Seen of Facebook: "Proud to be an _alumni_ [of UC Davis]!" [NT]

Jonathan Lighter wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM
Thu Sep 15 11:20:00 UTC 2011


So you're saying it could be dumber than we thought.

I'd choose "alumnum."

JL

On Thu, Sep 15, 2011 at 5:44 AM, victor steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com>wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       victor steinbok <aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: Seen of Facebook: "Proud to be an _alumni_ [of UC
> Davis]!"
>              [NT]
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> When it comes to "alumni", sometimes it's used to avoid "sexist"
> distinctions. Sort of an equivalent of a generic "they".
>
> VS-)
>
> On Thu, Sep 15, 2011 at 4:42 AM, Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> >
> > It is hard to single one out. And then it just reproduces.
> >
> > Eric
> >
> > On Thu, Sep 15, 2011 at 1:25 AM, Benjamin Barrett <gogaku at ix.netcom.com
> > >wrote:
> >
> >
> > > It is amazingly difficult (for me, anyway) to talk about a bacterium.
> > >
> > > Benjamin Barrett
> > > Seattle, WA
> > >
> > > On Sep 14, 2011, at 9:47 PM, Wilson Gray wrote:
> > >
> > > > :-(
> >
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>



--
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