Re: USAGE: irregular plurals (was: minimal pair ...)

Tristan scripsit:

> Pardon the lateish reply.
On Conlang there is no such thing as a "dead thread", only ones to
which no one has added lately.

> We could always just do what MS says and use 'one mouse
> device' 'two mouse devices'. Though, interestingly enough, I want to say
> 'one mouse device', 'two mice devices'.
But you wouldn't think of saying "one keyboard device", "two keyboards
devices".  It's only irregular plurals that can be incorporated into
compounds this way.  (There are exceptions, which are maintained at MIT on
an exceptions list.)

> Like having two Linux boxen. <random rant>(Or Lyenux boxen, if you
> insist.)</rant>
Yes, after two thousand years of erosion, the poor old n-declension
has suddenly acquired three new members:  "VAXen", "boxen", and "Macintoshen".

--
John Cowan          http://www.ccil.org/~cowan        jcowan@reutershealth.com
To say that Bilbo's breath was taken away is no description at all.  There are
no words left to express his staggerment, since Men changed the language that
they learned of elves in the days when all the world was wonderful. --The Hobbit