‘We was’

[StripeyNighty]

Arghhh, is it just me noticing SO many people now saying/ typing ‘we was?!’

I’m on so many FB baby groups and I swear every person on there says ‘we was in the living room’ ‘we was scared’ etc. It absolutely drives me insane, why is is it so prevalent all of a sudden?

My intelligent, well educated, eloquent husband says ‘we was’ - he’s from the South West and his whole family do it (although he’s the only member of his immediate family who finished school). I’m an English grad in a senior comms role. I correct grammar for a living. It drives me bloody spare but I refuse to bring it up because I know it’s my own snobbery and hating hearing it is my punishment for being such a pedantic arse!

If our kids start doing it, I will have to correct it though 😂 I’m not a saint.

Or “return it back”. Return on its own suffices

Drives me mad. So does his instead of he's.

One one hand we have regional words, like "hin" for a woman in the NE, and on the other we have gems like "I would of went if I'd of known". Those are not both examples of dialectal variations - it's people mishearing words and not understanding irregular verbs. It is always the verbs where you don't just add "ed" to make it past tense.

Why do you think mishearings/misunderstandings disqualify something from being considered a dialectal variation? Surely this is how dialects develop? It's absolutely ancient - people have always done this.

A colleague of mine once said “it couldn’t have went any wronger” and honestly, I felt like crying!

A friend once sent a message saying “you must of being delighted” and I really struggled to suppress the urge to respond with “MUST HAVE BEEN”.

Drives me nuts, as does 'should of' instead of 'should have'

@LisaVanderpump1 Oh dear God when/why/how did this start it’s driving me crazy 🤯

See also haitch….

In the north people don't construct sentences in the way the South does.
Did you not want or Are you not etc. Rather than Aren't you or Didn't you.

Don't get me started on Rolls or Breadcakes or Baps.

My partner's 'Blimey Guv'nor' accent - and I must admit I love hearing 'we was' in every other sentence

People was saying that back in the 80s when I grew up!

A current niggle is everyone referring to women as female.

And the other which I hate is instead of saying relative or a member of my family say 'family member'. That grates. No idea why.

I keep seeing things like ‘alot’, ‘abit’, ‘aswell’. Perhaps people have only heard these and not seen them written. I agree about ‘Myself’ and ‘me’ and ‘we was‘. I idly wonder if the speakers of other languages make such basic errors. Some of it is probably very British, people thinking that saying ‘me’ is a bit non-u and that ‘myself’ is high register. It’s sounds a bit estate agent to me.

Yes! "My partner works with a female".

Yes! "My partner works with a female".

OMG, I literally die when people say that! It's the worstest!

Exactly. I would never say I work with a male. I would say man.

A current niggle is everyone referring to women as female.

Why does that annoy you? Genuinely don't see the problem? I mean, women aren't male

I find it very weird too, don't get why an adult would talk this way. Cringing and feeling embarrassed for them. And I'm not even a native speaker😄

‘Female’ makes me think of Martin Goodman.

I completely agree @SarahAndQuack !

One thing puzzles me though. Why is the northern "I were" acceptable, but not "we was"? Why is one counted as dialect, and not the other?

In use of the English language it is or has been usual to refer to women as women in general conversation. When referring to gender for that purpose use female. But don't use female for all situations.
I think it is an American thing. I am not anti ( just to say). But I think it might come from their use of language.

Isn't that just a response to the trans lobby. They've appropriated the word "woman" to be females and males who want to be classed as wornen.... so "female"
becomes the term to have to use if you want to refer to what was, until the past 10 years or so, known as a woman!

It's fine as an adjective. Like a female spider or female friend. But it's so dehumanising as a noun when used for a woman. I can practically hear the spitting with rage.

"This female has been texting my DH at 2am!" Like you really want to say cowbag.

Sorry just couldn't resist sharing a few more:
"I turned around and said..."
"I also hate doing... as well"
"I done the job"
A question mark at the end of a statement-type sentence, as if the person isn't sure what they are exactly saying