Re: Kinda NATLANG: English stupidities: "You both"

Neo wrote:
    >Subject: Kinda NATLANG: English stupidities: "You both"
    >Where the heck did that come from? And its sad that it is proper >grammar…. Any comments?
    

    What's odd about it?  One is speaking to two, and only two, people (or two groups).

 Or is it the conjuction of the apparently singular "you" with "both" --but
Engl. you is both sing. and plur., and sometimes needs clarifying-- you all,
you guys, you people, you conlangers...you both (as well as "you two/three..."
etc.). As with some quantifiers, it's pretty much interchangeable with "both of
...". Note the distinction between "two of you..." vs. "the two of you..."

    

 The only problem might be in a language with verbal agreement-- the equiv. of
"you both" might require 2du or 2pl, while the equiv. of "both of you..." might
require a 3rd person verb. (?) (Unfortunately, Spanish fails me here.)

    

    Kash I think would use 2pl in either case:  

        hila lorohi (hi)yuñeva

        2pl. ro-ro-hi (2pl)-yu-ñeva (the vbl.pfx. is optional if the pronoun is used)

        you-pl  two-two-2pl/poss (2pl)-inch.-mistaken

        lit., you-pl both-of-you became-mistaken

 "both of you made mistakes ~ you both made mistakes" (basically emphasizing
"the 2 of you" in contrast to "others")

    (_lorohi_ could not correctly appear alone as subject)

    

    versus the more neutral:

        hiyuñeva lorohi

Reply