# People who say irrigardless **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 15, 2011, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987 "2011-11-15T06:18:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/81 "2011-11-16T15:10:30Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > ooohhh. ouch. Guess you got me. 🙂 I could care less. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/82 "2011-11-16T15:20:24Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I could care less. That’s a whole nother topic. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/83 "2011-11-16T15:49:28Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > However, “nucular” drives me right up the wall and makes me want to break things. Me too. Oddly enough though, the etymological root for nuclear/nucleus is the latin word “nucula,” meaning little nut. So the people who pronounce it “nucular” are actually being more faithful to the origin of the word - though I doubt they’re aware of that. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/84 "2011-11-16T15:52:59Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > However, “nucular” drives me right up the wall and makes me want to break things. Also, not that unusual around here. You learn to live with it. Even my brother, who knows the correct pronunciation, uses “nucular” in spontaneous speech. Not a biggie. ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/85 "2011-11-16T15:55:11Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > Me too. Oddly enough though, the etymological root for nuclear/nucleus is the latin word “nucula,” meaning little nut. So the people who pronounce it “nucular” are actually being more faithful to the origin of the word - though I doubt they’re aware of that. I always thought one of the most famous people to use it was a little nut. But maybe I misunderestimated him. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/86 "2011-11-16T16:07:27Z")
The usage of “burglarize” make me want to hurt people. Or burgle them. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/87 "2011-11-16T16:19:43Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > The usage of “burglarize” make me want to hurt people. Or burgle them. Burglarize is in fact the correct word (I hate it too). Burgle is back-formed from burglar, not the other way around. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/88 "2011-11-16T16:41:07Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I want to kill people who use “that” instead of “who”. I don’t want to physically accost them (yes, I know you were just kidding) but, yeah, the use of ‘that’ instead of ‘who’ when referring to people does grate. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/89 "2011-11-16T16:49:15Z")
However, people who say ‘mute’ when they mean ‘moot’ are always fun! I love hearing someone say ‘it’s a mute point’, and then look at me blankly when I start to go into my mime routine… -XT ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/90 "2011-11-16T17:04:22Z")
How is this thread still going. I was confident that by this point everybody would have agreed to set aside differences on this issue until such time as no person who says “sammich” is still breathing. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/91 "2011-11-16T17:04:55Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > “Irregardless” is a word. It’s not a good word, but technically it is a word. My estimation of Bill Gates changed a little when he used ‘irregardless’ during an interview I heard on NPR. I was embarrassed for him as he was obviously oblivious of his mistake. > [@monstro](#): > > Once I caught myself saying this word while talking to a nitpicky co-worker and I saw him making a little check by my name in his brain. He’s the type who constantly talks about how so-and-so doesn’t talk well and how he heard, say, Anderson Cooper use a word incorrectly two weeks ago. Well, once I read something that this guy had written, expecting it to be Shakespearean in quality. It was the worse thing I’ve read in a long time… Worst. Just sayin’… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/92 "2011-11-16T17:07:44Z")
> [@monstro](#): > > “Irregardless” is a word. It’s not a good word, but technically it is a word. > > Once I caught myself saying this word while talking to a nitpicky co-worker and I saw him making a little check by my name in his brain. He’s the type who constantly talks about how so-and-so doesn’t talk well and how he heard, say, Anderson Cooper use a word incorrectly two weeks ago. Well, once I read something that this guy had written, expecting it to be Shakespearean in quality. It was the worse thing I’ve read in a long time…and that includes those horrible posts on yahoo! comments. And yet I still think the guy is intelligent. I don’t know why he feels the need to judge people on a superficial thing like word choice when he’s so bad at communication himself. > > So yeah, I try to speak “right” and have worked to rid my speech of non-words like “conversate”. But I’m not about to get my panties in a wad over stupid shit like this. Blame my right-brained mentality, but there just isn’t enough time in the day for me to think about how someone is talking. What they say is more important to me. > > (Now when it comes to being nitpicky, I’m not totally immune. It does grate when I hear someone say, “I’m on my menstrual cycle.” Um…aren’t all child-bearing women? I don’t ever correct them, mind you, but it does make me shake my head inside.) > [@Staggerlee](#): > > I’m with your colleague on this. ‘Irregardless’ doesn’t make any sense - it’s a double negative. Like saying “don’t not pay regard”. It shouldn’t be considered a word any more than the belch of a mental defective. > [@BigT](#): > > The thing is, it’s not relevant that you don’t think it’s a word. It’s not relevant that it doesn’t make sense. Language rarely makes sense. If it’s used and understood, it’s a word. Whether it’s formal or informal is another matter. But that’s rarely the issue–people who get upset about this word tend to do so in informal contexts. (Read through this. I am essntially in sympahy with the Op and Staggerlee. I’ll eventually get to that.) I am not a precriptionist, at least, not anymore. I qualify as a descriptionist. I don’t consider myself a purist, although I’ve been taken for one. Language is a very human phenomenon, and constantly evolving. I tried to get this point across at a recent local Philosophy group meeting, without much sense of agreement in response. * * * HAVING SAID THAT, I will be forthcoming and say that certain non-standard expressions are particularly grating to me. Irregardless of what other have said, and what I have just said, I must say that – that – UGGHH! – word is near the top of my list, if not simply #1. As Staggerlee said, it’s an example of double negative, but in a single word. If in the postion of coaching people for job interviews, I would certainly point out to anyone I observed using it the necessity to stop. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/93 "2011-11-16T17:08:13Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > However, people who say ‘mute’ when they mean ‘moot’ are always fun! I love hearing someone say ‘it’s a mute point’, and then look at me blankly when I start to go into my mime routine… > > -XT I actually heard someone, in all seriousness, say “It’s a moo point.” I almost burst an artery trying to contain my laughter. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/94 "2011-11-16T17:12:18Z")
> [@Onomatopoeia](#): > > I actually heard someone, in all seriousness, say “It’s a moo point.” I almost burst an artery trying to contain my laughter. 😃 It’s like a cow’s opinion. It doesn’t mean anything. It’s _Moo_. ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/95 "2011-11-16T17:21:50Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I could care less. > [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > That’s a whole nother topic. > mmm This seems to me an example of people changing an expression without even thinking that they are doiing it. OTOH, it makes perfect sense to use it with sarcastic intent. I could care less, just _not very much_. Or even “as if” I possibly could care less. Just as “for sure” could either mean agreement, or a dismissive response, depending on the tone of voice used. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/96 "2011-11-16T17:23:17Z")
Folks who use “irregardless” are total loosers. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/97 "2011-11-16T17:45:17Z")
> [@Trans Fat Og](#): > > This seems to me an example of people changing an expression without even thinking that they are doiing it. > > OTOH, it makes perfect sense to use it with sarcastic intent. I could care less, just _not very much_. Or even “as if” I possibly could care less. That’s the linguist Stephen Pinker’s take on it–that the phrase and its tone conveys sarcasm. I could care less about justifying the phrase–it doesn’t matter. It’s an idiom, a figure of speech. It doesn’t have to make sense. Just like the pedantic twerps who insist that “literally” must be taken literally, and cannot be used as an intensifier or in a figurative manner. Yes, I’ve heard all the arguments before on why we must save the word literally from being used hyperbolically. I just _strongly_ disagree. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/98 "2011-11-16T18:15:17Z")
> [@Trans Fat Og](#): > > This seems to me an example of people changing an expression without even thinking that they are doiing it. > > OTOH, it makes perfect sense to use it with sarcastic intent. I could care less, just _not very much_. Or even “as if” I possibly could care less. How does it work, though, to be able to care less? Wouldn’t that necessarily involve making some sort of effort to care less? And wouldn’t making such an effort necessarily imply some non-zero amount of caring? That leads to a paradox: _"I could care less, but in order to do so, I’d have to care more. Therefore – " (head explodes)_ Next time I hear someone tell me “I could care less,” I think I’ll say: “Oh, yeah? I DARE ya!” ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/99 "2011-11-16T18:18:00Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > How does it work, though, to be able to care less? Wouldn’t that necessarily involve making some sort of effort to care less? And wouldn’t making such an effort necessarily imply some non-zero amount of caring? That leads to a paradox: > > _"I could care less, but in order to do so, I’d have to care more. Therefore – " (head explodes)_ > > Next time I hear someone tell me “I could care less,” I think I’ll say: “Oh, yeah? I DARE ya!” I always took it to mean, I could care less if I hadn’t used up all my lack of caring. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2011, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987/100 "2011-11-16T18:23:16Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > I always took it to mean, I could care less if I hadn’t used up all my lack of caring. No, that’s _“I could HAVE cared less.”_ 😛 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/people-who-say-irrigardless/602987.md?page=6)