# Do you have a garbage? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 3, 2009, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214 "2009-08-03T20:57:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**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:** [August 3, 2009, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/1 "2009-08-03T20:57:00Z")
In the last few years, a new phrase has sprung up seemingly out of nowhere: “Do you have a garbage?” I hear this in my bookstore, and my first thought is always, “Yeah - I have plenty of garbage. It’s in that can over there.” I don’t actually _say_ that, but I still think it. When did you first hear this construct: dropping the word “can” or “bag”? ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/2 "2009-08-03T21:02:35Z")
When I read the title, my immediate thought was that it was ridiculous phrase – no one would ever say that… But when I think about it, I can’t pin down the problem. After all, if you asked me where you could toss out that apple core, I’d say “Over there, in the garbage”. I think it’s the “a” that’s throwing things off. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/3 "2009-08-03T21:46:55Z")
A more common way for me to hear this in ordinary conversation is a guest kid asking “Hey, where’s the garbage?” so that they can throw something away. A couple of them may have asked “Do you have a garbage?” instead, but I don’t remember. ---
**Author:** ![Claire\_Beauchamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ec9cab/32.png) [@Claire\_Beauchamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claire_Beauchamp)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/4 "2009-08-03T22:56:23Z")
I wonder if it’s a construction based on lolspeak – i.e., “I haz a flavor,” “I haz a money,” etc. Re: the problem in pinning down why it sounds odd. I have the same issue with some US vs. UK constructions. For example, we “go to the hospital” but in the UK they “go to hospital.” Why the two constructions exist and why the latter sounds odd to me is a poser. ---
**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:** [August 3, 2009, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/5 "2009-08-03T22:58:40Z")
I’ve heard “where’s the garbage?” and “where should I put my garbage” and all kinds of other phrases for many years. This new “a garbage” to mean “a garbage receptacle” has been going on for a year or more, and it still sounds very wrong to me. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/6 "2009-08-04T01:05:42Z")
“A garbage” sounds like slang for a garage that’s too full of junk to park your car in. Pronounced “gar-BAGE”. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/7 "2009-08-04T01:30:25Z")
I’ve heard that way for decades. It’s not new for me. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/8 "2009-08-04T01:56:17Z")
> [@Harmonious\_Discord](#): > > I’ve heard that way for decades. It’s not new for me. Same here. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/9 "2009-08-04T02:52:21Z")
I still haven’t gotten used to “Do you want to go with?” Is it that much more effort to throw the me, us or whatever on the end of that sentence? ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/10 "2009-08-04T03:31:29Z")
If I was in an unfamiliar kitchen I might ask the owner either “Where’s your garbage?” or “Where’s the garbage?” if I had, say, an apple core in my hand and wanted to throw it away. Referring to the trashcan as “a garbage” sounds weird to me; don’t think I’ve ever heard that before. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/11 "2009-08-04T04:22:37Z")
> [@River\_Hippie](#): > > I still haven’t gotten used to “Do you want to go with?” Is it that much more effort to throw the me, us or whatever on the end of that sentence? I’ve always heard it as “cumwith”. And, yes, it’s one word. There’s no other reason to pronounce it that way. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/12 "2009-08-04T05:01:10Z")
> [@InvisibleWombat](#): > > When did you first hear this construct: dropping the word “can” or “bag”? This thread. On the other hand, **River Hippie** ’s example of “come with” is something we said in college fairly often. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/13 "2009-08-04T15:26:31Z")
It’s shorthand for “Do you have a garbage can that is available to the public?” ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/14 "2009-08-04T18:04:11Z")
I’ve never heard “a garbage.” ---
**Author:** ![Teacake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Teacake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teacake)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/15 "2009-08-04T18:10:21Z")
> [@Claire\_Beauchamp](#): > > I wonder if it’s a construction based on lolspeak – i.e., “I haz a flavor,” “I haz a money,” etc. > > Re: the problem in pinning down why it sounds odd. I have the same issue with some US vs. UK constructions. For example, we “go to the hospital” but in the UK they “go to hospital.” Why the two constructions exist and why the latter sounds odd to me is a poser. “I need to go to hospital” indicates a need to go to any hospital, not important which one. “I need to go to the hospital” indicates that there is a particular hospital to which one needs to go, say for an appointment or because it’s where you work. It’s not that we don’t say the second one, it’s that it’s more specific than the general concept of medical care conveyed by the first. “A garbage”? Never heard it, and I work with teenagers who are very keen on the latest Americanisms. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/16 "2009-08-04T18:55:27Z")
Grew up in Washington State, lived in Hawaii, lived in San Francisco area. Never heard “a garbage” when asking if there is a garbage can somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![horsetech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dec6dc/32.png) [@horsetech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/horsetech)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/17 "2009-08-04T19:11:27Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > “A garbage” sounds like slang for a garage that’s too full of junk to park your car in. Pronounced “gar-BAGE”. I like this definition. I don’t have a garBAGE, but there is a shid in the back yard (a shed full of sh\*t). ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/18 "2009-08-04T21:56:10Z")
Jonathan Winters did some ads for a brand-name trash bag. He played a classy refuse collector, and he said, “we men of gar-BAZHE.” I have never heard anyone use it to describe the container, but rather the stuff inside. “Pick up your socks, or I’ll t’row 'em inna gobbich!” ---
**Author:** ![Jelymag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jelymag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jelymag)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/19 "2009-08-04T22:41:59Z")
I’ve never heard “a garbage.” But now tht I’ve read this thread, I will probably hear it everywhere… ---
**Author:** ![Charger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df788c/32.png) [@Charger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charger)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214/20 "2009-08-04T23:45:36Z")
Would it be more appropriate to say, “do you have a ‘the garbage?’” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-have-a-garbage/505214.md?page=2)