Re: USAGE : English past tense and participle in -et

It occurs to me that in at least some dialects there is at least one
word which may fall between "a" and "lot of".  While the phrase "a
whole lot of" may not be standard English, exactly, it is well known
and generally understood.  I would be interested to hear how this is
accounted for by those who consider "alot" to be a single word.

Incidentally, I can use "lot" as a noun denoting a quantity or number.
If I was, say, processing documents or peeling potatoes or what have
you, I might say something like "After I finish these, I have that lot
over there to do, and then I'm finished".  (This doesn't carry any
connotation of auctions or divisions of land.)  However, "lot" in this
sense only denotes some set, grouping or quantity, and doesn't imply
that this quantity is particularly large.

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