Random question.

[B00]

Why isn't toothpaste called teethpaste?

[mollykins]

hhmmmm. . . . . unless you have a very large brush, you can only realy brush one tooth at a time. Even if the brush is moving fast, its only touching one tooth, maybe two.

[rowanwitch]

And Hand cream Handscream, lipgloss lipsgloss, etc never noticed it before but its a general thing

[B00]

Yeah but you clean teeth with them Molly, not a tooth (unless you only have one tooth)

Oh yeah rowan, never thought of those...so errr why?

[carrust]

I think you lot should get out more...........

[rowanwitch]

I have just e-mailed colgate to ask them will let you know when I get a reply

[rowanwitch]

Carrust....so should you, you've been reading it after all...

I am always interested in language and its development I am afraid my geek mode has been triggered

[coccinelle]

Because here the noun is playing the part of an adjective (describing the noun) and no adjectives are plurals. Same reason we say football and not feetball, a three-year-old and not a three-years-old ...

[Quizmonster]

Shoe polish, not shoes polish; glove box, not gloves box...and multitudes of similar examples...and all for the reason Coccinelle has just given.

[sara3]

and why are knickers called a pair?

sorry, just thought I'd drop that in!

[B00]

Bad Boo,I'd forgotten i'd asked this question!

Thanks guys, and especially thanks for the last two very concise answers :-)

(the things you think about when you're nodding off to sleep eh?)

[bigfoot3000]

Because you squeeze a "Pair" of buns into them.

[B00]

And bad Sara, for replying inbetween mine :P

Now I think I know that one- they're called a pair as you (normally) put a pair of legs through....right?

[sara3]

I don't "squeeze" anything into mine!

[sara3]

so B00, you get a pair of t-shirts because you put a pair of arms through them? lol!

[B00]

Oh bu88er, my theory went out the window then didn't it?

No one likes a smart alec you know sara :P

[Quizmonster]

Sara, click http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-pai1.htm for why a pair of knickers.

[B00]

AHA!!!

So I was right!

Wooohooo!

(It's the small things which amuse me)

[sara3]

oh, that's bloody ridiculous! ;o)

[rowanwitch]

And colgate confirmed the grammatical rationale but AB is faster than a multinational

Impressive