Usage question "any" - paging copyeditors

[jack]

Can I say "My book doesn't have any major mistake?"[1] I'm suddenly unsure, and google doesn't help because 'any' is too common a word. Andor does anyone have OED?

[1] Originally 'faux pas', but that's confusing because it's spelt the same in singular and plural.

Comments

[sunflowerinrain.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't red-pen it. Perhaps you're unsure because the more usual phrasing would be "has no major mistake"? I prefer your version.

I wouldn't red-pen it.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

:)

Yeah, it doesn't quite say what I mean. In the original it was 'faux pas' instead of 'mistake' and I *did* use the plural, but I think the singular would have been possible but sound odd.

Perhaps the singular would make sense if most people *did* have one major faux pas, but most didn't. Which might be true, but I didn't want to say it...?