Why Grammar Matters: A Place To Discuss Matters Of Grammar

[Zella]

6 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Is that better or worse than Windsoring?

Statistically, I imagine Tudoring is more fatal. 

[ABay]

Divorced, Beheaded, Survived

Terrible Tudors

Edited August 17, 2022 by ABay

[Zella]

When I think of the Tudors, I always think about the web comic Hark a Vagrant and Anne of Cleves Gables. LOL

http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=348

[Haleth]

I suppose that could be a prep course for a Ren Faire.

[shapeshifter]

I guess our work here is . . . done? Superfluous? Literally without merit??
Or maybe there's a kerfuffle in Dictionary Land given the use of ALL CAPS? 
Tweeted (SHOUTED) yesterday by the official Merriam-Webster Twitter account:

[Browncoat]

32 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I guess our work here is . . . done? Superfluous? Literally without merit??
Or maybe there's a kerfuffle in Dictionary Land given the use of ALL CAPS? 
Tweeted (SHOUTED) yesterday by the official Merriam-Webster Twitter account:

NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

[DearEvette]

7 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I guess our work here is . . . done? Superfluous? Literally without merit??
Or maybe there's a kerfuffle in Dictionary Land given the use of ALL CAPS? 
Tweeted (SHOUTED) yesterday by the official Merriam-Webster Twitter account:

I saw that today on twitter and my first thought was for you guys.  Should I pour one out for you?  Will y'all be ok?

[Cinnabon]

17 minutes ago, DearEvette said:

I saw that today on twitter and my first thought was for you guys.  Should I pour one out for you?  Will y'all be ok?

NO.

[ABay]

That tweet is literally virtually shouting.

[Milburn Stone]

I hope that tweet isn't defending the non-literal use of literally in writing or formal speech. I don't mind it in conversational English. Everyone uses it that way at times. But it doesn't belong in writing meant to be taken seriously, nor does it belong in formal-ish spoken English, for instance the communication of a TV reporter or anchorperson.

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

in formal-ish spoken English, for instance the communication of a TV reporter or anchorperson.

I think you may have (inadvertently?) coined a term to describe an increasingly heard form of English (at least in the U.S.), "Formal-ish," which is often used by "a TV reporter or anchorperson."
I was tempted to add "radio or podcast." 
I did hear a PhD scientist on the Hidden Brain podcast recently use "Me" as a subject. She didn't do it consistently. It seemed to be an effort to make her science more palatable to those skeptical of science and statistics?

[Cinnabon]

20 hours ago, ABay said:

That tweet is literally virtually shouting.

I have to wonder who controls that account. That seems extreme.

32 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I think you may have (inadvertently?) coined a term to describe an increasingly heard form of English (at least in the U.S.), "Formal-ish," which is often used by "a TV reporter or anchorperson."
I was tempted to add "radio or podcast." 
I did hear a PhD scientist on the Hidden Brain podcast recently use "Me" as a subject. She didn't do it consistently. It seemed to be an effort to make her science more palatable to those skeptical of science and statistics?

I notice “I, me” errors all the time. Ditto for “less” vs “fewer,” and from people who should know better. 

[shapeshifter]

29 minutes ago, Cinnabon said:

I have to wonder who controls that account. That seems extreme.

I notice “I, me” errors all the time. Ditto for “less” vs “fewer,” and from people who should know better. 

Yes. But in this case:

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

a PhD scientist on the Hidden Brain podcast recently use "Me" as a subject. She didn't do it consistently. It seemed to be an effort to make her science more palatable to those skeptical of science and statistics?

The person (Alia Crum) who did seem to "know better" sort of code-switched into slang grammar when she was trying to make an outside-the-box scientific discovery about human behavior more acceptable.
At least that was my interpretation.
But I may be wrong. 
It is something I do, albeit not with "me" as a subject, that I can recall. 
I'm sorry I don't have the moment(s) noted where she uses "me" as a subject, but the 2-part podcast is here: 
Reframing Your Reality: Part 1
Reframing Your Reality: Part 2

[SoMuchTV]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Yes. But in this case:

The person (Alia Crum) who did seem to "know better" sort of code-switched into slang grammar when she was trying to make an outside-the-box scientific discovery about human behavior more acceptable.
At least that was my interpretation.
But I may be wrong. 
It is something I do, albeit not with "me" as a subject, that I can recall. 
I'm sorry I don't have the moment(s) noted where she uses "me" as a subject, but the 2-part podcast is here: 
Reframing Your Reality: Part 1
Reframing Your Reality: Part 2

Ah, Hidden Brain.  I have kind of a love-hate reaction to that podcast.  Some interesting subjects, but (and I'm assuming pronunciation can fall under the "grammar-police" umbrella) it drives me nuts when obviously intelligent, well-educated people say "processeez" and "biaseez".  "Process" and "bias" have perfectly good plurals.  Maybe that's a British thing, like al-u-min-i-um?

