Re: USAGE: THEORY/USAGE: irregular English plurals (was: RE:

John:
> And Rosta scripsit:
>
> > the fuzz
>
> Just to confuse the issue, it seems that this can mean "a policeman"
> as well as "the police", as in the Tom Paxton song:
>
>         I thought you were an Arab ['ejR&b]
>         Saw the desert in your eyes
>         I thought of asking for a job in Abu Dhabi
>         Till you sprang that big surprise.
>
>         You handed me the money
>         Just like a real Arab does
>         So I thought you were an Arab
>         And all the time you were the fuzz.
>
> In other verses, we find "the heat", "the law" in the same sense.
> Technically, members of the Federal Bureau of Ineptitude are called
> "special agents".
(Oo, I like the sound of that song. Should I seek it out? Anybody
who says ['ejR&b] is already well on their way to winning my
favour.)

If it meant "policemen", would we not expect "you were a fuzz"?
And "you were the police" is okay. So I'm not persuaded by your
analysis of this choice datum...

--And.

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