It's "set foot", people, not "step foot"!

[BrightOrangeDahlias]

Yet another thread where this phrase has come up. It makes me want to scream into a pillow. Where has "step foot" come from?!? And can it bugger off back again?

On a telephone call, asking the person who answered if they could put me through to a specific department, "What was your name?"

"My name was, and is..." 🤬

I doubt they get it; probably think I'm odd.

Yes, THIS! Thank you, @MissRoseDurward - I was (genuinely) about to post this. It drives me to utter rage.

I did have a sneaking suspicion that ‘Chester Draws’ might be an urban myth, but then saw it on a Trash Nothing giveaway recently 😱

"Er, well, my name used to be Madame de Pompadour but now my name is Upinaballoon."

In the supermarket today, a chap needed to get past me at the till. He, very politely, said "Can I just get past?"

I whispered to DH "May I, may I..."

As a desciptivist, I would point out that the can/may distinction has been blurred for centuries in English. "Can" is certainly acceptable, correct even, in informal settings, such as a casual supermarket encounter.

In my world, "can" has always been ability and "may", permission.
I was taught this in primary school and have no reason to shift my position. I'm sticking to my guns!

I agree that "may" is correct, but I think that "can" is more than acceptable (and in fact less formal) when spoken, especially in a shop type of environment.

In my world, "can" has always been ability and "may", permission.
I was taught this in primary school and have no reason to shift my position. I'm sticking to my guns!

So was I. If anyone said 'Can I do so-and-so...' the answer was 'I don't know. Can you?'

And of course, a great many of us are still too much under Miss Annersley's influence to dare to get it wrong. 'You certainly can. The question is, may you?'

I applaud Miss Annersley. It was Mr Morgan for me.

While it's not a distinction I feel keenly myself, I strongly advise my can/may sisters-in-pedantry to avoid coffee shops. You'll die a little every time someone says "Can I get a latte..."

"Can I get a latte..."

Both my teens say this and I cringe

I also loathe " I am so excited for Christmas"

NO NO NO...you're excited about Christmas

I think people read far, far more than they used to, but not books. They are constantly seeing incorrectly typed words on screens!

One that sets my teeth on edge is

'Have you got....?'
'No I don't.'

Don't what? Don't got?

I've just this minute seen someone being described as having 'polka straight hair' on another thread. I found myself running through the polka in my head, trying to work out what was particularly 'straight' about it before I realised she meant 'poker'. Oh dear.

Ah yes, a trap for the non-rhotic speaker. See also "draws" for drawers.

I've only ever heard 'polka' pronounced as 'polka' though, with the l very noticeable, in whichever accent. I could - almost - understand the mistake if I'd heard it prounced as 'po-ka'. but I never have.

My all time fave is "He went at it like a bowl in a china shop". So pretty much the opposite of what they meant!

Me too! 'Excited for' is an American import. As is 'named for'.

Other recently adopted American phrases -

'Ride the bus' instead of get the bus
'Work two jobs' instead of have two jobs
'Likely' instead of probably - 'she'll likely do linguistics'
'Folks' instead of people (or any other suitable synonym)
'Watch the kids' instead of babysit
'Prideful' 😖instead of proud
'Pick out' instead of choose
'Gotten' instead of got

Keeping a list, moi? Of course not...

For me, it depends. When I hear people refer to the dance (does not happen often), they pronounce the "l." When they refer to "polka dots," they often don't pronounce the "l."

"Polka dots" definitely has an "L" sound in it for me.

And "Excited for" really gets my goat.

@FuzzyPuffling someone I used to know always said 'it gets ON my goat', which was very amusing (I think he was confusing it with 'it gets on my wick'). The mental image it conjured up never failed to entertain me.

Can't stand these either

The one I can’t forgive is ‘was’ instead of ‘were’ - ‘we was on the bus wasn’t we’ 😡 - it’s ‘we were on the bus weren’t we’. It never fails to wind me up

"No I don't have it."
What's wrong with that?

OK guys. Here’s a question. Which is correct?

” I appreciate your asking but…”
OR
”I appreciate you asking but…”