English Language

[mickeyd]

DW and I were discussing oddities in the English language this AM. Here are two things that I learned (or clarified ) and I found interesting.

When do you use "fewer" and when do you use "less"? Well it seems that fewer is used when you are referring to things that can be counted. For example, "That box has fewer hammers in it than the other one." Less is used when referring to conceptual things that can not be counted. For example, "The less I think about it, the happier I am."

When do you use "etc." and when do you use "et al." in a sentence? You use etc. when there are no people involved in the thought. For example, "I'm buying the food today including apples, mustard, bread, etc.". You use et al. when referring to people (named or unnamed). For example, " I am going to call John, Mike, the director, et al. tonight"

Note: etc. should always end with a period. For et al., use a period only at the end of al. Both are abreviations (latin) but et is not.

 

[Gumby]

Less can also be used with tangible things that cannot be individually identified -- That bucket has less water in it than this one.

 

[SecondCor521]

If it helps, et cetera is Latin for "and the rest", and et alias is Latin for "and the others".

And please don't spell it "ect." or pronounce it "excetra"!

2Cor521

 

[bssc]

And flammable and inflammable mean the same thing.

 

[Eagle43]

What's that in the road, ahead?

 

[John Tuttle]

And flammable and inflammable mean the same thing.

And cleave is its own antonym.

 

[bosco]

cargo is sent on ships and shipping goes in trucks

 

[poboy]

Irregardless(which is not a word), it all makes sense.

 

[youbet]

And my favorite......... Your You're right about that!

 

[REWahoo]

One used frequently here..."It's a mute moot point."

 

[TromboneAl]

As CFB would say, dont get me started!

 

[retire@40]

Wouldn't it make more sense simply to say "walking" instead of "making his way"?

 

[poboy]

Note about above posts: Their own the rite trak.

 

[yelnad]

Check out this link about the English Language.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

We drive on a parkway and park in a driveway...

 

[haha]

Check out this link about the English Language.

"Why does a man get a hernia and a woman a hysterectomy?"

He is kind of messed up here. True, biological men don't get hysterectomies, but plenty women get hernias. All it takes for a hernia is some weakend abdomen, and some bowel to push through. Last I checked women always have bowel, and may have weakened or separated abdominal muscles.
Ha

 

[MikeD]

"I could care less." This sets me off. Apparently, I *could* care less.

Mike D.

 

[wabmester]

I used to write articles for trade rags once in a while. An editor told me that I wrote well for an engineer -- she didn't have to change much at all. I asked her why she changed "... implement interface A which can't be ..." to "... implement interface A that can't be ..."? When do you use "that" vs "which?"

She explained that you always use that with a restrictive clause. It took me a few more years, but I think I finally got that.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I just wanna know why all the bad medical things that happen to women start with "men"...

 

[Martha]

Meningitis?
Meningococcal disease?
Meniere's disease?
Meniscus?

 

[califdreamer]

How about the common misuse of i.e. for e.g.?

i.e. - that is

e.g. - for example

OK I know one of you smarties knows the Latin behind the abbreviations.

 

[Gumby]

id est

exempli gratia

 

[John Tuttle]

I used to write articles for trade rags once in a while. An editor told me that I wrote well for an engineer -- she didn't have to change much at all. I asked her why she changed "... implement interface A which can't be ..." to "... implement interface A that can't be ..."? When do you use "that" vs "which?"

She explained that you always use that with a restrictive clause. It took me a few more years, but I think I finally got that.

Donald Knuth, famous computer scientist and inventer of TEX, calls it the "wicked which" problem.

 

[MikeD]

Donald Knuth, famous computer scientist and inventer of TEX, calls it the "wicked which" problem.

Whatever happened to him? I read two of his books when I was a young comp sci major. I haven't heard anything from him in 20 years.

Mike D.

 

[wabmester]

Whatever happened to him? I read two of his books when I was a young comp sci major. I haven't heard anything from him in 20 years.

He's a "retired" prof at Stanford.

link