"persons"

Hier dreht sich alles um englische Vokabeln.
Learn more about words.
Antworten
ibex
Frequent Typer
Beiträge: 118
Registriert: 12. Jun 2010 10:34
Muttersprache: Deutsch

"persons"

Beitrag von ibex »

Hi there!

Our previous English teacher always told us "It's not persons, it's people!"
Anyway, in the last weeks I've come across a couple of examples in books where it said "persons".
Am I right when I assume that "persons" is alright when I want to stress that I mean every single one?

Cheers
ibex




Keswick
English Legend
Beiträge: 4799
Registriert: 30. Jul 2008 11:20
Muttersprache: Deutsch
Wohnort: Borough of Gateshead

Re: "persons"

Beitrag von Keswick »

I hope this makes it a bit clearer:

person = individual human being (man, woman, child) . Plural: persons. Mainly used in formal context.

people = generally used for more than one individual human
Bitte keine Korrektur- / Erklärungsanfragen per PN.
British English (BE) Sprecher.

tiorthan
Lingo Whiz
Beiträge: 2815
Registriert: 13. Jun 2010 01:36
Muttersprache: de, (pl)

Re: "persons"

Beitrag von tiorthan »

ibex hat geschrieben: Am I right when I assume that "persons" is alright when I want to stress that I mean every single one?
Basically yes. This is also why it is usually only found in formal contexts like legal texts because that's really where you have to make a distinction.
You're never too old to learn something stupid.
MistakeSuggestionYou sure that's right?

Antworten