Bret Ripley wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:07 pmThere is something kind of charming about having an insane autocorrect feature on a board that is evidently okey-dokey with a typo on its banner.
Absolutely. It cracks me.
Bret Ripley wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:07 pmThere is something kind of charming about having an insane autocorrect feature on a board that is evidently okey-dokey with a typo on its banner.
i'm only on my first cup of coffee. The apostrophe?Morley wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:11 pmBret Ripley wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:07 pmThere is something kind of charming about having an insane autocorrect feature on a board that is evidently okey-dokey with a typo on its banner.
Absolutely. It cracks me.
I'd say it's arguably permissible under this rare exception:
https://www.sussex.ac.uk/informatics/pu ... he/pluralsAn apostrophe is indispensable, however, in the rare case in which you need to pluralize a letter of the alphabet or some other unusual form which would become unrecognizable with a plural ending stuck on it:
Mind your p's and q's.
How many s's are there in Mississippi?
It is very bad style to spatter e.g.'s and i.e.'s through your writing.
Without the apostrophes, these would be unreadable. So, when you have to pluralize an orthographically unusual form, use an apostrophe if it seems to be essential for clarity, but don't use one if the written form is perfectly clear without it. (Note that I have italicized these odd forms; this is a very good practice if you can produce italics.)
There are ways to get around that without straining the English language. One could rephrase the heading. Or reorder the words. Or say "never-Mormons."Res Ipsa wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:35 pmI'd say it's arguably permissible under this rare exception:
https://www.sussex.ac.uk/informatics/pu ... he/pluralsAn apostrophe is indispensable, however, in the rare case in which you need to pluralize a letter of the alphabet or some other unusual form which would become unrecognizable with a plural ending stuck on it:
Mind your p's and q's.
How many s's are there in Mississippi?
It is very bad style to spatter e.g.'s and i.e.'s through your writing.
Without the apostrophes, these would be unreadable. So, when you have to pluralize an orthographically unusual form, use an apostrophe if it seems to be essential for clarity, but don't use one if the written form is perfectly clear without it. (Note that I have italicized these odd forms; this is a very good practice if you can produce italics.)
I will occasionally use the apostrophe in a similar way when I think the reader is like to stumble over or mispronounce the term without it.
The Never-Mos(s) Postings brook no Rough-Rolled Stonings.Physics Guy wrote: ↑Wed Mar 13, 2024 2:29 pmThe posts of the collective Never-Mormon are welcome, even though the alien intelligence of its colossal hive mind is too overwhelming for it to be welcome itself.
"Never-Mormons" -- quoth the Raven, had it been allowed to finish its sentence. (Oh, and spellcheck doesn't recognize the word "quoth.")
I very much like it the way it is. I wasn't complaining; but as one of these selfsame Never-Mo's I reserve the right to be offended by the apostrophe next time I'm losing an argument and need an excuse to flounce.Personally, I kind of like it the way it is.