Wednesday, March 11, 2015

BEWARE OF BUSSES

Dear Drug Takers, Drug Fakers (Placebos), Hemp Bakers, Drug Makers, Straight Stayers, and Pharmaceutical Reps,*

I, Your Queen of Grammar, a.k.a. C'est Moi, hereby proclaim that you must beware of more than one bus.




These are buses. Your Queen of Grammar notes that a number of very nice people spell buses as busses. Some Web sites will tell you that buses are busses, but here's an excellent explanation of the word from grammarist.com:

In 21st-century English, buses is the preferred plural of the noun busBusses appears occasionally, and dictionaries list it as a secondary spelling, but it’s been out of favor for over a century. 

In 21st-century English, buses is the preferred plural of the noun busBusses appears occasionally, and dictionaries list it as a secondary spelling, but it’s been out of favor for over a century. 

After bus emerged in the 19th century as an abbreviation of omnibusbuses and busses (the logical plural of buss, an early alternative spelling of bus) vied for dominance for several decades. By the early 20th century, though, buses was the clear winner, and it has steadily become more prevalent. Today, buses appears on the web about 15 times for every instance of busses.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, and I'm sure you will, is to leave a comment to demonstrate that you know what buss means, or you may invent a definition, but please, I beg of you, stop spelling buses as busses.




Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug


*Salutation inspired by the one and only Pickleope of Strangely Naked.

53 comments:

  1. 1) A buss is a baby-fuss.
    In a sentence: He didn't make much of a fuss. It was more of a buss.

    2) When an inebriated person tried to clean off their own table at a bar.
    In a sentence: "Everybody, get out of my way (hick) I gotta busssssss."

    3) The shortened form of "but us" in the plural...as in everyone is bad at grammar, bu'ss.

    My work here is done.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I caught the bus to the grammarist.com, you recommended. While there I made several transfers, involving other buses. I am most interested in discovering my punctuation boo-boos. Holy smoke, I have several, and must return more often.

    I did not find a definition of the word 'buss.' I will attempt a faux definition for fun.
    Buss: "Hey, Johnny, let's go buss' Bert upside the head."

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  3. Is it correct to say you rode one bus, then another bus, then another bus, then another bus...?

    ReplyDelete
  4. I just love it when the Great Scot gives me a big buss. XX

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  5. Hi Janie - I guess if I say it ... lots of comments will abound .. oh why can't they speak like us!!

    Cheers Hilary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How are you, Hilary? I hope your recuperation continues.

      Delete
  6. It's a good thing I'm American and thus, will never use mass transit, nullifying any opportunity to have to use the plural of bus. A "buss" is a bus with a larger caboose (if you know what I mean). Just like a massive badunkadunk of a rear section, that's a buss. It can also be used in rap songs, "damn girl, don't want no fuss/just flip on the beeps and back up that buss."
    You don't need to say it, I know I'm right...right?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh, and I didn't realize I inspired that intro, but I am honored that you chose to use it. I think by my previous comment that I embodied that intro, but I swear I'm sober.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you must be sober when you're so creative. When you're not sober, it's pretty difficult to tap the correct keys.

      Delete
  8. We're "agin" buses or busses around here. We git around as God intended - in 4-wheel-drive pickups.
    R

    ReplyDelete
  9. I wanna buss you all over
    And over again
    I wanna buss you all over
    Till the night closes in
    Till the night closes in
    - Exile

    Good morning, dear Janie Junebug!

    Let us also remember that it's Gary Busey, not Gary Bussey
    and I Love Lucy, not I Love Luccy.

    Happy Wednesday, dear friend Janie!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Busses is a less harsh sound than buzzes, reserved for less threatening insects and bugs.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Now that you mention it, I think I have spelled it wrong before :)

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  12. Old Uncle Charlie busses his way through the room of pretty girls.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He'd better not pat their bottoms at the same time.

      Delete
  13. A buss is an old-fashioned word for a kiss. So busses are several kisses.

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  14. An alternate spelling? Really?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, but I don't like alternate spellings. It makes life too confusing.

      Delete
  15. We live too far out to ride the busses anymore. Now we just drive our carses.

    ReplyDelete
  16. hahahahahahahaha I just looked this up the online dictionary and even they had busses ?
    I know you are the Queen of grammar but if I don't like the way a word looks, even if right, I will change the word.
    It is the artist in me or haiku writer.

    cheers, parsnip

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But the online dictionary had busses as a secondary spelling, I hope? Sometimes we have to change words in favor of artistry.

      Delete
  17. I believe I always spelled it as buses but I still like to spell Color as Colour and favorite and favourite:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're Canadian, though, aren't you? Isn't that typical in Canada, as it is in Great Britain and a number of other places?

      Delete
    2. The ou used to freak me out. Becoming a blogger has helped me get used to it.

      Delete
  18. I do know the meaning of "buss." It is rather on the same line as "smooch!":-)

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  19. Ok when I saw the title I thought what do they spell buses with two s's in the USA because that is not how I spell it but I read the post and find out that is not the case unless you are one of those people who spent a dozen years at school and left without knowing how to spell.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lots of people leave school without the ability to spell, and it's getting worse because now children are taught what is known as "creative spelling."

      Delete
  20. Question for our Queen of grammar: sometimes I see the word "toward" with an "s" on the end. Is there a rule about this?is one way British?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Towards is British. We (should) use toward, but we often get it wrong.

      Delete
  21. I've been using buses properly. Yeah, I finally get one point! Now if I could say butter properly all would be well. Being from Chi-town we say Ds instead of Ts. I can say butt and but fine but throw an er at the end and things go sideways. My bestie is from Stoke and she said trying to figure out our Ts and Ds was difficult. But then again she throws an er at the words that shouldn't have them. Bless her and the English.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I used to have a friend from Boston who said "youse guys" in place of "you guys." First, we weren't guys; second, it's not youse; and third, she dared to criticize my grammar.

      Delete
  22. My husband would probably like a buss before I pick up my kid from the bus.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As long as the buss is from you, that's great.

      Delete
  23. Spelling is declining with age . . . I will remember buses, though.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't know if correct spelling declines with age, or with the lack of emphasis on correct spelling. I don't think it's a priority anymore.

      Delete
  24. My wife gave me a buss on the cheek... (I cheated. I looked it up.)

    Here's a question for you: what about the verb "to bus" as in to clear off your tray or table at a restaurant? Is it then appropriate to write "he always busses his own tray" or would it be "buses" once again?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I bus my table. He busses the table. She bussed the table. (I cheated. I looked it up in Webster's Third New International Dictionary.) The person is a busboy or busgirl, or a busser.

      Delete
  25. When I worked in a restaurant in college, we had busboys who "bused a table." I thought maybe that might be "bussed," so I looked it up--the only definition I found for "buss" is "kiss." Apparently "buss" used to mean "kiss" a while ago. So busses would mean multiple kisses, in that meaning?!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, busses is the plural of buss, as in kiss. Please see the comment above for the rest of the answer to your question.

      Delete
  26. Well, if you put it that way,"we're in busness.

    ReplyDelete

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