So, literally...can I get

Grumpy people only in here please

Moderator: Moderators

Post Reply
User avatar
Have Brush Will Travel
Senior Member
Posts: 4162
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2007 5:30 pm
Location: Oh south London, is wonderful.
Has thanked: 224 times
Been thanked: 384 times

So, literally...can I get

Post by Have Brush Will Travel »

Yeah, people who pepper their conversations with these and other buzz words, phrases and Americanisms!!

Starting a sentence with an out of context 'so' what colour do you want on the walls?...'so, :angryfire: :angryfire: we were thinking off....

'I was literally drinking my tea when I had an idea'...Literally drinking it eh?...as opposed to not drinking it?? :scratch:

'Can I get?' :angryfire: :angryfire: ..no you can 'have'

'Theres a whole bunch of cars down there'...bunch?..are they hanging off a tree?

'Reach out to customer services'...reach out???...'contact' is the word they are looking for

:wtf:
I intend to live forever......So far, so good
dewaltdisney
Senior Member
Posts: 16056
Joined: Fri Jan 20, 2006 5:51 pm
Location: Essex
Has thanked: 773 times
Been thanked: 3301 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by dewaltdisney »

I cringe too on these speech affectations. I have to guard against saying 'at the end of the day' which I noticed I was saying too much. I also self answer by adding 'Isn't it' after something I have said. I think we all have things in our speech patterns and it is hard to get yourself out of it. I hate the 'C' word, that is Community and bandied about as if it is real. I hate it when that is trotted out as I have never come across a true community. It is all b*llocks, there might be a couple of well meaning meddlers in an area but most people keep themselves to themselves.

DWD
Bob225
Senior Member
Posts: 4665
Joined: Sun Jan 31, 2010 9:21 pm
Location: Kent, Land of Apples and PYO
Has thanked: 94 times
Been thanked: 857 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by Bob225 »

At the end of the day...………………………………………………..comes night
User avatar
kellys_eye
Senior Member
Posts: 12309
Joined: Mon Mar 15, 2010 11:49 pm
Location: Oban
Has thanked: 357 times
Been thanked: 1789 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by kellys_eye »

So, these things annoy :mrgreen: but I recall Suzy Dent (8out0f10catsdoesCountdown) also decrying those that used the 'so' word to start a sentence then immediately did it herself (multiple times!) to very much amusement of the audience!

I have a (sort of) aversion to even the words 'yes' and 'no' in conversation - potentially derived from that radio/TV game where you had to avoid saying it as an answer to any question (can't recall the name of the quiz show). As an example, if I'm asked "would you like a cup of tea" the answer would be "that would be very nice, thank you" or somesuch. Not that I avoid the yes/no answer all the time of course.... but it's sort of ingrained in me now.

So, yes, at the end of the day that's literally the truth.
These users thanked the author kellys_eye for the post:
Have Brush Will Travel
Rating: 7.14%
Don't take it personally......
boxedin
Senior Member
Posts: 782
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2012 1:47 pm
Has thanked: 61 times
Been thanked: 319 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by boxedin »

The rising intonation at the end of every sentence is another one.

Politicians telling you to Look (even when they are on radio) to emphasize something usually really unimportant (sometimes combined with the power stance)

People who say Do you know what ? and then go on to express their usually negative feelings about something.

Similarly People who say Do you want me to tell you something? you then say no, and they still tell you
User avatar
Have Brush Will Travel
Senior Member
Posts: 4162
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2007 5:30 pm
Location: Oh south London, is wonderful.
Has thanked: 224 times
Been thanked: 384 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by Have Brush Will Travel »

boxedin wrote:The rising intonation at the end of every sentence is another one.

Politicians telling you to Look (even when they are on radio) to emphasize something usually really unimportant (sometimes combined with the power stance)

People who say Do you know what ? and then go on to express their usually negative feelings about something.

Similarly People who say Do you want me to tell you something? you then say no, and they still tell you
oh yeah...ending a statement like its a question! :angryfire:

And 'look'...it smarts of arrogance..

I remember my Dad taking me to work with him during my last summer holidays before I started work proper..he said when people say hello say 'pleased to me you'...so I did, when I met the bosses..then he introduced me to a fella in the machine shop who nodded..I said 'alright'...my ol man done his nut with me, saying 'alright??...alright?...of course he's alright!!!..he's alive isnt he?..looks healthy!!!...roll on 42 years and I'm having a go at my trainees for saying 'wassapnin' after I say good morning! lol
I intend to live forever......So far, so good
User avatar
chrrris
Senior Member
Posts: 1900
Joined: Mon Jan 12, 2015 6:42 pm
Has thanked: 234 times
Been thanked: 409 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by chrrris »

The misuse of "literally" really hits a nerve with me too. It's so common that I think lots of people no longer have any idea what it even means. "I was so bored, I was literally climbing the walls", "He's literally got two left feet", "This song literally makes me sick". No you weren't, no he hasn't, and no it doesn't.

No doubt I've got lots of bad linguistic habits that I'm not self-aware of, and I try not to let stuff like that annoy me when I hear it. I inevitably fail though :-)

I don't follow Formula 1 any more, but when I did, about 6 or 7 years ago, nearly every single F1 driver had a habit of using "For sure" as punctuation during interviews. "For sure, it going to be a tough race for us. And, for sure, tyre selection will be important..." I suppose, for many of the drivers, English isn't their first language and they probably just heard others saying it and assimilated it. It got right on my wick, though. Literally! :hiding:
Haste is the enemy of quality.
boxedin
Senior Member
Posts: 782
Joined: Wed Sep 26, 2012 1:47 pm
Has thanked: 61 times
Been thanked: 319 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by boxedin »

"I remember my Dad taking me to work with him during my last summer holidays before I started work proper..he said when people say hello say 'pleased to me you'...so I did, when I met the bosses..then he introduced me to a fella in the machine shop who nodded..I said 'alright'...my ol man done his nut with me, saying 'alright??...alright?...of course he's alright!!!..he's alive isnt he?..looks healthy!!!...roll on 42 years and I'm having a go at my trainees for saying 'wassapnin' after I say good morning! lol"

My late father coming from yorkshire when asked if he was "alright" used to reply with the saying "six and two thirds" a numerical representation of the reply "fair to middlin", or "notsa bad". He had a background in engineering and production planning, I think that had something to do with it

I used to work around, well paid consultants the type that got 1sts and were employed by the big six. At all times, no matter how stressed, they were always well mannered and polite (probably learned from an early age and drilled into them at induction), it distinguished them from their competition, there is definately a financial worth in being polite (without servility) as a competence its not as some think a sign of weakness.
Grendel
Senior Member
Posts: 2678
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 7:08 pm
Has thanked: 199 times
Been thanked: 481 times

Re: So, literally...can I get

Post by Grendel »

I'm torn on this one to a degree. On one hand there are many aspects of speech that I find irksome. "Like" seems to be used almost as punctuation for teenagers theses days for instance. Management speak irritates me as does text speak "LO m8 CU tomoz" although that could be because to me it just slows everything down as I try to understand it.
On the other hand speech evolves . If we were to transport someone from 1000 years ago to today he probably would complain about how we speak . Our speech has changed quite a bit in the past , for example the great vowel shift , https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Vowel_Shift
I have a "dual language " book of Chaucer's Canterbury tales. It isn't actually two languages , just Middle English and modern English . The Middle English is difficult to read unless one reads it in a Black Country accent. .
Post Reply

Return to “The Grumpy corner”