A question of prescriptive grammar | Q&A about words

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#116049 - 11/20/03 08:07 AM Re: A question of prescriptive grammar
dellfarmer newbie Registered: 10/13/03 Posts: 36 Loc: Vermont (US)	In reply to: So what does a predescriptivist do? Once the farmer takes his wife, and the wife takes the cheese, I believe that the 'predescriptivist', like the cheese, stands alone. I ain't got no clue on the y'all's question, though. Ron. _________________________ Ron.
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#116050 - 11/20/03 12:02 PM Re: A question of prescriptive grammar
Jackie Carpal Tunnel Registered: 03/15/00 Posts: 11613 Loc: Louisville, Kentucky	I ain't got no clue on the y'all's question, though. That's 'cause you're a Yankee, Ron. As I sternly lectured a friend just this morning, "y'all's" is NOT the same thing as "your-all's". Not. at. all. These distinctions are an acquired art form, my dear.
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#116051 - 11/25/03 07:32 PM Re: A question of prescriptive grammar
Zed Pooh-Bah Registered: 08/27/02 Posts: 2154 Loc: British Columbia, Canada	y'all's crazy as bed bugs. (but it makes me feel at home )
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#116052 - 11/26/03 06:26 AM Re: A question of prescriptive grammar
dxb Pooh-Bah Registered: 03/06/02 Posts: 1692 Loc: UK	I know a pub called "The Four Alls", but I doubt if there's any connection - aside from the beer that is.
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#116053 - 11/26/03 07:53 AM Re: A question of prescriptive grammar
WhitmanO'Neill Carpal Tunnel Registered: 03/13/01 Posts: 4189 Loc: Rio Grande, Cape May County, N...	A friend of mine from Richmond, Virginia, used to say, "How y'all doin'?" whenever he greeted me. Meaning me, alone.
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#116054 - 11/26/03 08:47 AM Re: How y'all doin'
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 13803	I believe: A) You're going to find this usage in stock phrases irregardless of whether or not one or more people are involved or not. 2) Direct questioning of speakers is not the most accurate way to record usage, as I am sure anyone who has been involved in collecting dialect information can attest. Þ) Someone is going to misunderstand my intent in 2)
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#116055 - 11/26/03 09:07 AM Re: How y'all doin'
Jackie Carpal Tunnel Registered: 03/15/00 Posts: 11613 Loc: Louisville, Kentucky	misunderstand my intent in 2 [waving hand in the air e] Did you mean because if you ask directly, that focuses the person's attention, and thus is likely to affect the output?
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#116056 - 11/26/03 09:21 AM Re: How y'all doin'
Faldage Carpal Tunnel Registered: 12/01/00 Posts: 13803	Yeah, Jackie. That's pretty much it. A classic example might be when Bill and Hill gave Skaneateles, NY its fifteen minutes a few years ago and the news guys asked the mayor how to pronounce the name of the town. He distinctly said, "Skay nee atlas," and then proceded to pronounce it "Skinny Atlas," when he was just saying it later on.
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