0
Electrum Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
Starboard and port
Dictionary.com defines starboard, used adverbially, as towards the right side of a ship, but it gives no adverbial sense of the word port.
I take towards as being allative, denoting motion to or towards a place: The cannon were directed starboard.
What about port? May I say?: The cannon were directed port.
Further, may these be used as locative adverbs, denoting position right or left?: As we sailed the Narni River, we had forests of juniper starboard and port.
I take towards as being allative, denoting motion to or towards a place: The cannon were directed starboard.
What about port? May I say?: The cannon were directed port.
Further, may these be used as locative adverbs, denoting position right or left?: As we sailed the Narni River, we had forests of juniper starboard and port.
Top answer
" That sounds ok. As I am not into sailing, usage of "starboard and port" are always a little confusing to me. "
- " That sounds ok.
- As I am not into sailing, usage of "starboard and port" are always a little confusing to me.
- "
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
7 Answers
0
"The cannon was directed starboard" or
"The cannons were directed starboard"
"The cannons were directed port side." or
"The cannon was directed port side."
See the following pages:
http://en.wiktionary.org/
"The cannons were directed starboard"
"The cannons were directed port side." or
"The cannon was directed port side."
See the following pages:
http://en.wiktionary.org/
00
The cannon were is correct.
From Dictionary.com:
noun, plural -nons, ( especially collectively
From Dictionary.com:
noun, plural -nons, ( especially collectively
00
Ok, I see http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cannon says (plural cannon or cannons). This is new to me, so pers
00
I just checked on Google for common usage and found the following:
"cannon were" - About 130,000 results
"cannons were" - About 116,000 results
It seems "cannon" (plural) is in regular usage. Not being in the military or having much interest in history, I can't say I've noticed this plural form before, so if I've used the plural form it will have been "cannons".
"cannon were" - About 130,000 results
"cannons were" - About 116,000 results
It seems "cannon" (plural) is in regular usage. Not being in the military or having much interest in history, I can't say I've noticed this plural form before, so if I've used the plural form it will have been "cannons".
00
free_spiritI suggest using the regular plural form with the -s suffixI use it as a matter of style, creating the illusion that I an old hand at this sort of thing.
00
Ok, that is good. I use certain things as a matter of style also. And English is a varied language, with plenty of different usage styles, particular when it comes to slang and colloquial usage. Thanks for teaching me something new!
00
free_spiritYou could use more general English "we had forests of juniper to our left and right."This too is a matter of style, to make it look as if I knew what I am talking about when it comes to navigation. This is a novel I am writing.
0
Related Questions