Timeline for "I like apples" vs "I like apple"?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
29 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Jun 25, 2018 at 17:13 | vote | accept | Vun-Hugh Vaw | ||
| Jun 15, 2018 at 19:47 | history | edited | lly |
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| Apr 13, 2017 at 12:55 | history | edited | CommunityBot |
replaced http://ell.stackexchange.com/ with https://ell.stackexchange.com/
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| Jan 8, 2017 at 12:21 | comment | added | Vun-Hugh Vaw | @Rathony Lol, never thought of "dog" in the same way I do with "meat", even though I live in a country where dog meat is food. Sounds morbid, but that's actually very close to what I was asking about. | |
| Dec 31, 2016 at 7:19 | answer | added | Mari-Lou A | timeline score: 13 | |
| Dec 31, 2016 at 3:21 | comment | added | user140086 | @Mitch Just because Anglophones don't eat dog meat doesn't mean "I like dog" is not grammatical. I don't understand your logic. There is no way to answer this question differently. How about "I like doll." vs "I like dolls." or "I like toy." vs "I like toys."? Are there any differences? "I like dog" vs "I like dogs" is NOT a question about grammaticality. It's about idiomatic usage of plural noun forms and this is not an issue just in English. Other languages that I know have this problem, too and it can't be explained using grammar. There is no answer other than "That's the way it is". | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 23:44 | history | tweeted | twitter.com/StackEnglish/status/814980443506405377 | ||
| Dec 30, 2016 at 22:21 | history | reopened |
Mari-Lou A Mitch Phil Sweet Sven Yargs jimm101 |
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| Dec 30, 2016 at 20:49 | comment | added | Mitch | @Rathony '"I like dog" vs "I like dogs"' is a question about grammaticality (one is the correct 'generic' and one is not sounds like a foreignism ('dog' is usually not considered a comestible in English speaking culture)). Whereas 'apple' vs 'apples' both are grammatical about mostly the same thing with a slight semantic difference. I expect that Mari-lou had an answer about this. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 19:07 | comment | added | user140086 | @Mitch Just curious, why do you think the dupe master doesn't answer this question? | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 18:57 | comment | added | Mari-Lou A | @ChrisGong yes, you need 3,000 rep. Not an awful lot, but it is called by SE a "privilege" and you are expected to earn it. english.stackexchange.com/help/privileges | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 18:53 | comment | added | Chris Gong | @Mari-LouA do you have to be a certain rep to vote to reopen the question? | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 18:44 | comment | added | Mari-Lou A | @Mitch I'll try .... but I'm sure someone will do a much better job than I can. If nothing else, it will start the ball rolling. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 18:36 | comment | added | Mitch | @Mari-LouA Hopefully your answer addresses the difference with the similar 'dog' question. Voted to reopen. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 17:56 | review | Reopen votes | |||
| Dec 30, 2016 at 22:21 | |||||
| Dec 30, 2016 at 17:40 | comment | added | Mari-Lou A | I was writing up an answer when the questioon got closed. I've cast my vote to reopen it. Fingers crossed. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 17:36 | history | closed |
user140086 user66974 BladorthinTheGrey Tim Lymington Drew |
Duplicate of I like dog or I like dogs which is correct and why? | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:49 | comment | added | Færd | There are a considerable number of people who treat canines as food and for whom I like dog would be similar to I like apple. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:39 | comment | added | Vun-Hugh Vaw | Also Cambridge too dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/apple | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:27 | comment | added | Vun-Hugh Vaw | @Rathony That's weird. I remember there was at least a usage note in my old Oxford dictionary relating to this. But anyway, check the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (which I currently use) instead: "apple" is labeled "uncountable and countable". | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:21 | history | edited | Vun-Hugh Vaw | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:21 | comment | added | user140086 | Just checked Oxford Online Dictionary and there is no explanation about its uncountable noun usage. What Oxford dictionary? What makes you think the linked question doesn't answer your question? The first line of the answer reads "I like X" suggests you like the stuff of X. When it is an animal, the implication is that you like to eat it. Thus, "I like dog" sounds like dog as a food. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:16 | comment | added | Vun-Hugh Vaw | @Rathony Ugh, it's labeled as "uncountable/countable" by dictionaries (Oxford, Longman, etc.) in case you don't know. Unless "uncountable noun" is not synonymous with "mass noun" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_noun Come to think of it, why are "mass-noun" and "uncountable-noun" two separate tags? | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:13 | history | edited | Vun-Hugh Vaw | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:13 | comment | added | user140086 | What makes you think "apple" can be a mass noun? What's the definition of a mass noun? | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 12:11 | comment | added | Vun-Hugh Vaw | @Rathony Dude, could "dog" ever be a mass noun? | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 10:53 | review | Close votes | |||
| Dec 30, 2016 at 17:41 | |||||
| Dec 30, 2016 at 10:03 | comment | added | WS2 | Yes, non-countable I like apple is perfectly idiomatic if speaking of apple as food e.g. "I prefer apple to rhubarb (in a pie)". However, I like apples is equally heard, but it does suggest the eating of apples as whole objects. | |
| Dec 30, 2016 at 9:46 | history | asked | Vun-Hugh Vaw | CC BY-SA 3.0 |