Trivial English Grammar Questions

[RobertJasiek]

Which of the following is (not) correct grammar or style?


all but one stone - all but one stones

all but one of the stones

all stones but one

zero or one stone - zero or one stones

fewer than one stone - fewer than one stones

in atari - on atari


What exactly is the difference in meaning between headline and heading?

[wms]

all but one stones - Improper pluralization

zero or one stone - Improper pluralization again

fewer than one stones - And again

on atari - I've never heard this used and it sounds weird, but I can't give a rule as to why.

The others are all correct.

What exactly is the difference in meaning between headline and heading?

A headline is the text at the top of a story in a newspaper or magazine. A heading can be any text set apart from the main flow as a title or summary. So a headline is also a heading, but not all headings are headlines.

[Solomon]

all but one stone

Fine.

all but one stones

Wrong.

all but one of the stones

Fine.

all stones but one

Fine.

zero or one stone

Not sure.

zero or one stones

Wrong.

fewer than one stone

Fine.

fewer than one stones

Wrong.

in atari

Fine.

on atari

Wrong.

[jts]

Headline is also used metaphorically to refer to the highlights of a text. For example, the headline numbers in a budget, the headline findings in a scientific study, and so on. That should give you a sense of how the connotation differs.

[prokofiev]

Agree with Araban, except:

zero or one stones: preferred
zero or one stone: permitted, I believe

Zero is plural, one is singular, and in an or construction, plural trumps singular. The "zero or one stone" construction can be permitted, though, if you prefer to go by "proximity."

For headline and heading: Agree with jts. I would clarify by adding that heading, in the context you're using it in, can not be used metaphorically. If the literal meaning is primarily what you're going for, heading is preferred. (What wms says here is perhaps more salient. I missed his post at first, but I'll agree with all of it.)

[RobertJasiek]

Thanks everybody!

According to google search, there are too many "on atari" instances at Sensei's Library. Maybe those were written by non-native speakers because other languages tend to use prepositions differently.

[HermanHiddema]

Thanks everybody!

According to google search, there are too many "on atari" instances at Sensei's Library. Maybe those were written by non-native speakers because other languages tend to use prepositions differently.

Google finds "on atari" five times at SL: http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3As ... n+atari%22

Three of them are about the Atari computer ("entering games on Atari ST"), one is "on atari-blindness", so there is only a single instance of "on atari" as an actual error, and that one is in a comment made by you...

[RobertJasiek]

Ok, I made the mistake of searching for the keywords "on atari" and "Sensei's" instead of using the site-restricted search. Elsewhere (in this combination) the mistake beats the correct version "in atari" by almost the factor 3, unless there should be more PC talk than atari talk.

[illluck]

From a quick search for "on atari" and sensei's, it seems like most are either about the game console or Aikido :p