ext_230017 ([identity profile] onebyone.livejournal.com) wrote in [personal profile] undyingking 2008-09-08 11:37 pm (UTC)

Indeed - off-hand I can't think of a sentence in which "less X" and "fewer X" convey distinct meanings for any value of X. Unless there is one, the difference serves only as a shibboleth, not as an aid to communication.

Of course the fact that it serves as a shibboleth doesn't mean that the difference in usage isn't real, just that it is valuable only to pedants.

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