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Question

Is the noun "end" an absolute one?

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

AnonymousIs the noun "end" an absolute one?

As far as I know, there is no such thing as an absolute noun. What do you mean by "absolute noun"?

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

CalifJimAs far as I know, there is no such thing as an absolute noun. What do you mean by "absolute noun"?

Yes, I agree that it's not in the grammar books; it's a sort of my invention. I wonder whether I could name such a noun as "end" as an absolute one analogously to non-gradable adjectives like impossible, supreme, perfect, infinite, etc., which cannot be intensified or compared. What I mean is such a phrase, for example, as "the beginning of the end" which suggests the duration of the end, not the point (in time) where something suddenly stops or ceases to exist.

CalifJim · Answer

Anonymousmy invention

Hmm. In that case, you'll have to develop the whole theory of gradable and non-gradable nouns yourself!
Once you have that, you'll be able to tell all the rest of us which nouns are absolute and which are not.

If I were you, I would concentrate on the definitions of words as we already have them in dictionaries and find cases where the same word can be used in different ways, sometimes "absolute" and sometimes "not absolute". The analogous case is where the same word can sometimes be used as "countable" or "non-countable". As we now have some dictionaries which give examples of the countable use of a word and the non-countable use of the same noun, maybe some day we'll have dictionaries which show the absolute use and the non-absolute use of nouns. But it's your idea, so you'll have to develop it in your own way.

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

CalifJimHmm. In that case, you'll have to develop the whole theory of gradable and non-gradable nouns yourself! Once you have that, you'll be able to tell all the rest of us which nouns are absolute and which are not.

Thank you for your kind comment and encouragement.

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