Phrases And Words Used Incorrectly.

[I Broke Free]

We had a Brit in our office who misspelled a coworker’s name as PaDDY rather than correctly as PaTTy. She explained that that was how Patty pronounced her own name. We got on the topic of American pronunciation of the Double-T in any word and realized that Americans in general always pronounce Double-T as just the “D” sound.

 

Patty =Pady

Betty=Bedy

Sitting=Si-ding

 

I can’t think of a Double-T word where I clearly pronounce it as a “T.”

[Noggy]

We had a Brit in our office who misspelled a coworker’s name as PaDDY rather than correctly as PaTTy. She explained that that was how Patty pronounced her own name. We got on the topic of American pronunciation of the Double-T in any word and realized that Americans in general always pronounce Double-T as just the “D” sound.

 

Patty =Pady

Betty=Bedy

Sitting=Si-ding

 

I can’t think of a Double-T word where I clearly pronounce it as a “T.”

 

Cattle?

 

Battle?

 

I definitely pronounce the t's in most of them. And I am from Murikah.

[agnosticator]

gypsy79, BrotherJosh, ScifiChick, and Trapped,

 

I thought nobody gave a shit about lose/loose when I first posted it and got no response! Thanks for the validation. Now I won't loose..oops..lose my mind!

[AlphaToOmega]

And if it bugs you then you can just hop into your Vee-hick-le an drive away.

We pronounce it Vee-ickle, silent "h".

 

Cracks me up every time I hear an American say it.

I thought it was a bit of humour like we do in the movies. Making fun of bad pronunciation. LOL

[Vigile]

As I understand it, it's a truncated version of "(regarding the matter at hand), I know nothing and could care less."

 

So it's essentially a shorthand way of saying "I could care less than nothing about this."

 

Unfortunately, leaving off the "than nothing" has the unfortunate effect of reversing the meaning for those unfamiliar with the original expression.

 

I've heard it used most often with "really" as in "I could really care less"

 

After thinking about it, I'm pretty sure this is an accurate use of the English language due to common usage and because of the implied sarcasm that MWC brought up.

[Vigile]

What was once Ebonics is now Standard American English

 

Well, that 't' got there somehow. I'm betting it was originally pronounced and our undereducated ancestors eradicated it through common use, so now it's coming back full circle.

 

I'll worry when we start putting "r"s where they don't belong, such as "I thought I sar a putty tat" 'cause then we'll start sounding like those chaps across the pond.

[Vigile]

Let's not forget prostrate and prostate...

 

You know...."Prostate yourselves before the Lord"....

 

Well, my experience with church tells me you usually get something stuck up there for the effort.

[AlphaToOmega]

What was once Ebonics is now Standard American English

 

Well, that 't' got there somehow. I'm betting it was originally pronounced and our undereducated ancestors eradicated it through common use, so now it's coming back full circle.

 

I'll worry when we start putting "r"s where they don't belong, such as "I thought I sar a putty tat" 'cause then we'll start sounding like those chaps across the pond.

Nah, I gave the etymology of the word somewhere in this thread. It came from the word, Oft.

 

 

 

[Vigile]

I hate ATM machine

 

I habitually call it "bancomat" now, as that's what most call it outside the US. When I visit the US and use this term I get funny looks and have to remember not to refer to it that way.

[Vigile]

Incidentally, the condescension towards ebonics as some sort of total corruption of the English language is a mistake.

 

The history of that dialect is really very fascinating.

 

 

Essentially, it's a combination of languages, and it's primarily African, and it was developed as a way of keeping the slave owners from knowing what the slaves were saying by convincing them they couldn't speak English properly.

 

My experience abroad has shown me that many countries are literally drenched in local dialects. Italy, for example, is one of the better educated countries in the world, and it probably has more than 100 local dialects that cannot be understood outside their isolated regions. Here in Thailand there are many as well and most locals can speak 3-4 each. In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

[Vigile]

I hate it when people use herp derp incorrectly.

 

This old fart is still trying to figure out what the hell it means. I'm thinking something like "doi" as in Doi!

[AlphaToOmega]

Ebonics.

Sounds like a physical fitness gimmick.

 

Get a six pack on your stomach with the new Ebonics 3minute ab workout.

[Vigile]

We had a Brit in our office who misspelled a coworker’s name as PaDDY rather than correctly as PaTTy. She explained that that was how Patty pronounced her own name. We got on the topic of American pronunciation of the Double-T in any word and realized that Americans in general always pronounce Double-T as just the “D” sound.

 

Patty =Pady

Betty=Bedy

Sitting=Si-ding

 

I can’t think of a Double-T word where I clearly pronounce it as a “T.”

 

It's difficult for Americans to pronounce the double consonant. In Italy, they emphasize it. My best friend Anna told me I never once pronounced her name correctly, even though I gave it the old college try. It should be pronounced "Ahhn-NA!"

[agnosticator]

I hate it when people use herp derp incorrectly.

 

This old fart is still trying to figure out what the hell it means. I'm thinking something like "doi" as in Doi!

