July 27, 2012, 05:33
<Proofreader>Twins
A reporter said today "A pair of twins have many things in common."
My question is, was she talking about two or four people?
Shouldn't the term been "a
set of twins" to let listeners know she was only talking about two?
July 27, 2012, 05:44
GeoffSo she should. Or maybe just twins, sans modifiers. And is a pear of twins one fruit divided between the two?
July 27, 2012, 09:24
zmježdThe MWDEU opines in:
link.
quote:
Among the minor matters that engage some usage writers is the expression pair of twins.
They conclude it is a spoken, not written, idiom.
July 29, 2012, 20:27
KallehIt reminds me of the double negatives that are considered acceptable. Unless you know the context, you could be confused as to what they are saying.