Por que o Head não está no plural em "12,000 head of cattle"
- anita [ Top Posters ]
- Anita Teaching, Studying, Living, and Learning
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Hi, there. I was reading a text about the Gold Rush when I saw that certain guy "had 12,000 head of cattle". My question is: why isn't the word "head" in the plural form??? Is it a special use or something? Please, help!
Thank u!
Thank u!
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- Marcio_Farias [ Expert Member ]
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Hello anita. dictionary.com yielded, "10. a person or animal considered merely as one of a number, herd, or group: ten head of cattle." It apparently uses the word head in the singular.
So you can safely use the word in the singular, too.
So you can safely use the word in the singular, too.
- Flavia.lm [ Expert Member ]
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Macmillan confirma que a palavra 'head' usada neste contexto está no plural, ainda que sem o s
8[plural] used as a way of counting farm animals
300 head of cattle
http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dict ... ad#head_25
8[plural] used as a way of counting farm animals
300 head of cattle
http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dict ... ad#head_25
- anita [ Top Posters ]
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Wow, guys, that's news to me. Thank u so!
- Henry Cunha [ Expert Member ]
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It's a special use. I don't think there is any other similar case in English, so you just have to learn this one. Which is a good thing.
Btw, 12 heads of cattle would be the heads of 12 dead animals. Which might not be a good thing.
Btw, 12 heads of cattle would be the heads of 12 dead animals. Which might not be a good thing.
