What is it with all the Americanisms?
What is it with all the Americanisms?
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Discussion

VX Foxy

Original Poster:

3,962 posts

272 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
There seem to be more and more of them being used - why? Is it cool? Ignorant? Does it matter?

Tire
Center
Fiber
Color
Aluminum
Morgue attendant

shoot

We'll be saying trunk and faucett next rolleyes

Are we losing our identity to the septics? Do you care?

Jasandjules

72,562 posts

258 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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MS Office and Spellchecker?

Puggit

49,789 posts

277 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
License banghead

thinfourth2

32,414 posts

233 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
Jasandjules said:
MS Office and Spellchecker?
yep thats the problem

turbobloke

117,121 posts

289 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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Puggit said:
License banghead
yes

That one's very not good, if everything's an 's' then accurate use of the noun form as opposed to the verb form is lost - do they do the same with advice and advise?

Blib

48,013 posts

226 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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'Prioritize'.

I can't even spell the bleedin' word.

God, do I hate that one!


curse

Puggit

49,789 posts

277 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
turbobloke said:
Puggit said:
License banghead
yes

That one's very not good, if everything's an 's' then accurate use of the noun form as opposed to the verb form is lost - do they do the same with advice and advise?
I work for a US software company - every day I have to fight against this frown

g3rrd

682 posts

217 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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Wonder if this one will stick "misunderestimate" laugh

Hollywood Wheels

3,689 posts

259 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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It's the trend for talking American that pisses me off most. "My Bad"...."Two Thousand Nine" (instead of Two Thousand AND Nine). The list goes on. mad

jeff m

4,066 posts

287 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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Doing an American crossword can be quite challenging.


HOGEPH

5,249 posts

215 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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Al Murray quote.

"2 countries separated by a common language, and a fking big ocean, thank God!"

jeff m

4,066 posts

287 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
Hollywood Wheels said:
It's the trend for talking American that pisses me off most. "My Bad"...."Two Thousand Nine" (instead of Two Thousand AND Nine). The list goes on. mad
East coast they say thirtyfour hundred instead of three thousand four hundred. Which if you've had a couple of beers......can be a bit tricky.

Eric Mc

125,606 posts

294 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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I don't mind them - when used by Americans.

Ironically, I notice the thread title has a very "American" tone to it.

Brown and Boris

11,838 posts

264 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all

We (as in our business) accept the 'z' in place opf the 's' in words like organization as that has become the norm in graduates as many academic journalsd and text book publishers insist on it, even if it is a UK book.

We penalise, as in count it as an error, if they use any other US speling in their job application as the work involves communicating at a good level within the Uk justice system, not CSI Miami.

mically

1,204 posts

216 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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holy st, close this thread.... The 5-0 are coming!
hehe yes indeedy.

We gave the world the verbal language; the americans are giving us the written language.

I dare say the vast majority of our sources are from america. TV, Internet, Software (which defaults to us-english every step of the way!)

Unless we produce more distributable media, we’re just going to have to accept the americanisation aspect as part of the ever evolving english language.

I’ve found myself spelling words in the american way, simply because I see it so often.

Eric Mc

125,606 posts

294 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
The use of "z" rather than "s" is usually referred to as an Americanism but I have seen examples of British texts going back to at least the 1920s where it has been used. From what I can see, the choice of using a "z" or an "s" seems to have been used in British English for quite a long time.

I'm an "s" man myself.

Captain Cadillac

2,974 posts

216 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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How YOU doin?

minimatt1967

17,381 posts

235 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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HOGEPH said:
Al Murray quote. "2 countries separated by a common language, and a fking big ocean, thank God!"
scratchchin Has Al Murray applied for the UK ambassador position in Washington yet?

Glocko

1,813 posts

278 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
quotequote all
Brown and Boris said:
We (as in our business) accept the 'z' in place opf the 's' in words like organization as that has become the norm in graduates as many academic journalsd and text book publishers insist on it, even if it is a UK book.

We penalise, as in count it as an error, if they use any other US speling in their job application as the work involves communicating at a good level within the Uk justice system, not CSI Miami.
The unnecessary 'D' in Journals is pushing it a bit far though (and I love the irony of spelling spelling wrong!!
hehe

Eric Mc

125,606 posts

294 months

Saturday 17th January 2009
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The battle against the Americanisation (note the "s" smile) of English spelling is probably lost. I realised this a few months ago when I caught sight of a UK GCSE Science Textbook in which the word "programme" was spelled "program" (and it wasn't referring to computers either) and "vapour" was spelled "vapor". And there were some other American versions of words scattered throughout the book.

If the actual "learning" books pupils are using are promoting American versions of words, then one cannot blame youngsters from using them in everyday writing.

It does irk me though.