Quirks of English
Discussion
I've just tried explaining the following sentence to two Polish colleagues and they looked horrified by it (dropped punctuation from the necessary bit for comic effect):
"Peter, while Paul had had had had had had had had had had had had the better impression on the teacher."
So I started thinking of other little quirks. Sentences which take a word and use that word as a noun, verb, adverb and adjective:
"The common man has been kept in his place by his betters, not being allowed to better himself and be the better man, even if better suited to the job."
English must be a fairly terrible language to learn, mustn't it?
"Peter, while Paul had had had had had had had had had had had had the better impression on the teacher."
So I started thinking of other little quirks. Sentences which take a word and use that word as a noun, verb, adverb and adjective:
"The common man has been kept in his place by his betters, not being allowed to better himself and be the better man, even if better suited to the job."
English must be a fairly terrible language to learn, mustn't it?
You're talking about complex and drawn out examples,I think English is an easy language for two people to understand each other using the basics.
Most other languages have basics that are a real pain. The 'sex" of a word always annoys me in some other languages. Why is 'table' a masculine word? Who made that up?
Most other languages have basics that are a real pain. The 'sex" of a word always annoys me in some other languages. Why is 'table' a masculine word? Who made that up?
Buffalo. Lots of them, all together.
That and read and lead, and read and lead sound different and you probably made them rhyme in your head.
That and read and lead, and read and lead sound different and you probably made them rhyme in your head.
Another favourite:
I take it you already know
Of tough and bough and cough and dough?
Others may stumble, but not you
On hiccough, thorough, laugh and through?
Well done! And now you wish perhaps
To learn of less familiar traps?
Beware of heard, a dreadful word
That looks like beard and sounds like bird;
And dead: it’s said like bed, not bead —
For goodness sake don’t call it ‘deed’.
Watch out for meat and great and threat.
They rhyme with suite and straight and debt.
A moth is not a moth in mother,
nor both in bother, broth in brother,
And here is not a match for there
Nor dear and fear for bear and pear,
And then there’s dose and rose and lose —
Just look them up — and goose and choose.
And cord and work and card and ward,
And font and front and word and sword,
And do and go and thwart and cart —
Come come, I’ve hardly made a start!
A dreadful language? Man alive,
I’d mastered it when I was five!
Another variant of ending:
A dreadful language? Why, man alive!
I’d learned to talk it when I was five.
And yet to write it, the more I tried,
I hadn’t learned it at fifty-five.
I take it you already know
Of tough and bough and cough and dough?
Others may stumble, but not you
On hiccough, thorough, laugh and through?
Well done! And now you wish perhaps
To learn of less familiar traps?
Beware of heard, a dreadful word
That looks like beard and sounds like bird;
And dead: it’s said like bed, not bead —
For goodness sake don’t call it ‘deed’.
Watch out for meat and great and threat.
They rhyme with suite and straight and debt.
A moth is not a moth in mother,
nor both in bother, broth in brother,
And here is not a match for there
Nor dear and fear for bear and pear,
And then there’s dose and rose and lose —
Just look them up — and goose and choose.
And cord and work and card and ward,
And font and front and word and sword,
And do and go and thwart and cart —
Come come, I’ve hardly made a start!
A dreadful language? Man alive,
I’d mastered it when I was five!
Another variant of ending:
A dreadful language? Why, man alive!
I’d learned to talk it when I was five.
And yet to write it, the more I tried,
I hadn’t learned it at fifty-five.
Mothersruin said:
Most other languages have basics that are a real pain. The 'sex" of a word always annoys me in some other languages. Why is 'table' a masculine word? Who made that up?
The male / female thing is down to Latin. The ancient Romans used male & female definite articles to honour their gods. Thus a table is the responsibility of a male god & is referred to as male. In Germanic languages there is also neuter as a definite article presumably it stuck despite the influence of Latin and / or some Germanic gods were neuter anyway.Which doesn't mean that English speakers can feel superior. Our 'the' is a combination of the Latin & Germanic definite articles because it was just easier than trying to accommodate all the differing views of a particular god's responsibilities. So when we use 'the' we are honouring all of these pre-Christian gods.
It doesn't stop there either. Our days of the week are named after pre-Christain gods too. Sunday is the day of the sun,Monday that of the moon. Tuesday is a corruption of Zeus'day, Wedenesday is Wodin'sday. Thursday is then Thor'sday (still to be heard in Tyneside) and Friday is Freia'sday. Saturday = Saturns'day. The same is true in most European languages.
What's more the names of the months have nothing to do with Christianity either.
I always like this explanation of cricket.
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
tomtom said:
I always like this explanation of cricket.
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
I like language and context, I've worked for a lot of EU companies and pick up bits and pieces. While there's slang in many languages, English is where you can lose people really quickly
There's also certain words that you barely remember have so many meanings, but you know exactly which meaning is used where. Bar is a good example, there's many uses for the word.
The German ability to build one word out of many is very efficient and quite cool when you think about it
There's also certain words that you barely remember have so many meanings, but you know exactly which meaning is used where. Bar is a good example, there's many uses for the word.
The German ability to build one word out of many is very efficient and quite cool when you think about it
English is one of the easiest languages in the World in which to learn the fundamentals, but one of the hardest to master.
There is, however, a new breed of international English developing, often using a direct translation from another language where we wouldn't normally use the direct translation. Examples of this include "actual" where we would actually use "current", as the French (actuel), Spanish (actual) and Italian (attuale) words for current and actual are the same, so they tend to choose actual instead of current, or the unimaginative German habit of using the direct translation of "machen" (to make) for all sorts of actions. I have been asked before now by a Portuguese colleague on a residential course if I'd like to make a game of tennis with him, as he'd picked that up from a German.
There is, however, a new breed of international English developing, often using a direct translation from another language where we wouldn't normally use the direct translation. Examples of this include "actual" where we would actually use "current", as the French (actuel), Spanish (actual) and Italian (attuale) words for current and actual are the same, so they tend to choose actual instead of current, or the unimaginative German habit of using the direct translation of "machen" (to make) for all sorts of actions. I have been asked before now by a Portuguese colleague on a residential course if I'd like to make a game of tennis with him, as he'd picked that up from a German.
I've decided to start helping my daughter with her grammar so bought a book on the subject which has made me realise I have absolutely no grammatical knowledge what so ever.
I don't care what the saggy titted hemp mothers of Islington and Totnes think, the pre SATS 'education' system has alot to answer for. Thank god my kids are actually getting an education even though it might be harder for them. Junior school was an utter doss when I went through it.
I don't care what the saggy titted hemp mothers of Islington and Totnes think, the pre SATS 'education' system has alot to answer for. Thank god my kids are actually getting an education even though it might be harder for them. Junior school was an utter doss when I went through it.
tomtom said:
I always like this explanation of cricket.
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
That's ace. My dad is a cricketer and he'll love that.You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
Gassing Station | The Lounge | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff