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From: mouse@mcgill-vision.UUCP (der Mouse)
Newsgroups: net.misc
Subject: Re: Re: Is English decaying rapidly? (less/fewer)
Message-ID: <328@mcgill-vision.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 7-Nov-85 06:03:57 EST
Article-I.D.: mcgill-v.328
Posted: Thu Nov  7 06:03:57 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 8-Nov-85 21:29:28 EST
References: <1427@cae780.UUCP> <10600197@uiucdcs>
Organization: McGill University, Montreal
Lines: 25

>>>> A recurring source of irritation to me is all the supermarket signs which
>>>> say "x items or less" rather than "x items or FEWER".
>>> That is shorthand for "X items or less than X items". It isn't a mistake.
>> Yes, it IS a mistake.
>> The difference between "less" and "fewer" is that ....
> This seems like an overly pedantic and outmoded distinction.  Should we 
> then also read "n < 5" as "n is fewer than 5" instead of "n is less than 5"?

     (Only when n is an integer :-)

     No,  it is OK to say  that  3 is less than 5.  It  is not OK to say
that  three items are less than five items;  you have to  say that three
items are *fewer* than five items.  That is to say,  one  number can  be
less than another, but one number *of something* is not less, but fewer,
than another number *of something*  (unless it's not fewer  at  all, but
equal or more :-).
-- 
					der Mouse

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