Honestly, are people arguing that “thing” doesn’t make sense or that they prefer “think”? Because I don’t see how you can pretend it’s actually confusing, regardless of one’s preference. “Thing” is the most general noun ever, so it can replace pretty much any thing and a sentence still make sense. A “think” (whatever it is in this context) is still a thing.
I couldn’t post the link from my iPad, had to wait until I got home, so DDAMN YOU TCB!
Thing, I’d never even heard Think until this thread.
Because it’s “thing.”. Why are we still discussing this? It’s thing.
Just another data point: the Wikipedia entry for Judas Priest’s “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming” identifies it as an eggcorn idiom, and cites a quotation from 1898 for “another think coming.”
This is just one of those things that goes forever unresolved; we’ve had this conversation more than once before on the SDMB, and each side is convinced the saying sounds more correct the way they prefer it.
Okay. The cite I found for “think” is from the New York Times on June 9th, 1901 in article entitled “What Was Due the Professor.” So “think” had been used as a recognizable idiom at least by then. Looks like Just Ed shows a cite from a few years prior. I come down on the side of “think” being the original and “thing” the adulteration, but being an idiom, it doesn’t make a difference beyond personal preference anyway. “Thing” still sounds better to me. I’m sure it’s how I learned it and that is why I prefer it.
For me it has always been “think”, because the phrase has never been used about getting or not getting something, but in assuming something and then having to rethink the situation. As in, “If you think I’m going to let you eat cake for breakfast, then you have another think coming.” In other words, you’d better rethink your position/opinion/request/action, because it ain’t gonna happen. “If that’s what you thought, you’d better sit down and have another think about it.”
Thing. Unquestionably. You don’t have another think coming… maybe another thought, but not a think.
Thing.
It has to be “think”. First of all, it’s always paired with “if you think that…”, which wouldn’t be necessary if it were “thing”. Second, in the typical usage, the person being addressed isn’t getting another thing: Most often, they’re not getting anything at all. In fact, they might never even have been expecting to get a thing in the first place. Consider, for example, the idiom being used in response to someone who thought that Ron Paul would be elected President: They weren’t expecting to get a thing, and didn’t get a thing, but they were thinking something, and ended up having to think something else.
Thing. I’ve never heard “think,” and I’ve never heard “If you think . . .”
It’s really just personal preference, but it amuses me that people seem to be so vehement in their opposition.
A think is a thought:
I agree with Speak to me Maddie! in that “think” is probably the original, given the citations we have, but I don’t feel “thing” is outlandishly wrong (partly for the reason Speaker for the Dead mentions above). I don’t recall ever using either form of the expression myself, except in singing along to Priest.
Just playing devil’s advocate at this point, but consider “think” in the second part of that phrase is not a verb, it’s a noun, as in “thought.” In that sense, think=thought=thing (non-specific noun per Speaker’s point).
No, it’s not. In fact, I don’t know that I’ve ever heard it paired specifically with the word “think”. “Thought”, yes, but not “think”. And often something else entirely, like “wanted” or “planned on”. “Thing” works as a response to all of these, and has the advantage of not sounding absurd.
Put me down for ‘think’ and also one that is amazed to find there is controversy about this. Ha.
That would be the joke you see…
Google fight!
“you’ve got another think coming”
317,000
“you’ve got another thing coming”
228,000
Another vote for “think”.
Yeah, but:
“you got another think coming”
47,700
“you got another thing coming”
455,000
Truth is, I have no idea how Google tallies up these results anymore, as the second one is matching with “you’ve got another thing coming,” as well, while it doesn’t seem the former is.
Think.
Thing doesn’t make any sense.
I don’t understand these people who are saying “thing” doesn’t make any sense. Really?
“Think” sounds kind of archaic, at best, to me, but I could see how it makes sense, even though it sounds like tortured syntax to me.
Pretty sure those results only prove that linguists are better spellers than heavy metal fans.