Speak in another language thread!

[xwingyoda]

quick English lesson:

Dice is plural. Die is singular. 1 Die, 2 or more dice. Sorry if I sound like a know-it-all. I love you.

Actually the singular is die OR dice so both are correct

[Hinckley]

Actually the singular is die OR dice so both are correct

Check the dictionary.

[xwingyoda]

Check the dictionary.

Weird since my Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English states that Die is old english and my Haraps dictionnary says both can be used !!

So if dictionnaries contradict each other, language is doomed I tell you !!

[Hinckley]

Weird since my Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English states that Die is old english and my Haraps dictionnary says both can be used !!

So if dictionnaries contradict each other, language is doomed I tell you !!

Language is doomed, so is grammar. Old English? I'm only 31 and they taught us that as recently as college. Well, maybe your Harpies dictionary was written for the new generation of lazy spellers. You know the latest version of the Webster's dictionary "un-hyphenated" hundreds of words because people get confused by hyphens? Well, of course they are confused if the correct way to spell it is removed from the dictionary. Dice is singular my megablocks. I've never been so angry! Just kidding. But thanks for imparting further knowledge upon me about the slow death of my native language, Yodes.

But dices is still wrong, kimt ...for now. We'll see what the new edition of 's Harpies Dictionary brings us.

[UniqueBuilder]

Both die and dice can be used in singular form.. I know my dice!

PS: Thanks, Holodoc!

[Hinckley]

Whoever said I can't let things go? You guys are right, but it's as I suspected: the use of dice as singular is due to over-misuse. Uh-oh! I hyphenated a word!

Anyway, here's a bit more on the history of the word dice from a grammar professor, not UB, a real one:

According to "The Oxford English Dictionary" -- that's Great Britain, NOT the United States -- "die" is the singular. "Dice" is the plural [so is "dies," which no one ever uses].

Here is part of the OED entry:

I. With plural dice. (The form dice (used as pl. and sing.) is of much more frequent occurrence in gaming and related senses than the singular die.)

1. a. A small cube of ivory, bone, or other material, having its faces marked with spots numbering from one to six, used in games of chance by being thrown from a box or the hand, the chance being decided by the number on the face of the die that turns uppermost. Also, a cube bearing other devices on its faces, or a solid with more or less than six faces (see quots.). b. pl. The game played with these; esp. in phr. at (the) dice.

() sing. dee, dye, dy, die.

1393 GOWER Conf. II. 209 The chaunce is cast upon a dee, But yet full oft a man may see [etc.].

So, the first WRITTEN use of "die" was in 1393. But, note that "dice" has so frequently been misused as the singular form that it has virtually taken the place of the correct singular, "die."

The phrase "the die is cast" refers to the singular throwing [casting] of one of those cubes. Casting the die was originally used in gambling terminology, but it has now come to mean "making a decision from which one cannot return."

Ted Nesbitt, Grammar Professor

It's a sad day to realize a guy from France and a guy from Norway know more about my native language than I do. Typical American...

[Caffeine]

It's a sad day to realize a guy from France and a guy from Norway know more about my native language than I do. Typical American...

You just made my day.

[ZoL]

Dit is een spamfeest, zou het moeten worden cloosed of misschien niet (Dutch)

[and]

Waar kunnen wij een goede vertalingsplaats bevrijdt krijgen?

[and]

Ik snijd en plak dit van een vertalingsplaats

[i really don't want to be spaming like this, but it seems like that's what everyone is doing on this topic]

[Commander Andrew of 501 st]

Sie können mich nicht sehen, dass ich ein klein leprechuan bin

haha i love this

[BerndDasBrot]

Sie können mich nicht sehen, dass ich ein klein leprechuan bin

haha i love this

ich würd eher sagen: "weil ich ein kleiner kobold bin." oder "Sie können nicht sehen, dass ich ein kleiner kobold bin."

Pumuckl oder was?

Whatever. Here's the IMHO worst / funniest english sentence a german (politican) ever spoke: "equal goes it loose."

