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I just heard someone say:

"my baby just turned one years old"

Which sounds super weird to me - so I googled a little and found similar sentences:

How Old Are Dogs When They Turn 1 Years Old in Human Years It has been said that a dog who is 1 years old is 7 years old in human years.

Can you really say "years" after "one"?

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    It's apparently a template filled in: "My baby just turned ____ years old", if not the enthusiasm of a non-native speaker. The second example gives away clearly that it's a template filled in.
    – Kris
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 14:43
  • You can Google and find the weirdest stuff, so?
    – Kris
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 14:45
  • Well my point is that what I heard was not just an isolated case
    – Mou某
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 14:46
  • "Ungrammaticality" is not all that isolated, it's quite pervasive today, even more so in speech.
    – Kris
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 14:48
  • That second example is interesting. :) It made me think for a while, as to what all might be going on in that sentence.
    – F.E.
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 17:54

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It is a quaint way of speaking which some people fall into, thinking for some reason it is correct - I think!

I have heard people say 'one pounds, fifteen pence', or the most ridiculous example was listed on an invoice from a funeral director, which I saw. It said '1 no. stained oak veneered coffins'.

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  • Yes I agree with that currency part, in India too people commonly use the phrase "One rupees" when the correct usage should be "One Rupee"
    – Invoker
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 12:19
  • A penny and tuppence = 2p (two pennies). Fifty pence = 50p. No?
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 12:37
  • @Mari-LouA I think tuppence means 'two pence'. This relates back to the pre-1971 money. Nowadays people say 2p, 6p, 50p etc. But in those days it was tuppence, thripence, fourpence, etc up to elevenpence. Twelve pence equalled one shilling.
    – WS2
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 12:48
  • So "fifteen pence" is not wrong, just the bit with "One pounds" I thought I'd been saying it wrong all these years :)
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 12:55
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    Kris strikes again... sigh
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented May 18, 2014 at 17:27

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