4 ms·

fewer

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
quarterto 11y ago
The purpose of language is communication. Did you understand what melvinmt meant? Yes, of course you did. What's the big deal? What are you gaining by "correcting" a pointless[1] semantic distinction, other than your own smug satisfaction? [1]: Yes, it's pointless. Why is there no such distinction for "more"?
- BlackJack 11y ago
  He was just giving a tip. Your "smug satisfaction" view is in your mind. I would want to know if I was misusing a word.
  - saintx 11y ago
    "If I were misusing a word." Just trying to help ;-)
    - BlackJack 11y ago
      Can you elaborate? I thought 'was' is for 1st person (I) and 3rd person (he/she), and 'were' is for 2nd person (you,your, etc). Update: So I just googled around and learned that "were" is used for the subjunctive mood i.e. wishes/thoughts. Good to know!
      - Domenic_S 11y ago
        Your update is correct. Verbs have moods, which is so cool to me. An article/blog about subjunctive verbs: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/subjunctive-verbs http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/subjuncti...
  - umanwizard 11y ago
    Why misusing? Language has meaning by the convention of its users -- not by the fiat of English teachers. By the consensus of informal English, "less" and "fewer" can both be used in that scenario (by definition, since lots of people do it).
  - quarterto 11y ago
    Fun fact: all our perceptions of other people's emotion is "in our mind". Doesn't make the perception invalid.
- Cakez0r 11y ago
  Usually when you use a citation, it's supposed to provide substantive evidence. Not just reiterating your opinion[1]. [1] This is a fact.
  - Nadya 11y ago
    Some people use that form factor as footnotes or offhand comments.
    - socksy 11y ago
      Indeed, some people like PG...
- loco5niner 11y ago
  > Why is there no such distinction for "more" Because English is weird. I still want two use it correctly.
  - umanwizard 11y ago
    Who decided what's correct, if not the community of English speakers?
dang 11y ago
We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10380365 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10380365 and marked it off-topic.

fewer

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

The purpose of language is communication. Did you understand what melvinmt meant? Yes, of course you did. What's the big deal? What are you gaining by "correcting" a pointless[1] semantic distinction, other than your own smug satisfaction? [1]: Yes, it's pointless. Why is there no such distinction for "more"?

BlackJack 11y ago
He was just giving a tip. Your "smug satisfaction" view is in your mind. I would want to know if I was misusing a word.
- saintx 11y ago
  "If I were misusing a word." Just trying to help ;-)
  - BlackJack 11y ago
    Can you elaborate? I thought 'was' is for 1st person (I) and 3rd person (he/she), and 'were' is for 2nd person (you,your, etc). Update: So I just googled around and learned that "were" is used for the subjunctive mood i.e. wishes/thoughts. Good to know!
    - Domenic_S 11y ago
      Your update is correct. Verbs have moods, which is so cool to me. An article/blog about subjunctive verbs: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/subjunctive-verbs http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/subjuncti...
- umanwizard 11y ago
  Why misusing? Language has meaning by the convention of its users -- not by the fiat of English teachers. By the consensus of informal English, "less" and "fewer" can both be used in that scenario (by definition, since lots of people do it).
- quarterto 11y ago
  Fun fact: all our perceptions of other people's emotion is "in our mind". Doesn't make the perception invalid.
Cakez0r 11y ago
Usually when you use a citation, it's supposed to provide substantive evidence. Not just reiterating your opinion[1]. [1] This is a fact.
- Nadya 11y ago
  Some people use that form factor as footnotes or offhand comments.
  - socksy 11y ago
    Indeed, some people like PG...
loco5niner 11y ago
> Why is there no such distinction for "more" Because English is weird. I still want two use it correctly.
- umanwizard 11y ago
  Who decided what's correct, if not the community of English speakers?

dang 11y ago

We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10380365 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10380365 and marked it off-topic.