Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
"Sir, I'd like an adage."
"A what?"
"An adage. You know, a proverb, an aphorism."
"How 'bout 'Two wrongs don't make a right'?"
"No, that's not quite old enough."
"Alright, then - well, how 'bout 'Et tu, Brute?'"
"No, no, no - that's a quote. This isn't much of an adage shop is it?"
"Well, I do have this one 'You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink'."
"Do you have anything older?"
"That's the oldest adage in the English language that's still in use today."
"Have you any Chinese proverbs?"
"Oh, no - you'll have to go to the Ministry of Chinese Proverbs for those."
I'm sure that most people have been saying, "the flu", for most of their lives, but...How does that habit necessarily make that usage correct?
Can you give me any documentation of why, "flu", requires the insertion of, "the", while other diseases/disorders do not?
If we use the actual medical term, "influenza", rather than, "flu", do people say, "I have THE influenza"?
As to Gonorrhea, it is at very high levels among younger, urban folk nowadays, particularly among some minority groups.
You should be glad if you don't have to worry about, "THE Gonorrhea".
It is very common in vernacular English to use an article before single-syllable names within a class. In medical terminology, there is also the bends, the clap, a cold, the mumps, the pox, etc. When a longer name become shortened to a single syllable, it is not surprising that people treat it the same way.
"Sir, I'd like an adage."
"A what?"
"An adage. You know, a proverb, an aphorism."
"How 'bout 'Two wrongs don't make a right'?"
"No, that's not quite old enough."
"Alright, then - well, how 'bout 'Et tu, Brute?'"
"No, no, no - that's a quote. This isn't much of an adage shop is it?"
"Well, I do have this one 'You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink'."
"Do you have anything older?"
"That's the oldest adage in the English language that's still in use today."
"Have you any Chinese proverbs?"
"Oh, no - you'll have to go to the Ministry of Chinese Proverbs for those."
I was going to say hilarious, but.... oh, Hell, it's HILARIOUS!
"Sir, I'd like an adage."
"A what?"
"An adage. You know, a proverb, an aphorism."
"How 'bout 'Two wrongs don't make a right'?"
"No, that's not quite old enough."
"Alright, then - well, how 'bout 'Et tu, Brute?'"
"No, no, no - that's a quote. This isn't much of an adage shop is it?"
"Well, I do have this one 'You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink'."
"Do you have anything older?"
"That's the oldest adage in the English language that's still in use today."
"Have you any Chinese proverbs?"
"Oh, no - you'll have to go to the Ministry of Chinese Proverbs for those."
It is very common in vernacular English to use an article before single-syllable names within a class. In medical terminology, there is also the bends, the clap, a cold, the mumps, the pox, etc. When a longer name become shortened to a single syllable, it is not surprising that people treat it the same way.
I agree that it is not surprising, but...it is still not correct.
"The Bends", is actually, "Decompression Sickness", according to reputable medical authorities.
Please note, that is not, "The Decompression Sickness".
And, if you check the websites for The Mayo Clinic, The CDC, and other legitimate sources of medical information, you will see that, "mumps", is a disease. There is no mention of, "the mumps".
As to, "the pox"...Are we in 2013, or in an earlier century?
Now I'm going to beat the horse one more time - Perhaps it's a possibility that the usage THE flu came about when someone corrected the person who said, "I have flu", thinking it should have been, "I have flown".
I agree that it is not surprising, but...it is still not correct.
"The Bends", is actually, "Decompression Sickness", according to reputable medical authorities.
Please note, that is not, "The Decompression Sickness".
And, if you check the websites for The Mayo Clinic, The CDC, and other legitimate sources of medical information, you will see that, "mumps", is a disease. There is no mention of, "the mumps".
As to, "the pox"...Are we in 2013, or in an earlier century?
I got the measles as a child. Of course that is short for the measles virus.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
