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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

It's 'make do' , not 'make due'?

528 replies

oldlaundbooth · 30/05/2016 17:42

AIBU?

Colleague senior academic associate wrote' We'll make due' in an email

It's 'make do', right?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
7
JessieMcJessie · 02/06/2016 10:08

At the beginning of this thread I was convinced it was thing. I was ready to post and defend that argument. Then I read all the posts and links and learned that I was wrong. I found this hard as I consider myself very well versed in the world of idiomatic English and I don't like being wrong. However the evidence for "think" is incontrovertible.

Syne I will charitably assume you did not RTFT?

DerelictMyBalls · 02/06/2016 10:17

I also dislike 'fast-forward to...'. I find it clumsy and childish.

Also, 'This happened to me when I was younger...'. Well, if it was in the past, you would hardly have been older then... Hmm

LifeIsGoodish · 02/06/2016 10:22

I've had a little think (see, noun Wink) and it's clear that some posters don't listen to advise.

Pedestriana · 02/06/2016 10:24

Fellow pedants, you'll like this one -
"The dog ran on the path as a posed to the grass"

LifeIsGoodish · 02/06/2016 10:25

Would you believe how difficult it was to post that? Can I blame autocorrect?

Anyway, I know that the 'correct' noun is thought, but think is an acceptable colloquialism. That wasn't the difficulty.

Squeegle · 02/06/2016 10:33

Reluctantly I have to inform you lifeisgoodish, that advise should be advice in that instance.
Definitely blame auto correct.

absolutelynotfabulous · 02/06/2016 10:41

life apparently think used to be a noun.

LifeIsGoodish · 02/06/2016 10:45

I know, Squeegle!

LifeIsGoodish · 02/06/2016 10:46

Don't you mean you have to advise me?

Wink
Numberoneisgone · 02/06/2016 10:46

These are great.

A fairly famous one that could out me since it was told for many years after. Boss says 'I hear allegations have been made......... If I find out who those allegators are......'
Everyone around sucks in the guffaws.

HandsomeGroomGiveHerRoom · 02/06/2016 10:48

Hahaha! I love that Grin

Squeegle · 02/06/2016 10:53

Yes of course that's what I meant ! I missed that one lifeisgoodish Grin

Squeegle · 02/06/2016 10:57

One of my favourites is going through things with a tooth-comb rather than a fine-toothed comb! It always makes me laugh. How many of us have a toothcomb?

drspouse · 02/06/2016 11:06

It can be either, depending on the context.

"I had a thought about the proposal while I was on the train, and I'll email you later".

"I sat down and had a long think about what we talked about. I'm not sure we are doing the right thing".

In the first case, you can also use a plural ("I had some thoughts") suggesting that "thought" refers to something discrete* that can be multiple.

In the second case, it is a perfectly acceptable use of the noun "think", you can't replace it by "thought", and you can't use a plural, suggesting that it refers to something long in duration that only happens once.

*"I will be very discrete about your visit to the massage parlour"... - I assume that means you'll only mention it once and then stop mentioning it?!

Squeegle · 02/06/2016 11:17

Discrete : A single distinct entity
Discreet: I won't mention the massage parlour

drspouse · 02/06/2016 11:21

Yep I know that (but lots of people don't).

Ooh I remembered another one. Advanced warning. I assume this is a warning that jumps up and down in front of you, or that talks in complex sentences, or that is "smart" in some way and aims at the relevant people only and nobody else?

derxa · 02/06/2016 11:26

think

HandsomeGroomGiveHerRoom · 02/06/2016 11:30

"I am not adverse to..."

That pops up a lot.

DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen · 02/06/2016 12:21

I'm on a train atm , there is an advert opposite me for Flubit and it says ' silly wolly'

Wtf ? It's wally, isn't it?Confused wolly looks all kinds of wrong.

Allalonenow · 02/06/2016 15:25

"Slither of cake " makes me cringe every time I see it, and it seems to be getting a more widespread use lately.

Squeegle · 02/06/2016 15:34

Yes it's definitely wally!!

steppemum · 02/06/2016 17:09

I have started to pick kids up on
'I was sat there/ I am sat there etc.

They WILL NOT believe me that there is no such grammatical construction. They have argued their case for weeks, and I just repeat:

either
I am sitting there
or
I sat there,
but you can't mix and use was with sat.

Trouble is, all their teachers use it. Ds (13) also flatly refuses to listen to the fewer and less discussion, apparently I am just old fashioned over both issues.

I was working with a girl aged 9 with excellent English, and she kept writing could of. I explained why it is could've and she was gobsmacked, just could not get her head round it.

TheKingArrives · 02/06/2016 17:27

I love this thread. Learning so much and loving the spirit in people are correcting others and in which those corrections being taken on board. (I'm sure someone's going to come along and rephrase this for me).

TattyCat · 02/06/2016 18:32

No-one's mentioned 'sort after', frequently seen in estate agent's adverts. Drives me mad.

I'm very happy that threads such as this exist because I had started to despair!

DuvetDayEveryday · 02/06/2016 19:20

'Comprising of' is my bugbear from Estate Agents.