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Bookmark or Share- Absolutely delicious Vs. Very delicious - WordReference ForumsHyperbole and over-the-top description are overwhelmingly common in English. So the rules about gradability are broken every day, everywhere, by almost every speaker of English. We like hyperbole because we like the drama and enthusiasm it connotes - it actually sounds friendly and engaging to most English speakers.
- far from satisfactory/satisfaction? | WordReference ForumsYes, I think "satisfaction" is misused here. I would use "satisfactory". (Thank you for the example, by the way; it's much easier to discuss such questions with a real-world example.) To say the AF is still far from satisfaction sounds like the goal is to satisfy the AF, not the other way around. Even then, it's an odd way to put it.
- an or a hyperbole | WordReference ForumsIn fact, there's actually just one, but people sometimes make it much harder than it really is: Consonant sounds get a, vowel sounds get an. That's it - that's the entire rule. The only reason hyperbole is questionable at all is that "h" can be kind of tricky since in some words it's pronounced and in others it's silent.
- Her pants are so tight I can see her religionReligion is a euphemism for (the outline of) her private parts. Something like "the most intimate part of herself". It's quite possible that the mother of the person who posted the comment was blissfully unaware of the original meaning of the phrase (as applied to the male form visible under tight pants).
- Straight down the middle | WordReference ForumsStraight down the middle - from golf - staying on the fairway, avoiding the rough and the bunkers, no deviation from the direct route. of the field - a bizarre collocation with straight down the middle since field refers to sports where going straight down the middle is unlikely to bring success - football, rugby, hockey etc.
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