[BITList] "Americanisms" and "proper" language - BBC article
John Feltham
wantok at me.com
Thu Jul 21 14:12:16 BST 2011
"Americanisms" and "proper" language - BBC article
This article is causing quite a little tempest on Facebook.
--- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar
***
The Magazine's recent piece on Americanisms entering the language in the UK
prompted thousands of you to e-mail examples.
Some are useful, while some seem truly unnecessary, argued Matthew Engel in
the article. Here are 50 of the most e-mailed.
1. When people ask for something, I often hear: "Can I get a..." It
infuriates me. It's not New York. It's not the 90s. You're not in Central
Perk with the rest of the Friends. Really." Steve, Rossendale, Lancashire
2. The next time someone tells you something is the "least worst option",
tell them that their most best option is learning grammar. Mike Ayres,
Bodmin, Cornwall
3. The phrase I've watched seep into the language (especially with
broadcasters) is "two-time" and "three-time". Have the words double, triple
etc, been totally lost? Grammatically it makes no sense, and is even worse
when spoken. My pulse rises every time I hear or see it. Which is not
healthy as it's almost every day now. Argh! D Rochelle, Bath
4. Using 24/7 rather than "24 hours, 7 days a week" or even just plain "all
day, every day". Simon Ball, Worcester
5. The one I can't stand is "deplane", meaning to disembark an aircraft,
used in the phrase "you will be able to deplane momentarily".
TykeIntheHague, Den Haag, Holland
6. To "wait on" instead of "wait for" when you're not a waiter - once read a
friend's comment about being in a station waiting on a train. For him, the
train had yet to arrive - I would have thought rather that it had got stuck
at the station with the friend on board. T Balinski, Raglan, New Zealand
Continue reading the main story
A US reader writes...
JP Spore believes there is nothing wrong with English evolving
Languages are, by their very nature, shifting, malleable things that morph
according to the needs and desires of those who speak them.
Mr Engel suggests that British English should be preserved, but it seems to
me this both lacks a historical perspective of the language, as well as an
ignorance of why it is happening.
English itself is a rather complicated, interesting blend of Germanic,
French and Latin (among other things). It has arrived at this point through
the long and torturous process of assimilation and modification. The story
of the English language is the story of an unstoppable train of consecutive
changes - and for someone to put their hand up and say "wait - the train
stops here and should go no further" is not only futile, but ludicrously
arbitrary.
Why here? Why not stop it 20 years ago? Or 20 years hence? If we're going to
just set an arbitrary limit on language change, why not choose the year 1066
AD? The Saxons had some cool words, right?
Mr Engel - and all language Luddites on both sides of the Atlantic,
including more than a few here in the States - really need to get over it
when their countrymen find more value in non-native words than in their
native lexicon.
I understand the argument about loss of cultural identity, but if so many
people are so willing to give up traditional forms and phrases maybe we
should consider that they didn't have as much value as we previously
imagined.
7. "It is what it is". Pity us. Michael Knapp, Chicago, US
8. Dare I even mention the fanny pack? Lisa, Red Deer, Canada
9. "Touch base" - it makes me cringe no end. Chris, UK
10. Is "physicality" a real word? Curtis, US
11. Transportation. What's wrong with transport? Greg Porter, Hercules, CA,
US
12. The word I hate to hear is "leverage". Pronounced lev-er-ig rather than
lee-ver -ig. It seems to pop up in all aspects of work. And its meaning
seems to have changed to "value added". Gareth Wilkins, Leicester
13. Does nobody celebrate a birthday anymore, must we all "turn" 12 or 21 or
40? Even the Duke of Edinburgh was universally described as "turning" 90
last month. When did this begin? I quite like the phrase in itself, but it
seems to have obliterated all other ways of speaking about birthdays.
Michael McAndrew, Swindon
14. I caught myself saying "shopping cart" instead of shopping trolley today
and was thoroughly disgusted with myself. I've never lived nor been to the
US either. Graham Nicholson, Glasgow
15. What kind of word is "gotten"? It makes me shudder. Julie Marrs,
Warrington
16. "I'm good" for "I'm well". That'll do for a start. Mike, Bridgend, Wales
17. "Bangs" for a fringe of the hair. Philip Hall, Nottingham
18. Take-out rather than takeaway! Simon Ball, Worcester
19. I enjoy Americanisms. I suspect even some Americans use them in a
tongue-in-cheek manner? "That statement was the height of ridiculosity".
