I came across the following sentence:
This is the only type of command that requires us to complete by a certain time – all of the other ones aren't governed by exclusion logic.
I am intrigued by the use of the word "ones" to indicate "a subset" or "a group."
Since the sentence could be rewritten to eliminate the use of "ones," I'm inclined to think that "other(s)" and "ones" are somehow related/redundant:
This is the only type of command that requires us to complete by a certain time – none of the others are governed by exclusion logic.
The use of "ones" seems very informal and colloquial to me – where did it originate?
Is it unique to English, or is there a similar construct in other languages?
Best Answer
From: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/one
In French, on means "he" or "it" (I think).