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Joined: Aug 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2001
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I recognized a peculiar set of words yesterday, and I thought I'd share them with you.
There is a word that paradoxically changes both its number and its gender with the addition of an 's'.
Indeed, it becomes singular where before it had been plural, and feminine instead of masculine.
Maybe it's a well-known puzzle, but I know a lot of them and never came across this before.
I don't know any other words with this property. Do you suppose Richard Lederer does?
Whaddaya think?
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Joined: Dec 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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WhaddI think?
I can see the general form but I can't think of the specific word. Form below in white:
A word ending in the plural marker -es becoming a word with the feminine suffix -ess.
Do the two words have the same base meaning?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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formerly known as etaoin...
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Joined: Aug 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2001
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I saw on another Board once the practice of having a separate thread for answers to puzzles such as this one, so they weren't right there to spoil the fun, but were available if wanted. Does that have merit such that we might have such a thread too?
Answer: Dunno. Let's try it and see! I'll put it under "Information and..."
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Joined: Jul 2002
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 742 |
yep, etaoin, that was my guess. A little too easy really.
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Joined: Aug 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
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'Twasn't really meant to be hard, just an interesting anomaly!
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 742 |
In reply to:
'Twasn't really meant to be hard, just an interesting anomaly!
Oh, please don't mind me - my neurons fire so seldom that when either of them does, I tend to crow about it endlessly. 
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Joined: Jun 2002
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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fahu: would you like me to pull my answer? as long as I get credit for being first!course, I wouldn't have gotten it without Fald's help...
formerly known as etaoin...
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Joined: Jul 2002
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 742 |
I didn't need any assistance to get the answer, but the reason it came to me instantaneously is that there is a street near where I live called "Princes" Street. Said thoroughfare is routinely misappellated "Princess" Street. This slovenly habit has annoyed me nearly 20 years now, so the answer to the question posed leapt out at me beforeI had finished reading the initial post.
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Joined: Jan 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858 |
You can find anything on the Internet:
"s we all know, but it bears repeating: Do the
dietary thing, exercise, stop smoking (if you do
smoke), control blood sugar (if it's a problem),
and reduce stress and anger. If you can do these
things, you might look in the mirror and see a
svelte Ponce (or Poncess) de Leon-like figure
drinking at the fountain of youth. If you don't see
the old Spaniard, you'll still like what you see
better than if you don't adhere to these
guidelines. "
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