It's COULDNT care less!!! Aarrrgghhh

[OctopusSexArm]

After about the 15th time this week reading "they could care less" I feel like I'm losing my mind!

When did this start?
Why are people getting it wrong?!

IT DOESN'T EVEN MAKE SENSE PEOPLE

Bangs head on table

It's an American phrase that people see on TV and in films which is now being used more in English.

It's actually COULDN'T.

Bangs head on table.

Yes I know it's in the title!

But why are people getting it consistently wrong?

It's a really common phrase ffs

It started because it’s American and apparently we all have to say American things.

The only way I can rationalise the saying in my head is to look at it like they’re trying to sarcastically say “well I COULD care slightly less, but not much”

They meant it’s with an apostrophe

I literally put "it's couldn't care less" as my title?
I thought it was obvious

Same. It literally means the opposite of what they're trying to communicate.

Ah, my bad! 😂

Never type in anger on MN I forgot the pedants will come for you

No, you missed the apostrophe.

Muphry's Law

Yes!!
This!

It completely changes the meaning

Agreed. It's so annoying. I heard someone saying this the other day and they got upset with me when I told them they should of be more pacific.

Muphry’s Law?? 😆

lol. 😂

I think it’s an Americanism, which doesn’t make sense in American English either. But I think it’s supposed to be ironic/an inversion - could I care any less, so it has become ‘I could care less’

Haha! 🤣

See?

Smugness will get us all in the end

Yep! Muphry's Law. If you criticise how others write there will inevitably be an error in your own

I’m afraid it’s a result of the internet/SM generation - when kids are constantly plugged in to American culture it’s no wonder proper English is becoming lost.

🤣

Think they are referring to the lack of punctuation. No apostrophe in the title

😂😂😂😂😂

The spelling is the point 😂

Hmm, it sort of makes sense to me (but I’m not English (nor american) so maybe my brain is wired a bit differently when it comes to interpreting language.

I take it to mean ‘I couldn’t care any less than I already do’ meaning ‘i don’t care at all’, or ‘i barely care’ about something. It would be impossible to care less as I’m already at the bottom threshold of caring

Precisely. So if you COULD care less, that means you do care, because it remains possible for you to care less.

I have an American friend, he says this, but the/his full version, ‘I could care less, but I can’t be bothered.’ I still don’t like it, but it does make a bit more sense than the shortened version.

Ok, so it's an Americanism

It's still shit though

The whole point of couldn't care less is that it's basically a more polite version of "no more fucks left to give"