One thing I\u2019ve always kind of wondered about \u2014 how come we say a \u201cpair\u201d of pants when its only one item of clothing. Other one items like a shirt or coat aren\u2019t a pair. It seems like the bottom half of our clothes are plural for some reason \u2014 how come?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From what I\u2019ve heard, it all stems from the history of language and how these garments were originally constructed and or conceptualized.\u00a0
I guess maybe there\u2019s some truth to that, but I decided it would be worth me digging into a little deeper \u2014 but not too deep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Certainly we all accept that there are dozens of exceptions to the \u201crules\u201d of English and pants certainly fall into that category \u2014 why on Earth do you say \u201ca pair of pants\u201d when the \u201cpants\u201d in question are only one item?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most popular explanation is that the phrase \u201cpair of pants\u201d harkens back to the days when what constituted pants \u2014 or pantaloons, as they were originally known \u2014 consisted of two separate items, one for each leg. They were put on one at a time and then secured around the waist. Calling them a pair of pantaloons, or pants, as they were eventually known, made sense when there were two components. The phrasing was retained even after pants were made into one complete garment. But actually, if you look, there doesn\u2019t seem to be much evidence to support this theory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another theory, that I kind of like because like most everything today, it\u2019s a little complicated and confusing.\u00a0 One thing I\u2019ve always kind of wondered about \u2014 how come we say a \u201cpair\u201d of pants when its only one item of clothing. Other one items like a shirt or coat aren\u2019t a pair. It seems like the bottom … Continue reading
The word pants is a plurale tantum. What is that, you ask? The Oxford English Dictionary defines plurale tantum, which is Latin for \u201cplural only,\u201d as a \u201cnoun which is used only in plural form, or which is used only in plural form in a particular sense or senses.\u201d The word pants<\/em> is a plurale tantum so it can only be used in plural form. I guess I\u2019ve led a sheltered life, but \u201cplurale tantum\u201d was new to me. Plurale tantum words are nouns and are usually items that can be divided into two even though they are only one item \u2014 like, scissors, tweezers, sunglasses, binoculars, pliers, glasses, etc. That\u2019s the reason they are often preceded by a \u201cpair of\u201d \u2014 so \u2014 that\u2019s why we say a \u201cpair of pants.\u201d
I guess I should probably have paid more attention in English class\u2026\u2026
\u2014 30 \u2014<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"