A bees' nest
Hi,
If you could help me with the following word combinations:
[1] a bees' nest
[2] a bee's nest
[3] a bees nest
[4] a bee nest
a) To begin with, all the four variants are "recognizable" by the Google Books NGram viewer.
Does it mean that all the four are good English?
b) On the other hand, the viewer reports quite different percentages for different variations [1]...[4].
What beats me most is that the variants with the possessives are much more common than [3] and [4].
Could you comment on this "phenomenon"?
Also, what is the right term for constructions like [1] and [2]. "Classifying genitives"?
Awaiting your kind comments....
Top answer
vlivef Does it mean that all the four are good English? No. The conventional words are beehive, wasp nest and bird's nest .
- vlivef Does it mean that all the four are good English?
- No.
- The conventional words are beehive, wasp nest and bird's nest .
- Bees do not make nests.
- net/wasp-nest-identification/
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vlivefDoes it mean that all the four are good English?
No. The conventional words are beehive, wasp nest and bird's nest. Bees do not make nests.
https://insectcop.net/wasp-nest-identification/
0bee's nest
It doesn't matter how many bees. Don't let the "s" throw you. That is how such words are formed. Of course, you will see variants. There is no Grand Czar of English to decide these things.
0
vlivefDoes it mean that all the four are good English?
It means nobody is sure what to do with that expression.
The correct answer is — (drum roll, please) —
bees' nest.
The nest belongs to more than one bee, so of course that's the answer.
— The Grand Czar
0
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