Great conversation! My takes on a few points: - For me, the view of double negatives being problematic doesn't rely on mathematical rules, but rather on how we parse the sentence. Consider a sentence like "I didn't never use a double negative." Logically parsing this sentence, one could ask "what is the thing that I didn't do?" And the answer could be "never use a double negative." So if I didn't "never use a double negative," then perhaps I actually did at some time use a double negative. But if there's a shared understanding that double negatives indicate emphasis, then we don't have to parse the negatives as cancelling. We can say that the thing I didn't do is "use a double negative," and that the word "never" is simply there to strengthen "didn't." I sympathize with those who lamented losing the ability to use double negatives for emphasis. - Some of the contested words or phrases mentioned in the video fall into the category of business jargon, and I think some people will always be turned off by business jargon, because it can convey the idea that the person using the jargon is claiming to be part of the "in" or "cool" group. It also can be perceived as indicating disregard for the audience when a speaker uses "in group" jargon that an outside audience isn't familiar with (like using acronyms without explaining what they mean). - I don't object to backforming words in general, but I'll always be annoyed with the use of "conversate" and "orientate" -- not because they're backformed, but because they're backformed unnecessarily, when English already has perfectly good verb forms of conversation (converse) and orientation (orient).
Great conversation! My takes on a few points:
- For me, the view of double negatives being problematic doesn't rely on mathematical rules, but rather on how we parse the sentence. Consider a sentence like "I didn't never use a double negative." Logically parsing this sentence, one could ask "what is the thing that I didn't do?" And the answer could be "never use a double negative." So if I didn't "never use a double negative," then perhaps I actually did at some time use a double negative. But if there's a shared understanding that double negatives indicate emphasis, then we don't have to parse the negatives as cancelling. We can say that the thing I didn't do is "use a double negative," and that the word "never" is simply there to strengthen "didn't." I sympathize with those who lamented losing the ability to use double negatives for emphasis.
- Some of the contested words or phrases mentioned in the video fall into the category of business jargon, and I think some people will always be turned off by business jargon, because it can convey the idea that the person using the jargon is claiming to be part of the "in" or "cool" group. It also can be perceived as indicating disregard for the audience when a speaker uses "in group" jargon that an outside audience isn't familiar with (like using acronyms without explaining what they mean).
- I don't object to backforming words in general, but I'll always be annoyed with the use of "conversate" and "orientate" -- not because they're backformed, but because they're backformed unnecessarily, when English already has perfectly good verb forms of conversation (converse) and orientation (orient).
This is a great conversation!
I like "funner" and "funnest" and think they are acceptable.
I like the archaic word "vouchsafe."
Thanks for 'grammando'! This is a descriptor up to which I must own.
I can’t hardly wait for "Ten Items or Fewer" to reign the day.
"So how many of you are drug users?" 😂😂😂
AlohaHola 🌈 I Innerstand,
I LOVE IT a funner way to Communicate Lllooolllll 🧬 ✨ 🌴🎵
Language is not math? Hmmmm.