This is JUST as important. Grammar related (I know how much

[Moe]

you love those.

When referring to ONE, is it:

one metal nail clipper
one metal nail clippers

i'm getting confounding results.

i need people to just grab one ....

[zoidberg]

I say clippers. Right? No idea.

[Moe]

so one clippers?

[Moe]

imagine i'm asking you to take one.

how do i write this?

[blueshirt2003]

I would say one metal nail clipper.
Probably wrong but it sounds "better" to me.

[kristie]

Clippers, they are like scissors. They need an "s". Clipper sounds wrong

[shadynasty]

I think I say both. Clipper makes sense, but I could see this being a scissors/pants type situation. Maybe something about the anatomy of the object makes it plural for some...

[Deleted]

I'd say one nail clippers. One pair of nail clippers?

I just asked DH and he sort of agrees - he said it's like pants. You don't say "one pants". But he agrees that one metal nail clippers sounds odd. But not as odd as one nail clipper.

[zoidberg]

I would say pair of clippers, like pair of scissors.

[blueshirt2003]

Sept 6, 2013 21:59:58 GMT -5 zoidberg said:

I would say pair of clippers, like pair of scissors.

This sounds best!

[Moe]

See, I wanted to say a pair of nail clippers, but then I automatically think TWO nail clippers, since that's what a pair is. But I could write ONE (1) pair?

GAAAH, english is hard.

Cortauñas!

[Muddled]

One pair of clippers

[Muddled]

Sept 6, 2013 22:02:29 GMT -5 Moe said:

See, I wanted to say a pair of nail clippers, but then I automatically think TWO nail clippers, since that's what a pair is. But I could write ONE (1) pair?

GAAAH, english is hard.

Cortauñas!

Two clippers, but only one pair. You are right.

[MixedBerryJam]

Sept 6, 2013 21:59:32 GMT -5 shadynasty said:

I think I say both. Clipper makes sense, but I could see this being a scissors/pants type situation. Maybe something about the anatomy of the object makes it plural for some...

I think if I have the word "nail" in there I use clippers. Without the modifier, it's clipper.

Please take a clipper.
No, thank you. I do not need  nail clippers.

i don't contend that this is correct but this is what I do.

i might just decide to give away a brush instead.

[Moe]

Sept 6, 2013 22:06:43 GMT -5 @cse1960 said:

WTF. You don't go get the clippers, you go get a manipedi.

Do I have to tell you people everything??

that's not really going to work for victims of a disaster, right?

they need clippers.

well, one clipper per person.

maybe one clippers.

FUCK!

[MixedBerryJam]

Maybe call it a set? Please take a set of nail clippers.

[kristie]

They are nail clippers, not one clipper or two clippers. Just nail clippers.

[Moe]

But kristie, I need people to go down the line and grab one (1). So I need to specify that's only ONE nail clippers!

But I'll just say one metal nail clippers and be done with it. If it's wrong, then I don't want to be right? LOL.

[Deleted]

One set of clippers.

[kristie]

Hmmm yeah... Can you just put the number in parentheses? Nail clippers (1). Makes sense to me. Lol

[Muddled]

Is this is a list?

If it is a list you can easily get away with, "one metal nail clippers." If it is a paragraph, I would use, "one pair of metal nail clippers."

[Moe]

It's an instruction.

I'm guiding them on how to do something.

Think Ford-esque line, grab this.

Now grab this.

Now grab one metal clipper.
clippers.

set of clippers.
pair of clippers.

fuck it, i'm just copying a nail clippers image and putting a giant (1) next to it.

[Deleted]

grab one PAIR of clippers. trust me.

like you'd say "bring a t-shirt and one PAIR of pants to change into after the whitewater rafting trip."

[Muddled]

In this case, I would use pair. But, don't stress. It will be clear either way.

[VillainV]

Nail clippers: one per person