[SLUG] One-keystroke abbreviations.

[Richard Lung]

I should say that there is no definitive most used 100 words. They are all 
samples subject to a marginal uncertainty. I doubt whether the word *happy* 
would come up in another score or more representative samples. But the bulk 
of grammatical words would appear in every sample. Sentences cannot do 
without them.

What really prompted me to reply was that any such sample tends to have its 
idiosyncrasies, which could do with tidying up. There are several here but 
I'll just mention a few. 
For instance, the short-hand writer is not interested in the relative 
frequency of the different conjugations of irregular verbs. For example, 
they'd just give the one letter /b/ for: be am is are. There are a limited 
number of alfabet letters to go round for the most frequent words.
The past tense of *be*: was/were ( *was* occurs with nearly one per cent 
frequency) shouldnt be omitted from the 100 words, as it is in this sample. 
Likewise the crucial grammatical word *will* (which can also serve for 
*shall*) which occurs with about 0.2% frequency.

 - Words cut for speed in the *Computer age* by Professor Abe Citron -
( the back number of the spelling publications, this appeared in, have been 
put online.)
 This compiled lists of 1, 2, 3, 4,.. letter abbreviations for the most common 
words. One and two letter words and words abbreviated to one and two letters, 
52 words, make up 30% of words needed to read and write English at high 
school level.

from
Richard Lung.

On Monday 10 Sep 2007 13:45, John Allsopp wrote:
> >> Half of English consists of a hundred words used over and over again.
> >
> > Do you happen to know where to discover which hundred?
>
> Quite by co-incidence, I found this just now
> http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTIM_10.htm which lists the 100.
>
> J