Pol

[Georges Adassovsky]

Congratulations to Loren Billings : what a good way to use a language
mailing list !
At least something really interesting !

He wrote also to Yurij:

>The remainder of the recent comment to this list I will not dignify with a
>response.

Well answered. I was shocked too.
Even in case of a mistake, Yurij's response was disrespectfully composed.
Izvinjajsja, Yurij !
As Loren's first language is German (I suppose), and mine is French, we
could laugh at Jurij's English the way he laughts at our Russian grammar
interpretation of a non-evident example (will you tell this remark to your
students, Yurij ?).

But.... it seems that Yurij may be  right.
A quantified noun demands impersonal construction and  is at oblique case:
vodka byla vypita
vodki bylo vypito dva litra

and
komnata byla zastavlena
polkomnaty bylo zastavleno

The difference between "komnata byla" and "polkomnaty bylo" may be in the
quantification demanding impersonal construction.
In any case, we have a logical explanation.


Georges Adassovsky
E-Mail : Gadassov at mail.pf
S-Mail : B.P. 380330 Tamanu, 98718 Punaauia, French Polynesia.
Tel 689 58 38 40 home, 689 58 37 37 office (GMT - 12)