Possible Duplicate:
Pluralization rule for “five-year-old children”, “20 pound note”, “10 mile run”
72-year-old Giselle Gilbert was taken to hospital.
He was given a 20-year jail sentence.
Why is the singular of year used in these sentences?
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marked as duplicate by kiamlaluno, RegDwighт♦ Apr 6 '11 at 8:06
This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.
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##-year-old, hyphenated is used as a pre-modifier (before the noun) while is ## years old is a post modifier. The man is 21 years old. a 21-year-old man We could also use the singular hyphenated version in place of the noun: My sister has a 10-year-old meaning that she has a child of 10. That should clear up the usage for those who seemed unsure. Unfortunately, I am not quite sure of the reason for the two forms - I will look into it, though. Hope that helps. |
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