# Stuff missing from English **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 24, 2003, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028 "2003-06-24T14:38:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/1 "2003-06-24T14:38:22Z")
As I understand it, there is no word “the” in Russian and Hungarian has no pronouns. Do foreign language speakers notice anything missing in the English language? ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/2 "2003-06-24T14:41:20Z")
English does not assign genders to its nouns like many other languages do. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/3 "2003-06-24T14:45:42Z")
English lacks a lot of inflection in general. Therefore, meaning is almost completely determined by syntax, or word order, as opposed to the forms of the various words involved. As far as vocabulary goes, English lacks some words that other languages have, but if we decide we need a word, we’ve never been shy about stealing. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/4 "2003-06-24T14:48:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Enola Straight \* > \*\*As I understand it, there is no word “the” in Russian and Hungarian has no pronouns. > > Do foreign language speakers notice anything missing in the English language? \*\* Well, we do find it strange that you have a word “the” when we’ve been handling life without it perfectly fine. The noun-gender deal is another thing that’s slightly peculiar, but since the lack of genders is a blessing when learning a new language we usually overlook that. Basically, you don’t change your words around as much as we do, adding suffixes, prefixes, changing vowels and sounds and so on. As a non-native English speaker, I’d like to thank the Gods of English for that. ---
**Author:** ![daniel801](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@daniel801](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daniel801)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/5 "2003-06-24T15:15:33Z")
y’all ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/6 "2003-06-24T15:27:32Z")
English lacks gender, of course. Less noticeable (but still very significant) is the fewer versions of verbs regarding _number_. Specifically, English usually has the same form for singlular regardless of whether it is I, you or he, and for plural regardless of whether it is we, y’all or they. PS: As Derleth pointed out, if we need something and don’t have it, we’ll make it up or steal it. Among the most popular is daniel801’s y’all (plural you). Among the most detested are youse (plural you) and ain’t (am not). ---
**Author:** ![Tarantula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e274bd/32.png) [@Tarantula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarantula)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/7 "2003-06-24T15:34:12Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Keeve \* > \*\* Among the most popular is daniel801’s y’all (plural you)._\* Or more properly, “Ye”. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/8 "2003-06-24T15:40:18Z")
English has a neuter pronoun, it. But you can’t use “it” to refer to human beings of indeterminate gender. We have “they” for an indeterminate plural pronoun. “They” is quickly losing its plural-only status though, especially in spoken conversation: “A guy came up to me, and they punched me in the mouth.” That isn’t standard english, but it is becoming more and more acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/9 "2003-06-24T15:42:30Z")
Don’t forget about noun classifiers, such as those used in Swahili, Vietnamese, Japanese, etc. English has been doing quite well without those. ---
**Author:** ![Dreaming\_of\_Maria\_Callas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f14d63/32.png) [@Dreaming\_of\_Maria\_Callas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dreaming_of_Maria_Callas)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/10 "2003-06-24T15:43:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Enola Straight \* > **As I understand it, there is no word “the” in Russian and Hungarian has no pronouns.** You’re right about Russian, but Hungarian does have pronouns, for the most part just like in English. Now, it’s **possessive pronouns** are a bit unusual (verb endings instead of a separate word). UnuMondo ---
**Author:** ![MC\_Master\_of\_Ceremonies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bb73d2/32.png) [@MC\_Master\_of\_Ceremonies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MC_Master_of_Ceremonies)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/11 "2003-06-24T15:52:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tarantula \* > \*\*Or more properly, “Ye”. > > 😛 \*\* “Ye” is the correct second person pronoun in the nominative case for old/middle English. One of my pet hates is people using “Ye” as “The” as in “Ye Olde Inn”. but the first letter isn’t “y” it’s a “Þ” which is an old english form of ‘th’. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/12 "2003-06-24T15:58:14Z")
I don’t know if English is really crying out for it, but Hebrew has an untranslatable word that makes a definite noun specific. (The noun —\> _this_ noun.) ---
**Author:** ![raygirvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@raygirvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raygirvan)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/13 "2003-06-24T16:31:37Z")
**Lemur866** : _they_ It’s a very widespread and long-standing construction (cited back in the _OED_ to the 1400s) but for some reason prescriptive grammarians persist in claiming it’s wrong, despite its use in the works of prestigious authors such as [Jane Austen](http://www.pemberley.com/janeinfo/austheir.html) and Lewis Carroll. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/14 "2003-06-24T17:01:44Z")
My little bit: Sometimes you’ll see someone making fun of some primitive tribe that can only count to three. But we still have that in English in some cases. E.g., once, twice, thrice, and then …? Well, four times works but it’s not _a_ word. I have read that English is very poor on differentiating different meanings of “love”. E.g., brotherly love, romantic love, etc. Greek is supposed to have a large number of words for the different types of love. ---
**Author:** ![Sinungaling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Sinungaling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sinungaling)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/15 "2003-06-24T17:38:55Z")
Oh yes, agape and eros, storge and philos. I believe agape is friendly love and eros is obviously romantic love, but I can’t remember what storge and philos were. ---
**Author:** ![Dogface](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@Dogface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogface)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/16 "2003-06-24T17:41:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by UnuMondo \* > \*\* Now, it’s **possessive pronouns** are a bit unusual (verb endings instead of a separate word). \*\* “It is possessive pronouns are a bit unusual.” Que? ---
**Author:** ![griffin77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3d9bf3/32.png) [@griffin77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin77)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/17 "2003-06-24T17:50:53Z")
We have recently(-ish) lost the destinction between formal and informal forms of “you” (i.e. ‘tu’ and ‘usted’ in Spanish). When my dad was taught to conjugate French verbs he was taught these as “you” and “thou”. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/18 "2003-06-24T18:08:32Z")
I wish we had a good contraction for “am I not,” as in, “I’m good looking in this, am I not?” You can’t say “Aren’t I?”, “Amn’t I?” or “Ain’t I?” without sounding like a moron. ---
**Author:** ![Trigonal\_Planar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/0ea827/32.png) [@Trigonal\_Planar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trigonal_Planar)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/19 "2003-06-24T18:16:52Z")
I’d just “aren’t I” or, I’d re-word it to “I look good in this, don’t I?” Also, regarding “they” used as the singular, I know that usage is pretty common but its still always sounded wrong to me. ---
**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 24, 2003, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028/20 "2003-06-24T20:16:04Z")
> [@](#): > > You can’t say “Aren’t I?”, “Amn’t I?” or “Ain’t I?” without sounding like a moron. Or you can just not give a damn about what other people think, and use the correct “ain’t I”. The problem with “ain’t” isn’t that it’s inherently wrong; it’s that it’s so often misused. Your example of “I’m looking good, ain’t I?” is perfectly correct, but “Ain’t you looking good?” is not. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-missing-from-english/184028.md?page=2)