Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Mice, lice, rice, blouses, houses, spouses, ice

Why is this?

Some grammar rules are easy to explain to my 5-year-old.

Some are not.

This one is not:

Mouse x 2 = mice
Louse x 2 = lice
Blouse x 2 = blouses
House x 2 = houses
Spouse x 2 = spouses
ice/ice = ice
rice/rice = rice

Why? Is it because typically there is never a single ice/ouse?

Or that most commonly people aren't afflicted with a multitude of hice or spice, but have just one?

Is the "ice" plural used only for the animate? Because my spouse = totally animate.

If you double-douse someone, you usually haven't diced them. At least not simultaneously.
Humph!

1 comment:

  1. I guess more than one spouse is understandable if they don't belong to you. But if you were to have more than one spouse then your life would have spice.

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