From: snidely.too@gmail.com   
      
   On Friday or thereabouts, wugi asked ...   
   > Op 4/07/2024 om 19:09 schreef Athel Cornish-Bowden:   
   >> On 2024-07-04 17:03:35 +0000, wugi said:   
   >>   
   >>> Op 1/07/2024 om 7:56 schreef Hibou:   
   >>>> Le 01/07/2024 à 04:44, HenHanna a écrit :   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>> A pair of pants,    or    A pair of trousers   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>>                   ... ok because each Pair kinda looks like  [2 pipes].   
   >>>>>   
   >>>>>     ...but...   
   >>>>>               "a Pair of Panties" ?????   
   >>>>   
   >>>> There appears to be a class of things that exist only in the plural - a   
   >>>> pair of tweezers, scissors, pliers, sunglasses... trousers, underpants,   
   >>>> knickers, tights... - things that bifurcate or are made up of two bits. I   
   >>>> suppose the briefer garments inherited the plural from longer ones   
   >>>> (though a few minutes' searching yields no support for this; briefs were   
   >>>> apparently in use in Ancient Egypt).   
   >>>   
   >>> [...]   
   >>>   
   >>> Why does English name all these things as pairs, being a single object?   
   >>> Others like French have a few (lunettes, ciseaux).   
   >>   
   >> But pantalon is singular, though the English word derived from it,   
   >> pantaloons,is plural.   
   >   
   > Not an explanation, but it seems like a demonstration of how English likes to   
   > see things in "double" ;-)   
   >   
   >>> Others like Dutch have none of it in plural or "dual".   
   >   
   > Even twins are just one "tweeling".   
      
   What is term for each individual twin?   
      
   >   
   >>> Any historic reason?   
      
   Nah, happened mostly in the quiet times.   
      
   /dps   
      
   --   
   You could try being nicer and politer   
   > instead, and see how that works out.   
        -- Katy Jennison   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)