Marian
AUTHORS' ANNEXE (English Language Discussions)
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keithgood838
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:30 pm
Nice one, Paul. I like the paginal link between
tome and stationery. However, I doubt that I shall
be able to remain stationary in the queue for
Michele's book.
Keith
tome and stationery. However, I doubt that I shall
be able to remain stationary in the queue for
Michele's book.
Keith
Last edited by keithgood838 on Wed Aug 27, 2008 5:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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keithgood838
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:30 pm
Hi Marian
We are now in the thorny territory of compound nouns;
where two or more words are joined together. Time-outs
is correct in this instance; as in the case of weekends,
custom and practice will make the hyphen disappear.
I hope you will be amused by my attempt to shed some
light on this subject.
CONFOUNDING COMPOUNDS
How do you grapple with the vagaries
of the compound noun?
Well, there is a guide, a rule of thumb:
if the noun is hyphenated, e.g. will-o'-the-wisp,
ad s at the end; an exception being
mother-in-law, because of the dominant
noun-element, (it would be) sorry, Mum.
Keith
Note. Non-hyphenated nouns such as whisky and soda,
and jelly and custard pluralise as whiskies and soda,
and jellies and custard. Hyphenated ones become
stick-in-the-muds and forget-me-nots, for example.
We are now in the thorny territory of compound nouns;
where two or more words are joined together. Time-outs
is correct in this instance; as in the case of weekends,
custom and practice will make the hyphen disappear.
I hope you will be amused by my attempt to shed some
light on this subject.
CONFOUNDING COMPOUNDS
How do you grapple with the vagaries
of the compound noun?
Well, there is a guide, a rule of thumb:
if the noun is hyphenated, e.g. will-o'-the-wisp,
ad s at the end; an exception being
mother-in-law, because of the dominant
noun-element, (it would be) sorry, Mum.
Keith
Note. Non-hyphenated nouns such as whisky and soda,
and jelly and custard pluralise as whiskies and soda,
and jellies and custard. Hyphenated ones become
stick-in-the-muds and forget-me-nots, for example.
A question for Keith or anyone for that matter...............is there such a word as fantabulous. I know the word has crept into the language recently. Is it a made up word or does the word exist 
the reporter on the BBC news at the Olympic party outside Buckingham Palace said the crowd had a "fantabulous" time.............so if a BBC reporter uses the word, then it must be part of modern day language 
the reporter on the BBC news at the Olympic party outside Buckingham Palace said the crowd had a "fantabulous" time.............so if a BBC reporter uses the word, then it must be part of modern day language "My Tears Will Fall Now That You're Gone,
I Can't Help But Cry, But I Must Go On"
I Can't Help But Cry, But I Must Go On"
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keithgood838
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:30 pm
Robert
It's a slang hybrid begotten of fantastic and fabulous.
It will probably gain the respectability of OED inclusion
in the fullness of time.
Keith
It's a slang hybrid begotten of fantastic and fabulous.
It will probably gain the respectability of OED inclusion
in the fullness of time.
Keith
Last edited by keithgood838 on Wed Aug 27, 2008 5:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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keithgood838
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:30 pm
Marian, my dear, don't despair. You are a bright lady.
Remember to add an s to two-word compounds and
three-word hyphenated ones. Thereafter it is gins and tonic,
whiskies and soda, jellies and custard etc. all the way.
However, watch out when you pluralise mother-in-law.
Keith
PS Some grammarians claim that noun + conjunction + noun
compounds require the second noun to be plural. I can't agree
with that; whisky and sodas doesn't sound right.
Remember to add an s to two-word compounds and
three-word hyphenated ones. Thereafter it is gins and tonic,
whiskies and soda, jellies and custard etc. all the way.
However, watch out when you pluralise mother-in-law.
Keith
PS Some grammarians claim that noun + conjunction + noun
compounds require the second noun to be plural. I can't agree
with that; whisky and sodas doesn't sound right.
Last edited by keithgood838 on Wed Aug 27, 2008 6:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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keithgood838
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:30 pm
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keithgood838
- Posts: 2478
- Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2008 6:30 pm
An American friend sent me this, asking if I could explain our language to him! 
I'm afraid I failed.
Ode to English Plurals
We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.
You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.
If the plural of man is always called men,
Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?
If I speak of my foot and show you my feet,
And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet
If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?
Then one may be that, and three would be those,
Yet hat in the plural would never be hose,
And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.
We speak of a brother and also of brethren,
But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him,
But imagine the feminine: she, shis and shim!
Marian
I'm afraid I failed.Ode to English Plurals
We'll begin with a box, and the plural is boxes,
But the plural of ox becomes oxen, not oxes.
One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,
Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.
You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,
Yet the plural of house is houses, not hice.
If the plural of man is always called men,
Why shouldn't the plural of pan be called pen?
If I speak of my foot and show you my feet,
And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet
If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,
Why shouldn't the plural of booth be called beeth?
Then one may be that, and three would be those,
Yet hat in the plural would never be hose,
And the plural of cat is cats, not cose.
We speak of a brother and also of brethren,
But though we say mother, we never say methren.
Then the masculine pronouns are he, his and him,
But imagine the feminine: she, shis and shim!
Marian
He also sent this one, though not in rhyme I'm sure George would have liked it too. 
Let's face it - English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger;
neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren't invented in England .
We take English for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes,
we find that quicksand can work slowly,
boxing rings are square,
and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing,
grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?
Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend.
If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?
If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?
Sometimes I think all the folks who grew up speaking English should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.
In what other language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?
We ship by truck but send cargo by ship.
We have noses that run and feet that smell.
We park on a driveway and drive on a parkway.
And how can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same,
while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language
in which your house can burn up as it burns down,
in which you fill in a form by filling it out, and in which an
alarm goes off by going on.
And in closing, if Father is Pop, how come Mother's not Mop?
Marian
Let's face it - English is a crazy language.
There is no egg in eggplant nor ham in hamburger;
neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins weren't invented in England .
We take English for granted, but if we explore its paradoxes,
we find that quicksand can work slowly,
boxing rings are square,
and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing,
grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?
Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend.
If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?
If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught?
If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat?
Sometimes I think all the folks who grew up speaking English should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.
In what other language do people recite at a play and play at a recital?
We ship by truck but send cargo by ship.
We have noses that run and feet that smell.
We park on a driveway and drive on a parkway.
And how can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same,
while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites?
You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language
in which your house can burn up as it burns down,
in which you fill in a form by filling it out, and in which an
alarm goes off by going on.
And in closing, if Father is Pop, how come Mother's not Mop?
Marian