# All things spelling, grammar, and word use **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 26, 2008, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290 "2008-09-26T04:59:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/61 "2008-09-30T01:29:02Z")
“I could care less” is used because people don’t think about what they’re saying. They don’t mean it literally, they mean the opposite of the literal meaning – yet they’re not deliberately being ironic. Just lazy. It will never be correct. Cisco – you’ve been hearing “it’s” meaning “it has” all your life, you just didn’t think about what words it was replacing. S’long; it’s been nice. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/62 "2008-09-30T01:32:13Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > Cisco – you’ve been hearing “it’s” meaning “it has” all your life, you just didn’t think about what words it was replacing. S’long; it’s been nice. I acknowledged that 40 posts ago. I just had a brain fart. I use it all the time. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/63 "2008-09-30T01:39:13Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > On that note, **who’s** is _who is_ and nothing else. The possessive of that word is _whose_. Which of The Whose albums is your favorite? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/64 "2008-09-30T14:00:31Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > Be careful of making assumptions as to _why_ people write in a particular way or with particular vocabulary. If I _say_ ‘whilst’, then I don’t think it’s unreasonable to write it, too. I just went back and re-read my own post, and nowhere did I make any assumptions about _why_ people do it – I just made some unflattering observations about how it makes them sound. ---
**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/65 "2008-09-30T14:04:25Z")
> [@blondebear](#): > > Which of The Whose albums is your favorite? 😃 Hey, **who’s** been rummaging through my record collection? ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/66 "2008-09-30T14:11:32Z")
> [@Chef\_Troy](#): > > I just went back and re-read my own post, and nowhere did I make any assumptions about _why_ people do it – I just made some unflattering observations about how it makes them sound. Yeah, it makes them sound _British_, the _dastards_. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/67 "2008-09-30T14:21:34Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I acknowledged that 40 posts ago. I just had a brain fart. I use it all the time. Brain farts have become a way of life for me. Everything I used to know is still in my brain, but I can’t seem to find it in a hurry. Sometimes, it’s sitting in plain sight like the Purloined Letter, and I keep trying to pry up the floorboards. Don’t really know where I’m going with this. Speaking of Britishisms – “whinge” is one, right? Maybe I’m wrong, but I think it has a subtly different connotation than “whine”. At least, I think I’ve seen “whinge” used to mean “making a legitimate but tiresome complaint”, whereas “whine” suggests “making a complaint as a diversion to avoid acknowledging one’s one failing”. What do y’all think? ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/68 "2008-09-30T18:52:19Z")
> [@Chef\_Troy](#): > > I just went back and re-read my own post, and nowhere did I make any assumptions about _why_ people do it – I just made some unflattering observations about how it makes them sound. You did say they ‘insist’ on it, which suggests it’s a conscious decision to deviate from a norm, rather than a different and equally valid use of the language which happens to more closely reflect their speech. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/69 "2008-09-30T20:27:20Z")
> [@glee](#): > > In English, the plural of ‘forum’ is not ‘fora’. It’s ‘forums’. It’s not Latin! This raises a pet peeve of mine. I have never corrected anyone who said “forums.” You are welcome to use it. Sometimes I even use it. But most of the time, I use “fora,” which is my personal selection of the two valid pluralizations of “forum.” I’m polite enough not to correct you when you choose the more modern (but perfectly acceptable) form, so why can’t you be polite enough not to correct me when I use the older (but still perfectly acceptable) form? > [@Cisco](#): > > I have not seen “I could care less” on this board since someone ranted about that awhile back; it’s always “I couldn’t care less” now, which I’ve never heard anyone say in real life. That must be a regionalism, then, **Cisco**. I hear the “correct” ( 😉 ) form (“couldn’t care less”) _far_ more often than the “lazy” form (“could care less”). ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/70 "2008-09-30T20:31:46Z")
