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style="font-family: -moz-fixed; font-size: 13px;" lang="x-western">Hi<br>
Would it seem stupid to mention english ? There is a famous song by
Sting with these words :<br>
If you love <b>somebody</b>, set <b>them </b>free
(<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.loglar.com/song.php?id=16187">http://www.loglar.com/song.php?id=16187</a>)<br>
Being a non-native amateur english speaker, I wonder if you would
accept words such as "someone", "somebody" as a 'subclass of singular
nouns'.<br>
Regards<br>
Guillaume Segerer<br>
<br>
<br>
<blockquote type="cite">I was wondering whether people on the list know
of languages that allow
<br>
plural agreement with some subclass of singular nouns. I have found
that
<br>
in Rotokas (a non-Austronesian language spoken in Bougainville, Papua
New
<br>
Guinea), neuter subjects (which normally take zero subject agreement)
<br>
sometimes occur with the agreement usually found with plural subjects.
<br>
<br>
For example, here's the usual plural subject agreement (-i) with a
plural
<br>
subject (riroirara kopiipairara):
<br>
<br>
riro-irara kopii-pa-irara tou-pa-i-voi eisi ruvaru-pa kepa-ia
<br>
many-pl.hum sick-dv-pl.hum be-cont-3.pl-pres loc sick-dv house-loc
<br>
Many sick people are in the medical station. / Plenti sik manmeri ol i
stap long haus marasin.
<br>
<br>
And here's plural subject agreement (-i) with a singular neuter noun
<br>
(evaova):
<br>
<br>
evao-va koki-vira tou-pa-i-voi
<br>
tree-sg.f have.holes-adv be-cont-3.pl-pres
<br>
The tree has holes. / Diwai i gat hol.
<br>
<br>
Thanks in advance.
<br>
<br>
Regards,
<br>
Stuart Robinson
<br>
<br>
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<br>
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<br>
<br>
</blockquote>
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