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#176608 - 05/05/08 06:13 PM this/next
Steffani Steffani stranger Registered: 05/05/08 Posts: 5	Is there rhyme or reason to the way Americans use 'this' and 'next' when referring to days of the week? Today is Monday (May 5). What date is this Wednesday? And what date is next Wednesday? Steffani
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#176609 - 05/05/08 06:21 PM Re: this/next [Re: Steffani]
tsuwm tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 8574 Loc: this too shall pass	>Is there rhyme or reason to the way Americans use 'this' and 'next' in my experience, no. this is not to say that there *shouldn't be, rhyme or reason.
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#176611 - 05/05/08 06:40 PM Re: this/next [Re: Steffani]
Faldage Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 11418	I'd say, today being Monday, May 5, that this Wednesday is May 7 and next Wednesday is probably May 14. I might also refer to May 7 as "this coming Wednesday." If today were Thursday, May 8, I'd probably say that next Wednesday was May 14, but if talking about May 7, I'd probably say "this past Wednesday" if there weren't something else that unequivocally identified the day as May 7. Maybe on Saturday, May 3 or even Sunday, May 4 I might say that next Wednesday and this Wednesday were the same date, i.e., May 7. These distinctions are mine and I would not necessarily expect other USns to have the same criteria. If I thought there was any possibility of confusion in the mind of my audience I'd specify the date. If some other USn spoke of next Wednesday or this Wednesday I'd confirm the date. Is that confusing enough?
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#176612 - 05/05/08 07:08 PM Re: this/next [Re: tsuwm]
The Pook The Pook addict Registered: 02/20/08 Posts: 468 Loc: Tasmania	Originally Posted By: tsuwm >Is there rhyme or reason to the way Americans use 'this' and 'next' in my experience, no. this is not to say that there *shouldn't be, rhyme or reason. Not for Australians either. In fact I and the Pookwife disagree over the use and meaning of the words "next" and "this" in this context. If it were Monday and I said "next Friday" I would mean the same thing as if I said "this Friday" - that is, the NEXT Friday that comes, or this coming Friday, same thing. But if she said "next Friday" she would always mean Friday next week.
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#176616 - 05/05/08 07:45 PM Re: this/next [Re: The Pook]
tsuwm tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 8574 Loc: this too shall pass	at least each of you can explain yourself in a consistent manner, whereas...
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#176617 - 05/05/08 08:23 PM Re: this/next [Re: The Pook]
olly olly enthusiast Registered: 12/18/06 Posts: 234 Loc: Auckland, New Zealand	Originally Posted By: The Pook But if she said "next Friday" she would always mean Friday next week. I would tend to agree with the Pookwife. Though I would also use Friday week to reference the following Friday after the next Friday which is ... you get the picture!
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#176619 - 05/05/08 08:39 PM Re: this/next [Re: olly]
etaoin etaoin Carpal Tunnel Registered: 06/24/02 Posts: 6045 Loc: Vermont	Fald lays out pretty well what I say.
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#176621 - 05/05/08 09:38 PM Re: this/next [Re: etaoin]
Jackie Jackie Carpal Tunnel Registered: 03/15/00 Posts: 9598 Loc: Louisville, Kentucky	I agree with the Pookwife!
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#176626 - 05/05/08 10:30 PM Re: this/next [Re: Jackie]
The Pook The Pook addict Registered: 02/20/08 Posts: 468 Loc: Tasmania	Well I still think that to be totally unambiguous and avoid misunderstandings it is necessary to say Friday next week if you mean that rather than meaning this Friday, which is what 'next Friday' is logically if it's the next Friday to arrive. If you say next Friday on Wednesday someone will always take it to mean the Friday in two days' time.
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#176627 - 05/05/08 10:48 PM Re: this/next [Re: The Pook]
twosleepy twosleepy enthusiast Registered: 02/28/08 Posts: 207 Loc: western NY	Gotta chuckle about this one! I always have arguments with my 15 year-old about this. For me, it's simple: If I say "this" it means in the current week; if I say "next", it means in the following week. I see the use of "next" here as distinct from "the next", which is a different beast. Since this is by no means standard, I sometimes clarify with "this coming", especially when, say, it's Monday, and I'm talking about Sunday. But I've never totally missed something from confusion about it, but probably because people use dates. Which, by the way, the entire world does sensibly, EXCEPT the US, with our M/D/Y nonsense instead of the logical D/M/Y. :0)
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