Re: Language superiority, improvement, etc.

Nik Taylor wrote:

> And "more perfect" isn't as good as "perfect"; I think that both of
> those could be thought of as an elided "nearly", i.e., "that beach is
> very nearly empty", "a more nearly perfect union"
"More perfect" in the U.S. Constitution uses the old sense "complete":
a "more complete union" as opposed to the loose union provided by
the Articles of Confederation.

"Perfect tense" is probably the last survivor of this sense in
living use.

--
John Cowan      http://www.ccil.org/~cowan              cowan@ccil.org
        You tollerday donsk?  N.  You tolkatiff scowegian?  Nn.
        You spigotty anglease?  Nnn.  You phonio saxo?  Nnnn.
                Clear all so!  'Tis a Jute.... (Finnegans Wake 16.5)