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Conference thebay::joyoflex

Title:The Joy of Lex
Notice:A Notes File even your grammar could love
Moderator:THEBAY::SYSTEM
Created:Fri Feb 28 1986
Last Modified:Mon Jun 02 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1192
Total number of notes:42769

121.0. "A protest" by VOGON::GOODENOUGH () Tue Nov 26 1985 07:19

OK, let's reword this. (If you saw my original attempt at this note, it was
badly put together).

Does anyone detect anything strange in the use of the verb 'protest' in
these two examples from yesterday's edition of VNS? :

> Several hundred thousand people gather in what was  supposed  to  be  a
> peaceful  protest  of  the military regime in Chile.

> I really must protest your reporting of the ....

I've seen/heard this a lot in the U.S.  Is it correct American usage?
It certainly sounds strange to an Englishman's ear: in fact it's nonsense.

U.K. usage is always intransitive, except in my first example below, where
it is used in the sense of 'declare'.

	I protest [my innocence].

	I protest at [your news report].

	I protest against [oppressive regimes].

Comments?  Does the UK usage sound strange to US ears?  What do US
dictionaries say?

Jeff.
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121.1AJAX::TOPAZTue Nov 26 1985 10:3713
       I don't understand any of this pro-test nonsense.
       
       Of course I'm pro-test!  Without them, how would anyone get any
       grades in school?  You have to have them, or teachers would be out
       of jobs, students would run amok in the streets, and other mean
       and nasty things would happen, too. 
       
       The only reason to be anti-test is to get rid of those dumb 4-day
       cricket matches.  They cause too many medical problems, anyway,
       since people in Australia get bad sunburns on the bottoms of their
       noses from the sun reflecting off their Fosters' tinnies. 
         
       --E. Littella
121.2BEING::POSTPISCHILTue Nov 26 1985 12:1732
Here's one for the note about words that are their own opposites.
Merriam-Webster's _Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary_, 1976, says:

	protest	n	1 : a solemn declaration of opinion and usually of
			dissent: as  A : a sworn declaration that payment
			of a note or bill has been refused and that all
			responsible signers or debtors are liable for
			resulting loss or damage  B : a formal declaration
			of dissent by a member to an act or resolution of
			a legislature; _especially_ : one made by a member
			of the House of Lords  C : a declaration made
			especially before or while paying that a tax is
			illegal and that payment is not voluntary  D : a
			solemn declaration of disapproval  2 : the act of
			protesting; _especially_ : a usually organized
			public demonstration of disapproval  3 A : a
			course of action  B : a gesture of extreme
			disapproval  4 : an objection made to an official
			or a governing body of a sport

	protest	vb	vt  1 : to make solemn declaration or affirmation
			of  2 : to execute or have executed a formal
			protest against  3 : to make a protest against
			4 : to offer objection to in words or acts ~ vi
			1 : to make a protestation  2 : to make or enter
			a protest

Meaning 1 for the transitive verb pretty much opposes the other meanings.


				-- edp