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I still don’t know what an “eeb” is when referring to bikes. I know e bike means electric bike. But what is an “e e bike”?
Efficient electric?
Eccentric electric?
Eco electric?Someone please tell me.
Sure.
You're thinking in terms of abbreviations.
'Eeb' is not an abbreviation.
Say 'Ebike' and then get rid of the 'ike'
Eb-[s]ike[/s]
eeb is what that sounds like.....a bit.
Simple, it's just not an abbreviation.
For your info, 'neeb' is now Oxford English Dictionary-defined as the accepted term for a non-ebike.
It was introduced in an attempt to stop the horrific use of 'analogue' and 'clockwork' as a description.
hth 😉
Sure.
You’re thinking in terms of abbreviations.
‘Eeb’ is not an abbreviation.Say ‘Ebike’ and then get rid of the ‘ike’
eeb is what that sounds like…..a bit.
Simple, it’s just not an abbreviation.
hth
Absolutely, it should probably be i:b but I don't suppose that would help much.
As for neeb, I think I'll stick with "meat bike"
looking for a babysitter please PM me TIA
Is crystal clear that it's a statement.
looking for a babysitter? please PM me TIA
is an advert
Language doesn’t ‘have to’ change. It changes. Also, ‘our’?
This.
Also, ‘our’?
I think the OP means, Are!
IGMC
I think the OP means, Are!
Arrrrrrr, surely?
So the next time you hear a new phrase that grates on your ears, remember that like everything else in nature, the English language is a work in progress.
Or more correctly 'grunt, grunt, grunt, grunt, snort'. (I can't find 'stone age translator' so that's as close as I can get.)
Or more correctly ‘grunt, grunt, grunt, grunt, snort’. (I can’t find ‘stone age translator’ so that’s as close as I can get.)
Cro-makaton wasn't it?
It would be brave to assume the person can use punctuation properly, when they can't even include a subject!
looking for a babysitter please PM me TIA
I'd take 'pm me' over 'inbox me' any day.
*shudders
It would be brave to assume the person can use punctuation properly, when they can’t even include a subject!
Whilst I'm not familiar with the specifics of whatever social media I assume the post actually reads something like
hels
looking for a babysitter please PM me TIA
So it would have a subject (poster name) or are you using something where the posts are anonymous?
I also wish people wouldn’t drop the subject from sentences – you see that all the time on social media “looking for a babysitter please PM me TIA”.
I'm likely guilty of this but it's nothing to do with social media, it's a reflection of the way I speak. I correct it when I notice it but I often don't catch it.
qualified to tell us the rules (not that there are any).
There are well-established style guides.
"Could of", "Should of", "would of", I hate that yet it seems to have become the norm in facebook posts.
And, everyone seems to say "Can I get" in cafes. pubs etc. another one that annoys me!
I also wish people wouldn’t drop the subject from sentences
You (and everyone else who complains about language change) should actually put a recorder around your neck for a day or a week and then transcribe everything you say. You might find that you don't talk like a grammar book. Dropping the subject when it is obvious from context is pretty standard in conversation.
If you have inferred a (generally accurate) meaning from it then the language used has done it's job (whether you like it or not or whether you think it's 'correct' or not).
Being annoyed by it is another issue entirely and is not the fault of the language or its user.
If you have inferred a (generally accurate) meaning from it then the language used has done it’s job
Its job. No apostrophe.
If we are going after misplaced apostrophes.....
Can I also add to my list Pointless And Constant Use Of Capitals For Things That Are Not Proper Nouns? I had to advise on a privacy notice recently for work it was almost unreadable as it had so many capitals. People tend to do this when they write acronyms out in full, as if by magic that makes the words proper nouns. TIA Thanks In Advance. Hels.
There’s an awesome book on this subject by John McWhorter called Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue which is well worth checking out.
The cyclist Laura Kenny has ‘medalled’.
That's a spelling error it should read-
The cyclist Laura Kenny has ‘medlled’.
Really? In what? Tell me more. Or perhaps its just this statement of the bleedin obvious
The cyclist Laura Kenny has ‘pedalled’.
