Usage of the words and phrases in modern English. 2013.
Plural — is a grammatical number, typically referring to more than one of the referent in the real world.In the English language, singular and plural are the only grammatical numbers.In English, nouns, pronouns, and demonstratives inflect for plurality.… … Wikipedia
The Lakes of Pontchartrain — is an American Civil War song. It shares similar chords and tuning with the Beatles hit Blackbird. All known recordings of the song title Lakes as plural, but geographically there is only one Lake of Pontchartrain north of New Orleans. (Lake… … Wikipedia
(the) working classes — the ˌworking ˈclass [working class working classes] noun singular + singular or plural verb (also the ˌworking ˈclasses … Useful english dictionary
the upper classes — the ˌupper ˈclass noun singular (also the ˌupper ˈclasses plural) the groups of people that are considered to have the highest social status and that have more mon … Useful english dictionary
(the) Middle Ages — the Middle Ages UK US noun [plural] the period in European history between about the year 1000 ad and the year 1500 ad Things belonging to this period are described as medieval . The period before it is called the Dark Ages and the period after… … Useful english dictionary
(the) small hours — the small hours UK US noun [plural] the time when it is very early in the morning, soon after midnight Thesaurus: times in the evening or nighthyponym happening at night and related to nightsynonym * * * the ˈsmall/ˈearly hours idiom … Useful english dictionary
the insured — UK US noun [C] (plural the insured) ► INSURANCE the person or organization that is referred to in a particular insurance agreement and that would receive payment from the insurance company if a particular event happened: »The policy covers the… … Financial and business terms
(the) purse strings — the purse strings UK US noun [plural] the way in which money is controlled and spent by a group or organization control the purse strings: She controls the family purse strings very tightly. tighten/loosen the purse strings (=reduce or increase… … Useful english dictionary
the high seas — UK US noun [plural] ► the areas of the oceans that are not controlled by any country: »The rising problem of piracy on the high seas has led the Foreign Officer Minister to call for global action. → Compare TERRITORIAL WATERS(Cf. ↑territorial… … Financial and business terms
the defence — [treated as sing. or plural] the counsel for the defendant in a lawsuit. → defence the defence the players in a team who perform a defensive role. → defence … English new terms dictionary
