User:Un assiolo/Damages versus damage
The noun damages does not refer to multiple instances of damage. According to the article damages,
At common law, damages are a remedy in the form of a monetary award to be paid to a claimant as compensation for loss or injury.
In other words, damages are paid as compensation for damage. The payment is ordered by a court.
The word damage, when used outside this legal context, is a mass noun: the correct word for multiple instances of damage is damage. Accordingly, all instances of damages should be replaced with damage when the damages were not awarded by a court or sought by a plaintiff.
This of course only refers to the noun. Damages is correct as a verb meaning causes damage.
What to do when the incorrect usage appears in a quote or title
In these cases, damages should be replaced with {{sic|damage|s}}
.[1] This displays as: damages [sic]. The additional parameter |nolink=y
may be added to prevent a link, for example, when it appears in the title of a news article that links to the article, to prevent interfering with the link.
Examples
Edits correcting usage
- Diff (note the correct usage as a verb which I left in)
- Diff
Correct usage of damages
- Ban plans to seek up to $11 million in damages from Israel.