Talk:pair

pair used for singular nouns

this should be noted I think. as in, a pair of pants, which also is used in the plural.124.171.194.203 22:35, 3 February 2010 (UTC)

No pants is a plurale tantum. Find another example, that doesn't work. Mglovesfun (talk) 22:45, 3 February 2010 (UTC)

To pair roast beef with a wine

i.e. to pick a wine that complements the meal. I'm sure it's broader than just wines, but none of our senses seem to cover this adequately. Equinox ◑ 21:01, 20 October 2015 (UTC)

pair of beads

In the sense "a set or combination of more than two objects forming a collective whole, pair occurs chiefly in fixed phrases: a pair of beads; a pair of stairs. This use is now somewhat old-fashioned .
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English

--Backinstadiums (talk) 12:26, 3 December 2019 (UTC)

one of two matched articles

one of two matched articles such as shoes or gloves
He lost the pair to his cuff link
Microsoft® Encarta® 2009

--Backinstadiums (talk) 10:34, 22 January 2020 (UTC)

Interesting. Really that's a partner, but it seems there is a sense we are missing. Remind me to add this later. Equinox ◑ 03:52, 23 January 2020 (UTC)

concordance

If pair means a unit, set, or whole, it takes a singular verb: A pair of new leather riding boots is expensive. If the people or things constituting the pair are regarded individually and not as a set, a plural verb is used: A pair of volunteers are walking up and down various streets and alleys, picking up trash. Here, the two people are thought of as working not only together on one street but also separately on other streets and alleys. If pair comes after a number over one:  16 pairs of boots. 
Microsoft® Encarta® 2009

--Backinstadiums (talk) 17:58, 30 March 2020 (UTC)

@Backinstadiums: (*Ahem*) In U.S. English, it should be "A pair [of volunteers] are is walking..." --Kent Dominic (talk) 01:34, 23 February 2021 (UTC)

Used as a collective noun, pair can take a singular verb according to strict grammatical agreement, or a plural verb according to notional or proximity agreement --Backinstadiums (talk) 12:39, 3 March 2021 (UTC)

According to which monarch? Keep this in mind: the Brits might've invented English but the Yanks improved it. --Kent Dominic (talk) 10:12, 4 March 2021 (UTC)

prs.

prs. (abbreviation): pairs --Backinstadiums (talk) 15:43, 21 September 2020 (UTC)

Number contrast

Number contrast for gloves, pyjamas, scissors, etc., can only be made by using them with pair: thus a pair of binoculars = one object, and two pairs of binoculars (not two binoculars) = two objects. --Backinstadiums (talk) 21:44, 22 February 2021 (UTC)

@Backinstadiums: You have a point regarding clarity, but the absolutist "can only be made" assertion ignores what a binary noun entails. So, "two binoculars" is grammatically fine although admittedly ambiguous. (And hardly anyone would construe "I bought two pants" to mean "I bought two pant legs" despite how "I bought two pairs of pants" accords with my own style of phrasing.) --Kent Dominic (talk) 01:28, 23 February 2021 (UTC)

Pair will almost always mean "two (or less)"

Pair will almost always mean two (or less). --Backinstadiums (talk) 10:37, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

Don't believe it. Pair will always mean two as a binary noun. Besides, who would trust the linguistic analysis of a source that can't even get it grammatically right? Compare: Pair will almost always mean two or fewer. --Kent Dominic (talk) 16:06, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

@Kent Dominic: Apparently it started to be grammatically right in 1985, but why? --Backinstadiums (talk) 20:44, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

@Kent Dominic btw, what meaning of less do you think they used in that sentence? --Backinstadiums (talk) 20:40, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

They meant constituting a smaller number than two. It's not entirely wrong, but fewer has more traditional weight in its favor. --Kent Dominic (talk) 20:48, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

@Kent Dominic: like 1,97? or 1,003? --Backinstadiums (talk) 20:52, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

Uh, less (or fewer) than two would = 1, 0, or a negative number. I suppose it could be something other than a whole number. --Kent Dominic (talk) 20:56, 25 June 2021 (UTC)

@Kent Dominic "less (or fewer)". Wait. You just said fewer was not O.K. here... Furthermore, what PoS of those in wiktionary (less) is used in OP example? LESS https://oed.com/oed2/00132077 , FEW https://oed.com/oed2/00084160 --Backinstadiums (talk) 22:28, 25 June 2021 (UTC)