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Author Topic: New column-type thingy  (Read 111461 times)

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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #525 on: November 23, 2012, 03:37:41 PM »
I'm not sure what you're asking.
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #526 on: November 23, 2012, 03:38:04 PM »
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #527 on: November 23, 2012, 04:18:15 PM »
It's interesting that everyone I know who remembers being taught this uses the same exact example for hung: people are hanged, pictures are hung.

(Also, your last parenthetical has no close.)
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #528 on: November 24, 2012, 10:11:37 AM »
It's interesting that everyone I know who remembers being taught this uses the same exact example for hung: people are hanged, pictures are hung.

Probably because it makes a good mnemonic—it's memorable and easy to grasp.

Quote
(Also, your last parenthetical has no close.)

Thanks for catching that.
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #529 on: November 25, 2012, 02:34:46 PM »
Probably because it makes a good mnemonic—it's memorable and easy to grasp.
Probably. Nonetheless, it's interesting there are (as far as I am aware) no alternative mnemonics used.
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Offline Tante Shvester

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #530 on: November 26, 2012, 09:36:39 AM »
One of my high school English teachers did note that men can be hung, but only in the colloquial sense.  She was a hot riot.
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Offline Porter

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #531 on: November 26, 2012, 02:06:43 PM »
It's interesting that everyone I know who remembers being taught this uses the same exact example for hung: people are hanged, pictures are hung.
Probably because it makes a good mnemonic—it's memorable and easy to grasp.

I don't get how it is memorable.  I mean, I remember the mnemonic, but it's always as "People are [either hanged or hung], pictures are [the other one].  The mnemonic doesn't help me remember which word is used in which situation.

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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #532 on: November 26, 2012, 02:23:52 PM »
I guess you have to have some inkling of which is which first. Then it just serves as a reminder.
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Offline Porter

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #533 on: November 26, 2012, 03:12:34 PM »
Oh well.  I never remember which is which for lay/lie either.
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #534 on: December 10, 2012, 02:15:38 PM »
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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #535 on: December 19, 2012, 01:33:02 PM »
Completion Successful

Huh.  I had never thought of it in that way.  But now I always will.  And since I work at a bank, I'm probably going to share this particular column...
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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #536 on: December 19, 2012, 01:38:39 PM »
Success!
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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #537 on: December 24, 2012, 03:08:12 PM »
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #538 on: December 24, 2012, 03:58:55 PM »
Is there really meant to be a that that in one of your examples? (If so, it lost me completely, and now I'm trying not to recall the entire that that quote from the Thursday Next books. And failing . . .)

The that/which thing has never bothered me. Which probably just means I never had a teacher who corrected me on it.
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #539 on: December 24, 2012, 05:40:26 PM »
It is intentional. I'm showing that that doesn't work in some situations. Hence the asterisk.

Lucky you for never having it inflicted on you. I picked it up when I started copy editing and defended it valiantly for several years before being disabused of it by Language Log.
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #540 on: December 24, 2012, 05:47:49 PM »
I'm showing that that doesn't work in some situations.
That much I followed.
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #541 on: December 24, 2012, 06:06:50 PM »
Um . . . so what didn't you follow?
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #542 on: December 24, 2012, 06:32:42 PM »
Double thats usually fry my brain. This is no exception.
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #543 on: December 24, 2012, 06:46:47 PM »
Ah. Normally the second that would be which. Or you could replace them both with what.
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #544 on: December 24, 2012, 07:41:02 PM »
Normally the second that would be which.
And with that substitution, I can decode.

Or you could replace them both with what.
But not with that one. *headasplode*
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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #545 on: December 24, 2012, 09:42:26 PM »
Why not with that one? "They want what they can't have."
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #546 on: December 24, 2012, 09:53:27 PM »
Oh! I misunderstood what you meant by "both" (as distinct from "each").
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Offline Jonathon

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #547 on: December 24, 2012, 09:56:02 PM »
 ???

I would take "you can replace them each with what" to mean that the end result would be "they want what what they can't have". I can see how "both" can yield the same reading, but I don't see how "each" would mean what I wanted to mean.

At any rate, I edited the original passage in question to make it a little clearer.
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Offline rivka

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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #548 on: December 24, 2012, 10:09:25 PM »
The error was mine, not yours.
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Re: New column-type thingy
« Reply #549 on: December 24, 2012, 11:01:09 PM »
Well, whoever's error it was, glad we got it all cleared up. :flower:
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