# The use of the word "vay-cay" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 24, 2011, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207 "2011-07-24T20:52:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![coolbyrne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc79bd/32.png) [@coolbyrne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coolbyrne)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/1 "2011-07-24T20:52:33Z")
At risk of sounding like the old woman on the porch (“Get off my lawn, you god damn kids!!”), it irritates me to no end to hear people shorten “vacation” to “vay-cay”. I don’t know what it is about that particular abbreviation, as things like “wi-fi” doesn’t bother me at all, and I’m learning to live with “hi-def”. And I understand that communication outlets like texting and twitter, while not outright demanding the slide in the English language, certainly encourage it, and I’m starting to be okay with that, too. So I’m not sure what it is about hearing someone say “vay-cay” that makes me want to slap them. More than once. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/2 "2011-07-24T21:56:01Z")
If that’s your biggest problem, you’re probably gonna be OK. ---
**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:** [July 24, 2011, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/3 "2011-07-24T22:23:34Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > If that’s your biggest problem, you’re probably gonna be OK. Yeah. She needs to just chill. Maybe take a vay-cay or something. I recommend Australia, mainly to enjoy the slang. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/4 "2011-07-24T22:45:44Z")
The one grates on me is po-po for police. It seems so juvenile. ---
**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:** [July 24, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/5 "2011-07-24T22:50:54Z")
> [@Khadaji](#): > > The one grates on me is po-po for police. It seems so juvenile. I always thought that was part of AAVE. ---
**Author:** ![Claire\_Beauchamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ec9cab/32.png) [@Claire\_Beauchamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claire_Beauchamp)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/6 "2011-07-24T22:51:54Z")
I hate vaycay as well. Also “resto” for restaurant and “veggie” for vegetable. I used to use veggie myself sometimes, in a playful way. I participate on several cooking/food BBs, though, and it’s clear that some people are incapable of saying/typing vegetable and always use veggie. Drives me nuts. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/7 "2011-07-24T22:51:59Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Yeah. She needs to just chill. Maybe take a vay-cay or something. I recommend Australia, mainly to enjoy the slang. No, they don’t have “vay-cays” in Australia: they have hols. ---
**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:** [July 24, 2011, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/8 "2011-07-24T22:54:30Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > No, they don’t have “vay-cays” in Australia: they have hols. I wasn’t necessarily implying they do. But if you hate “vay-cay”, good luck with “barbie”, “eski”, “uni”, etc. ---
**Author:** ![jasonh300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/46a35a/32.png) [@jasonh300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasonh300)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/9 "2011-07-24T23:02:39Z")
Vay-cay, po-po and veggies…I can imagine the same people saying all three of them. ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/10 "2011-07-24T23:05:15Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > No, they don’t have “vay-cays” in Australia: they have hols. No we don’t. “Hols” is a very specifically English contraction. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/11 "2011-07-24T23:55:32Z")
> [@Sierra\_Indigo](#): > > No we don’t. “Hols” is a very specifically English contraction. Maybe I’m old, but I think I’ve heard “hols” in Australia. But, if not “hols”, what? ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/12 "2011-07-25T00:17:27Z")
Vay-cay is definitely fruity but there are some older ones that I don’t approve of as well. Shortening ‘second’ to ‘sec’ as in ‘Just a sec’ pissed me off royally even as a small child because the word isn’t that complicated to begin with and it takes about as long to say as the amount of time it represents if you pronounce it slowly adding some much needed reason to the universe. Excessive use of verbal shorthand generally means that the person guilty of it is intellectually challenged and of poor moral character at least in my world. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/13 "2011-07-25T00:32:36Z")
I get irrationally annoyed when my Facebook friends are _attempting_ to say"vacay," but then actually write out “vaca.” On the upside, it makes me think that they are going to go ride a cow, so I just imagine that, then laugh. ---
**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:** [July 25, 2011, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/14 "2011-07-25T00:37:11Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > Vay-cay is definitely fruity but there are some older ones that I don’t approve of as well. Shortening ‘second’ to ‘sec’ as in ‘Just a sec’ pissed me off royally even as a small child because the word isn’t that complicated to begin with and it takes about as long to say as the amount of time it represents if you pronounce it slowly adding some much needed reason to the universe. Excessive use of verbal shorthand generally means that the person guilty of it is intellectually challenged and of poor moral character at least in my world. The one that ticks me off is good-bye. Anyone who is too lazy to say God Be With Ye is intellectually challenged and or poor moral character. And don’t even get me started on Halloween… ---
**Author:** ![coolbyrne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc79bd/32.png) [@coolbyrne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coolbyrne)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/15 "2011-07-25T00:49:22Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Yeah. She needs to just chill. Maybe take a vay-cay or something. I recommend Australia, mainly to enjoy the slang. I can only afford a stay-cay, so alas, I’m out of luck. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/16 "2011-07-25T01:07:59Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > The one that ticks me off is good-bye. Anyone who is too lazy to say God Be With Ye is intellectually challenged and or poor moral character. And don’t even get me started on Halloween… I am glad to see another soldier in the fight. Halloween will always be All-Hallows-Evening (never Eve) in my house but sometimes we have to pick our battles due to ground already lost. We just have to fortify and prepare for the next heathen insurgence. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/17 "2011-07-25T01:08:57Z")
I’ll get back to you this aft on whether I like “vay-cay”. I’ve never heard it before. I’ve read the term “vaca” but thought it was pronounced “vakkah”. ---
**Author:** ![coolbyrne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc79bd/32.png) [@coolbyrne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coolbyrne)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/18 "2011-07-25T01:18:18Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > I’ll get back to you this aft on whether I like “vay-cay”. I’ve never heard it before. I’ve read the term “vaca” but thought it was pronounced “vakkah”. I don’t know if that’s how it’s spelled, truth be told. But you can hear it here: https://www.youtube.com/embed/IKVnNc5kJbw?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque ([Hotels.com](http://Hotels.com) claymation commercial.) ---
**Author:** ![Robb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a183cd/32.png) [@Robb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robb)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/19 "2011-07-25T02:08:55Z")
> [@coolbyrne](#): > > At risk of sounding like the old woman on the porch (“Get off my lawn, you god damn kids!!”), it irritates me to no end to hear people shorten “vacation” to “vay-cay”. > > I don’t know what it is about that particular abbreviation, as things like “wi-fi” doesn’t bother me at all, and I’m learning to live with “hi-def”. And I understand that communication outlets like texting and twitter, while not outright demanding the slide in the English language, certainly encourage it, and I’m starting to be okay with that, too. > > So I’m not sure what it is about hearing someone say “vay-cay” that makes me want to slap them. More than once. People have complained about the decline of English for a very long time. The oldest screed I know of was written to complain about the damage Ben Johnson and William Shakespeare caused. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2011, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207/20 "2011-07-25T02:18:36Z")
When people tell me the uniform resource locator, I demand that they state it properly: hyper text transfer protocol colon forward slash forward slash world wide wide period ‘s’ as in sam ‘t’ as in tom ‘r’ as in reach around… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-use-of-the-word-vay-cay/590207.md?page=2)