...to be driven mad by the use of 'gift' as a verb?

[Rainatnight]

It's not a verb. Gifting something sounds weird. You gave someone a present. Or they gave you one.

Where did this terrible trend come from? Who gifted it to us?!

And while we're at it, I fucking loathe it when people say they've 'taken' a decision, I KNOW it's acceptable these days but it's all kids of wrong! You don't take a decision, you make it

Gift and give don't mean the same thing though.

Or you could just say 'he gave me this.'

But "He gave me this" is ambiguous - was it a gift or a loan or maybe you're meant to hold it for a minute? You would need to say "he gave me this as a gift [or present]" to convey the same meaning. That's why it's used in legal contexts.

It's always been used as a verb hasn't it? I've only heard Americans use it in that context though, in real life.

"Gotten" IS English. It went to America and the came back.

This isn't a new thing. Gift used as a verb has been used for hundreds of years

'Gotten' never left Ireland!

Language changes. I like it too

'This isn't a new thing.'

It is a new thing that people have suddenly adopted it completely.

I can understand it being used in legal documents but in RL the context of the conversation will make it clear . If I used gifted in everyday conversation my friends would laugh and suggest I'd been way hung too much American telly

One of the beauties of English is that you can make it up as you go along. (What do you think our ancestors did ).

If enough people do it, it becomes "the norm". Unless the OP would like the anglophone equivalent of the Acadamie Francais ? (And look how well that's worked out for them ).

Personally, I quite like the ability to turn (almost ???) any noun into a verb. And I'd wager there are plenty of "verbs" we use in English which started life as nouns aeons ago. Watch perhaps ... as in "to watch" or "a watch" (period of duty for a soldier).

Break ... a summer break, or break the journey ?

Well Justin, you won't be loving it when I put this McFlurry down your pants.

**Watching not way hung!

Yes I agree there! I don't use it in day to day speech myself.

Or we could just accept that language changes over time.

Like English teachers refuse to accept ?

I'm not sure of the relevance of English teachers?

This is everyday English. Changes to use of language can take years or decades to become formally recognised, and obviously it will be even longer before they are taught.

It is very much corporate-speak to turn nouns into verbs.

For example, let's message/brand/action/diarise/paper/WebEx/VC (aka videoconference) this. Gifting is tame.

It is actually a verb thought and can be useful of pleading a legal case but in everyday parlance it does sound weird. I don't think that I know anyone who uses it except in situations where the non-reciprocal nature of the giving is of significance.

Aer Lingus recently indulged in a piece of advertising wankery that irked me.

‘Smart flies Aer Lingus’.

Well dressed flies? Mr or Mrs Smart?

Gobshites.

Ttbb

It's both a verb and a noun.

blueshes

Message, brand, and action are also verbs.

Veni, I take it you are a pedant.

They may be verbs whether originally or evolved through usage but more likely to be used as verbs in a corporate context than everyday speech.

squoosh I can only get that to work if I do that "male American film voiceover" voice in my head. Like "from the makers of..." type thing. And even then...

LurkingHusband the best example of a verb that started as a noun is "shovel". The noun is first seen in the 8th century, the verb in the 15th!