English grammar: "I was sat there"

[Riemann]

@Jasmine

It’s not a different dialect. It’s poor English.

Perhaps use your superior English skills to read the thread and fight your ignorance?

[Jasmine]

@Riemann

Perhaps use your superior English skills to read the thread and fight your ignorance?

YAWN

[elfkin477]

@Sunspace

In somewhat the same way as the ambiguous time expression “a quarter of three” does. Is that “quarter to three” or “quarter after three”?

I’ve never understood what about this construction could possibly suggest to a person that it meant quarter after…but on the other hand when we were still so small as to be learning how to tell time we were given worksheets in school that asked us to draw the hands onto clocks at quarter of __ and half past__ so it is so ingrained in users that there’s no confusion to us.

[Calavera]

a quarter of three is clearly 0.75, so if you tell me to meet you at a quarter of three expect me at a quarter to one.

[SciFiSam]

@markn_1

There’s a little discussion of the “was sat” usage at this language blog:
Separated by a Common Language: having a Chinese

A British commenter claims that these forms are standard in northern England but are sometimes viewed as nonstandard in southern England (like they are in America). Any UKers here agree with that?

Not really. It’s a class difference. Working class dialects in the South-East use sat and stood in the exact same ways as have been used in this thread.

Occasionally people act as if “Northern” = working class and everywhere else is posh, but it’s not the case. Posh Northerners would also see “I was sat” as non-standard.

I’m 44 and can’t remember any time I didn’t hear people using sat and stood in this way, but it might have become more common in the last ten or twenty years. I’m SE UK but I’m from a working class background. I might have heard “I was laid there on the sofa watching TV,” or something like that. It certainly wouldn’t strike me as unusual, but it would be informal.

I can’t think of any other examples other than sat, stood and possibly laid, though.

[guizot]

@Riemann

It’s always helpful in these conversations if people indicate their native dialect, and be clear on whether they are providing the “raw data” on usage in their dialect, or attempting to analyze usage. I find some of the contributions to this thread confusing in that regard.

Here are some raw data from the British National Corpus. These are all recorded conversations of everyday people in real-life contexts:

*I, I was sat there (SP:PS571) Not all thick like me. (SP:PS576) I was sat there, and they went who’s planning to go onto University or education after

(SP:PS59C) I was in the doctor’s (SP:PS59B) I never see ya, I was sat (SP:PS59C) No it was early, Sammy Jo wasn’t there, and I do

long thing where we sit, well I go at the bar and Jackie was sat there (unclear) Jackie, I said time to be social, no I (unclear) cos

n’t go in till quarter to three! (SP:PS6TD) Oh! (SP:PS6RG) And Derek was sat waiting all that time, but they must have panicked then so (pause) they erm

photographs. Bet you stopped didn’t you? (SP:PS6TF) The bloke that I was sat next didn’t take any either. (SP:PS6RG) Oh didn’t he? Why not

, but (pause) I wanted you, what I was thinking of when I was sat in the car that you, when you come back you could take me round
*
Clearly, from the context, this is used intransitively, not as a passive form, as some have suggested above.

[Chronos]

[Moderating]

Jasmine, if you are find discussion of other dialects of English beneath you, that’s your business. Keep it that way. Others, however, are free to learn more about the language. This is a Warning for threadshitting.

[septimus]

@SciFiSam

I might have heard “I was laid there on the sofa watching TV,” or something like that.

In U.S. dialects the fellow layee (or layer?) might feel slighted that you couldn’t take eyes off TV in such circumstance.

[SciFiSam]

@septimus

In U.S. dialects the fellow layee (or layer?) might feel slighted that you couldn’t take eyes off TV in such circumstance.

True! Might cause some giggles in the UK too.