[shapeshifter]

I really liked the examples and explanations in this brief NY Times article

Quote

. . . When it comes to the phrase “me and him,” I divide people into three camps: those who use it when they shouldn’t; those who don’t use it when they should; and those who use it at just the right times and think poorly of the other two camps. . . 

In the first camp are those who say “Me and him got a six-pack” as well as “The six-pack is for me and him.” They’re overusing “me and him.” It’s wrong in the first sentence, although it’s right in the second sentence.

The second camp is the interesting one. People in the second camp are deathly afraid of sounding like those in the first camp but are vague on the rules, so to play it safe they underuse “me and him.” They’ll say, “He and I got a six-pack,” which is correct, but also, “The six-pack is for he and I,” which is incorrect. . . .

There’s actually a fourth camp that looks upon the three others with detached curiosity. . . .

--even though I did not like the title at all, or the conclusion very much.

________________________
If you can't access the article on any of your browsers because you've read 20+ NY Times articles this month, maybe you should consider subscribing, but, if after considering, you do not want to do that and do want to read the article, message me and I will send you a "gift link;" I never use up my 10 gift links for the month.

[Milburn Stone]

8 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I really liked the examples and explanations in this brief NY Times article...

I'm in the third camp. The harshly judgmental of my fellow man camp.

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

I'm in the third camp. The harshly judgmental of my fellow man camp.

"Know thyself" comes to mind, about which Wikipedia begins: 

• "The Ancient Greek aphorism 'know thyself'…is the first of three Delphic maxims…"

but follows with:

• "The two maxims that follow 'know thyself' were 'nothing to excess' and 'certainty brings insanity'"

(emphasis added). 😉

The above-posted NY Times article did not suggest a 5th camp, consisting of those who use "me and him" deliberately when they know it is not grammatically correct for the purpose of signaling this is a casual, not-professional-related bit of conversation.
But I'm not sure it's always deliberate, which the author probably could not easily verify either.

Edited August 24, 2022 by shapeshifter

[Cinnabon]

4 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

I'm in the third camp. The harshly judgmental of my fellow man camp.

Same. 🤣

[Terrafamilia]

On 8/20/2022 at 11:29 AM, shapeshifter said:

I think you may have (inadvertently?) coined a term to describe an increasingly heard form of English (at least in the U.S.), "Formal-ish," which is often used by "a TV reporter or anchorperson."

I wish. Not really a grammar issue but one of style - I have a pet peeve of reporters using kid/kids instead of child/children. Kid is fine in informal speech but it just strikes me as out of place in more formal settings. YMMV of course.

[Browncoat]

6 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

I'm in the third camp. The harshly judgmental of my fellow man camp.

I am also in the third camp.

[shapeshifter]

On 8/23/2022 at 10:03 PM, shapeshifter said:

I really liked the examples and explanations in this brief NY Times article

--even though I did not like the title at all, or the conclusion very much.

Follow-up! 
nytimes.com/2022/08/24/opinion/grammar-language.html

Quote

After my foray into grammar on Monday, I intended to beat a quick retreat to economics, but I received so many interesting reactions from readers that I’ve decided to share a bunch of them today. . . .

nytimes.com/2022/08/24/opinion/grammar-language.html

And, again, quoting myself: 

Quote

If you can't access the article on any of your browsers because you've read 20+ NY Times articles this month, maybe you should consider subscribing, but, if after considering, you do not want to do that and do want to read the article, message me and I will send you a "gift link;" I never use up my 10 gift links for the month.

 

[Milburn Stone]

That NYT mea culpa you shared, @shapeshifter, contains this: 

Jack Shea from Flatbush, in Brooklyn, wrote that the very notion of correct grammar is “an educated, moneyed class perspective.”

