# Real-world examples of 'Ummm, acktually, It's X, not Y' nitpicks, and discussion about them **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 8, 2025, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326 "2025-06-08T12:47:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**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:** [June 9, 2025, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/81 "2025-06-09T16:22:43Z")
OK question for the thread… Is the kind of pedantry we’ve discussed here _ever welcome?_ ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2025, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/82 "2025-06-09T16:51:03Z")
Aside from here on the Dope, occasionally, no. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2025, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/83 "2025-06-09T17:13:52Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Is the kind of pedantry we’ve discussed here _ever welcome_ Sometimes. Clearly the “I’m smarter than you” pedantry is unwelcome, and on message boards that is ~~often~~ ~~usually~~ almost always the intention. The primary counter example I can think of where the pedantry is necessary is when domain specific language is necessary to understand the situation, but the domain specific language intersects with generic usage leaving ambiguities. Examples: My computer memory is full. RAM or storage? If I’m talking to a computer person I’ll know when they say memory they mean RAM, but a non-techie person? They probably mean storage, but it will take time to clarify. I have a broken plug. Plug is both the holes and the thing that goes in the holes (and the action of putting the thing in the holes), but use of “receptacle” or even “outlet” to describe the holes can make things more clear. I found tubs of bullets when cleaning out my Dad’s garage. The appropriate action will depend on if the poster means fully assembled cartridges, or disassembled cases or bullets. ---
**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:** [June 9, 2025, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/84 "2025-06-09T17:48:18Z")
The way it’s described in the OP? Oh, no. When you start something with "Umm. . . " you’re pretty much telling the person with a public finger way “you don’t know what you’re saying.” There’s a difference in that and a more polite correction to get them up to speed on some misconception or misguided terminology. (For example, previous post.) ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2025, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/85 "2025-06-09T19:36:00Z")
A new one I’ve been seeing a ton of, correcting someone over the use of the term prison/jail. For example “He’s going to jail” “No he’s going to prison, jail is only a temporary holding” Or “My friend just got out of prison” “No, he was in jail because he served less than a year, and they only transfer people to prison if they have more than a year long sentence” ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2025, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/86 "2025-06-09T20:20:58Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > So technically the USA was not a democracy at the time of its founding? Because only white male landowners over the age of 21 could vote in the first election. That is simplistic. Some states had no property qualifications. In New Jersey, some women could vote (perhaps in some other states too). In Penn any Free man could vote, and in some Northern states Free black men could vote. > [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > “Decimate” doesn’t mean “devastate” or “destroy.” It means “reduce by 10%.” I It used to. The definition has changed by usage. > [@Asuka](#): > > A new one I’ve been seeing a ton of, correcting someone over the use of the term prison/jail. Yes, Jail is where one goes for less than a year, prison is more than a year, But common usage is changing this, ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2025, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/87 "2025-06-09T20:31:17Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > is that the expert is talking to a different person each time; to them, the information is news Yes and there are release forms, preliminary interviews, research and test results to go over that don’t make it into the final episode. In the end, it’s a television show. They also go out of their way to not say names like Ebay which is distracting. I get why they do it but sheesh. But my particular gripe is more the implied tongue clucking. The owner has to stand there with head bowed while hearing about why it might be ok, THIS time, to possess morally problematic contraband. 'It’s a wonder we have any elephants left, what with you and your insatiable appetite for ivory. Monster. With that out of the way, it’s a 16th Century triptych devotional from Flanders but for the French market. We think it depicts Saint Bobo of Provence and would have been carried by…" > [@dorvann](#): > > Vanilla Ice explaining the bassline to “Ice Ice Baby” is not actually the same one in Queen’s “Under Pressure” because he added an extra ding. I remember an interview like that and he was definitely joking. In it, he sings the parts like ‘Nonono, Queen’s song goes dadada..ding but ours goes dadada..diing. Completely different, lol!’ ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2025, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/88 "2025-06-09T22:58:13Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > A new one I’ve been seeing a ton of, correcting someone over the use of the term prison/jail. There is a difference, though, and not just based on the length of time. Because jail is for people awaiting trial, or for sentences less than a year, there really isn’t much to do. People can get an electronic tablet that lets them watch movies, or read books, and they play cards, but mainly the inmate is just sitting there. Prisons have more of a functioning society: people may have jobs, or take classes. There’s more structure. Of course, to avoid confusion _prison_ is often referred to instead as _D.O.C_ (or Department of Corrections). ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/89 "2025-06-10T02:36:40Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > What they seem to actually mean (based on further conversation) is whether they’re sharp. This is the first I’ve heard of sharp as a flavor in radishes. I’ve always heard the response to the allyl isothiocyanate in them described as hot. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/90 "2025-06-10T02:43:20Z")
There are often more differences as well - in the US jails are usually run by cities or counties and prisons are run by the state which often gives prisons options that jails don’t have, such as transferring offenders to keep certain people separated. Jails ( in my area, at least) are also often more dangerous than prisons. ---
