English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

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kylecycler
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by kylecycler »

Audax67 wrote: 4 Apr 2022, 10:11am What annoys me is the Graun's nasty habit of ending the headline of "live" sports events with an exclamation mark! Be still, my beating heart.
'Live' as in what we all do until we don't, should be spelled the way it is, however 'live' as in a 'live' sports event should be spelled 'lyve'. It isn't, of course, but it should be. I know you can almost always tell one from the other in context but it still bugs me. (Then again, I suppose it could be argued that 'live' should be spelled 'liv'.)
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Mick F
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Mick F »

Paulatic wrote: 3 Apr 2022, 7:18pm I think Mick is showing the emphasis of the speaker by using a capital rather than the pronunciation. Well that’s my understanding . :D
Spot on. :D

It's A as opposed to a and The as opposed to the.
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Jdsk
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Jdsk »

Mick F wrote: 4 Apr 2022, 7:13pmIt's A as opposed to a and The as opposed to the.
The aim here is to distinguish the two pronunciations of each word. This rule fails to do that for someone who doesn't already know the answer.

Here's why:

A robin is a bird.

The west is the best.

Now check the pronunciation of each sentence using that rule based on capitalisation. It tells the reader that A and a in the first sentence and The and the in the second sentence should be pronounced differently. But they aren't.

It fails because it tries to use a typographical distinction that is already used for a completely different purpose.

Jonathan
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Dingdong »

Gripe water. It's up there with the worst sounding phrase in the English language
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Mick F
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Mick F »

Decades.

Used so much nowadays.
Back in the day, a decade was used as "the 50's or the 60's or the 70's" etc.

These days, it seems they use the word more loosely.
I've been alive for eight decades even though I'm (only) 69.
Born in the 50's, then alive though the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, naughties :lol: and 10's, and now into the 20's.
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Jdsk »

Mick F wrote: 7 May 2022, 6:13pm Decades.

Used so much nowadays.
Back in the day, a decade was used as "the 50's or the 60's or the 70's" etc.

These days, it seems they use the word more loosely.
I've been alive for eight decades even though I'm (only) 69.
Born in the 50's, then alive though the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, naughties :lol: and 10's, and now into the 20's.
Those look like the same usage to me.

Are you saying that it would be better used only for a whole block of 10 years rather than for something that occurs at some time within a block of 10 years?

Thanks

Jonathan
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Mick F
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Mick F »

Sorry.
Was I not clear?

The definition of a decade, is a set of ten years.
These days, it's used as ten years.
I'm eight decades old despite still being in my 60s'.
They don't seem to use the "set" these days.

IMG_1195.jpg
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Jdsk »

Mick F wrote: 7 May 2022, 6:30pmThe definition of a decade, is a set of ten years.
These days, it's used as ten years.
I'm eight decades old despite still being in my 60s'.
They don't seem to use the "set" these days.
Mick F wrote: 7 May 2022, 6:13pm Born in the 50's, then alive though the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, naughties and 10's, and now into the 20's.
That looks to me as if it is using the 60s, 70s etc as sets of 10 years, just as you prefer...

Have you got an example of someone using it the way that you don't like?

Thanks

Jonathan
Jdsk
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Jdsk »

Mick F wrote: 7 May 2022, 6:30pm The definition of a decade, is a set of ten years.
These days, it's used as ten years.
...
They don't seem to use the "set" these days.

Image
That dictionary entry gives three usages, as separated by the semicolons:
Set, series, of ten
ten years
ten books...


That doesn't include set of ten years. The second is ten years, the usage that you deprecate. It's in the dictionary entry that you have quoted. Why is it less valid than the others?

Thanks

Jonathan
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by DaveReading »

Mick F wrote: 7 May 2022, 6:13pm Decades.

Used so much nowadays.
Back in the day, a decade was used as "the 50's or the 60's or the 70's" etc.

These days, it seems they use the word more loosely.
I've been alive for eight decades even though I'm (only) 69.
Born in the 50's, then alive though the 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, naughties :lol: and 10's, and now into the 20's.
An easier solution would be simply to say that you've been alive during 8 decades.
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by al_yrpal »

Unless Mick is more precise like Dave suggests, he risks ageing himself unecessarily :wink: . I'm 79, I could say i'm in my 80th year but I dont, its easier to say I'm 79!

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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by thirdcrank »

What's the significance of decades beyond popular culture? I suspect it's small. So, it may be the case that Cliff Richard has had hit records in every decade from the 1950s (and it may not be the case so I'm not bothered if it isn't.)

The idea that somebody who'd been alive during several decades has lived for that number of decades is at least confusing and heading for absurd. A child born on 31 December 2000 hasn't lived for two decades by 1 January 2001 any more than they have lived two millennia: they have lived during two separate years, during two decades and during two millennia - subject to discussion about when a decade begins.
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Dingdong »

Generation Z.... Wots that all about! :mrgreen:
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by Jdsk »

Dingdong wrote: 13 May 2022, 5:34am Generation Z.... Wots that all about!
What it means:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_Z

The derivation:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generatio ... menclature

Do you find it annoying? And if so why?

Thanks

Jonathan

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DaveReading
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Re: English Language - what "Does your head in" ??

Post by DaveReading »

Jdsk wrote: 13 May 2022, 8:22amWhat it means:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_Z

The derivation:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generatio ... menclature

Do you find it annoying? And if so why?

Thanks

Jonathan
It's hard to know where to start.

Apart from the obvious absurdity of trying to define when one "generation" ends and another begins (the correct answer being "every day"), since when was a generation defined as "a period of around 15 years" ?
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