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Joined: Jan 2001
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I asked, OK... but what about the spouse of your brother/sister?

and belM noted, The spouse of your brother is your sister-in-law, and the spouse of your sister is your brother-in-law.

I should have been clearer. I meant that it seems strange to me that both the brother of your spouse and the spouse of your brother are given the same title. I like how there is a name for the spouse of your spouse's sibling -- I have some very good relationships with my concuņo/as (plurals, consuelo?) -- and I was wondering if there was a difference between the names of the different relationships I mentioned above.


#41907 09/20/01 07:36 PM
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...how many solicitors-general, attorneys-general, and even Governors-general I must report your infraction to?

You must have handsful of them.

Note: the -s- plural marker infix!

#41909 09/20/01 08:18 PM
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>You say "my mother-in-law's house in nice" because the whole term 'mother-in-law' is the noun BUT If mother-in-law is really a noun then why isn't it mother-in-laws (instead of mothers-in-law) when referring to the mom on both sides of the family. And is it mothers-in-law's houses or mother-in-laws' houses.

Moot point. If you have more than one mother-in-law you have a LOT more to worry about than where to put a little old apostrophe or -s for pluralization.

It was bigamy to bring that up!



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The spouse of your brother or sister still falls under the same category as the brother or sister of your spouse. Sorry, that combination escaped me. I think it must have run under the desk while I was learning to make the tilde.


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In my family they are known as out-laws[tee-hee emoticon]


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In reply to:

after that whole Bingley size of fig-leaf debacle, well, nuff said


Have I missed something? Been taken over by aliens? I don't remember mentioning any figging leaves.

Bingley



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While we're on the subject when did -in-law come to refer your spouse's relatives, anyway? In Jane Austen's time mother-in-law meant stepmother, and brothers- and sisters-in-law were just called brother and sister.

Bingley


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Well, Bingley old chappie, we're all much, much younger than you. We, unlike you, weren't around during the Regency period. We all defer to your greater longevity!



The idiot also known as Capfka ...
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That's the problem with cryogenics. One misses out on developments which occurred between the two periods in one's life.

Bingley


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