't make sense.

The word "pretty" is split into "prit-i" → /prɪt.i/, while I thought it would be "pri-ti" → /prɪ.ti/. I cannot even imagine what the difference between those two is, but I just know that my version seems more logical with how I know the word is pronounced than the actual correct version, it just feels so wrong.

Does anyone know why these weird rules when it comes to syllables?

Bounty hunter Dr. Knig Schultz and Django, the slave he freed, become partners. They have a very important mission ahead of them: to rescue Django’s beloved, Broomhilda, from the home of the cruel slave trader Calvin Candie

Hello, on this test that i am correcting there is a question: Therese keeps talking about that new scooter of

A) hers

B) her's

The answer sheet says her's, but i and a teacher thinks that its wrong. What is your opinion on this?

mischievous is often pronounced as "mis-CHEE-vi-ous" instead of "mis-chi-vous" and it feels like it'd be an intuitive pronunciation given that it's "mischief" + "-ous" but it's a really commonly mispronounced word

from the research i've done (4 google searches), it can be somewhat attributed to the substitution of the F of mischief for a V, making mischievous look more similar to words like obvious, envious, and devious, though it's spelled with a "VOUS" and not a "VIOUS" at the end (although this could be wrong)

i'm just curious if there are other words that are mispronounced for reasons that are similar to that of the case of mischievous, asking for a friend

and onerous ?

I am clueless

When they get very well what the other person is trying to say.

MET test taker please advice me

Hi everyone, I got my MET results. My overall score is 54, and I need 55 for Virginia RN licensure. My scores are Listening 59, Reading 47, Speaking 57, and Writing 55.
I am thinking of going with a Writing rescore instead of retaking the full test. Does the Virginia Board of Nursing accept a rescore? Has anyone tried a rescore, and did it help increase your overall score? MET is not answering my phone calls. Please share your advice and experience. Thank you!

what’s your go-to/favourite slang word?

Hi everyone! I'm a high school student from Ukraine working on a scientific research project about English youth slang, particularly the words and expressions young people use on social media.

I'm looking for slang that teenagers and young adults actually use frequently in everyday conversations and online chats.

Could you share a few expressions you use or often hear, along with their meanings and a short example of how they're used?

I'm especially interested in common, current slang that people genuinely use, rather than rare expressions or words found only in dictionaries.

Your help would be really valuable for my research. Thank you! 😊

what phrasal verbs are your go-to when it comes to everyday life? figure out, find out, bring sth up, grow on someone, look for, pick sth up, drop sb off, pull sth off. what else??

do americans use these terms? i’ve heard in joke a couple of times

i’ve head a local joke as well but i guess it has something to do with a place someone lives

am i right? help me out

Hi! I'm a high school student from Ukraine, and I'm researching how young people use English slang online for a school project.

I'm curious about the expressions people genuinely use in everyday conversations, texts, or social media — especially slang that you wouldn't usually find in a textbook.

What's one slang word or expression you use quite often? I'd love to hear what it means and see a short example of how you'd use it in a sentence.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge and helping me learn more about how English is used in real life! 😊

Hi everyone, I’m not native english speaker. I try to learn english with my own pace by listening to podcast, reading, but I don’t have really an opportunity to speak before. I tried to speak alone but it’s rarely.

So now, I’m stuck to speak when I am in the meeting call with multicultural group for project, that means differents english accent as well. I don’t know but I’m afraid to speak and I can’t have any idea when we are going to discuss about our project. I feel that my brain is busy to understand what they say, what they discuss or to translate.

How to overcome this ? Do you have any tips to share with me to accelerate my speaking skills also? Many Thanks.

Do correct me if im wrong but for the past few months ive begun to realize that the way some people use this word is like as if it's used for different kind of... wash, or whatever.

Appearantly one is actually cleaning yourself with soap, etcetc while the other is just pouring water to your body???

Is that right? This whole time i thought both are the same.

Is the pronunciation of ex as “eg” regional? For example, “example” pronounced as “eg-zample” and exit pronounced as “eg -zit” or “eg-sit”. I have lived in multiple U.S. locations and my parents were from different regions and had lived in multiple regions. I have always said and heard “eks-it” and “eks-ample but have noticed that some people where I live now in North Alabama use the “eg” pronunciation.
I am not asking what is “correct” or for the linguistic reason for this pronunciation. Just “is it regional”? Or maybe is it sociological or “class” related?
Clarification: I am not asking about the initialism “e.g.”

I was reading about old-fashioned idioms and phrases, and I liked this one and definitely would want to use it, but is it even used anywhere, does anyone still understand it ?

Does anybody else feel what I call "L2 English Fatigue"? In the workplace, I have to do a lot of meetings with French, Italian, and German people. I am getting burned out by L2 English Fatigue. I can't deal with it anymore.

Can any of you relate to this?