Ah, the problem with calling things “facts” where the data isn’t actually knowable. The number of hairs on my head is a fact but not one that can be accurately known. Kind of like the number of people who watched the Super Bowl. In that context, true fact makes sense (also “cold hard fact”). While it should be redundant, it emphasizes that the data being referenced is an actual fact and not an assumed fact.
My dad always was clear that “couple” of minutes was 2 and a few was 3. Sent from my iPhone > On Sep 8, 2021, at 3:55 PM, J. Landman Gay via use-livecode > <use-livecode@lists.runrev.com> wrote: > > My husband said the same when I told him about this thread. "Couple" means > two. I said yes, but colloquially it can mean "two or three or somewhere in > that range." We almost started a longer discussion about it, but I reminded > him of our 30+ years of ongoing talk about a "fact" so we both stopped. > > Addendum: he claims there are "true facts." I say that is redundant, that a > fact is by definition true, and he's implying there are false facts (or as we > say in the US, "alternative facts.") This has been going on for years. It's a > friendly, amusing, kind of false disagreement. Then one day we just looked it > up in the dictionary and...a fact can either be a true bit of information, or > a generic datum. > > And that spoiled all the fun. > > On 9/8/21 6:14 AM, Keith Martin via use-livecode wrote: >>>> On Sep 7, 2021, at 11:04 PM, Martin Koob via use-livecode >>>> <use-livecode@lists.runrev.com> wrote: >>> >>> My wife and I have an ongoing disagreement about the term 'couple of’ in >>> terms of counting. I say it means around 2 or 3ish. She says it means 2. >>> Further she says if you wanted to say 3 or 4 you would say ‘a few’. >> I'm the kind of person that distinguishes between 'like' (exclusive: similar >> to but not) and 'such as' (inclusive: similar to and part of the comparison >> set), so this is coming from a position of pedantry, but that's because I am >> a writer... >> Strictly speaking, 'a couple' means two, no more and no less. In casual use >> (when counting, not when referring to relationship partnerships) it isn't >> unusual for it to be used in place of 'a few' and possibly mean three or >> even four, but it's not technically *correct.* >> I too hope your wife's logic is what holds true! >> :) >> k > > > -- > Jacqueline Landman Gay | jac...@hyperactivesw.com > HyperActive Software | http://www.hyperactivesw.com > > > _______________________________________________ > use-livecode mailing list > use-livecode@lists.runrev.com > Please visit this url to subscribe, unsubscribe and manage your subscription > preferences: > http://lists.runrev.com/mailman/listinfo/use-livecode _______________________________________________ use-livecode mailing list use-livecode@lists.runrev.com Please visit this url to subscribe, unsubscribe and manage your subscription preferences: http://lists.runrev.com/mailman/listinfo/use-livecode