Indubitably
Random caps Erk me
Can I also add to my list Pointless And Constant Use Of Capitals For Things That Are Not Proper Nouns
I think this habit comes from many (maybe most) American newspaper headlines and therefore their writers or proof-readers. Who really should know better, but don't.
iRk
wbo - have you read the whole thread?
I never stated that I have perfect grammar, or can construct a sentence properly. I haven't had the wonderful education that all of you on here have enjoyed.
But over the many years of living on this planet I somehow expect a corporation such as the BBC could/should/would take more care in reading out news bulletins with a better grasp of the 'Queens' English.
Obviously my expectations are too high and according to one or two of you, I'm the 'only one' who feels this way.
Calling me granddad really made me laugh.
I share the distaste at the use of "our" in the thread title. It is the sort of thing one sees in Daily Mail journalism.
I am not one of you, but its still my language.
Trying not to be pedantic, but to meet the BBC mantra to inform, educate and entertain:
1/ "it's still my language" - short for it is. Its is the possessive form of it (eg: the dog slipped its lead and ran after the cat)
2/ And it's "The Queen's English" 'cos she owns it.
Note use of 'cos to show abbreviated form, which while not technically correct is perfectly understandable.
Also; not sure whether starting a sentence with 'because' is allowed. Also note how I might have slipped a subjectless sentence into the explanation.
who, me? :whistles:
Yep, it's one of those where I can't spell it, but once written down and re-read it just looks wrong and so I then correct it.
What about practise vs practice?
BBC English is a dialect, as is the Queen's English (that might actually be an idiolect). Both are evolving.
PractiCe the Noun comes before practiSe the Verb in the alphabet is how I remember it. Advice/advise also helps.
iRk
Indeed.
“Box set” referring to a streaming service irritates the shit out of me.
It's good to focus on things that matter.
Gratuitous asshattery irks me more, if that makes you feel any more validated?
It's hardly a serious thread really getting to the nub of the cause of the problems in the world today now, is it.
But I would rather hear correct uses on the BBC.
What is this correct use you speak of? I’m from West Yorkshire so, to me, BBC newsreaders sound incorrect.
The trees and hedges are ‘greening up’. No they are in green or becoming green.
Sprouting, that’s what they’re doing. Greening up sounds racist
Mister-P
Its job. No apostrophe
Guilty as charged (and serves me right for quickly posting from work without reading things back) but... It didn't stop you understanding what I'd written so a moot point in context.
"Greening" is definitely an established word.
The important thing with apostrophe's is to be consistent. Either use them or dont.
The important thing with apostrophe’s is to be consistent. Either use them or dont.
Being consistently wrong wouldn't aid understanding any more than inconsistency.
BBC could/should/would take more care in reading out news bulletins with a better grasp of the ‘Queens’ English.
BBC dropped Queen’s English a long time ago as hardly anyone uses it.
Queen’s English? I thought she was German!
BBC dropped Queen’s English a long time ago as hardly anyone uses it.
One would assume the Queen does.
Do you mean Received Pronunciation?
Well yes ironically it’s not really called Queen’s English.
Even the Queen has changed the way she speaks.
When people from South of the UK instead of saying drawing they stick an extra r after the w and change it to drawing, probably other examples
Are they from the Azores, the Canary Islands, Spain, North Africa?
All of those are south of the UK, and I think you meant to put ‘drawring’, a pronunciation I always associate with the Midlands, as I am from the south-west of England, and we don’t habitually pronounce ’drawing’ like that. Or at least, nobody of my acquaintance who were born down here do either.
Yes, I am being a pedant - suck it up, buttercup. The only thing that does annoy me is ‘can I get…’, but the stable door that horse bolted from was left open far too long ago for there to be any point going and shutting it now.
I wonder idly how people who voice extra letters into 'drawing' to get drawring would pronounce 'withdrawing'. Would that also get the additional R?
Watching tele a few nights ago and a contestant wanted to "bring some theatricality" to the food. I would have thought "theatre" would do. Mind you, it looked more operating than Palladium by the end .
It’s hardly a serious thread really getting to the nub of the cause of the problems in the world today now, is it.
Sometimes a little frippery and nonsense helps calm the overactive brain. Or a bike ride but we don't do that here!