Linguistic Pet Peeves

Rocknurse, MSN, APRN, NP · Aug 16, 2016

Not linguistic exactly but I hate the current trend of young people to rise up at the end of every sentence, making a statement into a question. I'm going to hang out with my friends (frunds) tonight? And we're going to dinner?

This drives my fiancÃ©e absolutely bonkers! She throws things at the TV and everything lol. There is definitely a propensity for younger people to do that rather than older people. Now I listen for it and it's starting to drive me crazy too.

Could of, would of is my own personal peeve. And the all too familiar Their/They're/There. I cringe when I read it but it's almost every day that I see it. How do people not pick up on that after reading for a while? Excuse me while I go bang my head on a soft wall. :banghead:

Anonymous666 · Aug 16, 2016

Okay, y'all. In spite of what some people will say, your use of language will influence what people think of you, and how intelligent and/or competent they think you are.
My current number one: You don't LOOSE your license, you lose it. (If your license is loose, you need to capture it...)
Don't even get me started on loosing YOU'RE license...
What are other some other linguistic "nails on chalkboard" for folks?

If someone hasn't mentioned it already.... "sonometers" Can't stand it

allnurses Guide · Aug 16, 2016

Anonymous666 said:

If someone hasn't mentioned it already.... "sonometers" Can't stand it

A couple of us have - so you have some solidarity there! Can't stand it either. It sounds pretentious to me.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Aug 16, 2016

Oxygenforeverybody said:

Hey Ill admit it.. I always mess up the than/there/they're/then/their etc etc. I can never get those. As well as some other things.. don't judge me

Those are examples of BASIC English. You CAN get those down. And sorry, when you use them interchangeably (they are not), many people will judge you as poorly educated. If you focus on these things when you are writing (look up which one is appropriate in a given situation), you will eventually "get it," and it will become habit. None of us were born knowing these things. When we used them incorrectly, our teachers called us on it, and wrote the correction in that harsh red ink. We learn from our mistakes in our nursing careers, and this is no different. People who get defensive when someone corrects their writing (not referring to you specifically) aren't interested in improving, and that always puzzles me.

jobellestarr · Aug 16, 2016

It depends on what part of the country you're from. I'm from MN and it would sound weird to me to hear someone say it but probably not to my southern friends.

jobellestarr · Aug 16, 2016

He don't. Ugh.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Aug 16, 2016

"Prolly" instead of "probably" annoys me.

allnurses Guide · Aug 16, 2016

Horseshoe said:

"Prolly" instead of "probably" annoys me.

Oh yeah, all that shortened-word-talk . . . is "totes" annoying!

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Aug 16, 2016

People in a specific region of the US bother me when they say: "That car needs washed." NO NO NO. That car needs to be washed.

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Aug 16, 2016

It depends on what part of the country you're from. I'm from MN and it would sound weird to me to hear someone say it but probably not to my southern friends.

Please use the quote button so we can know to which post you are referring.

SunnyPupRN · Aug 16, 2016

It's in the Oxford Dictionary.

Yes. It's correct. It's just a different dialect of English. It's a modernized version of Scottish "ye aw," and American Southern English is considered a legitimate dialect of English, including the word "ain't." These are not considered 'standard English,' or acceptable for formal writing, but they are not *wrong*.

Sage611 · Aug 16, 2016

He don't. Ugh.

I hate to hear it on tv, during an impromptu interview with a witness or bystander. I feel sorry for people who aren't educated, but if you are, there is really no excuse.