I could care less/I could give a damn

[Fran2023]

Trivial I know, but I’m trying to keep my mind off the mess that the world is in.

Does it bother anyone else when you hear or read someone saying ‘I could care less’ when they mean ‘I couldn’t care less’ ?

What this mistake means is the opposite to the what they (appear) to mean. For example: ‘I could give a damn that you need a lift to the station. I’m busy!’

Anyway, just wanted to share and as it’s only me and the cat this morning and she told me that she ‘could care less’ I’m posting here.

On the other hand, the reason ‘another think’ never sounds completely correct is that thinking is not something that happens in discrete chunks.

But people do say "have a think about it" or "I've had a think"

It’s meant to be ‘as dull as ditchwater’, not dishwater but apparently has been corrupted over the years to ‘dishwater’. Also think Americans use ‘dishwater’.

"Asterix" when people mean an asterisk, not a Gaul…

I have found my people.

I've found my people!

Getting slightly worked up reading this, though!

So many of my bugbears on here, people just don't think through what they're saying, they repeat something they think they've heard without engaging brain.

Two that really get me are 'arks' instead of ask (how could that possibly make sense???) and s/he did it 'off his/her own back', instead of bat. What would off your own back even refer to? Madness.

I have never actually heard anyone say I could care less BUT if I did I would be a bit confused because it means that you DO actually care so the opposite of how it is used - presumably?

On accident instead of by accident makes my teeth itch

Yes why do so many people say 'arks' instead of 'ask'? I don't get it.

I’m older than that and have never in my life knowingly heard "another thing coming". That doesn’t make any sense to me! The full sentence is "If you think x, you’ve got another think coming" - i.e. "if you think that, you are wrong and will soon have to change your mind and think something different".

Arks is perfectly acceptable from people of West Indian heritage.

Anyone else, it’s cultural appropriation to my ears.

‘Brought’ for bought drives me nuts! It makes no sense!!

Equally irritating is ‘draws’ for drawers 🤬

Also ‘supa’ or ‘puffa’ - It’s a SUPER king bed and a PUFFER jacket.

And yes, I could care less, but I don’t!

I've just been watching Gilmore Girls and they say it on there, that's 15-20 years old so it's come over here in the meantime...

I often see 'been' when it should be 'being' really annoys me.

Toby Ziegler the fictional head of white house communication says it in the one the early episodes of West Wing! Drives me nuts.

I don't use 'could care less' as it's American and I'm used to saying 'couldn't care less'. However, I think both make sense. In British English, you're saying that you care so little (i.e. not at all) that it would not be possible to care any less. In the American version, it implies that although it might be possible to care less about this specific thing, you actually don't, like it's not even worth the effort of being your least-cared-about thing. I quite like that. It's somehow bitchier.

The thing I hate most is people saying "chomping" at the bit (and on a similar equine note, "free REIGN")
And, of course, not being able to tell the difference between infer and imply.

Quite frankly my dear, I couldn't give a damn!

Are you all on Pedants' Corner?

Grasp the nettle is correct though?

My bugbear is 'breaking' or ' breaks ' for slowing down a car.

Does it bother anyone else when you hear or read someone saying ‘I could care less’ when they mean ‘I couldn’t care less’ ?

No, it doesn't bother me. I like it, it sounds pithy and the intended meaning is easily understood - i.e. that the person does not care.

Don't be so stuffy.

I could care less means the exact opposite of what you are quoting.

It's wrong.

It’s ’grasp the mettle’, nettle is another corruption.

Itching instead of scratching

“I need to itch my back” no, no you need to SCRATCH your back because it is ITCHY