People/Persons 11-1-04

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" background="042d05a3.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Big Ring Media Team, Inc.</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Big Ring Media Team, Inc."><B>home</B></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="043d2123.jpg"> <div> Click on this link to return to <A HREF="id40.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Word Watch by Subject">Word Watch by Subject</A>.</div> <div> Click on this link to go to <A HREF="id39.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Word Watch by Date">Word Watch by Date</A>.</div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>People/Persons 11-1-04</I></div> <div> The rule here is that if there can be a specific count, “persons” is the right choice. If we're talking about a given group, where the number is abstract rather than concrete, “people” is the appropriate word.</div> <div> “Hundreds of persons were sickened and four later died as the result of a hepatitis-A breakout at a Pittsburgh Chi-Chi's restaurant in 2003.”</div> <div> “Fourteen persons reported hearing a hissing noise just before the explosion occurred.”</div> <div> “The people of Tibet are known for their generosity.”</div> <div> “The people of our state sent a message to their elected officials when they voted down Proposition 3 by a 2-to-1 margin.”</div> <div> Because “persons” can sound stilted and stiff, it's often better to use another more descriptive term, such as “residents” or “students” or “attendees” or “customers.”</div> </td> </tr></table></body>