Exactly! So if you aspire to be accepted by educated people, or be perceived as educated yourself, learn and use correct grammar! 

If, on the other hand, you're content to be perceived as ignorant, by all means don't feel compelled to learn and use correct grammar.

I put it this way because there is no "absolute good" in grammar. Bad grammar doesn't make you a bad person. Good grammar doesn't make you a good person. Grammar simply comes down to what you want to achieve in life, in the era of human history in which you live. You get to decide that. Others get to evaluate you by your decision--though we hope they won't pin your worth as a human being to it.

[meowmommy]

2 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

Jack Shea from Flatbush, in Brooklyn, wrote that the very notion of correct grammar is “an educated, moneyed class perspective.”

It's definitely educated, but it's not moneyed.  I went to school in a rural hamlet in central Pennsylvania, and my seventh grade English teacher instilled proper grammar into her students with a power drill.  Nobody, including my teacher, had any money.

I chose to absorb her lessons to the point where I can still recite most of her drills and lists over 50 years later.  Students who did not, chose not to do so.  I can find no logical explanation, for example, why some people use "ain't."  Even the least literate person has heard "isn't" or "aren't," employed in context.

[Zella]

I have a master's degree in English, and I use "ain't." Not in professional settings but definitely in everyday speech. It's not a matter of not knowing better or having poor English. I like the way it sounds, and the effect it can have. 🤷‍♀️ I'm from the South. Ain't has a long history and using it doesn't immediately make you illiterate. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Zella

[Irlandesa]

7 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

Even the least literate person has heard "isn't" or "aren't," employed in context.

True but it's sometimes hard to break free of language/grammar you've learned as a child and get looked upon as a snob if you use aren't while everyone else uses "ain't."

Besides, it's not like ain't was always seen as nonstandard or lower class.  It used to be use by the upper classes.  It just changed over time, as language often does.

3 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

Exactly! So if you aspire to be accepted by educated people, or be perceived as educated yourself, learn and use correct grammar! 

But that's why she says isn't part of the moneyed and educated class.  Not everyone has the opportunities to get education on "proper" English and have that proper English reinforced daily.

[SuprSuprElevated]

26 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

It's definitely educated, but it's not moneyed.  I went to school in a rural hamlet in central Pennsylvania, and my seventh grade English teacher instilled proper grammar into her students with a power drill.  Nobody, including my teacher, had any money.

100%

[meowmommy]

17 minutes ago, Zella said:

Ain't has a long history and using it doesn't immediately make you illiterate. 

Everything is contingent on context, no?  I have been known to slip into the vernacular, too, depending on the setting and the people to whom I am speaking.  But that doesn't mean I don't know the difference.  I do believe that most -- not all -- who employ substandard grammar are not using it as a deliberate, temporary alternative to standard grammar.

17 minutes ago, Zella said:

I have a master's degree in English,

Honest question here, strictly out of curiosity.  Did you study grammar and linguistics in your program, or was the focus on writing and/or literature? 

Edited August 26, 2022 by meowmommy
Because typos can't happen when one is ranting about grammar.

[Zella]

2 minutes ago, meowmommy said:

Everything is contingent on context, no?  I have been known to slip into the vernacular, too, depending on the setting and the people to whom I am speaking.  But that doesn't mean I don't know the difference.  I do believe that most -- not all -- who employ substandard grammar are not using it as a deliberate, temporary alternative to standard grammar.

Honest question here, strictly out of curiosity.  Did you study grammar and linguistics in your program, or was the focus on writing and/or literature? 

I studied both. I've taught and tutored grammar and worked as an editor. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Zella

[Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, Zella said:

I have a master's degree in English, and I use "ain't." Not in professional settings but definitely in everyday speech. It's not a matter of not knowing better or having poor English. I like the way it sounds, and the effect it can have. 🤷‍♀️ I'm from the South. Ain't has a long history and using it doesn't immediately make you illiterate. 

I guess the same could be said for “y’all.” It does make me laugh when non-Southerners start using it as an affectation as adults. 

58 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

True but it's sometimes hard to break free of language/grammar you've learned as a child and get looked upon as a snob if you use aren't while everyone else uses "ain't."

Besides, it's not like ain't was always seen as nonstandard or lower class.  It used to be use by the upper classes.  It just changed over time, as language often does.

