27 May
2024
27 May
'24
1:43 p.m.
Christian Corti via cctalk <cctalk(a)classiccmp.org> writes:
What is the difference between buss/buses(pl.) and
bus/busses(pl.)?
I mean, you don't say omnibuss, do you?
No difference -- they're variant spellings of the same word. From the
examples given in the OED, it looks like "buss" was originally the more
common spelling when people first started shortening "omnibus". It might
have been influenced by older words in English pronounced the same way,
e.g. "buss" meaning "to kiss", or "a buss" being a type of
fishing boat.
Both spellings were in use by the time "bus[s]-bar" was invented, which
is where the computer sense comes from. We wouldn't call a vehicle a
"buss" any more, but both spellings survive in electronics.
--
Adam Sampson <ats(a)offog.org> <http://offog.org/>