[Quarryman]

Kan ikkje sjå at nokon har skrive nynorsk i denne tråden enno, så derfor gjer eg det. (sikker på at det kjem til å irritere den unike byggaren frå Inderøy, noko som i mine auge berre er ein bonus ).

VGhpcyBpcyBCYXNlNjQgY29kZS4gSWYgeW91J3JlIHRyYW5zbGF0aW5nIHRoaXMsIHlvdSBzaG91bGQg

Y29uc2lkZXIgZ2V0dGluZyAoYSkgaG9iYnkoaWVzKS4gSSBzaG91bGQgcHJvYmFibHkgZ2V0IGEgZmV3

I

G1vcmUsIHRvby4gKlRoaW5rcyo=

Den er enkel.

Ja, den var enkel. Tok særs kort tid å kopiere over i noko som kunne oversetje.

"This is Base64 code. If you're translating this, you should consider getting (a) hobby(ies). I should probably get a few more, too. *Thinks*"

It's a sad day to realize a guy from France and a guy from Norway know more about my native language than I do. Typical American...

..and you know what they say:

What do you call a person that speaks three languages? Trilingual. What do you call a person that speaks two languages? Bilingual. What do you call a person that only speaks one language? American.

[UniqueBuilder]

Wææææh! Nynorsk! ÆSJ!

[Captain Green Hair]

Try ?Como esta?

Me llamo Green hair, soy loco.

What you've said translates to "Hello, he eats and you are? My is Green hair, my is crazy"

Loco, si!

Dos cerveza, grande, por favor!

[General Zen]

Loco, si!

Dos cerveza, grande, por favor!

No comprendo porque su gramaitica es muy mal! Estudia su gramatica todos los dias, por favor. Me gusta eurobricks, pero no le gusta la gramatica pesima!

(just kidding, you speak better spanish than I do!)

[Tordenskjold]

Hei. dette va ikke enkelt å les. masse rart som står på utruli mange språk. så tenkt e sku skriv inn litt e og. Dette e skreve så nært opp tel dialekta vi har her oppe. einaste som mangle e bannjskapen. men den kan man ikke sløs førr mykkje med. Vel vel. ha ei fin natt ute i den store eteren. Thunder :)

[ExoBuilder]

Soy ExoBuilder, el rey de Plaga. Témame como yo me quemo su aldea y robo sus manzanas.

[AgentRick]

¿usted habla inglés?

вы говорите английскую язык?

você fala o inglês?

너는 영어를 말하는가?

英語を話すか。

parlate inglese?

sprechen Sie Englisch?

parlez-vous anglais ?

spreekt u het Engels?

[Grakul]

Jag förstår ingenting...

[Caffeine]

英語を話すか。

ええ！英語わうるさくて、だめで、馬鹿の語です。あなた

[SlyOwl]

Me gusta eurobricks, pero no le gusta la gramatica pesima!

iSe debe ser "me"! iQue pena eres! Si, no hay accentos, pero no tengo ganas los buscar en mi ordenador

Edited April 25, 2008 by SlyOwl

[zero1312]

Ich liebe Eurobricks!!!!

[RupeeClock]

Oké .. nou .. ik ben dus ook Nederlands .. en uhm .. ssssjah .. hoi ..

Ohhhwwh en ik heb morgen een LAN-Party .. maar dat boeit toch

helemaal niemand .. we zitten hier tenslotte op een forum over LEGO, oeps ..

:blush:

== Robijn-Klok ==

[Sir Dano]

Ou est la bibliotheque?

Now that's some horrible Spanish!

Edited April 29, 2008 by sir dano

[SlyOwl]

Ou est la bibliotheque?

iEs francés! iIdiota!

Y la biblioteca está cerca de la playa...

[Sir Dano]

iEs francés! iIdiota!

Y la biblioteca está cerca de la playa...

como esta?

I have no idea what I just said.

Edited April 29, 2008 by sir dano