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From: lilandbr@scn.org (Leland Bryant Ross)
Subject: Re: "Margarine" Thread Revisited: Adding "-ed" etc. to "medevac/medivac"
Message-ID: <E02nJv.LBw@scn.org>
Sender: news@scn.org
Reply-To: lilandbr@scn.org (Leland Bryant Ross)
Organization: Seattle Community Network
References: <54unb3$r74@sjx-ixn7.ix.netcom.com>  
Date: Wed, 30 Oct 1996 04:38:18 GMT
Lines: 43


In a previous article, cornell3@ix.netcom.com (Cornell Kimball) says:

>     Remember the "margarine" thread of a month or so ago, with discussions,
>among other specifics, of cases where "c" is pronounced like [k] even when
>followed by an "e," "i," or "y"?  Here is a compilation of posts from
>`sci.med.transcription' which touches on such a case.  As a bonus, there's a
>small discussion about how to inflect the verb "plateau" in English.  (This
>has also been posted to `alt.usage.english.')
>

This is the first time I've ever heard of anybody suggesting we 
"pluralize" *anything* (verb, noun, interjection, you name it) by 
adding -(e)d!					-Leland
		(see note below about -ced = /kt/)
>
>>From: 
resterwel@aol.com (Resterwel) >>Newsgroups: sci.med.transcription
>>Subject: Re: MEDI-VAC HELP!
>>Date: 20 Oct 1996 13:50:41 -0400
>>       [....]
>>
>>Hi Bob,
>>
>>That's how I would spell Medivac too.  But how would you pluralize it? 
>>And while we are on the subject, how would you pluralize plateau?  We have
>>been doing it plateaued.  Looks wrong tho.
>>
>>Resa

How about a general rule (which of course won't help tell Resa how to 
spell "plattoad") to the effect that word-final hard c keeps its k-sound 
no matter what, if any, suffixes/endings may be attached to it?  Will 
that work?

Proposal:  The proper past tense of "medevac" is "evacuated".

Or in the alternative, "medevact", the present 3rd sg of which is "medevax".
--
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