A&O - orientated or oriented?

[mom2cka]

How do you say / write your level of orientation? This is one of those things that's been on my mind... and the dictionaries appear to be OK with either.

Oriented or orientated?

Reoriented or reorientated?

I'm just curious - not sure if it's a regional thing or a personal preference.

Thanks!

[cherrybreeze, ADN, RN]

I know the dictionary says either is okay, but I think that "orientated" sounds completely stupid and uneducated, like someone is making up a word in order to sound smart. I want to cringe any time I hear someone say it. My husband teaches languages and has an English degree, and he says orientated may be technically correct, but he would count it as incorrect in an essay.

It's a little O/T, but I think this is kind of crappy. He may not "like" the word, but if it IS used correctly, how can he "count it as wrong?" That's unfair to his students, to not know how or why something would be marked "wrong" that isn't. IMO.

[roser13, ASN, RN]

From Common Errors in English Usage: The Book (2nd Edition, November, 2008)

Although it is standard in British English “orientate” is widely considered an error in the US, with simple “orient” being preferred.

[greenbeanio]

As a Brit this post made me giggle a little

As R/N writer so beautifully posted earlier in the UK and many other countries orientated is the correct word, I have never heard oriented used here and it would sound so very very wrong to me, ...

So although it's not used in your country or region does not mean that it is incorrect.

Oops! Duly humbled! Thanks, Sharrie, and glad you chose to giggle instead of get annoyed!

[BluegrassRN]

It's a little O/T, but I think this is kind of crappy. He may not "like" the word, but if it IS used correctly, how can he "count it as wrong?" That's unfair to his students, to not know how or why something would be marked "wrong" that isn't. IMO.

It's technically correct to write an essay of three-word sentences (noun-verb-adjective), with the 5 paragraph format of "tell them what you're going to tell them, tell them the info in three paragraphs, and tell them what you told them" grade school format, but stylistically it is lacking. He would not be grading on the basics of a language, but rather on style and nuance.

However, this is moot, as it was merely conjecture. He does not teach the English language, and there will be no grading on orient vs orientate.

Completely off-topic and irrelevant to the thread, of course. My apologies.

[emlorraineRN]

Hi, another Brit here! We never ever use the "oriented" version (we'd get some funny looks if we did!). Always "the patient was alert and orientated", or "we orientated the patient to the ward" etc.

Similarly, we used to get ripped to pieces by our lecturer if we dared use American English spellings such as "color", "favorite" etc. She used to boom at us "We are not in America"!!!!!!! When in Rome.....

[Janice Wright]

It makes me want to scream to hear orientated!! NO SUCH WORD! It sounds like stupid lazy grammar...

[Jedrnurse, BSN, RN]

1 hour ago, Janice Wright said:

It makes me want to scream to hear orientated!! NO SUCH WORD! It sounds like stupid lazy grammar...

It actually does exist; it's just much less used in American English. (It grates on my ears as well...)

[MunoRN, RN]

The 'oriented vs orientated' debate would make an interesting case-study subject for American cocksure ethnocentrism.

Etymologically speaking, "orientated" is most definitely a word, and actually pre-dates our lazy misuse of the word "oriented".  

In the context of referring to someone's awareness of reality, the term comes from the medieval practices of constructing churches in relation to the East, or "orient" (noun), to position a church's alter on the East side of the church was to "orientate" (verb), and a church with it's alter to the East is "orientated" (adjective).  It was later that people began to use the noun form of "orient" also as a verb, rather than "orientate", this led to the usage of the term "oriented" as an adjective, although really that doesn't make sense when you consider the meaning of the term "orient".

Whether a word "exists", and whether it's recognized by a grammatical source like a dictionary is purely based on common usage, it doesn't validate that it's the etymologically correct modification of a word and related words. 

 

[Janice Wright]

I know that it physically literally does exist I just feel that it sounds like slang and being something of a "grammar freak" I feel that Nurses and Drs are too educated to use slang in their speech.  That is just my personal opinion and preference. Everyone is free to speak as they wish..

 

[FolksBtrippin, BSN, RN]

Oriented. I like less syllables and orientated feels awkward to me. I don't judge people who use orientated though. 

[Hannahbanana, BSN, MSN]

Editor hat on.

From a strictly grammatical standpoint, you have to communicate whether the person is a passive recipient of something done to him, as opposed to being in a given condition. The passive voice is your clue there: it’s the difference between “Bob is loved by Susan” and “Bob loves Susan.” Who is doing what? 
Therefore when you see “Pt was orientated” the actor in the sentence is missing, “ ... by the nurse.” Somebody had to do have done that. (Even so, I completely agree that the relatively new “...ated” addition is pretentious.)
The result of the nurse’s action is that the pt can now (we hope) be accurately described as “oriented,” in the condition of knowing his own where/why/etc. of the situation.
This descriptor (“oriented now”) is either because he came that way (lucky guy) or because his nurse brought him to that condition. If you chart  “Pt knows / doesn’t know where he is, date, and situation” you are saying that unambiguously. Nobody needed to ask whether somebody had to tell him where he was and why, etc. 

“I am the grammarian about whom your mother warned you.”   ~ tee shirt 

[Janice Wright]

I am a grammarian too but this is getting a little long winded to continue to discuss...LOL  I simply don't like the use of orientate the same as not liking conversate, or disrespect. Sounds like slang to me and I prefer proper English grammar. Just my opinion and I don't pass judgement on anyone.. Conversation over LOL