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Don McChesney
Joined: 25 Jun 2005
Posts: 656
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 Posted: Sun Sep 11, 2005 11:07 pm Post subject: |
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OK "how much (money)[ unspoken]) is a strawberry pie and a coffee?"
Verbal omission of an understood word. |
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Stephen Jones
Joined: 21 Feb 2003
Posts: 4124
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| Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2005 8:40 am Post subject: |
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| Do you think the waiter would notice the comma(or lack of comma) or not? |
He'd notice the pause, which the comma is the graphical representation of, and would give you two prices, one for the strawberry pie and one for the coffee.
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| No, and I do not think the waiter would notice or care if it was is or are |
Time to find a restaurant with better service  |
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Joe Gahona
Joined: 24 Apr 2004
Posts: 27
Location: New York City
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 3:33 am Post subject: |
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| Eliminate the second article and it sounds more like you're asking for the combined price -- "How much is a strawberry pie and coffee?" |
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once again
Joined: 27 Jan 2003
Posts: 815
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 3:38 am Post subject: |
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| We would always say How much are two strawberry pies and a coffee?' |
Who are the "we" in this sentence? It seems ok to me to use "is" as I would be refering to the pies and coffee as one thing: lunch or afternoon tea perhaps. |
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Stephen Jones
Joined: 21 Feb 2003
Posts: 4124
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 6:06 am Post subject: |
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The 'we' is the royal plural, aka all right-thinking people.
Google searches for "how much is two' and 'how much are two' seem to nearly always bring out numbers "How much is/are two and two?'. There is a tie between the singular and plural verb, so it seems sometimes notional agreement wins, and sometimes proximal agreeement.
If you feel you would say "How much is two strawberry pies and a coffee?" all power to your elbow! I'm certainly not going to say it is wrong. |
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dmb
Joined: 12 Feb 2003
Posts: 8397
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 6:27 am Post subject: |
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| I can honestly say I have never eaten (a) srawberry pie. Can I stick to apple pie with ice cream? |
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Guy Courchesne
Joined: 10 Mar 2003
Posts: 9650
Location: Mexico City
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 11:22 am Post subject: |
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| Strawberry rhubarb pie was my great-grandmother's specialty. Tasty. |
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Hector_Lector
Joined: 20 Apr 2004
Posts: 548
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 3:43 pm Post subject: |
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| Rhubarb - my favourite. Custard was a rotter. |
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stillnosheep
Joined: 01 Mar 2004
Posts: 2068
Location: eslcafe
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 5:01 pm Post subject: |
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| Apple and blackberry crumble. With or without custard, cream, or ice cream. |
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dmb
Joined: 12 Feb 2003
Posts: 8397
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 6:10 pm Post subject: |
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Rhubarb crumble is better.
btw Have you ever tried to teach the word rhubarb?
I have tried many times even when I tell my students the Turkish word they still don't know(that includes Turkish English teachers.) I guess it is a cultural fruit. |
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stillnosheep
Joined: 01 Mar 2004
Posts: 2068
Location: eslcafe
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 6:56 pm Post subject: |
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Yes it is.
No I haven't.
I have never thought of rhubarb as being a particularly cultured fruit, nor do I think of it particularly as one of the fruits of culture. |
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dmb
Joined: 12 Feb 2003
Posts: 8397
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 7:04 pm Post subject: |
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| But it is nice in a crumble. |
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stillnosheep
Joined: 01 Mar 2004
Posts: 2068
Location: eslcafe
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 7:55 pm Post subject: |
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| A little tart maybe.... |
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dmb
Joined: 12 Feb 2003
Posts: 8397
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 8:15 pm Post subject: |
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Are you using tart as an adjective or a noun here. If a noun. Which meaning. I am confused  |
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Guy Courchesne
Joined: 10 Mar 2003
Posts: 9650
Location: Mexico City
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| Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 9:47 pm Post subject: |
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I made an apple crumble the other day. But it burnt. Hard to bake in high altitude Mexico City! 
I taught rhubarb once. It was absolutely not understood. Here's a challenge - try drawing rhubarb. |
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