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Re: Display or appear (Was: Can "either" be used ... )

Subject: Re: Display or appear (Was: Can "either" be used ... )
From: quills -at- airmail -dot- net
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2001 16:11:07 -0500

On 10/05/2001 4:27 PM, Bonnie Granat (bgranat -at- att -dot- net) wrote:

"Beg the question" does *not* mean "causes questions" or "brings up
questions". This is not the first time I've seen it misused on this list,
but it is the first time I am commenting. I hope you will all forgive me.

I'll try, but exactly what "beg the question" means comes down to the
same argument as many other definitions in English today... prescriptive
vs. descriptive grammar. For a good discussion about how "beg the
question" originally/actually means something other than today's common
usage, see <http://www.quinion.com/words/qa/qa-beg1.htm>. The author of
that page takes a more forgiving attitude than you appear to, and points
out that several dictionaries now are starting to accept the "incorrect"
meaning as valid.

I suppose you can be the grammar police all you want (although Eric
specifically forbids it for this list), but you may find it less
stressful in the long run to recognize that language evolves, and your
favorite phrases probably won't stay the same forever.

----->Mike

Well, doesn't that make it a mute point?

And I do know the difference between moot and mute. But we don't talk about the mute ones.

Scott

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References:
Re: Display or appear (Was: Can "either" be used ... ): From: Mike Stockman

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