 

 

Herp Derp

An expression used when a person, or yourself, has done somthing extremely stupid and dopey

Person 1: Dude, I just hit my head on the door.

Person 2: HERP DERP.

[florduh]

In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

I don't think it's a threat. It's an effort by certain groups to keep themselves apart from mainstream society. My feeling is it's counterproductive and actually a bit rude to be able to speak the predominate language and yet refuse to.

[ilovemybrain]

In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

I don't think it's a threat. It's an effort by certain groups to keep themselves apart from mainstream society. My feeling is it's counterproductive and actually a bit rude to be able to speak the predominate language and yet refuse to.

Here's one of my peeves! People saying "predominate" instead of predominant. No wonder I keep beating him at scrabble! (u know I love ya Chris)

[AlphaToOmega]

In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

I don't think it's a threat. It's an effort by certain groups to keep themselves apart from mainstream society. My feeling is it's counterproductive and actually a bit rude to be able to speak the predominate language and yet refuse to.

Here's one of my peeves! People saying "predominate" instead of predominant. No wonder I keep beating him at scrabble! (u know I love ya Chris)

 

I cunt spel fur shite so Is loose ad scribble everythyme.

[florduh]

In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

I don't think it's a threat. It's an effort by certain groups to keep themselves apart from mainstream society. My feeling is it's counterproductive and actually a bit rude to be able to speak the predominate language and yet refuse to.

Here's one of my peeves! People saying "predominate" instead of predominant. No wonder I keep beating him at scrabble! (u know I love ya Chris)

I knew it would be you. There may be others, but I know how good you are with the language.

[ScifiChick]

 

 

My experience abroad has shown me that many countries are literally drenched in local dialects. Italy, for example, is one of the better educated countries in the world, and it probably has more than 100 local dialects that cannot be understood outside their isolated regions. Here in Thailand there are many as well and most locals can speak 3-4 each. In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

 

For some reason, this made me think of the old joke:

 

If you speak two languages, you're bilingual; if you speak three languages, you're trilingual.

 

If you speak one language, you're American.

 

 

 

[ilovemybrain]

In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

I don't think it's a threat. It's an effort by certain groups to keep themselves apart from mainstream society. My feeling is it's counterproductive and actually a bit rude to be able to speak the predominate language and yet refuse to.

Here's one of my peeves! People saying "predominate" instead of predominant. No wonder I keep beating him at scrabble! (u know I love ya Chris)

I knew it would be you. There may be others, but I know how good you are with the language.

 

And I'm pretty sure you did that one on purpose You ain't never used no bad grammar that I ever seen. Oh god it was actually painful to even write that last sentence.

[ilovemybrain]

 

 

So technically its pronounced: Off-ten.

Unless one pronounces Oft as Off.

 

 

 

Faulty reasoning. What about the words "fasten" and "soften"? To make fast or to make soft. We don't say "fas" or "sof" but the t is silent in those words. I'm sorry, mate, you're going to hell now. And it's kind and loving of me to tell you so. Repent or die.

[Vigile]

In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

I don't think it's a threat. It's an effort by certain groups to keep themselves apart from mainstream society. My feeling is it's counterproductive and actually a bit rude to be able to speak the predominate language and yet refuse to.

 

Ok, so are Italians rude? There are roughly 60 million of them, each one speaking Dante's Italian + at least one dialect. They are certainly regional. Is this a bad thing? If so, why? If not, what makes the use of dialects in the US bad, but ok in Italy?

 

On second thought, I'm told some of them eat cats, so maybe they are poor examples after all.

[Vigile]

 

 

My experience abroad has shown me that many countries are literally drenched in local dialects. Italy, for example, is one of the better educated countries in the world, and it probably has more than 100 local dialects that cannot be understood outside their isolated regions. Here in Thailand there are many as well and most locals can speak 3-4 each. In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

 

For some reason, this made me think of the old joke:

 

If you speak two languages, you're bilingual; if you speak three languages, you're trilingual.

 

If you speak one language, you're American.

 

That's one of my favorite jokes, of which I'm number one poster boy (that's Thai dialect in case it slipped by ). I tend to learn enough local words to squeak by, but not enough to count myself as bi/tri/etc... I know about 500 words in Russian after 7 years. That either makes me an idiot, lazy or a lazy idiot. Or maybe just a typical American.

[noob]

I work with bankers who say physical year instead of fiscal year.

[ireckinso]

My experience abroad has shown me that many countries are literally drenched in local dialects. Italy, for example, is one of the better educated countries in the world, and it probably has more than 100 local dialects that cannot be understood outside their isolated regions. Here in Thailand there are many as well and most locals can speak 3-4 each. In that context, I'm unsure why Ebonics -- or Spanish for that matter -- has to be viewed as such a threat to some.

 

For some reason, this made me think of the old joke:

 

If you speak two languages, you're bilingual; if you speak three languages, you're trilingual.

 

If you speak one language, you're American.

 

And if you can't speak any then your Virginian!