Errors-To: owner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Reply-To: tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Sender: owner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Precedence: bulk From: owner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org To: tmbg-digest@tmbg.org Subject: tmbg-list Digest, Volume 39, Number 7 tmbg-list Digest, Volume 39, Number 7 Wednesday, 7 March 2001 Topics: Re: NON-TMBG: prepositions, islands, and lines Administrivia: For all administrative issues, such as change of address, withdrawal from the list, etc., send a message to the following address: ÁÁowner-tmbg-digest@tmbg.org The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors. tmbg-list is compiled with Digest 3.7b (John Relph ). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 6 Mar 2001 14:49:07 -0500 From: "Bryce" Subject: Re: NON-TMBG: prepositions, islands, and lines Message-ID: <983fca$12c8$1@ussenterprise.ufp.org> Organization: They Might Be Giants, Unofficially http://www.tmbg.org Nathan Mulac DeHoff : > Well, Manhattan is the name of both a borough and the > island on which it is located. If you're talking about the > borough, it wouldn't be appropriate to say "on," would it? I think you're on to something there. Long Island really only refers to a physical location, but Manhattan is as much a political entity as a physical island. This distinction also explains "on Maui" as opposed to "in Hawaii" or "in Cuba," or "in Madagascar." (Not to say that Maui isn't a political entity, just that it is more a physical than political one. There's a fine line there somewhere, the analysis of which would probably make a decent linguistics paper.) > Should they say, "Next in queue" instead? I would prefer that to "Next on line!" And I suppose a pleasant "May I help the next customer?" is too much to ask. Bryce I declare that I am England. ------------------------------ End of tmbg-list Digest #39-7 *****************************