This week: It's about getting English right, 'innit'?
Now that we seem to have got all our teething problems sorted out, it's good to see that some of you are beginning to send comments on our postings here.Ìý Do keep them coming - and we are all looking forward to getting to know you all better, and to finding out what really interests you.Ìý In turn that will feed back into the programme as we follow up some of the comments you've made.
I probably shouldn't be surprised that matters of English usage have prompted some comments from you.Ìý My eye was caught by the comment from Plasma63, who asks why people say "absolutely" when they mean "definitely".
I think I'm guilty of that one myself - on the other hand, my own objection is to people who say "really" when they mean "definitely"!
Now I've started thinking more about words and expressions that drive me mad, I've been listening in more carefully to other people's conversations on the bus, in the street and so on.Ìý This morning on the way to work I overheard someone talking about her plans for the evening. "I'm meeting him at 7, innit", was what she said - the word "innit" being an increasingly popular one in everyday speech, but without much meaning. Another way of saying the same thing might be "I'm, like, meeting him at 7". Equally meaningless - but, as far as I can tell, neither of these colloquialisms has found its way on to the World Service airwaves - yet. Anyway, we shall be reflecting some of your linguistic comments on this week's programme.
We're also going to be looking at the media landscape in Afghanistan, as the elections take place.Ìý It would be really interesting to hear from any of you who are listening in Kabul or other parts of the country.Ìý Where do you get your information from?Ìý Is there a local radio or TV station that you can rely on?Ìý Do you get your news from the foreign media?Ìý Do post your comments here, or email us at overtoyou@bbc.co.uk.
But that also prompts me to wonder how many of you find that even e-mailing is difficult because of your internet connection. This week we had an e-mail from Terence Kennedy, who lives in Northwest Province, South Africa, and he's been having problems with the new schedules website. Where he is - far away from the reach of broadband - it takes ages to download and print. We shall we trying to find out whether there is a way round this, and once I find the person who can tell us, I shall be putting him or her on the programme.
Other than that, the content depends on you, so do keep your comments coming.
Cathy Packe is the Producer, Over To You
Comment number 1.
At 20th Aug 2009, rogandeep wrote:The really definitely obnoxious aspect of awful English is using the present tense to talk about past events.
Major offenders are sports commentators, especially ex professional football players, innit ?
"He collects the ball in midfield, dribbles around two defenders, shoots and scores. And we win last Saturday's match 2 - 0"
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Comment number 2.
At 20th Aug 2009, merekilat wrote:Mention has been made of the misuse of certain words.
Most languages are living things and they evolve. The evolution is often the result of misuse that gets such a grip that it gets accepted as the norm. It's a pity as it takes away that great English language facility of being able to express fine shades of meaning.
The same thing happens with pronunciation. OFTEN is a case in point. Dictionaries now give alternates: 'OFFEN' and 'OFFTERN' whereas previously they only gave one phonetic.
Are you sure you got all the bugs out? Line spacing seems to be out of kilter.
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Comment number 3.
At 21st Aug 2009, neoOrphanSue wrote:I agree absolutely with the last comment. I actually love colloquialisms and, being a former Londoner now in Scotland I get to pick and choose which ones I like from each area. What I hate though, is when people (and I have noticed this on the Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú) misuse words that have a precise meaning in English based on the way Americans use them. Take the word "fulsome" as a prime example - I first heard this misused in our country years ago on Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú television news! As for "innit" having no meaning - another superfluous London, indeed, probably nationwide (although I can't claim to have heard it in Scotland yet) expression is "know what I mean?" when the meaning is obvious! An old friend of mine in London used to tag the word "geezer" onto the end of that one and, since I can't seem to get out of the habit of saying it, the added "geezer" I think gives it more character! My best friend up here could hardly stop laughing when I first met her and used the expression "I've never known the likes!". Now she uses it herself and so do her kids...
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Comment number 4.
At 21st Aug 2009, Lee Roy Sanders, Jr. wrote:Try putting a lifetime of thought using 500 words or less. What else do you do but put it forward as clearly as you can. Remember language is thought. Take the bio-feed back of thought in one area add gravity and dimensional differences and whala you have a new language.
One day humanity will have one language but very little words. Thought will be the key receptor. The brain waves of humanity by majority concerning any thought are basely the same but as said the twisting and turning of environments create the differences what we call languages.
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