Shame on BBC

[W.G.Ewald]

Wow, you are an early riser.

What is your opinion of the nomenclature, fish-plate?

I did not know this!

In rail terminology, a fishplate, splice bar or joint bar is a metal bar that is bolted to the ends of two rails to join them together in a track. The name is derived from fish, a wooden bar with a curved profile used to strengthen a ship's mast.

Fishplate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

See the link for a gallery of fishplate photos and more than you ever wanted to know about them.

 

[pmaitra]

I did not know this!



Fishplate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

See the link for a gallery of fishplate photos and more than you ever wanted to know about them.

Actually, it comes from the French term fische, which means to fix, but the English screwed it up and changed it to fish-plate.

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Actually, it comes from the French term fische, which means to fix, but the English screwed it up and changed it to fish-plate.

Maybe the English screwed up the French word, but they had the first railways.

In September, 1825, the Stockton & Darlington Railroad Company began as the first railroad to carry both goods and passengers on regular schedules using locomotives designed by English inventor, George Stephenson. Stephenson's locomotive pulled six loaded coal cars and 21 passenger cars with 450 passengers over 9 miles in about one hour.

Railroad Invention and History

 

[pmaitra]

Maybe the English screwed up the French word, but they had the first railways.



Railroad Invention and History

Very true. They also invented fish-and-chips.

 

[amoy]

pfft... nice one Mr. Pedantic. Chicken is a plural noun only in the context of food. In the context of the living animal, it requires an s to make it plural.

Ya, I once was confused when I saw fishes, peoples...

 

[Dovah]

Grammar Nazis...

 

[Adux]

What fvck is wrong with people , going all PMS on some effin grammar.

 

[Yusuf]

What fvck is wrong with people , going all PMS on some effin grammar.

They have become the whipping boys since they lost MMRCA and started talking shit.

BTW wonder what they will say if the allegations of Rafale kickbacks are true and the Typhoon gets the contract?

 

[Armand2REP]

You are correct with regards to food. However, I pointed out 'uncountable nouns.'

Uncountable Nouns

"A French village has proposed giving two chickens to each household." That is quantifiable. Only when used in unmeasured food goods is it plural to say chicken. Such as, "I bought a bucket of chicken, or I ate chicken for dinner, or I ordered 5 tonnes of chicken.

 

[pmaitra]

"A French village has proposed giving two chickens to each household." That is quantifiable. Only when used in unmeasured food goods is it plural to say chicken. Such as, "I bought a bucket of chicken, or I ate chicken for dinner, or I ordered 5 tonnes of chicken.

Both your quoted sentences are correct, but the definition is almost correct save for that 'food' part. I was talking about the title.

 

[Armand2REP]

The numbers in the title are quantifiable. It was two as stated in the next sentence. The number does not have to be mentioned in the same sentence as usage of the noun.

Look at all those chickens in the yard. There are twelve of them.

You certainly wouldn't say, Look at all that chicken in the yard. That is referring to them as food.

 

[pmaitra]

The numbers in the title are quantifiable. It was two as stated in the next sentence. The number does not have to be mentioned in the same sentence as usage of the noun.

Look at all those chickens in the yard. There are twelve of them.

You certainly wouldn't say, Look at all that chicken in the yard. That is referring to them as food.

In the title and the first paragraph, it is uncountable. Check the definition of (un)countable nouns.

Example: You can count money, but money is uncountable noun. Monies is the plural of money, but you always say "I gave him some money."

Again, according to you, what is the definition of uncountable or "mass nouns?"