*

Well David, teeth-itching aside, a
ccording to Merriam-Webster preventative is synonymous with preventive. Many
prefer to use preventive in adjective senses and preventative in noun
senses, but Loren's usage was entirely legal.
*

Angus (Preventative Maintenance Manager of Multiple Vanagons)

Angus Gordon
Bainbridge Island WA

birdworks@gmail.com

On Thu, Apr 15, 2010 at 8:37 AM, David Beierl <dbeierl@attglobal.net> wrote:

> At 11:27 AM 4/15/2010, Loren Busch wrote:
>
>> Mark has a good point here.  In the 1950's the US Navy did a study on the
>> value of 'preventative maintenance' on electrical and electronic devices.
>>
>
> Personal non-official request -- It's "preventive" and my teeth itch
> slightly when I see it spelled the other way.  Dunno why this one
> bothers me so -- as a kid in Maine "drownded" was the common usage
> and I just thought that was cute.  Still do, along with "skellington"
> which I heard from a kid in England and was the common illiterate
> usage in 18th c.
>
> Of course if you can get "preventate" into common use then I'm the
> past tense of a male helical-threaded fastener. <g>
>
> Yours,
> d
>