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YoBuckStopsHere@lemmy.world ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

• SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

  Fewer

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  • Maddie@sh.itjust.works ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

    Just because you’re accurate doesn’t mean you’re interesting.

    • John Mulaney

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  • Excrubulent@slrpnk.net ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

    “Fewer” is correct, but it’s wrong to correct “less” to “fewer”. Why? Because language isn’t dictated by an authority, it is negotiated theough billions of interactions every day.

    People say “less” to refer to countable objects and nobody is confused by it, so it is valid communication. Just because you had some English teacher mark you down for it in middle school doesn’t mean it’s wrong. You were just miseducated.

    Even if we’re talking about strict technical semantics, 5 is less than 7. The < symbol is not called the “fewer than” symbol. “Less” can encompass the concept of “fewer”, so either is fine.

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    • can@sh.itjust.works ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

      See: “10 items or less”

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      • Rentlar@lemmy.ca ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGWiTvYZR_w

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    • SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

      The “less than” symbol is not limited to whole numbers.

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      • Excrubulent@slrpnk.net ⁨11⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        Does it change its name to “fewer than” when it is used for whole numbers?

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