But that's why she says isn't part of the moneyed and educated class.  Not everyone has the opportunities to get education on "proper" English and have that proper English reinforced daily.

Every child publicly educated in the US has been taught that “aren’t” is the correct usage starting from a very young age. By the time they’ve graduated from high school, they’ve had lots and lots of education on its usage. They may not choose to use it, but they’ve been taught. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Cinnabon

[Zella]

1 minute ago, Cinnabon said:

I guess the same could be said for “y’all.” It does make me laugh when non-Southerners start using it as an affectation as adults. 

Weirdly enough, I don't have the same attachment to "y'all" that I have for "ain't." 😂😂😂 I think it can be quite useful for addressing groups of people, but I rarely use it myself. When my granny says "y'all come back now!" she sounds so genuinely welcoming and hospitable. I do not, even when I am trying to sound friendly. 

Here in the Ozarks, "you'ins" gets used just about as much as "y'all," and I actually like that one better. 

[Cinnabon]

5 minutes ago, Zella said:

Weirdly enough, I don't have the same attachment to "y'all" that I have for "ain't." 😂😂😂 I think it can be quite useful for addressing groups of people, but I rarely use it myself. When my granny says "y'all come back now!" she sounds so genuinely welcoming and hospitable. I do not, even when I am trying to sound friendly. 

Here in the Ozarks, "you'ins" gets used just about as much as "y'all," and I actually like that one better. 

I lived in southern Indiana for years (but in an educated university town), and waited tables there. I often used “you all” when addressing tables. I was raised with “you guys” and didn’t like it, but “y’all” would’ve been completely inauthentic for me.

[Lugal]

1 hour ago, meowmommy said:

I can find no logical explanation, for example, why some people use "ain't."  Even the least literate person has heard "isn't" or "aren't," employed in context.

I can still remember my first grade teacher correcting us that "Ain't isn't a word."  Which several kids would then rephrase as "Ain't ain't a word."  Personally, I would call it a colloquialism.  It was never a major feature of the dialect I grew up with, but I use it from time to time.  A certain amount of code-switching is involved.

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

But that's why she says isn't part of the moneyed and educated class.  Not everyone has the opportunities to get education on "proper" English and have that proper English reinforced daily.

And there's a certain amount of dialect shaming too.

2 minutes ago, Zella said:

Here in the Ozarks, "you'ins" gets used just about as much as "y'all," and I actually like that one better. 

O think you'ins, yinz and so on are Appalachian dialect forms. The Ozarks seem to be a more Appalachian dialect than Southern one.  The form I heard, not always, but it was pretty common was "youse" (yes, I grew up in the North).

On 8/23/2022 at 7:03 PM, shapeshifter said:

They’ll say, “He and I got a six-pack,” which is correct, but also, “The six-pack is for he and I,” which is incorrect. . . .

I just say "We got a sixpack," or "The sixpack is for us," and avoid the whole problem altogether.

[Zella]

6 minutes ago, Lugal said:

O think you'ins, yinz and so on are Appalachian dialect forms. The Ozarks seem to be a more Appalachian dialect than Southern one.  The form I heard, not always, but it was pretty common was "youse" (yes, I grew up in the North).

What is interesting to me is that my family is from Appalachia (Western North Carolina), but they don't use "you'ins." I would say that that there is quite a bit of overlap between the Ozarks and Appalachia, but it's not entirely the same in either pronunciation or word usage. My brother has a very noticeable Ozark accent that doesn't match the rest of the family. (I have been told I have no accent and sound like a Nebraskan, but I feel like I do have a touch of one.)

I also hear a lot of Appalachia in certain Texas dialects, even more so than I do the Ozarks, which makes sense because those places are largely populated by the descendants of people from Appalachia now. My grandparents were baffled when they went to Colorado and everyone assumed they were from Texas. But honestly they sound just like Tommy Lee Jones talking.

I have been really curious about the you'ins correlation to yinz. They're so close to each other that I feel like there has to be some sort of connection. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Zella

[Zella]

7 minutes ago, Cinnabon said:

I lived in southern Indiana for years (but in an educated university town), and waited tables there. I often used “you all” when addressing tables. I was raised with “you guys” and didn’t like it, but “y’all” would’ve been completely inauthentic for me.

