Translation - exceptions do not break the rule; on the dry side, (Engels)

arkadaşlar loves to olmaz love ing takısı alır gerund gelir yani.ayrıca istisnalar kaydeyi bozmaz ingilizceye exceptions never spoil the rules olarak geçmiştir

1) It's not "loving" because we don't word personal ads that way in English; otherwise it would be a gerund and it would not make sense. Instead we usually use the third personal singular and no pronoun.

2) "Exceptions spoil the rule"? I never heard that. Ian & Tantine, do you think the normal expression is "Exceptions spoil the rule" or "The exception breaks the rule"? To be honest, the only expression I can think of is "The exception proves the rule", which makes no sense at all!

CC: IanMegill2 Tantine

Actually, I did a Google search, and I got no hits for "exceptions spoil the rule" nor for "exception spoils the rule". I got 33 for "exception breaks the rule" and 859 for "exceptions break the rule".

Hi kafetzou Hi Lilly Hi All

I agree with kafetzou that the usual expression would be that an "exception proves the rule".

I wondered whether the word "bunch" should not be changed? Apples do not come in bunches and the most usual saying I know is that one bad apple doesn't spoil the barrel (or keg).

Hope this helps

Bises
Tantine

Oh! In North America we definitely say "One bad apple spoils the whole bunch" - I wonder why? Anyway, I'm sure this is correct - check it out on Google - if you do a search for "One bad apple spoils the whole" you will see how many hits you get for "bunch". Maybe it was originally "bushel" and evolved into "bunch".

Yeah, I've heard that apple-expression with both barrel and bunch!
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The only expression I've ever heard containing both "exception" and "rule" is the one you mention, Laura: "The exception proves the rule."
The reason why this expression seems illogical (and therefore why you doubted your own memory, perhaps) is that it contains the archaic use of the verb "to prove," which really means "to test" in modern English, i.e.:
The way to see if your "rule" is true or not is to test it, with seeming "exceptions" to it.
Then you'll come up with a more accurate and comprehensive form of the rule, which will apply to a greater range of cases, previous "exceptions" included.
The way we use "the exception proves the rule" today seems to almost be a joke, dismissing the occasional incidence of something as random chance, I think:
"John didn't drink too much last night."
"Oh well, the exception proves the rule!"
But the original meaning seems to be rather that "you can use exceptions to test the rules you believe in."
Hmmm...This expression has always been one that intrigued me as well...

OK; I changed it.

On the other hand, I had read the explanation you gave above somewhere, too, Ian, but recently ran across this website that seems to refute it.

Wow: interesting etymology! I had never heard that one (although I have often heard/read the one I gave you above)! It may indeed be true: often "urban-legend" etymologies develop around expressions we don't really understand but use anyway...
On the other hand, some people prize their image as "debunkers of urban legends," and in this particular case, he still hasn't convinced me. It may be that I have read explanations of this expression (which, as I mention, I also wondered about) in too many places, but I think the explanation using the old verb "prove" (which he also acknowledges) does indeed make perfect sense too, so in my Occam's Razor mind, it's simpler and therefore better to explain it that way...
With the caveat that this explanation may indeed be a centuries-old "urban legend" that has even found its way into dictionaries and other "official" reference books...
Hmm...I guess I'll go look it up in one of my 20-or-so English dictionaries again...
Have a great evening!

Thanks, but it's morning now! And I hope you enjoyed your evening and are sleeping now.