french chad

[Jan Ivarsson]

Humans usually have "une moustache" and animals with whiskers
have "des moustaches", but as it is often divided under the nose
a man can have "des moustaches". "Un homme qui porte une
moustache, des moustaches", says my Petit Robert. As the word
comes from ancient Greek "mustax", meaning "upper lip", the
singular is certainly the older form.

Jan Ivarsson, Sweden

----- Original Message -----
From: "Lynne Murphy" <lynnem at COGS.SUSX.AC.UK>
To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: den 4 december 2000 16:29
Subject: Re: french chad


> --On Monday, December 4, 2000 7:12 am -0800 James Smith
> <jsmithjamessmith at YAHOO.COM> wrote:
> >
> > "Les moustaches" always puzzled me...what is a
> > moustache, a single whisker on the upper lip?
>
> I always understood this as the two sides of the mustache (on either side
> of the philtrum) which are combed in opposite directions (think Dali).
>
> Lynne
>
>
>
> M Lynne Murphy
> Lecturer in Linguistics
> School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences
> University of Sussex
> Brighton BN1 9QH
> UK
>
> phone +44-(0)1273-678844
> fax   +44-(0)1273-671320