Re: noun destructs

[Tony Chung <tonyc -at- tonychung -dot- ca>]

On Thu, Nov 11, 2010 at 6:25 PM, Peter Neilson <neilson -at- windstream -dot- net> wrote:
> The word "invitation" has vanished. It is now an "invite" wherever I
> look. This destruct of a good word gives me an indigest.

Do you believe that language is a static entity that cannot evolve?
I'm of the belief that language and culture are closely related. As a
culture changes, language often adapts. Txt truncation is often held
responsible, but its just one result of our microwave society that
expects everything now!

I searched for a word that meant "to apply a noun usage to a verb form
without nominalization" and came across this post from 2000 on
"Verbing and Nouning". The writer quotes Calvin and Hobbes, where
Hobbes comments: "Maybe we can eventually make language a complete
impediment to understanding."
<http://www.henriettahay.com/language/00jul14.htm>

A particular peeve of mine is the usage of the prepositions "above"
and "below" before their associated objects. For instance, where we
used to write: "The figure below" and "The table above", I've seen
written: "The below figure" and "The above table".

Funny thing is that I don't see a problem with "The above..." but
cringe at "The below...." A colleague questioned that I thought "The
above..." was okay.

-Tony
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