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Re: No more plural? No, more plural!

From:Remi Villatel <maxilys@...>
Date:Saturday, August 13, 2005, 17:31
# 1 wrote:

> Wouldn't the collective also mean "At least one Shaquean has already > gone in space at least once" in the same sense we say "Humans walked on > the moon" and that it is neither each of us separately or at the same > time that did this, but only the whole mankind represented by some of > its members?
> Or Would you say such thing by another form?
No, the collective wouldn't be used to say "Humans" meaning "at least one Human". An indefinite distributive plural could be used: ga ta ruvësëf [ga: ta xuvEsEf] ga ta ruvësëf INDEF.DSTR.PL DIST.PST human = Some Humans did (it). (or) = Several Humans did (it). A more precise translation could use a linear variator with a simple indefinite singular aspect: seja ta ruvësëf [seja: ta xuvEsEf] se-ja ta ruvësëf LINV-INDEF.SG DIST.PST human = More than one Human did (it). But the best is a generic aspect which describes concepts and ideas. söja rëta ruvësëf. [sOja: xEta xuvEsEf] söja rë-ta ruvësëf GNR ITER-DIST.PST human = Humans did it several times. (or) = Humankind did it several times. A collective means a group of some kind at one time and at one place. It can't fit with a repetitive (ITERative) process. -- ================== Remi Villatel maxilys_@_tele2.fr ==================