I have steered away from "you guys" ever since I was in college and had lunch with a few other students and a visiting professor from China. Someone at the table addressed the table full of women as "you guys," and the professor was genuinely puzzled and asked us why we were calling ourselves guys. It was a sincere question because she just didn't understand, but I felt like such an idiot explaining it to her that I've never used it since. 

[Lugal]

8 minutes ago, Zella said:

What is interesting to me is that my family is from Appalachia (Western North Carolina), but they don't use "you'ins." I would say that that there is quite a bit of overlap between the Ozarks and Appalachia, but it's not entirely the same in either pronunciation or word usage. My brother has a very noticeable Ozark accent that doesn't match the rest of the family. (I have been told I have no accent and sound like a Nebraskan, but I feel like I do have a touch of one.)

I also hear a lot of Appalachia in certain Texas dialects, even more so than I do the Ozarks, which makes sense because those places are largely populated by the descendants of people from Appalachia now. My grandparents were baffled when they went to Colorado and everyone assumed they were from Texas. But honestly they sound just like Tommy Lee Jones talking.

I have been really curious about the you'ins correlation to yinz. They're so close to each other that I feel like there has to be some sort of connection. 

Dialects are a continuum, and everyone has a different classification scheme, but generally, Appalachian dialects are considered Southern (but not Deep Southern) or South Midland.  And whenever you hear about typical dialect features of some region, you'll always meet someone who says: "I'm from there and we never say that."

The Ozarks are a unique dialect but I can't really say anything specific, since I'm not from there (beautiful area though).

You'ins, yinz, and sometimes yunz all come from "you ones" and yinz is a defining feature of the Pittsburg dialect.

[bluegirl147]

1 minute ago, Lugal said:

yinz is a defining feature of the Pittsburg dialect.

I live in the northern panhandle of WV which is basically like a suburb of Pittsburgh and while I know yinz is associated with Pittsburgh I have never actually heard someone use the word.  

When I was in middle school (long before texting) a classmate wrote me a note and used the word youns meaning me and our friends. She grew up to be a woman who types litterly when she means literally. She has done it repeatedly which means she thinks that is how it is spelled.

I'm guilty of sometimes using what might be considered bad grammar.  But I try to not type bad grammar.  Unless I'm trying to make a point.  Like if I type there ain't no way I'm doing that.

[Ohiopirate02]

42 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

I live in the northern panhandle of WV which is basically like a suburb of Pittsburgh and while I know yinz is associated with Pittsburgh I have never actually heard someone use the word.  

When I was in middle school (long before texting) a classmate wrote me a note and used the word youns meaning me and our friends. She grew up to be a woman who types litterly when she means literally. She has done it repeatedly which means she thinks that is how it is spelled.

I'm guilty of sometimes using what might be considered bad grammar.  But I try to not type bad grammar.  Unless I'm trying to make a point.  Like if I type there ain't no way I'm doing that.

My dad's family is from the other side of the River from you (if you are at the tip of the panhandle), and I cannot recall what word they use in this situation.  When I think about how they talk, I think about going to the crick and how their vowels sound. 

[bluegirl147]

3 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

When I think about how they talk, I think about going to the crick and how their vowels sound. 

Oh god yes.  I grew up by a creek.  I refuse to say crick.  People also warsh their clothes.  I however wash mine. 

[Zella]

I don't really hear crick or warsh around here (Arkansas), but I do from Oklahomans. We do have hollers, and when I casually referenced one to a half-sibling from Colorado, he got so freaked out. LOLOL Shades of Deliverance I guess. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Zella

[Ohiopirate02]

1 minute ago, bluegirl147 said:

Oh god yes.  I grew up by a creek.  I refuse to say crick.  People also warsh their clothes.  I however wash mine. 

I only use crick when talking about one specific creek and the land my family owns next to it.  But, I grew up on the shores of Lake Erie before moving south. I know I have an "accent" but I don't hear it.  Other than drinking pop no matter what ZIP code I live in.  I also find that I will mimic the accent of whomever I am around.  I will use some of the local colloquialisms where I now live, though I draw the line at going to the movie the-ater. 

My maternal grandmother grew up near Johnstown and she always warshed her clothes.  

[bluegirl147]

5 minutes ago, Zella said:

We do have hollers,

I do have a  holler below my house and I have been known to refer to it as a holla.  What is weird is on maps the hollers are called hollows.