**Author:** ![Xocomil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xocomil/32/14927_2.png) [@Xocomil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xocomil)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/91 "2025-06-10T03:18:35Z")
It’s interesting to me that some people think of whales as fish; I just don’t. It would never occur to me to refer to them as fish and if someone called them fish, I would think they were joking. Maybe it’s because children’s science shows of my youth drilled the fact that whales are mammals into my soft millennial skull. Or maybe it was because I saw this when I was a kid: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/0KQUboEOpqw/maxresdefault.jpg "The whale is not really a fish - 4 Feb 1993") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KQUboEOpqw) ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/92 "2025-06-10T03:26:48Z")
Was guilty of this tonight. My son referred to a couple Magic: the Gathering spindown counters as d20s and I felt compelled to “Well, ack-shually…” “Huh?” “A 20-sided die has the faces alternating high and low numbers so there’s an even distribution across the die for a more random result. A spindown counter starts with 1, 2, 3… etc on the faces so it’s quicker to find a specific number since you’re using it to mark your score.” “Yeah, okay” There _would_ be a legitimate reason to bring this up: if you were playing a game that actually used the die to determine a random result (like playing D&D), you might care that a spindown counter, while visually similar, isn’t as random. Or you might not. But at least it could “matter”. While just setting up a card game and using it to track points, it was just a pedantic technicality. Luckily, my adult son is used to me by now and I quickly admitted it didn’t actually matter and I was just being a pill. (While on the topic, some people get very prickly about die vs dice as a singular) (Also, ironically, some collectible card game players prefer a “real” d20 _instead_ of a spindown because the regular order of numbers on a spindown makes it easier to cheat by subtly rotating the dice one spot. On a d20, you’d have to rotate the die much more obviously to hit the next number. So I guess that’s another time it could matter but not if you’re playing a casual game with your child) ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/93 "2025-06-10T03:30:02Z")
I don’t insist that they’re fish but I don’t insist that they’re _not_ fish, either. It just doesn’t seem right that sharks should be included and the closer relatives to other fish, the whales, should not. On a gut feeling level, I have no idea what to make of the shark. Smaller cartilaginous fishes that look more like fishes _do_ feel that they are more fishes than whales are even though they aren’t closely related to bony fish. Skates and rays, do not. Whales look closer to fish than they do. Sharks per se, I am undecided on. But if you go by feel, then that should also tell you that [some ichthyosaurs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophthalmosaurus) were dolphins, which seems silly. ---
**Author:** ![Xocomil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xocomil/32/14927_2.png) [@Xocomil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xocomil)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/94 "2025-06-10T04:31:24Z")
In my headtaxonomy there are many aquatic creatures, but only the vertebrates that breathe water throughout their lives are fish. To nitpick myself, technically that’s not breathing. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/95 "2025-06-10T04:37:49Z")
That reminds me of dialogue from _Harvey_: [Elwood bumps into an old friend he hasn’t seen for some time] Elwood: You’ve been away. Miggles: For 90 days. Been doin’ a job for the state. Makin’ license plates. Elwood: Oh, is that so? Interesting work? Miggles: I can take it or leave it alone. Elwood: Oh, I see. Miggles: I did a job for ‘em last year too. Helpin’ 'em build a road. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/96 "2025-06-10T07:06:51Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > tortoises are turtles In North America. In other places, “turtle” is _not_ the name used for chelonians as a whole _even in scientific contexts_, and the turtle/tortoise distinction is absolute. On that lines, though: > [@markn\_1](#): > > You’ll often hear “well actually, X is an ape, not a monkey”, but it’s rather more nuanced than that. Cladistically, apes are a subgroup of monkeys. Common usage tends to use “monkey” to refer to all simians except apes Apes _are_ monkeys, as I had to point out in a D’nD thread not too long ago. And that “common usage” isn’t always so common. The terms get used interchangeably quite a bit, historically. Inn my other birth language, the word “aap” covers all monkeys and apes, no real distinction is made. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/97 "2025-06-10T14:31:53Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > This is the first I’ve heard of sharp as a flavor in radishes. I’ve always heard the response to the allyl isothiocyanate in them described as hot Yeah, they’re hot – but it isn’t, to me at least, the same sort of hot as in hot peppers. At least, unless we’re talking about horseradish; but these weren’t horseradish. I have trouble describing flavors. A lot of the terminology doesn’t seem to exist at all in standard English, and a lot of what terminology does exist is very blurry. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/98 "2025-06-10T14:48:40Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > This is the first I’ve heard of sharp as a flavor in radishes. I’ve always heard the response to the allyl isothiocyanate in them described as hot. That works, too, but it’s a very different flavor than the “hot” in chili peppers (or, for that matter, the “hot” in cinnamon or in black pepper). “Sharp” is, I think, better for being more distinguishing. I think, though, that it’s the same or very similar chemical to what’s in horseradish and mustard, and might (though I’m not sure here) also be similar to arugula. > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > I have trouble describing flavors. A lot of the terminology doesn’t seem to exist at all in standard English, and a lot of what terminology does exist is very blurry. Yeah, English doesn’t even distinguish between “spicy” and “thermal”. Spanish does, and I think that some Indian languages have clear, definite words for different kinds of spicy. > [@Jophiel](#): > > (Also, ironically, some collectible card game players prefer a “real” d20 _instead_ of a spindown because… Other reasons to prefer a “real” d20 are because that’s what you’re used to, or because you also play games that use the numbered icosohedron as a die, and you don’t want to get your gaming pieces mixed up. The first ones used for that purpose, of course, were just repurposed dice. ---
**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:** [June 10, 2025, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/99 "2025-06-10T14:49:36Z")
Side note for the few who might not already know this: Although they don’t look much alike, “sour” and “acid” are etymological cognates, deriving from the same root. That’s why LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is LSD instead of LAD. The German-speaking Swiss scientist who extracted it used “s” for “sauer.” ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2025, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326/100 "2025-06-10T14:56:42Z")
That’s why a Sauerkraut is a really sarcastic german… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-world-examples-of-ummm-acktually-its-x-not-y-nitpicks-and-discussion-about-them/1019326.md?page=6)