Aisha Tyler (Charlie)

sorry if anyone's pointed this out already...

isn't it ironic that the woman playing Charlie, Aisha Tyler, is the host of the dating show "the fifth wheel" while on Friends she is the third wheel?

jenn

The "third wheel"....exactly why the writers need to make her appearances short lived. ~~~ Kathy

"jenn" wrote in message news:h9Rta.130847$[email]...

of

jenn wrote:

Um, grammar nit. "Third wheel" isn't the expression. A third wheel can provide necessary support (e.g., on a tricycle). A fifth wheel is never strictly necessary, ergo the expression "fifth wheel" to mean a person who is or feels unwanted or superfluous.

iphigenia typed:

i took it as an reference to the joey, rachel, charlie "triangle". a motorcycle doesn't need a third wheel either, necessarily... ;-)

"Michael Herzog" wrote in message news:0BVta.76114$[email]...

Exactly! :)

Michael Herzog" <miguell@"REMOVETHIS wrote:

Yes, of course that's what she was referring to. I'm just pointing out that "third wheel" is an incorrect expression. If you reread what I wrote, I said that a third wheel CAN be necessary, whereas a fifth wheel is NEVER necessary, which is why the expression is "fifth wheel."

iphigenia typed:

sorry to bother again, i do know the saying, but what about a (fifth) spare wheel in a car? it's just a wordplay on the expression and the triangle i mentioned before. but, i don't want to go into details. i clearly can see your point. regards, michael

Michael Herzog" <miguell@"REMOVETHIS wrote:

Which you don't put on unless you take the one of the others off.

iphigenia typed:

touch�...

And how about professional truck drivers? Think they would say a fifth wheel isn't necessary? Some of them have up to 18 wheels.

Steve 9194 wrote:

Structurally speaking, they need four wheels, and no more. Eighteen-wheel trucks have more wheels because they travel long distances and it would be a big huge pain to change the tires constantly. Extra wheels means you can keep going if one tire blows.

And in reply to your other post:

No. It is not. "Third wheel" is a common usage error.

I refer you to the dictionary (try www.m-w.com), where you will find an entry for "fifth wheel" but not one for "third wheel."

It's obvious to me you don't know much about semis. The amount of wheels has nothing to do with the distance. Semis have 18 wheels because of their 40 ton weight (that's 80,000 pounds). The weight is distributed to help avoid road damage. To my knowledge and memory, if a tire blows the truck stops to get it changed, period. I sure wouldn't want to be driving next to, by or around a truck running down the road with a missing tire. I can't recite all the technical jargon as far as how the wheels, weight and axles all work together but I know someone that can. Respect those big rigs.

~Mary (daughter and wife of former truck drivers)

"~Mary" wrote in message news:[email]...

Eighteen-wheel

be a

And, of course, the fifth wheel would be quite necessary or else the lorry would have nothing on which to articulate.

(I just thought I might use some terminology from across the pond to illustrate my point.)

I do agree that the dictionaries with which *I* am most familiar don't have an entry for "third wheel," but most don't have "fifth wheel" either.

Hats off to Webster for at least including "fifth wheel." It's odd that they would include "fifth wheel" when I have heard "third wheel" used more frequently, especially when they don't seem too concerned with correctness. After all, they list "ain't." Furthermore, they describe "ain't" as "Black speech" meaning "a non-standard English spoken by some American Blacks." I'm quite certain I've heard many non-black people use the term with great regularity, and not just in America.

I'm most familiar with the third wheel phrase. I agree with the lorry needing that fifth wheel.

In Merriam-Webster online (m-w.com) at the end of the description for ain't "Our evidence shows British use to be much the same as American". When I was younger we were always corrected and correcting our peers when they said ain't. Adults seemed to be trying to keep things proper. When I was in grade school penmenship was a big deal also. Cursive was done by the book. No hearts or other self expression allowed.

~Mary Update on the 18 wheelers: If a semi continues down the road with a flat tire two things can happen. 1. Because of the extra weight on the tire next to it that tire can go flat. 2. After the tread is thrown onto the road what is left can catch fire.

The expression is "third wheel" like the other person said. It's "third wheel" because the person is the third person in, not because they're not necessary. Besides that, if a third wheel can be considered necessary so can a fifth wheel. Everytime I'm driving around I see those big trucks with trailors attached that use five (actually many more) wheels.