Date:  Thu, 21 Mar 1996 20:07:51 -0700

From:  William King <WFKING[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]CCIT.ARIZONA.EDU>

Subject: Re: may/might distinction



H. Stephen Straight wrote, regarding the may/might distinction,

    Your "NYC area" person may/might/must be from a different subarea

than my students, /,/; but/but/) most of the NYC speakers in my classes

would -- I believe -- find the above sentence completely acceptable..."

    The "NYC area" is Brooklyn, Yonkers, the Bronx, up through freshman

year of h.s. Believe me, my wife lived in NY, then moved to the wilds of

... Valhalla. The sentence wasn't an asterisk to any of us, but it

certainly sounded better the other way.

    Excuuuuuse me if the "NYC area" does not fit your geographical

requirements. I would also assume that your students are not in the

same "age group" as the people in "question."

Bill King SLAT Univ. of Arizona wfking[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]ccit.arizona.edu