Word: nouns
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...single breath, like can be used as an adjective, adverb, noun and verb. In Harvard-speak, "to be like" and "to go" are perfectly acceptable alternatives to the verb "to say." What exactly does it mean when one says, "He went like...
When Ellen Hamilton asked the question, "But what actually is equestrian?" (Riding Out the Storm, October 19) somebody should have told her that if it is anything at all, "equestrian" is NOT a noun. Throughout her entire article, Ms. Hamilton displays an annoying ignorance regarding her subject, and an inexcusable ignorance with regard to the mechanics of the English language...
...Equestrian," when used as a noun, refers to a person who rides a horse. (Example: von Bismarck is an accomplished equestrian.) One does not say, "This sport is called equestrian." One would no sooner say, "equestrian will always be in his blood," than say "bourgeois will always be in his class." And one does not dicuss the "major factor in equestrian...
...well beyond the patience of the English speaker. One may be left exhausted and bewildered after navigating through cascades of clauses that lead to the elusive verb at the very end that explains everything. For sheer frustration, however, little compares with the task of remembering what gender each noun is and hence whether a der (masculine), die (feminine) or das (neuter) needs to be affixed in front of it. And then, of course, there are the declensions...