I haven’t heard “I couldn’t care less” in over thirty years. And I don’t think I’ve ever heard it in a TV program or movie. OTOH, I have heard “I could care less” on film as far back as the mid-60s. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/71 "2008-09-30T20:34:30Z")
> [@InvisibleWombat](#): > > That must be a regionalism, then, **Cisco**. I hear the “correct” ( 😉 ) form (“couldn’t care less”) _far_ more often than the “lazy” form (“could care less”). I remember breaking the term down when I was a little kid and trying to rationalize “I could care less” and no matter what I thought - even “I could care less, _but I don’t_” - didn’t make as much sense as “I couldn’t care less.” Still, I’m always listening for quirky little things like that and I’ve never once heard the latter in real life. And I’ve lived and travelled all over. One variant I heard a lot as a teenager, because I had a friend who said it all the time, was the bogglingly nonsensical “I could give a lesser fuck.” ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/72 "2008-09-30T20:43:07Z")
Steven Pinker gives the rationale for “I could care less” as sarcasm, with the tone adding an implied “_As if_ I could care any less than I do now.” I must admit it seems a weak explanation, although a plausible one. I just file it under idioms that aren’t literal, just as ‘bad’ doesn’t always mean ‘bad’. (Try deconstructing ‘badass’ literally. I dare you.) ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/73 "2008-09-30T21:19:18Z")
[Quote=KneadToKnow] I’ll stop using actress when the Academy stops giving out “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” or a “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role” awards. [/Quote] > [@KneadToKnow](#): > > Actually, let me amend that. I’ll stop using _actress_ when they stop _accepting_ them. Yeah, if actors are just actors no matter their chromosomal makeup, why have “Best Actor” and “Best Actress” categories at the Academy Awards? You wouldn’t even have to cut the number of awards in half – you could just have the “Big Four” performance plaudits recast as “Best Lead Actor in a Comedy”, “Best Lead Actor in a Drama”, “Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy”, and “Best Supporting Actor in a Drama”. ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2008, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/74 "2008-09-30T21:28:01Z")
I tried to edit my previous post, but the clock ran out as I was searching for a relevant link. Anyway, to contribute a spelling nitpick: [Quote=Cisco] Ever noticed that no one can say drink the Kool-Aid around here without someone pointing out that it was Flavor-Aid? So the saying is Kool-Aid and the stuff was Flavor-Aid. Which one should we say? [/Quote] Well, if we’re being pedantic, we should type [Fla-Vor-Aid](http://www.theimaginaryworld.com/tic157.jpg) (assuming that photo is an authentic depiction of the product). ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2008, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/75 "2008-10-02T20:19:45Z")
[Let’s not be pedantic.](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CQokfPGrL._SL500_AA280_PIbundle-2,TopRight,0,0_AA280_SH20_.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/76 "2008-10-03T00:54:19Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > Speaking of Britishisms – “whinge” is one, right? I tend – perhaps incorrectly – to classify it as an Australianism, or New Zealandism… as in “whinging Pom”… so perhaps its is commonwealth usage. > [@](#): > > Maybe I’m wrong, but I think it has a subtly different connotation than “whine”… What do y’all think? “Whine” is higher pitched. 😃 And **Chef Troy** may have my \*spelt \*and \*whilst \*when he prises them from my cold dead fingers. He may be living in McDonaldland, but some of us still speak proper ‘n’ all. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bites_when_provoked/32/18073_2.png) [@Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bites_When_Provoked)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2008, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290/77 "2008-10-03T09:34:52Z")
> [@Apollyon](#): > > I tend – perhaps incorrectly – to classify it as an Australianism, or New Zealandism… as in “whinging Pom”… so perhaps its is commonwealth usage. I agree that it’d be a Commonwealth-ism rather than just a ‘British’ thing. As you say, it’s certainly firmly entrenched in Australian and New Zealand English. > [@Apollyon](#): > > “Whine” is higher pitched. 😃 Good description! Saying that ‘whinge’ and ‘whine’ are the same thing is only as true as saying that ‘cobalt’ and ‘sky’ are the same thing - ie, both of the examples are shades of blue, but they’re not \*interchangeable \*shades of blue. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/all-things-spelling-grammar-and-word-use/465290.md?page=3)