Re: (de)cresendi syntax

[Cameron Horsburgh]

On Sat, Apr 11, 2009 at 10:40:24AM +0100, Trevor Daniels wrote:
>
> Werner LEMBERG wrote Saturday, April 11, 2009 9:35 AM
>
>
>>
>>> In an english context, the plural is simple: "crescendoes".
>>
>> Ouch.  I would use `crescendos'.
>
> To be pedantic, if "crescendo" is not a noun there is no
> plural, even in English.  It should always be written as "crescendo 
> markings" or "crescendo indications".  There is
> a similar situation with the anglicised Latin "requiems", which is 
> strictly incorrect. It should be "requiem masses".

This is quite true; however, the question must be asked---at what
point do we declare it to be an English word derived from the Italian?

For the record, the first definition of the term in the Oxford
Dictionary is in its noun state, listing 'crescendos' and 'crescendi'
as the plural forms. It also lists the term as an adverb/adjective and
a verb. The Merriam-Webster offers similar defnitions while
recognising the original Italian from is adjectival.

http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/crescendo

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crescendo

-- 

Cameron Horsburgh

Blog: http://spiritcry.wordpress.com/