Mietz

"Skis" it is.  Thanks again! @ logos I do usually trust non-natives, too. And I agree with you almost completely. But I�d rather go with whisky (Scottish Single Malt - no ice - actually) - to make my accent more Scottish. It seems to have helped already. (That and having lived there maybe.) I wonder if drinking tea makes my accent more English. The Scottish drink a lot of tea, too though...

22 Jan 2009     

cheezels

I tend to trust the non natives or experienced natives like zora....because logos is right... just because I speak it doesn�t mean I know why! In fact I really was shocked at just how complex this darn language really is to try to explain to someone else why things are so!!!! I have learnt so much these past few months from all of you! And will be on a very steep leaning curve for a long time to come! ps: the coffee didnt help AT ALL

22 Jan 2009     

libertybelle

22 Jan 2009     

Logos

22 Jan 2009     

cheezels

Good morning Libertybell! I wish I had more grammar at school, of course we did it but we never did the explanations like why is a verb here before/after  this word or X must always come after Y if it is present progressive etc.... I think the States and Canada have a far better grammar teaching system than NZ (from what I have seen and heard). The higher up you go in NZ English at school it is mainly about books reading, interpreting and comprehension, Shakespeare and a bit of creative writing, writing a presentation, speech or debate. Hopefully that has changed since my day! Of course we do loads as we go through the school system , but it�s just the way it is explained is very very different. I wish so much that I had incorporated some ESL style explanations into my classroom teaching of native kids over the years. The curriculum in the UK for example is sadly lacking a lot! But I openly admit that at the moment I am still learning the whys :-) and no one should really trust me 100% just because I am native

22 Jan 2009     

douglas

Definately "skis" (unless she spends most of her time the air   )   Thanks Mietz, I just learned something new about the difference between "whiskey" and "whisky".  For me it�s definately "whiskey".   Logos, the one advantage a native speaker has is that built-in sensor that says "that just doesn�t sound right".  That native intuition can�t be ignored; it is usually correct and more up-to-date than a lot of the rules that were written (and taught) many years ago.  You said yourself that language is "a consistent set of rules or variables", you just have to remember that the "consistency" is also variable.  Otherwise we would still be saying thee and thou.  I can�t wait until the day I can spell "night" as "nite" (or light/lite) and be correct--it will happen it will just take a long time.   Douglas

22 Jan 2009     

Mietz

22 Jan 2009     

Logos

22 Jan 2009     

alien boy

Well, lets start with a couple of reasons why it would be �skis� and not �skies� from a phonological perspective. We can discount the fact that �ski� is a Norwegian loan word because �sky� is also derived from Old Norse, so you�d think that would make them more likely to be similar in construction... but what sound does �ie� make in a word? What consistencies in English do we find in word construction to represent the different sounds? Does anyone know any other word where there are 2 consonants followed by �ies� to make the �ee� sound? I�m trying to think of another, but can�t... I can certainly think of many where there is one consonant followed by �ies� to make that sound (robberies, bakeries...) If anyone can think of one, please let me know! p.s. LibertyBelle - when I started school in the 70�s they had pretty much gone to teaching �natural English� & dropped formal grammar from many syllabuses. I hate to say it, but it sounds like you went to school with my grandmother.... p.p.s. I�m not quite on the planet at the moment, so I hope my post wasn�t too all over the place...

22 Jan 2009     

threshold

22 Jan 2009