# Have you noticed people using "release" as an intransitive verb
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [January 26, 2016, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276 "2016-01-26T17:19:46Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/1 "2016-01-26T17:19:46Z")
I see it a lot online now especially on gaming websights
“This game will release in 5 weeks”
It’s wrong. You should say “this game will be released in 5 weeks”
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/2 "2016-01-26T17:33:38Z")
I’m impressed you are so knowledgeable about intransitive verbs. I had to look up the definition.
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### Author:  [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/3 "2016-01-26T17:37:44Z")
I’m impressed you bothered to look up the definition. I figured someone else would come along and explain.
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### Author:  [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/4 "2016-01-26T17:38:26Z")
I have a degree in Latin. If there’s one thing I do know, it’s pedantic grammar terms.
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### Author:  [@Sigene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigene)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/5 "2016-01-26T17:58:56Z")
I haven’t noticed to the point of recognizing it, but in a strict sense its not wrong; simply because ‘rules of grammar’ are ‘descriptive’ of the language and not ‘prescriptive.’ If the rule and common usage disagree, its the rule that needs to be amended to reflect reality.
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### Author:  [@BobArrgh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobArrgh)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/6 "2016-01-26T18:31:19Z")
This seems related to “The album will drop in one week.”
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### Author:  [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/7 "2016-01-26T18:37:38Z")
Is this simply an evolution of “ship”?
As in “The new version of HotGame ships/will ship next week.”
AFAICT “shipping” for a long time no longer referred specifically to the physical movement of installation media - it simply meant the software was ready for distribution/download.
I’m no expert, tho, so this is an interesting language question I hope more people weigh in on.
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/8 "2016-01-26T18:37:48Z")
> [@PSXer](#):
>
> I have a degree in Latin. If there’s one thing I do know, it’s pedantic grammar terms.
[Obligatory Latin Grammar link](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAfKFKBlZbM).
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### Author:  [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/9 "2016-01-26T18:38:57Z")
Indeed, “drop” (meaning “to be released to the public”) is the one that puzzles me. I never seemed to hear it until about a year ago, and now it’s everywhere! Trailers drop, albums drop, videos drop. I don’t think novels drop, but maybe I’m just not reading the more hip kind of novels.
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### Author:  [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/10 "2016-01-26T18:42:30Z")
“Release” is also used for the outcome 😉 of a happy ending.
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### Author:  [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/11 "2016-01-26T19:02:02Z")
> [@PSXer](#):
>
> It’s wrong. You should say “this game will be released in 5 weeks”
But passive voice is supposed to be bad form (according to some people), so it shuould be “\ will release the game in 5 weeks.”
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### Author:  [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/12 "2016-01-26T19:04:42Z")
> [@PSXer](#):
>
> I see it a lot online now especially on gaming _websights_ [my emphasis]
> “This game will release in 5 weeks”
> It’s wrong.
McKean’s law in action.
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### Author:  [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/13 "2016-01-26T19:07:18Z")
There’s nothing inherently wrong with passive voice. Your high school teacher just tells you it’s blanketly wrong because it sounds awkward when used incorrectly. That’s easier than teaching good style.
“This game will be released in five weeks” is fine.
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### Author:  [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/14 "2016-01-26T19:56:40Z")
> [@PSXer](#):
>
> “This game will be released in five weeks” is fine.
So is “This game will release in five weeks.” Languages evolve.
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/15 "2016-01-26T20:09:25Z")
> [@Telemark](#):
>
> Languages evolve.
Yeah, I must agree. As much as certain phrases and word usages drive me up a wall, languages evolve. And the rules of English are so contrary and arbitrary and capricious and contradictory to begin with, so it makes little sense to get real worked up over further variations from an inconsistent and little-regarded norm.
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### Author:  [@Emiliana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emiliana)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/16 "2016-01-26T20:15:32Z")
I’m still trying to get over “grow the economy.”
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### Author:  [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/17 "2016-01-26T20:29:33Z")
> [@Emiliana](#):
>
> I’m still trying to get over “grow the economy.”
That ship sailed many centuries ago. The OED lists transitive senses of “grow”, meaning “to cause to grow” or “to cause to increase”, with examples dating back to 1481.
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### Author:  [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/18 "2016-01-26T20:37:17Z")
> [@Emiliana](#):
>
> I’m still trying to get over “grow the economy.”
Is that grammatically different from “grow a potato”?
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### Author:  [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/19 "2016-01-26T20:38:13Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#):
>
> I had to look up the definition.
Weirdly, I always have to look up the definition. Every single time. I’ve probably done it 200 times. You’d think that it would stick eventually, but no. Two seconds from now, I’ll forget it again.
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### Author:  [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)
#### Post date: [January 26, 2016, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-people-using-release-as-an-intransitive-verb/744276/20 "2016-01-26T21:04:02Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#):
>
> Indeed, “drop” (meaning “to be released to the public”) is the one that puzzles me. I never seemed to hear it until about a year ago, and now it’s everywhere! Trailers drop, albums drop, videos drop. I don’t think novels drop, but maybe I’m just not reading the more hip kind of novels.
This one has been around at least since the 80s, at least regarding albums. I’m no good at finding the origins of slang terms, though. Maybe \*\*samclem \*\*will come help us.
[The online slang dictionary’s](http://onlineslangdictionary.com/meaning-definition-of/drop) entry for “to release an album” was submitted in 2003.
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