What English expression do you hate the most?

[Conrad_K]

According to the linguist Bernard Cerquiglini, the English language does not exist - it's just badly pronounced French:

https://www.the-tls.co.uk/languages-llnguistics/linguistics/la-langue-anglaise-n-existe-pas-bernard-cerquiglini-book-review-judith-flanders

I once read a book on linguistics. Most of the book was a scholarly argument that the language that most closely resembles English is... Romanian. Why, they're practically identical! The trivial differences could all be explained by vowel shifts and consonant substitutions; those sorts of things "just happen" to languages all the time. (*)

Um, no. I think the author (who had serious linguistics credentials) was getting anoxia up there in his ivory tower.

(*) "It's just a jump to the left / and then a step to the right..."

 

[slowmotion]

"Merch".

 

[mistyoptic]

"Merch".

That’s a growing irritant

 

[matticus]

The trivial differences could all be explained by vowel shifts and consonant substitutions;

- "your spelling is atrocious!"
- "But Miss, it's just a few vowel shifts and consonant substitutions"

 

[Andy in Germany]

- "your spelling is atrocious!"
- "But Miss, it's just a few vowel shifts and consonant substitutions"

William Shakespeare at school.

 

[Profpointy]

"Merch".

I quite like that one. As well as it being a sensible enough contraction of a three syllable word it also conveys the extra information that the said items are being sold to support the artiste, or "content-creator" - and the latter could be worthies like The Tank Museum, or an astrophysicist like Dr Becky or Dr Sabine H not just "influencers" and their ilk

 

[slowmotion]

I quite like that one. As well as it being a sensible enough contraction of a three syllable word it also conveys the extra information that the said items are being sold to support the artiste, or "content-creator" - and the latter could be worthies like The Tank Museum, or an astrophysicist like Dr Becky or Dr Sabine H not just "influencers" and their ilk

Are people so short of time that a perfectly good word needs to be trunced to an ugly single syllable?

 

[Profpointy]

Are people so short of time that a perfectly good word needs to be trunced to an ugly single syllable?

Did you travel to work on the omnibus this morning? Any good perquisites with the job? Perhaps you spoke to your colleagues on the telephone, and keep your lunch in the refrigerator etc etc

 

[slowmotion]

Did you travel to work on the omnibus this morning? Any good perquisites with the job? Perhaps you spoke to your colleagues on the telephone, and keep your lunch in the refrigerator etc etc

None of the above, but I did notice that you used several multi-syllable words just then.


Splendid!

 

[Dadam]

Did you travel to work on the omnibus this morning? Any good perquisites with the job? Perhaps you spoke to your colleagues on the telephone, and keep your luncheon in the refrigerator et cetera, et cetera

You missed one!

Are people so short of time that a perfectly good word needs to be trunced to an ugly single syllable?

You're doing it now!

 

[Dogtrousers]

I quite like that one. As well as it being a sensible enough contraction of a three syllable word it also conveys the extra information that the said items are being sold to support the artiste, or "content-creator" - and the latter could be worthies like The Tank Museum, or an astrophysicist like Dr Becky or Dr Sabine H not just "influencers" and their ilk

In my current line of business "merch" means "tat". Branded cheap stuff that gets given away or put inside "special" products or product bundles to make them a bit snazzier.

Sometimes it's even limited edition exclusive tat.

I don't mind the word. It's useful jargon.

 

[mistyoptic]

Did you travel to work on the omnibus this morning? Any good perquisites with the job? Perhaps you spoke to your colleagues on the telephone, and keep your lunch in the refrigerator etc etc

But as @slowmotion says, it’s an ugly word. Perhaps part of that is that your other examples seem “better” because they’re familiar but they sound nicer

 

[Gwylan]

I quite like that one. As well as it being a sensible enough contraction of a three syllable word it also conveys the extra information that the said items are being sold to support the artiste, or "content-creator" - and the latter could be worthies like The Tank Museum, or an astrophysicist like Dr Becky or Dr Sabine H not just "influencers" and their ilk

Explain what Merch means, please

 

[Dogtrousers]

Explain what Merch means, please

Tat

See my post above
https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/w...you-hate-the-most.300464/page-47#post-7358808

Short for merchandise

 

[Drago]

Explain what Merch means, please

It's a slang term for a private parts.