Mangled and abused words and phrases

[santaman2000]

...
"Defiantly"
That is definitely - see that word? - too wrong to be called a spelling error...

Or a context error. To me "defiantly" would mean someone did something in an attempt to "defy" someone.

 

[Stringmaker]

I hate the lazy and inappropriate use of "Amazing".

The Jubilee Flotilla down the Thames was a good example; every other pundit kept churning the word out!

 

[shaggystu]

Those are the correct spellings over here now.......

i know mate, i was more commenting on the idea of trusting a signwriter to get things right, american english being the default setting on most software (cheers bill) is probably to blame for more spelling errors over here than anything else

....The mcDonald's phrase isn't really "permeating" everyday conversation but rather was taken from current everyday speech.

maybe on your side of the pond it is, but "i'm lovin' it" certainly wasn't a common phrase over here 'til maccie d's made it so

 

[MattB]

I find it's much easier not to worry about the specifics and just hate everything about McDonalds.

 

[Andy BB]

When my kids were younger, the youngest in particular - although to a lesser extent the others too - used to say "like" several times each sentence. Picking them up on it didn't work. However, after a while I just used to hold up a hand with a finger for each time they said "like". At first they didn't twig, but after a few times they picked up on it, and it used to drive them mad, particularly if they were with friends! But it worked

 

[boatman]

Because language gives an insight into what's important to a culture. For example the Eskimo have multiple words that all mean "snow" but each one denotes a different type of snow: a wet snow, a blowing snow, a packed snow, etc. because that's obviously important to their culture. Likewise many Mille Eastern languages have multiple words for sandstorms or winds because it's important to their culture. So what does the English lanquage (and other European languages) similarly reflect as important to our culture? Bourbon, scotch, tequila, rum, wine, beer, brandy, etc. All different words denoting different types of alcoholic beverages.

rain, mizzle, clag, downpour, cloudburst, precipitation, drizzle do for a start?

 

[Bushwhacker]

I find it's much easier not to worry about the specifics and just hate everything about McDonalds.

I won't even utter its name. I call it "The Scottish Restaurant".

 

[Toddy]

'scuse me being pedantic, but McDonald is Irish, MacDonald is Scottish.



M

 

[Mikey P]

The mcDonald's phrase isn't really "permeating" everyday conversation but rather was taken from current everyday speech.

Not over here, it wasn't.

 

[Mikey P]

What quite literally grates my soul is when the yoof of today walk round with their hands down the front of their TROUSERS (not pants, thank you very much!) trying to talk like black gangsters. Ali G was amusing when he first appeared on our screens, but it seems he may have strated off an epidemic of wannabes...

White working/middle class kids talking like black gangsters is referred to as 'Jafakin' (as in Fake Jamaican). Ayyyyyye!

And the whole walking-around-with-hands-down-pants thing is to do with the increased prevalence of sexually transmitted infections. I believe some of them can be quite itchy.

 

[Bushwhacker]

'scuse me being pedantic, but McDonald is Irish, MacDonald is Scottish.



M

Haha! I was thinking more down the lines of "The Scottish Play".

 

[Mikey P]

Blimey! How could I forget this one! When you look in any online or paper catalogue (not 'catalog') for outdoor trousers and they are referred to as 'pant' singular. As in "this is our brand new outdoor pant for all activities".

Pant? My dog does that. Pant? Do I only get one leg? I want both. Pants? Oh, I see! Like trousers? So why didn't you &@£**! say so, then?

You know who you are, Patagonia, North Face, Mountain Hardware, etc. You should be ashamed.

 

[santaman2000]

Not over here, it wasn't.

Understood. But if not for McDonald's commercials, some other television program or movie would likely have brought it. The point is McDonald's didn't invent the phrase; that would be a rarity in advertising as they usually take their cues from the pop culture of their intended market. Although there are some notable exceptions such as the old lady asking, "Where's the beef!?" in the burger commercials from the 1960s.

 

[Toddy]

rain, mizzle, clag, downpour, cloudburst, precipitation, drizzle do for a start?

Raining stoatin', dreich, smirr, spitting, teeming, drookit, wringing wet, lashing, bucketing, haar.............and if it all comes down you maun end up drookit and ploutering through the glaur

Aren't words fun ?

cheers,
Toddy

 

[santaman2000]

Blimey! How could I forget this one! When you look in any online or paper catalogue (not 'catalog') for outdoor trousers and they are referred to as 'pant' singular. As in "this is our brand new outdoor pant for all activities".

Pant? My dog does that. Pant?...

That's another evolution. When I was a kid dogs didn't "pant", they "hasseled." Though that definition of hassle is in my older dictionary (circa 1965) it's been removed from modern ones and rarely heard even among younger dog breeders and vets now.

 

[shaggystu]

.............and if it all comes down you maun end up drookit and ploutering through the glaur ..........

already? i've only just finished paying off the last one

 

[santaman2000]

Raining stoatin', dreich, smirr, spitting, teeming, drookit, wringing wet, lashing, bucketing, haar.............and if it all comes down you maun end up drookit and ploutering through the glaur

Aren't words fun ?

cheers,
Toddy

True Mary but many of those words are adjectives (or used as such) to describe rain and are used to also describe many other things as well. They're not a proper word soley naming a type of rain.

 

[drewdunnrespect]

now toddy words and especially frases facinate me due to many modern frases come from navel terms

for instantance

posh

cant swing a cat in here

let the cat out the bag

dont spill the beens

and there are many more but i just cant think of them right now. Now the reason for the fasination is that i love navel history

 

[Mesquite]

now toddy words and especially frases facinate me due to many modern frases come from navel terms

for instantance

posh

cant swing a cat in here

let the cat out the bag

dont spill the beens

and there are many more but i just cant think of them right now. Now the reason for the fasination is that i love navel history

Only Drew could have a fascination of the history about belly buttons...

 

[Hoodoo]

Your quite right, it should be "did you find everything okay"

Okay then.