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If I understand instructions in Webster's New International, the plural given for "Charles" in today's quote is incorrect.
" So Charles was crown'd; but now the angry mob Demand that he be brought to Tyburn Tree - Such is the curse on all odd-numbered Charles'." Emily Sheffield, Jackdaw, The Guardian (London), May 29, 1996."
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Are you saying they pluralated Charles by adding an apostrophe?
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Dear Faldage: that appears to be the usage in the passage quoted. I shall not be surprised if our UK members say UK usage differs from US usage.
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old hand
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My belief is that, even in the UK, it might be more likely for Charles to be pluralised Charleses. The Grauniad (in many other ways one of the world's best English language papers), can sometimes demonstrate a cavlier attitude to the language. The number of times its writers 'beg the question' inappropriately (at least for this logic-dillettante), is past count.
To be honest, I'm quite comfortable with the idea of using an apostrophe to account for the plural in such a case, but that may be because I enjoy using apostrophes wherever I can. In any case, I suspect that even the writer in The Guardian would expect the word to have been pronounced (in the reader's mind) as Charleses.
cheer
the sunshine warrior
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I have to admit "Charleses" looks horrid, but at least it cannot be confused with a genitive.
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Is The Guardian a kind of thumbing-their-noses-at-societal-standards publication? If so, that might explain their (possibly) deliberate disregard of language proprieties.
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Check it out for yourself at guardian.co.uk :-)
I find it irresistible, and genuinely believe that the Saturday edition, in particular, is the most deeply satisfying weekend read ever.
But it is a huge 'Labour' supporter - it cannot help its left-wing right-on-ness, and, though no doubt proud of the standard of its writing (George Orwell being one of its most famous contributors), can tend to slip into the latest demotic rather more swiftly than its other national broadsheet counterparts.
At least it has a Reader's Editor (an ombudsman), who does on occasion address these issues in his column.
cheer
the sunshine warrior
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Man, what a disappointment to find out not only that this is a real word, but its meaning. From your sentence, I was hoping it was a coinage of emotive with demonic connotations!
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Dear Jackie: I learned the word "demotic" from articles about ancient Egypt. Remember the Rosetta Stone, with three kinds of writing on it, that made it possible to decipher the hieroglyphics? Here is a good site about Egyptian writing.: http://www.egyptologyonline.com/hieroglyphs.htm
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Thanks for the ref, Bill. Of course, sorry to disappoint, Jackie, but the word is used these days (as far as I am aware), in the way the 'vulgar' was used for Latin, I think (remember Jerome's famous Vulgate?). Vernacular, also, is sometimes used in a similar sense. Of course, except perhaps for the earlier use of vulgar, none of these uses is strictly, ie literally, accurate.
Or have I got that wrong?
the sunshine "I rarely look up words so I frequently get it wrong" warrior
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