| ▲ | catcowcostume 7 hours ago |
| Just a reminder that since a couple of centuries ago in most Western societies, wives are not "things" anymore, but rather human beings on the same level as husbands. |
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| ▲ | letmevoteplease 6 hours ago | parent | next [-] |
| This usage is fine. "A dependable friend is a rare thing to find." |
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| ▲ | kranner 6 hours ago | parent | prev [-] |
| "... tend to profligacy" was really bothering me as well, until I figured OP probably meant "tend" as in 'take care of', and not 'inclined to have'. |
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| ▲ | Terr_ 5 hours ago | parent | next [-] | | It's "incline", the subtext is: "Reader, you might start thinking of a certain common stereotype at this point, but don't do that, because my argument is very different, and that stereotype is irrelevant or possibly untrue." Compare to: "A pick-up truck is a useful thing to have, not because you are insecure about your genitalia, but because you can take home bigger products from IKEA." | | | |
| ▲ | letmevoteplease 6 hours ago | parent | prev [-] | | No, "tend" means "incline" here, but the normal grammatical reading of the sentence does not suggest wives have profligate tendencies. | | |
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