RE: Warning re Christopher James book
On Mon, 10 Mar 2008, Richard Knoppow wrote: I think in all four definitions of "set-up" there is the common factor that each is an "arrangement" of something. In this use set-up, with or without the hyphen, is a noun referring to something that exists so IMO the plural should be the same as for any other noun or object, that is, the S goes on the end vis: set-ups.Judy As a verb I think the hyphen is not necessary or correct as in "Can you set up these lights?" The resulting arrangement of lights would be called a set-up. If there is more than one it would become set-ups as in "What lighting set-ups do you have for the scenes in this play?"Hi Richard... Exactly... In fact that's what I said (or thought I said) first time around.... But, to use a phrase that probably dates me: "Devil get thee behind me !" I spend too much time at monitor/keyboard as is... But I mention for folks who like their education/entertainment analog (as do I -- tho if we evolve as predicated, sometime before our sun sucks earth into a red pie in 5 and a third billion years, we could be born with pixel sight, relieving the strain)-- that I have a charming book titled "Far from the Madding Gerund and other dispatches from the Language Log", by Mark Liberman and Geoffrey K Pullum, published by William James & co, www.wmjasco.com-- bought from my local Barnes & Noble, $22. ISBN 1-59028-055-5 It's text from Language Log (http://www.languagelog.com), much of it contrary to conventional usage if not "wisdom", in fact some "dispatches" could possibly come across as, um, arrogant, possibly another "voice" (like "passive")? I'm only about halfway through, however, as the madding Artforum keeps coming every month and just turning its 500 pages is practically a full time job. ("full-time job"? "fulltime job"? -- oh, fuggedaboudit.) best, Judy
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