Dear All
Language is defined by practice. The common usage is to use dice as
singular and plural but there are also specialist community usage and among
statisticians with the need for precision I suspect die is still in common
use. It is not wrong to have our own sociolect which preserves some
archaicism because they are used more often than in the general use. That
is just who we are.
On Tue, 20 Aug 2019 at 15:08, Aisha Olajumoke <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> But Professor, everything is open to change. We all know that "die" is
> correct but it is suggested now by Oxford and Grammarly that "dice" can
> equally be plural and singular form of the famous 6-sided and 6-numbered
> cube.
>
>
>
> On Tue, 20 Aug 2019, 15:02 Martin Bland, <
> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> > I am one native English speaker who would use "die" in everyday speech,
> but
> > I am quite old! Pedantic, perhaps, but "pedantic" is what somebody who
> is
> > wrong calls somebody who is right.
> >
> > Martin
> >
> > On Tue, 20 Aug 2019 at 14:48, Wilson, Paul <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
> >
> > > Hi all,
> > > I have to admit that Allan has touched on one of my hobby-horses. I
> > > believe that in the modern era "die" as the singular of dice is
> obsolete,
> > > or at best archaic. I know of no native English speaker that would
> refer
> > to
> > > "a die" in everyday speech. If you were to stop someone in the street
> and
> > > ask them what "a die" is, they would either refer to "dye" for
> > > hair/clothes, or to something for moulding metal.
> > >
> > > A quick bit of googling just now brought me to
> > > grammarly.com/blog/dice-die/ where it states
> > >
> > > "If you look up dice in the Oxford Dictionary, you will learn that dice
> > is
> > > an acceptable singular and plural form of die. According to this
> source,
> > > dice was once the plural of die, “but in modern standard English dice
> is
> > > both the singular and the plural: ‘throw the dice’ could mean a
> reference
> > > to either one or more than one dice.”
> > >
> > > Something I do remember reading in the print version of the Oxford
> > English
> > > Dictionary many years back. So my opinion is to applaud the exam setter
> > who
> > > had the nerve to jettison an anachronism and say "a dice", like
> everyone
> > > does, but I am sure that others will differ.
> > >
> > > Regards
> > >
> > > Paul
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Dr. Paul Wilson
> > > Senior Lecturer in Statistics
> > > School of Mathematics and Computer Science
> > > Faculty of Science and Engineering
> > > University of Wolverhampton
> > > Wulfruna Street
> > > Wolverhampton
> > > WV1 1LY
> > >
> > > Phone: +44 (0)1902 321444
> > >
> > >
> > > ________________________________________
> > > From: A UK-based worldwide e-mail broadcast system mailing list [
> > > [log in to unmask]] on behalf of Allan Reese [
> > > [log in to unmask]]
> > > Sent: 20 August 2019 14:29
> > > To: [log in to unmask]
> > > Subject: Re: allstat Digest - 19 Aug : UK school exams
> > >
> > > As John Bibby notes, the 2019 paper is embargoed except for teachers
> for
> > > a year. To continue the SHOCK, HORROR, I looked at an earlier
> > > Maths/Stats paper in which a question stated someone threw "a dice".
> > >
> > > Allan
> > >
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> >
> > --
> > ***************************************************
> > J. Martin Bland
> > Prof. of Health Statistics Emeritus
> > Dept. of Health Sciences
> > Seebohm Rowntree Building
> > University of York
> > Heslington
> > York YO10 5DD
> >
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