Torking Proply an' 'at

[Pabmusic]

I'm with Scotty on this one. The OED and Collins compilers are completely out of touch, wishing we all spoke ancient Greek. Hardly anyone in Britain uses the -ize ending - just a handful of publishers, probably to help our American friends. In all official British documents, and on most road signs, you will find only the -ise endings.

You have a point. Here's Michael Quinion (always a good authority imo): http://www.affixes.org/i/-ize.html

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

well it seems to me that the 'proper' usage debates are one thing but what the Sun did quite another ... this mockery of a person's speech and language use by a national market share dominant tabloid is one of the key indictments of Murdoch in a non legal sense .... that his organisation is morally outrageous whether or not it broke or breaks the law ... and one might add that the defence of Murdoch by such as Shawcross and even White at the Graun miss the point .... his preservation of the press [he is seen as a saviour] is founded on the morally outrageous character of the man and his works

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

well it seems to me that the 'proper' usage debates are one thing but what the Sun did quite another ... this mockery of a person's speech and language use by a national market share dominant tabloid is one of the key indictments of Murdoch in a non legal sense .... that his organisation is morally outrageous whether or not it broke or breaks the law ... and one might add that the defence of Murdoch by such as Shawcross and even White at the Graun miss the point .... his preservation of the press [he is seen as a saviour] is founded on the morally outrageous character of the man and his works

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

YES!

[amateur51]

well it seems to me that the 'proper' usage debates are one thing but what the Sun did quite another ... this mockery of a person's speech and language use by a national market share dominant tabloid is one of the key indictments of Murdoch in a non legal sense .... that his organisation is morally outrageous whether or not it broke or breaks the law ... and one might add that the defence of Murdoch by such as Shawcross and even White at the Graun miss the point .... his preservation of the press [he is seen as a saviour] is founded on the morally outrageous character of the man and his works

[scottycelt]

After coming acoss the following article I could hardly resist the temptation to revive this thread ...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19670686

Torking Equality, it would appear, is now being introduced on both sides of the, er, Pond ... innit?

[Pabmusic]

After coming acoss the following article I could hardly resist the temptation to revive this thread ...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19670686

Torking Equality, it would appear, is now being introduced on both sides of the, er, Pond ... innit?

A bi'v aw'righ'.

[salymap]

I've only read the last few posts but surely it's the other way round.We are using far more Ameericanisms than in the past.

And when previously new to us American relatives visited they DID think we were fairly posh, which couldn't be further from the truth. It was an interesting visit from them, we both found out a lot about the other's language and what NOT to say

[Pabmusic]

...We are using far more Americanisms than in the past.

Unlikely. Quite literally thousands of our everyday words entered British English from America in the last 150 years. Here's a very small sample:

commuter, snag, gimmick, babysitter, lengthy, sag, soggy, teenager, to butt in, hangover, blizzard, to fudge, stunt, joyride, currency (money), telephone, radio, raincoat, law-abiding, notify, to advocate, to take a backseat, graveyard, to stay put, to keep a stiff upper lip , to fly off the handle, to bark up the wrong tree, to pull the wool over one's eyes, to stub one's toe, to face the music, to knock spots off another, neither hide nor hair, to go haywire, con man, stag party, to be out on a limb, fit as a fiddle, to peter out, to pass out, to check in, to show off, to hold on, to highlight, to panic, to progress, to notice, to donate, to park, balance (remainder), census, standpoint, outhouse, immigration, reliable, influential

We have been complaining about Americanisms since at least 1745, when the Englishman Francis Moore visited Savannah, which is situated on a hill "which they in barbarous English call a bluff".

[JanH]

Indeed. Notice in my workplace: Do not close this door for health and safety reasons

So presumably it's permitted to close it for other reasons, but I'm not sure that's what they meant.

Notices and signs!!

On a car journey recently we saw this county road sign: HEREFORDSHIRE. YOU CAN. I am still wondering what I can do there........



This was swiftly followed along the road by a sign outside a Pub " Sunday lunch served". But not eaten???