more taboo avoidance

[Benjamin Barrett]

On Aug 13, 2011, at 3:25 PM, Wilson Gray wrote:

> On Fri, Aug 12, 2011 at 12:20 PM, victor steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com> wrote:
>> the benefit of _a_ doubt
>
> Not
>
> _the benefit of _the_ doubt"
>
> ?
>
> Is
>
> _the benefit of the doubt
>
> going the way of
>
> _on the average_
>
> _hit the wall_
>
> _in the zone_
>
> _drive …  up the wall_
>
> etc.?
> --

IMHO there are quite a few of these.

The articles "a" and "the" are frequently indistinguishable in speech, meaning that people are necessarily going to reanalyze them.

Another complicating factor is that in many cases, either article can be used: (She got) a/the chance, (There is) a/the risk of...

Benjamin Barrett
Seattle, WA

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