Bob, Edinburgh
20. "A half hour" instead of "half an hour". EJB, Devon
21. A "heads up". For example, as in a business meeting. Lets do a "heads
up" on this issue. I have never been sure of the meaning. R Haworth,
Marlborough
22. Train station. My teeth are on edge every time I hear it. Who started
it? Have they been punished? Chris Capewell, Queens Park, London
23. To put a list into alphabetical order is to "alphabetize it" - horrid!
Chris Fackrell, York
24. People that say "my bad" after a mistake. I don't know how anything
could be as annoying or lazy as that. Simon Williamson, Lymington, Hampshire
25. "Normalcy" instead of "normality" really irritates me. Tom Gabbutt,
Huddersfield
26. As an expat living in New Orleans, it is a very long list but
"burglarize" is currently the word that I most dislike. Simon, New Orleans
Continue reading the main story
A US reader writes...
Melanie Johnson - MA student in Applied Linguistics, now in the UK
The idea that there once existed a "pure" form of English is simply untrue.
The English spoken in the UK today has been influenced by a number of
languages, including Dutch, French and German. Speakers from the time of
William the Conqueror would not recognise what we speak in Britain as
English. This is because language variation shifts are constantly changing.
Five years ago you might have found it odd if someone asked you to "friend"
them, but today many of us know this means to add them on Facebook. The
increased use of technology, in combination with the rise of a globalised
society, means language changes are happening faster than ever, especially
in places with highly diverse populations like London. Young people are
usually at the vanguard of this, so it's no surprise to find London
teenagers increasingly speaking what's been termed "multicultural ethnic
English".
Changes in word use are normal and not unique to any language. But English
does enjoy a privileged status as the world's lingua franca. That began with
the British, but has been maintained by the Americans. It's difficult to
predict how English will next evolve, but the one certainty is it will.
27. "Oftentimes" just makes me shiver with annoyance. Fortunately I've not
noticed it over here yet. John, London
28. Eaterie. To use a prevalent phrase, oh my gaad! Alastair, Maidstone (now
in Athens, Ohio)
29. I'm a Brit living in New York. The one that always gets me is the
American need to use the word bi-weekly when fortnightly would suffice just
fine. Ami Grewal, New York
30. I hate "alternate" for "alternative". I don't like this as they are two
distinct words, both have distinct meanings and it's useful to have both.
Using alternate for alternative deprives us of a word. Catherine, London
31. "Hike" a price. Does that mean people who do that are hikers? No, hikers
are ramblers! M Holloway, Accrington
32. Going forward? If I do I shall collide with my keyboard. Ric Allen,
Matlock
33. I hate the word "deliverable". Used by management consultants for
something that they will "deliver" instead of a report. Joseph Wall,
Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire
34. The most annoying Americanism is "a million and a half" when it is
clearly one and a half million! A million and a half is 1,000,000.5 where
one and a half million is 1,500,000. Gordon Brown, Coventry
35. "Reach out to" when the correct word is "ask". For example: "I will
reach out to Kevin and let you know if that timing is convenient". Reach
out? Is Kevin stuck in quicksand? Is he teetering on the edge of a cliff?
Can't we just ask him? Nerina, London
36. Surely the most irritating is: "You do the Math." Math? It's MATHS.
Michael Zealey, London
37. I hate the fact I now have to order a "regular Americano". What ever
happened to a medium sized coffee? Marcus Edwards, Hurst Green
38. My worst horror is expiration, as in "expiration date". Whatever
happened to expiry? Christina Vakomies, London
39. My favourite one was where Americans claimed their family were
"Scotch-Irish". This of course it totally inaccurate, as even if it were
possible, it would be "Scots" not "Scotch", which as I pointed out is a
drink. James, Somerset
40.I am increasingly hearing the phrase "that'll learn you" - when the
English (and more correct) version was always "that'll teach you". What a
ridiculous phrase! Tabitha, London
41. I really hate the phrase: "Where's it at?" This is not more efficient or
informative than "where is it?" It just sounds grotesque and is immensely
irritating. Adam, London
42. Period instead of full stop. Stuart Oliver, Sunderland
43. My pet hate is "winningest", used in the context "Michael Schumacher is
the winningest driver of all time". I can feel the rage rising even using it
here. Gayle, Nottingham
44. My brother now uses the term "season" for a TV series. Hideous. D
Henderson, Edinburgh
45. Having an "issue" instead of a "problem". John, Leicester
46. I hear more and more people pronouncing the letter Z as "zee". Not happy
about it! Ross, London
47. To "medal" instead of to win a medal. Sets my teeth on edge with a
vengeance. Helen, Martock, Somerset
48. "I got it for free" is a pet hate. You got it "free" not "for free". You
don't get something cheap and say you got it "for cheap" do you? Mark Jones,
Plymouth
49. "Turn that off already". Oh dear. Darren, Munich
50. "I could care less" instead of "I couldn't care less" has to be the
worst. Opposite meaning of what they're trying to say. Jonathan, Birmingham
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