Login or register (free and only takes a few minutes) to participate in this question.
You will also have access to many other tools and opportunities designed for those who have language-related jobs (or are passionate about them). Participation is free and the site has a strict confidentiality policy.
21:11 Jan 23, 2010
English to English translations [PRO] Medical - Medical: Pharmaceuticals
English term or phrase:medicine. Or medicines (grammar)
Okay, the monkey in my head has lost all direction and I'm hoping you can help get it to stop bouncing around.
Is it medicines market, or medicine market? Medicines policy or medicine policy? Medicines availability or medicine availablity? Medicines use or medicine use? Medicine prices or medicines prices? Medicines financing or medicine financing? Medicine or medicines reimbursement scheme? Is there a rule here?
I have some reference texts, but it just depends on the writer: some use plural, some use singular. I like the plural: medicines policy sounds good. But where do I draw the line? Medicines availabilty sounds like it needs an apostrophe. Is there a rule here?
Monkey going crazy. Few examples below.
- ...all those involved in the process of medicines supply.
- ....analyse data on medicines prices...
- The switch from government medicine financing to private medicine financing means..
- medicine reimbursement schemes in some countries...
- In the United States, where there is a well-regulated medicines market, medicine side effects are in the top ten most common causes of death .
Note the first s and the absence of a second in the example above...
And especially for the ones that think it might be medicine prices but medicines policy:
medicine prices, medicine supply, medicine use, medicine reimbursement, medicine availability etc. are compound nouns, and the general rule is that the last element in the compound should take the plural -s. Hence IMO "medicine" should in all cases be without the plural -s, i.e.
medicine price/medicine prices
medicine supply/medicine supplies
medicine use/medicine uses
medicine reimbursement/medicine reimbursements
medicine availability/medicine availabilities
This can be referenced in the Oxford English Grammar by Sidney Greenbaum (hardback), Oxford University Press, Section 4.7 Irregular Plurals, No. 9. Plurals of compounds where the following can be read:
Compounds generally follow the regular rule by adding the regular -s inflection to their last element:
gunfight/gunfights
pop group/ pop groups ...
Compounds ending in an adverb also generally follow the regular rule:
close-up/close-ups
take-over/take-overs
stand-in/stand-ins
However, there some exceptions to this rule, for example:
1) passer-by/passers-by
listener-in/listeners-in
2) mouthful/mouthfuls or mouthful
spoonful/spoonfuls or spoonful
3) sister-in-law/sisters-in-law or sister-in-laws
Some compounds consisting of a noun plus a postmodifying adjective also allow both alternatives:
attorney general/attorneys general or attorney generals
poet laureate/poets laureate or poet laureates
Other compounds with a postmodifying adjective or prepositional phrase have the plural inflection only in the first part:
notary public/ notaries public
heir apparent/heirs apparent.
I consider these things on a case-by-case basis. For instance, in one of your examples, "process of medicines supply" sounds rather awkward, and I would recommend "medicine supply process".
"medicine" vs "medicines", similar to "food" and "foods". "All those medicines" refer to different sorts of medicine. Just remember that count nouns used as adjectives are used in singular form. In the case of "medicines supply", this is 100% incorrect, as the noun here is supply and medicines is an adjective, and must be in singular form "medicine supply"... idem with "medicines market" -> correct = "medicine market(s)" and "medicine policy"
Automatic update in 00:
Answers
9 mins confidence: peer agreement (net): +5
medicine. or medicines (grammar)
The first one should be medicine supply
Explanation: Though it could be "The supply of medicines".
Jack Doughty Local time: 03:03 Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 32
The translation workplace 
peer agreement (net): +5
