I just thought of this silly silly thing when pondering the fact that one degree above zero is just “one degree.”
I instinctively thought of saying “minus one degrees” or “negative one degrees”, but realized there’s no grammatical reason whatsoever I can think of to do so. It was just instinct.
What about the rest of you?
I would say ‘one below’.
ETA: I actually might also say ‘minus one’.
Yeah, I would say “It’s minus one outside.” No degrees at all.
Of the two choices in the OP, I’d say “minus one degree”. But I’d be more likely to say “one below”.
Coincidentally, it actually was minus one degree outside when I was in my car about an hour ago.
Negative One
Am I the only one(other than my wife) that says this?
Who says “i i degrees” ?
Fkn freezin’
I say one below and that is downright balmy.
I say “negative one.”
At least 2 local news readers on TV have said “It’s minus 4 degrees below zero.”
Seriously??
I don’t think either were weather-readers - I think they were reporters in the field doing spots while standing outside in the cold. Still, two different channels, two different idiots.
And I’d probably say “one below.”
This is annoyingly common.
How out of it do you have to be for this to not grate on your ears?
I see it as “1 below” or “1 below zero”.
9 below zero, however, is a different story…
I would go with “minus one degrees” but I’m not sure I can fully express why.
Why do we say “zero degrees” and not “zero degree”?
If my elected officials cannot keep outdoor temperatures above freaking zero, I see no reason to support their reelection bids.:mad: