Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss

plurals with 's

0 views
Skip to first unread message

Carlos Beltran

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 10:36:01 AM4/7/04
to
Hello,

Is the " 's " necessary when forming the possesive of plurals noums or
not?

Should I write?: pingeons's food
or: pingeons' food

Thank you.

Carlos.


Einde O'Callaghan

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 11:33:01 AM4/7/04
to
Carlos Beltran wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Is the " 's " necessary when forming the possesive of plurals noums or
> not?
>
> Should I write?: pingeons's food
> or: pingeons' food
>
I presume you mean "pigeons" - if we are taliing about the food of a
specific group of pigeons then it would be "the pigeons' food" -but if
we're talking about food suitable for pigeons then I'd use the two-word
compound noun "pigeon food".

Regards, Einde O'Callaghan

Django Cat

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:00:39 PM4/7/04
to
On Wed, 07 Apr 2004 17:33:01 +0200, Einde O'Callaghan
<einde.oc...@planet-interkom.de> wrote:

> Carlos Beltran wrote:
>> Hello,
>>
>> Is the " 's " necessary when forming the possesive of plurals noums
>> or
>> not?
>>
>> Should I write?: pingeons's food
>> or: pingeons' food
>>
> I presume you mean "pigeons"


Carlos may mean 'penguins'. You do know why polar bears don't eat
penguins?

Cheers
DC

CyberCypher

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:04:09 PM4/7/04
to
Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:

[...]

>
> Carlos may mean 'penguins'. You do know why polar bears don't eat
> penguins?

Yep. So near and yet so antipodally far.

--
Franke: EFL teacher & medical editor.
For email, ehziuh htiw rehpycrebyc ecalper.

Django Cat

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:11:29 PM4/7/04
to
On 7 Apr 2004 16:04:09 GMT, CyberCypher <cyber...@e-garfield.com> wrote:

> Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:
>
> [...]
>>
>> Carlos may mean 'penguins'. You do know why polar bears don't eat
>> penguins?
>
> Yep. So near and yet so antipodally far.
>


That has to be the fastest reply I've ever seen... the actual answer is
'because they can't get the silver paper off', which is probably only
funny if you grew up in the UK or Ireland, where Penguins are a brand of
chocolate biscuit... (how to make a gag fall totally flat lesson #1...)

All the best
DC

CyberCypher

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:19:45 PM4/7/04
to
Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:

> On 7 Apr 2004 16:04:09 GMT, CyberCypher
> <cyber...@e-garfield.com> wrote:
>
>> Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:
>>
>> [...]
>>>
>>> Carlos may mean 'penguins'. You do know why polar bears don't
>>> eat penguins?
>>
>> Yep. So near and yet so antipodally far.
>>
>
>
> That has to be the fastest reply I've ever seen... the actual
> answer is 'because they can't get the silver paper off', which is
> probably only funny if you grew up in the UK or Ireland, where
> Penguins are a brand of chocolate biscuit... (how to make a gag
> fall totally flat lesson #1...)

Ah, I don't know about those. All I know is that penguins are at the
South Pole and polar bears at the North Pole.

Django Cat

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:30:46 PM4/7/04
to
On 7 Apr 2004 16:19:45 GMT, CyberCypher <cyber...@e-garfield.com> wrote:

> Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:
>
>> On 7 Apr 2004 16:04:09 GMT, CyberCypher
>> <cyber...@e-garfield.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:
>>>
>>> [...]
>>>>
>>>> Carlos may mean 'penguins'. You do know why polar bears don't
>>>> eat penguins?
>>>
>>> Yep. So near and yet so antipodally far.
>>>
>>
>>
>> That has to be the fastest reply I've ever seen... the actual
>> answer is 'because they can't get the silver paper off', which is
>> probably only funny if you grew up in the UK or Ireland, where
>> Penguins are a brand of chocolate biscuit... (how to make a gag
>> fall totally flat lesson #1...)
>
> Ah, I don't know about those. All I know is that penguins are at the
> South Pole and polar bears at the North Pole.
>

Which is, of course, the sensible answer. Do Americans use 'silver paper'
for the aluminium foil chocolate comes wrapped in? It's not as common in
BrE as it used to be, and we'd talk about 'baking foil' for the stuff in
which you'd cook a chicken (or indeed a pigeon, but hopefully not a
penguin).

DC

CyberCypher

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:37:31 PM4/7/04
to
Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:
[...]
> Do Americans use
> 'silver paper' for the aluminium foil chocolate comes wrapped in?
> It's not as common in BrE as it used to be, and we'd talk about
> 'baking foil' for the stuff in which you'd cook a chicken (or
> indeed a pigeon, but hopefully not a penguin).

Yes, we do. Same in Taiwan, only the silver paper is multicolored.

Penguins are much too fatty and would probably raise one's bad
cholesterol levels too much. Besides, undressing them would be too
messy.

Django Cat

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 12:45:49 PM4/7/04
to
On 7 Apr 2004 16:37:31 GMT, CyberCypher <cyber...@e-garfield.com> wrote:

> Django Cat wrote on 07 Apr 2004:
> [...]
>> Do Americans use
>> 'silver paper' for the aluminium foil chocolate comes wrapped in?
>> It's not as common in BrE as it used to be, and we'd talk about
>> 'baking foil' for the stuff in which you'd cook a chicken (or
>> indeed a pigeon, but hopefully not a penguin).
>
> Yes, we do. Same in Taiwan, only the silver paper is multicolored.
>
> Penguins are much too fatty and would probably raise one's bad
> cholesterol levels too much. Besides, undressing them would be too
> messy.
>

Bleagh! I'm off to stew lentils, catch you again.
DC

John Ings

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 1:14:09 PM4/7/04
to
On Wed, 07 Apr 2004 17:00:39 +0100, Django Cat
<nos...@ireallymeanit.com> wrote:

>You do know why polar bears don't eat penguins?

No, but I know why sharks don't eat lawyers!


Django Cat

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 4:28:52 PM4/7/04
to

Go on then?

mUs1Ka

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 5:06:56 PM4/7/04
to

Because they're not cannibals?

m.


John Ings

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 6:22:26 PM4/7/04
to
On Wed, 07 Apr 2004 21:28:52 +0100, Django Cat
<nos...@ireallymeanit.com> wrote:

>>> You do know why polar bears don't eat penguins?
>>
>> No, but I know why sharks don't eat lawyers!

Professional courtesy.

joscurtin

unread,
Apr 7, 2004, 10:12:57 PM4/7/04
to
I thought it was because penguins have no knees. :>)

Joe from Massachusetts.

"CyberCypher" <cyber...@e-garfield.com> wrote in message
news:Xns94C511A0E...@130.133.1.4...

Django Cat

unread,
Apr 8, 2004, 8:37:19 AM4/8/04
to

ba-bom!

A UK politician was disciplined over a joke about sharks (which I'm not
passing on but can be easily found) recently.

Owain

unread,
Apr 9, 2004, 11:15:54 AM4/9/04
to
"Django Cat" wrote
| we'd talk about 'baking foil' for the stuff in which you'd cook
| a chicken (or indeed a pigeon, but hopefully not a penguin).

http://www.allegromedia.com/sugi/penguin/kabob.html

Owain


Django Cat

unread,
Apr 9, 2004, 1:47:56 PM4/9/04
to
On Fri, 9 Apr 2004 16:15:54 +0100, Owain <owain...@stirlingcity.co.uk>
wrote:

I'm straight off to Tesco's antarctic poultry section! Can you get
deep-fried battered penguin in Stirling?

No wonder the poor OP's taken his question to another ng...

DC ;)

0 new messages