3 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

Other than drinking pop no matter what ZIP code I live in. 

I was an adult before a realized calling it pop was a regional thing.

[supposebly]

For some information on the diversity of English grammar. 

Yale Grammatical Diversity Project: English in North America

Language discrimination seems to be one of the last areas of discrimination that's completely acceptable and often even encouraged. And it often goes both ways. 

Language use and education go often together but remember, each child acquires any language according to the languages spoken in their environment. And if that is a non-standard dialect, they will learn a more standard register/dialect/version of the language during school.

Being able to use multiple dialects/accents/registers is a form of bilingualism. Which has been shown to be good for the brain when it comes to information processing, multitasking, executive function, attention span, and preventative for age related diseases such as Alzheimers. And it helps people to be more tolerant of different cultures. That includes dialects with different cultures. So, that would be good for a society.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160811-the-amazing-benefits-of-being-bilingual

 Formal language is just one register of many.

Edited August 26, 2022 by supposebly

[Zella]

6 minutes ago, bluegirl147 said:

What is weird is on maps the hollers are called hollows.

Holler is basically an alternative of hollow, so the mapmakers are being prescriptive in their usage there rather than reflecting the actual local usage. I can't find the scene on YouTube, but there's a pretty funny moment on Justified when an out-of-towner played by Neal McDonough is baffled by using the word holler instead of hollow, and in my mind, I am totally seeing him working on that map. 😂

Edited August 26, 2022 by Zella

[Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, bluegirl147 said:

I do have a  holler below my house and I have been known to refer to it as a holla.  What is weird is on maps the hollers are called hollows.

I was an adult before a realized calling it pop was a regional thing.

I grew up in the Midwest with “pop,” then moved to California in my 20s. Since then I’ve always used “soda” and will never go back, lol. I live in the Midwest again now and cringe when I hear “pop.”

[meowmommy]

2 hours ago, bluegirl147 said:

I'm guilty of sometimes using what might be considered bad grammar.  But I try to not type bad grammar.  Unless I'm trying to make a point.  Like if I type there ain't no way I'm doing that.

Admit it, folks:  who here exerts way more conscious effort toward being grammatically pure on this particular Primetimer topic than when posting on other forum topics?  (Hand raised.)

[bluegirl147]

1 hour ago, meowmommy said:

Admit it, folks:  who here exerts way more conscious effort toward being grammatically pure on this particular Primetimer topic than when posting on other forum topics?  (Hand raised.)

I try to make sure my posts are well written and thoughtful but sometimes all that needs to be said is oh for fuck sake.  My fellow View watchers will understand.

[Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, meowmommy said:

Admit it, folks:  who here exerts way more conscious effort toward being grammatically pure on this particular Primetimer topic than when posting on other forum topics?  (Hand raised.)

Not really. I definitely make mistakes and often go back and edit my posts. 

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, meowmommy said:

Admit it, folks:  who here exerts way more conscious effort toward being grammatically pure on this particular Primetimer topic than when posting on other forum topics?  (Hand raised.)

I used to but now I just give up. 

I've experienced posting, spending too much time on proofreading and then only noticing the error when someone quotes me or likes an old post of mine that I can't edit any longer. 

I still get frustrated but at least I know I haven't spent some futile time.

[Browncoat]

I rarely say, "ain't", and even then I'm usually quoting a movie.  My favorite "ain't" quote is from "Support Your Local Sheriff" -- James Garner asks Harry Morgan why there aren't any bars on the jail cell, and Harry replies, "We had to order them, and they ain't arrove yet."  I do a lot of purchasing for work, so "they ain't arrove yet" gets a lot of use.

[SweetieDarling]

5 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I only use crick when talking about one specific creek and the land my family owns next to it.  But, I grew up on the shores of Lake Erie before moving south. I know I have an "accent" but I don't hear it.

I'm from the Phila area. If I am reading the word, I will pronounce it "creek", but if I am talking about one, like the Neshaminy, or the small that ran through our neighborhood, it's a "crick".

My SIL is from outside Pittsburgh, and she says "yinz" I've never said "youse guys" but know A LOT of people that do. I grew up with "you guys"  (suburbs) and will only use "y'all" in jest (f*#@ all y'all!). I find regional dialects and pronunciations fascinating.