Couldn’t be asked/arsed?

[purplebeansprouts]

Which do you use?

Perhaps I’m missing something, but “off my own bat” is the correct phrase surely. It’s derived from cricket. Off your own back is a much later bastardisation of the original. I’m with you on the other two though!

I think that was the point! 😄

I grew up in an Essex new town.

Quite a few of the other kids pronounced 'asked' as 'arksed'.

DD says asked and couldn’t understand why she was told off for saying it at school. She had never heard of arsed. We both think our own version makes more sense but I guess neither does really.

Yes, obviously when it’s written, not obvious at all in spoken Estuary English, which is what the poster I quoted mentioned!

It's arsed....
No one says asked

Ah, but “another think coming” is of American derivation, with “another thing coming” being the more normal UK useage. Whereas “off your own bat” is of English derivation from the get-go, to use another Americanism 🤣

Arsking sounds like either an up-to-date tribute act to Mr Methane or a special limited edition range of strong curry-flavoured Candy King sweets!

I thought the same, "off my own bat" doesn't make sense in that post because it is correct.

Another thing coming is absolutely not the standard English phrase. Jesus.
And to the original question, it's arsed.

But it is? Definitely in the newer MLE accent in those areas anyway. “Asked” is pronounced “arsked” or “arksed” (some will say it either way) and “arsed” is pronounced how it is spelt. You can definitely hear the difference between “asked” and “arsed” in this accent.

I think “can’t be asked” is most used in multicultural areas because those of us from the firstborn generation of migrant families have misheard “arsed” originally, but as our parents weren’t familiar with the term were never corrected. So it has just caught on over time.

The only reason I know is because I remember saying it at a friend’s house as a kid and her mum being gobsmacked. Our miscommunication was identified and we laughed about it. At the time I had thought it was just my own mistake, but now I’m looking at the bigger picture I think my theory is quite plausible!

Exactly. Both think and bat are correct. I was just highlighting the correct words which are often incorrectly replaced with thing and back.

Nope. Think is the original, correct usage. Thing is nonsense.

Being completely fair, although "Can't be asked" is obviously not the actual phrase, I don't think that "Can't be asked" is nonsensical at all. I can easily see the thinking behind it: "no matter how much you ask me, I can't be bothered to do it, so I won't."

I always snigger when I go to a lovely local bakery - where they make and sell delicious goodies with care, with very helpful, friendly, attentive staff.

However, they are a member of the Craft Bakers' Association and proudly display their logo in the window, which consists largely of the group's initials in massive letters!

Asked only works in certain accents but it's a useful quick correction in a situation where you suddenly remember that there are small ears listening.

In your examples the difference between the two words is obvious. The particular phrase in question, however, only ever uses the past participle, and most people would be hard pushed to hear the difference between ‘I can’t be arsed’ and ‘I can’t be asked’, which is how the mishearing of ‘arsed’ has come about.

I’m just puzzled as to how you’re so confident which, out of ‘arsed’ or ‘asked’, people are using, as they sound identical in a London accent?

The only problem with that, though, is when the kids repeat the phrase and make it part of their vocabulary - then everybody who hears them assumes they saying the actual phrase: the slightly rude one!

I always think similar when they release Bowdlerised 'radio friendly' versions of songs with rude words in them: they'll look for it online/on streaming services and not think to look for 'clean version', as they'll have no idea that the standard one is 'dirty'!

I have two teenagers who both say asked. They insist they're right (they're not) and I'm wrong, makes no sense to me.

In this household it's assed (devon). When my daughter was about 15 it came up in conversation that she had told a teacher that she couldn't be ASKED to do something. She had no idea that the saying was couldn't be assed and how rude it was! I couldn't believe she has thought it was ASKED all this time but if you're asking this question then I guess she's not the only one!

As a side note can't be asked makes no sense to me, surely can't be assed/arsed is the same as can't be bothered?

My son got in trouble in Year 5 for saying he 'couldn't be asked' (which is what he thought he was saying) because the teacher assumed he meant the real phrase.

Yes South East London and we say asked

I'm another one who can't understand how sure people are as to whether somebody with an east London/Essex/countless other southern accents is actually saying "asked" or "arsed".

Most people in everyday life don't enunciate like Laurence Olivier!

In London can’t be asked is a thing.