# "We haven't many students". British English speakers requested. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 20, 2006, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397 "2006-09-20T10:51:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/21 "2006-09-20T17:00:26Z")
[QUOTE=betenoir] And while I’m here and we’re talking about “got”, I thought it was interesting that they don’t have “gotten”. To the point that it was commented on when I used it. [/QUOTE] I use it, and have never been commented on for it (except in online discussions about such words!) I don’t understand why anyone would have a problem, unless they’ve forgotten other words which are formed from it 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/22 "2006-09-20T17:26:07Z")
Thanks for your responses. I knew that it was grammatically correct, but it sounds rather formal or, I dunno, I’ve-never-spoken-with-a-native-English-speaker-ish to me. My counterpart and I are going to split our classes between us, and I’m trying to limit the number of things we’re going to clash on. (Don’t want to confuse the kids more than is necessary.) I just wanted some other perspectives on that one, I’ll likely come back with other questions in the future. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/23 "2006-09-20T17:49:32Z")
[QUOTE=GorillaMan] I use it, and have never been commented on for it (except in online discussions about such words!) I don’t understand why anyone would have a problem, unless they’ve forgotten other words which are formed from it 😉 [/QUOTE] Really? Because I got a very pointed comment (not rude, mind you. Not even polite/rude, just a perfectly pleasent comment) to the effect that " ‘Gotten’? That’s an Americanism. I wouldn’t even know how to use it in a sentence." She actually asked me how to use it in a sentence but I didn’t have any rule book available. Never occured to me. I dunno, maybe it’s a Midlands thing. ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/24 "2006-09-20T17:54:01Z")
[QUOTE=TheLoadedDog] “Yes, we haven’t any bananas, old boy…” [/QUOTE] Today? ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/25 "2006-09-20T18:39:18Z")
I haven’t the faintest idea. **jjimm** - does the common Irish habit of leaving off “to” annoy you as much as it annoys me? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/26 "2006-09-20T18:45:02Z")
[QUOTE=betenoir] Really? Because I got a very pointed comment (not rude, mind you. Not even polite/rude, just a perfectly pleasent comment) to the effect that " ‘Gotten’? That’s an Americanism. I wouldn’t even know how to use it in a sentence." [/QUOTE] Tell your pointedly commenting British friend/whatever that it’s actually an Englishism that died out over here but was preserved in America. Fact\*. \*Meaning I read it on the internet somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/27 "2006-09-20T18:52:52Z")
[QUOTE=irishgirl] **jjimm** - does the common Irish habit of leaving off “to” annoy you as much as it annoys me? [/QUOTE] I missed this. I presume it’s the infinitive of verbs you’re talking about - can’t think of an example at the mo. To me it’s strange, is all, but not irritating. One that does weird me out is their reducing of plural nouns - “a scissors”, “a shears”, and I once heard “a stairs”. However, and this is a dig at your compatriots, I find the Northern Irish habit of using “whenever” instead of “when” extremely annoying. “Whenever I was born.” No. It’s “when” you were born - whenever implies repetition of the circumstance, and you only get born once (evangelism excepted). ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/28 "2006-09-20T19:08:26Z")
_durdle-urdle-urdle-urdle situation_ I meant stuff like: “The minister promised deal with the problem”. “We had to find a way reduce spending”. Really annoys me. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/29 "2006-09-20T19:36:34Z")
[QUOTE=betenoir] Really? Because I got a very pointed comment (not rude, mind you. Not even polite/rude, just a perfectly pleasent comment) to the effect that " ‘Gotten’? That’s an Americanism. I wouldn’t even know how to use it in a sentence." She actually asked me how to use it in a sentence but I didn’t have any rule book available. Never occured to me. [/QUOTE] I suppose the Suffolk accent helps. Along with actually using it in sentences 😉 (_I’ve gotten a bit of a cold_, etc.) [QUOTE=jjimm] Tell your pointedly commenting British friend/whatever that it’s actually an Englishism that died out over here but was preserved in America. Fact\*. \*Meaning I read it on the internet somewhere. [/QUOTE] Like on Etymonline, maybe? 🙂 \*"Vestiges of O.E. cognate _gietan remain obliquely in pp. gotten and original pt. gat._ And as I already hinted, in case you’ve for_gotten_, it’s there in other words, too. ‘Ill-gotten’ and begotten each get millions of Google results. ---
**Author:** ![Pjen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Pjen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pjen)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/30 "2006-09-20T19:43:04Z")
[QUOTE=GorillaMan] I suppose the Suffolk accent helps. Along with actually using it in sentences 😉 (_I’ve gotten a bit of a cold_, etc.) Like on Etymonline, maybe? 🙂 \*"Vestiges of O.E. cognate _gietan remain obliquely in pp. gotten and original pt. gat._ And as I already hinted, in case you’ve for_gotten_, it’s there in other words, too. ‘Ill-gotten’ and begotten each get millions of Google results. [/QUOTE] Gotten was also used in Somerset dialect until recently. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2006, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/31 "2006-09-20T21:26:10Z")
[QUOTE=irishgirl] I meant stuff like: “The minister promised deal with the problem”. “We had to find a way reduce spending”. Really annoys me. [/QUOTE] Indeed, my missus does this all the time: the infinitive “to” is missing. ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2006, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/32 "2006-09-21T01:24:32Z")
That is also a common and correct use in Canadian English. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2006, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/33 "2006-09-21T16:42:04Z")
OKAY. Since I’ve got you all reading this thread: The time on your digital clock reads “3:15”. Is it: a. a quarter past three? b. three fifteen? c. either a or b, depends on my mood at the moment. d. other, which I will now describe. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2006, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/34 "2006-09-21T17:32:40Z")
c, for me. Although I never say “ **a** quarter past three”, it’s just “quarter past three”. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2006, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/35 "2006-09-21T19:33:28Z")
[QUOTE=Kyla] OKAY. Since I’ve got you all reading this thread: The time on your digital clock reads “3:15”. Is it: a. a quarter past three? b. three fifteen? c. either a or b, depends on my mood at the moment. d. other, which I will now describe. [/QUOTE] C. ---
**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:** [September 21, 2006, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/36 "2006-09-21T20:10:56Z")
[QUOTE=Kyla] OKAY. Since I’ve got you all reading this thread: The time on your digital clock reads “3:15”. Is it: a. a quarter past three? b. three fifteen? c. either a or b, depends on my mood at the moment. d. other, which I will now describe. [/QUOTE] It’s “three fifteen” (no “a”). Likewise, 3:45 is “three forty-five”. On an analogue clock, these would be “quarter after three” and “quarter to four” respectively. We don’t use the “quarter of” construction in southern Ontario; to me it seems ambiguous. ---
**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:** [September 21, 2006, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397/37 "2006-09-21T20:12:11Z")
[QUOTE=GingerOfTheNorth] That is also a common and correct use in Canadian English. [/QUOTE] Leaving out the infinitive “to”? Maybe it’s used in Alberta, but I’ve never heard it here in Southern Ontario. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-havent-many-students-british-english-speakers-requested/373397.md?page=1)