Degradation of language, part 2

[dougjwray]

1) "Less" applies to a substance. "Fewer" applies to things which could be counted.
"There is less water in this glass."
"There are fewer water molecules in this glass."
It drives me nuts when people say something like "There are less jazz fans in Iceland." It should be "There are FEWER jazz fans in Iceland."

2) Use "who", not "that", when you're referring to humans.
It's not "They are the people that run the country", it's "They are the people WHO run the country."

Some people get twisted when there's a 1/32" gap between the pickguard and control plate on a Jazz Bass.
I get twisted when people are tonedeaf about language.

Thank you for your time. Goodbye for now.

 

[bholder]

 

[dune]

1) "Less" applies to a substance. "Fewer" applies to things which could be counted.
"There is less water in this glass."
"There are fewer water molecules in this glass."
It drives me nuts when people say something like "There are less jazz fans in Iceland." It should be "There are FEWER jazz fans in Iceland."

2) Use "who", not "that", when you're referring to humans.
It's not "They are the people that run the country", it's "They are the people WHO run the country."

Some people get twisted when there's a 1/32" gap between the pickguard and control plate on a Jazz Bass.
I get twisted when people are tonedeaf about language.

Thank you for your time. Goodbye for now.

While I agree with your overall assessment, your choice to let that drive you nuts is just that - your choice. So that's on you and must make life on internet forums more draining than necessary. Spelling has always been my thing, but I gave up on letting that bother me decades ago. I made a similar choice (also decades ago) the very first time I heard "Mambo #5". I thought: "I know that I'm going to hear this vapid piece of, er, um... music a lot, if I let it bother me that's going to waste a lot of energy." Oh, and for what it's worth, my computer and several online dictionaries indicate that it's "tone-deaf", not that I would have known that had my laptop not underlined it. I'm glad to have learned that this morning, so you have my sincere thanks. I appreciate posts that actually cause me to learn and there seem to be fewer and fewer of those with each passing day.

 

[djmay]

Someone is living in a bubble.

 

[bholder]

"Mambo #5".

God, I despise that tune!!

 

[Pings Bass]

Both my parents were English majors, so I grew up getting corrected when I spoke vernacular English.

But languages change, and vernacular usage becomes proper over time.

My mom still can't accept that I can be "done" with a task, even though that's been accepted for non-baking usage for ages.

It's ok; English has been a rapidly evolving bastard tongue all along. Less and fewer, finished and done, who and that are all commonly used synonymously, no matter how much it pains old pendants like us.

 

[Andy Marshman]

I understand your gripe. However, the majority of forums and social media sites are where you will constantly find some people who cannot spell or compose a sentence properly. This stuff isn't emphasized in school these days (like it was for my generation) and society puts up with it. I no longer fight it.

 

[ole Jason]

Language changes and, especially verbablly, can vary significantly by region or background. I grew up in an area of Appalachia know for its distinct dialect. I'm not going to change the way I speak to avoid irking people who think I'm wrong/dumb or whatever.

 

[DownRound]

"Up" used as an adverb, a preposition or an adjective, sure...great.
"Up" used as a verb feels like a serpentine belt squealing in a car.
The thought always comes into my mind when I hear that, especially in the media is "up...yours".

Yeah, I know language evolves.
But sometime evolution leads to things like ticks and poison oak.

 

[Pings Bass]

Language changes and, especially verbablly, can vary significantly by region or background. I grew up in an area of Appalachia know for its distinct dialect. I'm not going to change the way I speak to avoid irking people who think I'm wrong/dumb or whatever.

I love Appalachian English. In some ways it's closer to Elizabethan/colonial English than modern American English. In other words, it should be taken as more "correct" by those who think languages aren't allowed to change.

My dad's family spoke fluent Western Pennsylvanian, which I love to hear, but have never mastered. It sounds almost like cockney to me.

 

[bholder]

Language changes and, especially verbablly, can vary significantly by region or background. I grew up in an area of Appalachia know for its distinct dialect. I'm not going to change the way I speak to avoid irking people who think I'm wrong/dumb or whatever.

I've seen that "accent prejudice" actually used as a weapon - let them think you're dumb (while you're perfecting your plot hehe).

 

[DownRound]

"Up" used as an adverb, a preposition or an adjective, sure...great.
"Up" used as a verb feels like a serpentine belt squealing in a car.
The thought always comes into my mind when I hear that, especially in the media is "up...yours".

Yeah, I know language evolves.
But sometime evolution leads to things like ticks and poison oak.

 

[bholder]

Western Pennsylvanian

I've heard that dialect referred to as "Pennsyltuckian" (by a former resident that grew up there).

 

[Pings Bass]

"Up" used as an adverb, a preposition or an adjective, sure...great.
"Up" used as a verb feels like a serpentine belt squealing in a car.
The thought always comes into my mind when I hear that, especially in the media is "up...yours".

Yeah, I know language evolves.
But sometime evolution leads to things like ticks and poison oak.

Man you gotta up ur game cuz the world finna leave u behind

 

[Bass4ThePublic]

Why are you using your big booklearnin words? Just use normal people words

 

[bholder]

Man you gotta up ur game cuz the world finna leave u behind

Well played, sir, but yeah - that usage makes me ...

 

[slowjam98]

Now do “more” vs “greater”. “There are greater jazz fans in Iceland” hardly seems defensible. And if “more” can be clearly understood to mean “greater”, then surely you can learn that “less” is regularly and successfully used to convey the same meaning as your usage of “fewer”.

 

[Pings Bass]

I've heard that dialect referred to as "Pennsyltuckian" (by a former resident that grew up there).

My dad was an academic and generally spoke standard American English. But if he got a couple of drinks in with his sister, I could barely keep up with the banter. When my uncle went on a rant it was a thing of beauty (as long as you weren't the target of his ire). I usually can pick up on dialects/accents, but Pittsburghese has never rolled off my tongue, save some of the vowel shifts

 

[slowjam98]

the world finna leave u behind

The world finna up and leave u behind.

 

[Pings Bass]

The world finna up and leave u behind.

Someone finna upchuck if we up and keep this up

up high