Another one bites the dust?

[Benjamin Barrett]

Laurence Horn wrote:
>> I don't really care for the English plural, either, but they are so
>> common (e.g., shareholders meeting), they don't seem so bad.
>>
>> I can see a case for using "alumni association" if the genitive of
>> alumnus is alumni,
>>
>
> It is, but how would that help?  It's not an association of one
> alumnus.  So what you really want (given that _alumnorum_ is the
> genitive counterpart of _alumni_, in the nominative plural rather
> than genitive singular version) is an alumnorum association.  Good
> luck!
>
> LH
>
Ahhh, alumnorum. Perhaps that is why they use "alumni association".
People like me would think it had to do with aluminum compounds rather
than graduates! BB

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org