English is delightfully idiosyncratic. And regional. And sometimes just plain wrong.
Anyone who has traveled through or lived in several areas of the country recognizes these differences quickly not just by the accents we bear but the words we use. There is the ever-popular 'pop' versus 'soda' debate, 'hoagie' versus 'sub' and 'shopping cart' versus 'buggy.'
I was born in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, and lived in the Upper Midwest, South, and Deep South during my adult years. I have been caught with the wrong terminology several times, or questioned about what I am saying. Some of it is clearly Dutchie. My favorite Dutchism is "to rutch" as in "Children rutch in their car seats," or "By the end of the 2-hour wedding ceremony, I was rutchy." It's a great word, meaning to squirm or the inability to be still. Throwing a baseball with my dad was always "having a catch" not "playing catch." I think this might not be Dutchie, but I do think it is regional. I "call in sick" but I do not "call out sick." What does that say about me?
Some of my personal "isms" are only isms in the wrong part of the country. For example, from life in the Midwest, I say "kitty corner" instead of "catty corner". But I REFUSE to call Duck Duck Goose "Duck Duck Gray Goose" - sorry, Minnesotans, that's just WRONG. I have picked up some clear grammatical English horrors as well. From West Virginia, I learned to say "It's pouring down the rain." From North Carolina, I learned to say "I might could do that."
Over time, I have generally cleansed my verbal palate of Pennsylvania Dutch terms, like "rutchy," and you will no longer hear me saying, "Are you a sophomore now, or a freshman yet?" (yet meaning 'still') or "I'll be right back - wait here once" (no meaning at all, just an extra word).
It has been a long time since I was reprimanded for an ism, but it happened this week. It was a word choice I have been using as long as I can remember, and never knew it offended the ears. I thought, "How am I this old and never knew?" I was among friends when I told a story about a time when "the electric went out." The group all perked up their ears. "What did you say?" They thought I was trying to be cute. Um, no. Until I was confronted with my error, it had never occurred to me that 'electric' is not a noun. Poor grammar is never cute after the age of 4.
When I got home, I emailed or texted about 20 friends and family in all areas of the country. WHERE did I pick this up? I asked them to tell me what caused a blackout or what the purpose of a generator is. As it turns out, in the South, everyone refers to electricity as power. "There's no power." They often call their power bill "the light bill" which makes me crazy, but I digress. North of Virginia, power is referred to as electricity. "The electricity is out." And one lone person responded that a blackout happens "when the electric is out." AH HA! The culprit was MOM! I should have known. I unwittingly had blurted a colloquial Momism to 10 people! "Ugh," I groaned. I thought I sanitized my grammar years ago from all of its Momisms! I learned the hard way that "it's all" is always inappropriate (as in 'the sugar bowl is empty; the sugar is all') and "let's get left" (as in 'we are late, let's get going, we need to get left).
I will now be more generous with my friends and their isms. When Jo says "Dog, go to your pent!" I won't let it drive me bonkers. When Susie says, "I wanted red but I landed up with blue," I will smile and nod. And I will remind myself that there is no such thing as electric.
Some of my personal "isms" are only isms in the wrong part of the country. For example, from life in the Midwest, I say "kitty corner" instead of "catty corner". But I REFUSE to call Duck Duck Goose "Duck Duck Gray Goose" - sorry, Minnesotans, that's just WRONG. I have picked up some clear grammatical English horrors as well. From West Virginia, I learned to say "It's pouring down the rain." From North Carolina, I learned to say "I might could do that."
Over time, I have generally cleansed my verbal palate of Pennsylvania Dutch terms, like "rutchy," and you will no longer hear me saying, "Are you a sophomore now, or a freshman yet?" (yet meaning 'still') or "I'll be right back - wait here once" (no meaning at all, just an extra word).
It has been a long time since I was reprimanded for an ism, but it happened this week. It was a word choice I have been using as long as I can remember, and never knew it offended the ears. I thought, "How am I this old and never knew?" I was among friends when I told a story about a time when "the electric went out." The group all perked up their ears. "What did you say?" They thought I was trying to be cute. Um, no. Until I was confronted with my error, it had never occurred to me that 'electric' is not a noun. Poor grammar is never cute after the age of 4.
When I got home, I emailed or texted about 20 friends and family in all areas of the country. WHERE did I pick this up? I asked them to tell me what caused a blackout or what the purpose of a generator is. As it turns out, in the South, everyone refers to electricity as power. "There's no power." They often call their power bill "the light bill" which makes me crazy, but I digress. North of Virginia, power is referred to as electricity. "The electricity is out." And one lone person responded that a blackout happens "when the electric is out." AH HA! The culprit was MOM! I should have known. I unwittingly had blurted a colloquial Momism to 10 people! "Ugh," I groaned. I thought I sanitized my grammar years ago from all of its Momisms! I learned the hard way that "it's all" is always inappropriate (as in 'the sugar bowl is empty; the sugar is all') and "let's get left" (as in 'we are late, let's get going, we need to get left).
I will now be more generous with my friends and their isms. When Jo says "Dog, go to your pent!" I won't let it drive me bonkers. When Susie says, "I wanted red but I landed up with blue," I will smile and nod. And I will remind myself that there is no such thing as electric.
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