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Pructus Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
The meaning of "Mass"
Hi, Members and Gurus!
"There is no substitute for Mass. Mass stops bullets. Mass stops gamma radiation. Mass stops (or at least slows down) bad guys from entering a home and depriving its residents of life and property. Sandbags are cheap, so buy plenty of them. When planning your retreat house, think: medival castle."
It's an excerpt from James Rawles's book, "How to survive the End of the world as we know it".
The "mass" in the excerpt. Among the meanings of mass in Webster Dictionary...
1. The property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field.[ For example, the book is 2 kilograms in mass. Mass as in Einstein's theorem E=MC2 ]
2. An ill-structured collection of similar things (objects or people).[Wordnet]
3. (Roman Catholic Church and Protestant Churches) the celebration of the Eucharist.[]
4. A body of matter without definite shape; "a huge ice mass".[For example, a mass of clay]
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The "mass" is to be understood as the meaning of #1 (The property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field), or #4 (A body of matter without definite shape)?
I assume that number 4 meaning is the only option here, but some people don't agree. Some people think number 1 is the right meaning of "mass" in the excerpt and some people think both interpretation is possible.
What is native speaker's sense of English regarding the word, "mass" here?
"There is no substitute for Mass. Mass stops bullets. Mass stops gamma radiation. Mass stops (or at least slows down) bad guys from entering a home and depriving its residents of life and property. Sandbags are cheap, so buy plenty of them. When planning your retreat house, think: medival castle."
It's an excerpt from James Rawles's book, "How to survive the End of the world as we know it".
The "mass" in the excerpt. Among the meanings of mass in Webster Dictionary...
1. The property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field.[ For example, the book is 2 kilograms in mass. Mass as in Einstein's theorem E=MC2 ]
2. An ill-structured collection of similar things (objects or people).[Wordnet]
3. (Roman Catholic Church and Protestant Churches) the celebration of the Eucharist.[]
4. A body of matter without definite shape; "a huge ice mass".[For example, a mass of clay]
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The "mass" is to be understood as the meaning of #1 (The property of a body that causes it to have weight in a gravitational field), or #4 (A body of matter without definite shape)?
I assume that number 4 meaning is the only option here, but some people don't agree. Some people think number 1 is the right meaning of "mass" in the excerpt and some people think both interpretation is possible.
What is native speaker's sense of English regarding the word, "mass" here?
Top answer
#1 only. CJ
- #1 only.
- CJ
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6 Answers
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Thanks CJ!!
The reason I thought #4 is correct is that there can be something so heavy but so small in size. And the writer is mentioning sandbags as an example. So I assumed Mass as in the meaning #4.
I need to think about this a little more to catch up with you.
The reason I thought #4 is correct is that there can be something so heavy but so small in size. And the writer is mentioning sandbags as an example. So I assumed Mass as in the meaning #4.
I need to think about this a little more to catch up with you.
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pructusI assumed Mass as in the meaning #4.No. #4 is a countable usage. The text uses 'mass' only as a non-countable noun, as in definition #1.
CJ
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In this instance you simply subsitute the word "weight" for the word "mass." Anything with weight will stop bullets or gamma radiation or crooks. A pile of styrofoam packing peanuts won't stop a bullet, it's too light, but a pile of dirt, packed down, will, because it's heavy. Even something like snow, if packed down, will stop a bullet or radiation, because it's dense, and heavy, when packed
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AnonymousIn this instance you simply subsitute the word "weight" for the word "mass."I think the original uses the terms figuratively to mean (as you say) "dense." Substituting "weight" doesn't change the fact that technically speaking, mass alone doesn't stop bullets.
And I agree with CJ that #1 and not #4 is the correct definition, because of th
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I see, I see....
Thanks CJ and Avangi and Anonymous!!
Now it's so clear...
Actually, after seeing the explanations of yours, I feel that I had some hint, which was the countability of a noun.
I had to think more thorough and harder....
Thanks CJ and Avangi and Anonymous!!
Now it's so clear...
Actually, after seeing the explanations of yours, I feel that I had some hint, which was the countability of a noun.
I had to think more thorough and harder....
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