Whilst

[Movablefeast]

It may be grammatically correct to use but makes my teeth grind when I see it written down. It is used so often on MN but I never hear it used in real life. It just seems so pretentious and obnoxious. I read constantly and it also rarely used in fiction and non-fiction.

Just need to rant about a highly irritating word!

Whilst I understand it may grate on you, I rather like it!

I got told off for using "unbeknownst" the other day

It’s not as bad as ‘said’! As in, ‘There was a child sitting in front of us. Said child was eating a burger’. Overused to the max on mumsnet - drives me crazy every time I see it now.

See also ‘fast forward’.

‘I bought my mum a coat for Christmas. Fast forward to yesterday and she popped round wearing said coat’.

Aaaargh.

Whilst
Amongst
Impact (when they mean affect)

Impact is wrong usage that has become common usage.

Whilst and amongst are legitimate alternatives to while and among, so I don't know why they send fingernails down the blackboard for me.

I use it in real life.

While and among just sound so much nicer and clearer English. Sticking the "t" on the end just seems fussy and unnecessary.

I do love heaven forfend however!

In my mind they are a bit different

While sort of means during

Whilst seem like more of a qualifier, (can't think of the right word) and I probably only use it at the beginning of a sentence

It's "cue" I can't stand on here. Correctly spelt or not. I hate it. And all the others.

@HuskyMcClusky I'm sorry, I'll restrict myself to "aforementioned" from now on.

Ha ha I hate said as well as in "said dog blah blah" So much annoys me now that I think I will have to start keeping reading and listening to a minimum!!

ThePants999

texted.

shudders

There’s a time and place for both. I personally feel a bit ugh when people say ‘while’ when ‘whilst’ is clearly better in its place

“While I understand your point” is totally different to “whilst I understand your point”.

“While”is more like ... during.

It’s difficult to explain, but they both have their place

I agree with Frantically. Grammatically speaking, they're interchangeable, but sometimes one just feels better than the other.
"I checked my phone whilst I waited" ew no gross
"Whilst this is true in most cases, it is not always relevant" fine

Tbh I would only use it in formal writing - never heard anyone say it in casual conversation!

It seems to be used constantly on MN in ways I find clunky and unappealing.

Almost as bad as people talking about themselves in the third person.

@HuskyMcClusky I'm sorry, I'll restrict myself to "aforementioned" from now on.

Well, ‘the’ works perfectly well to refer back to something you’ve just mentioned. You could give that a go.

'said' really annoys me too.

“Said” drives me mad too. What is the point? Just use “the”.

What nonsense.

“Whilst” is a perfectly ordinary word.

Whether you see it used in print or not will depend on what you read.

Personally I find it irritating that the word “pretentious” is often used on MN to mean variously:

“Something I wouldn’t do”
“Something I don’t understand”
“Something that intimidates me”

Should of
Text as in I just text her to check
Like - it was LIKE, I was LIKE

Goes off to eat hands in mixture of flu riddled despair and pedantry

😳 I use whilst...I write it AND say it (I now feel shame, as didn't realise it was a word-crime...apologies...I will refrain on MN and whisper the offending 'st' digraph henceforth) 😔

I say whilst. It's fine. Where the hell did 'gotten' come from though?

Not as bad as the overuse and misuse of 'myself'

'Gotten' is a funny one. It's an Americanism.

There are two past participles for many English verbs (I think that's what they're called - I've forgotten ). Like to go has I went and I have gone. But to get only has got. In American English to get also has gotten. We frown upon that.

We should not, however, be quite so pompous: to forget? Yes, we say I have forGOTTEN.