[Ads-l] Crustaceans

[Laurence Horn]

It may be that "crustacean" is prompted in part by its ability to serve as a count noun, as opposed to "shellfish" or "seafood" (which often, for pragmatic reasons, tends to exclude fish--whence "Fish and Seafood" categories on menus).  True, "shellfish" itself is a bit narrow--I'm not sure I'd use it for squid, octopus or other seafood that are not shell-equipped. Other subcategories are occasionally evoked when needed; I have a colleague who's allergic to bivalves but has no problem with other seafood/shellfish/crustaceans.  I myself don't really use "crustacean" seriously, in part because I'm not sure of its extension and in part because it always reminds me of the Jimmy Buffett classic ditty, "A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean".  

LH

On Dec 26, 2014, at 6:56 AM, Joel S. Berson wrote:

> At 12/26/2014 05:55 AM, victor steinbok wrote:
>> The description as "three crustaceans" came much
>> later, toward the end of the show, after the challenge had been completed.
> 
> Would one call the three chefs "the three mollusks"?  Or "shellfish"?  Or "fish"?  Or "seafoods"?  Hardly.  "The three crustaceans", on the other hand, sounds adventerous, like "the three musketeers".
> 
> Joel
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v1/url?u=http://www.americandialect.org/&k=dpQisR3avULHgiNaNeY%2Btg%3D%3D%0A&r=MW6Q85EuQFDFs0kj9ASwdaXohusE833r9bFEf66m5kA%3D%0A&m=bN0587DAdsdr59rBSUjcGjmD%2BP9gqxZwvzDoFFD%2FDeo%3D%0A&s=90904138ddfc4cf055855bc0e7b088e9c45b098ed49852c72e2ee7bce7ebe2a5

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