Re: Items or less/fewer

In message <6t9v2tF9t5frU3@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Robert Bannister <robban1@xxxxxxxxxxx> writes
Ian Jackson wrote:
In message <6t7a2lF9dcioU1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, LFS <laura@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes
Mike Page wrote:
"Paul Brians" <paulbrians@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:b83cac89-4112-4ed7-807c-b0f0629859e0@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I was pleased to note that the signs above the express lines in the
Safeway on Bainbridge Island, Washington read "15 items or fewer"
rather than the common "X items or less."
I'll chip in my usual comment when this comes up. If less is wrong with numbers, when did it become wrong and why? King Alfred used it. Shakespeare used it. The broad mass of the common people use it. Who first set themselves up as an authority to say it is wrong? And before someone says it maintains an important distinction, we don't need separate words for 'more', do we.


Hm. I thought I was doomed to argue with you about this for as long as we continued to write together, but I may be coming round to your way of thinking, now that you've raised the issue of "more". "More or less" sounds normal but "more or fewer" sounds very odd.

While I ponder this, I should point out that your last sentence lacks a question mark.

And rest assured that I shall never concede on the "however" issue.

As "more-or-less" means "approximately", and is essentially all-one-word, I always make a point of writing it with hyphens.

Do you think there should be more or less than ten hyphens in a typical sentence? More or fewer does sound odd.

Agreed. On first hearing, it does sound a bit odd. But that's a different "more or less". It's not the all-one-word "more-or-less". It's the "more - or less - than ten" version, where "less" is offered as an alternative to "more". And, of course, it really should be "more - or fewer - than ten". I think (or hope) that I would say "more than ten, or fewer than ten", but even I have my failings.
--
Ian
.

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