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ESL forum >
Message board > WOD competition winner
WOD competition winner
cunliffe
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WOD competition winner
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Hello my luvs/chucks/hinnies/darlin�s, So (everybody starts their sentences with �so� nowadays - it�s driving me crazy!!!), I liked all your entries. It came down to two: glutenfree or silvialefevre. So, as we know, there can only be one winner.... Silvia! I loved her daffynition, which had woofits as wow outfits!!! I haven�t got so many wowoutfits or woofits, but I have got wow shoes. I might upload a picture of them onto the teachers� café. I am definitely the Imelda Marcos of this site. I�d place any money on it. So, over to you, Silvia! I�m sorry, I can�t remember the real definition, but I did include a link. I�ll have a look. By the way, I mentioned I was going to choose �sitooterie�. That is a nice place where Scottish people can sit outside;-))) Lynne |
5 May 2019
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spinney
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Good choice! Congratulations Sylvie! By the way, I SO agree with you! I don�t know why but that really gets my back up. And it�s relatively recent, too. It doesn�t matter if it�s some expert on TV talking about the economy, a politician, an actor, artist or a partridge in a pear tree. They all have this annoying habit of starting off with "so" which I always thought we did in response to a specific question requiring an explanation but using "well" instead. I wonder who started it all?
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5 May 2019
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yanogator
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Spinney, In the US, it�s even worse. They start with "I mean..."! Bruce |
5 May 2019
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almaz
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Interesting article from 2010 (in The New York Times incidentally) here on initial �so�, and another look at it here in terms of the �recency illusion� (the idea that because you�ve only recently become aware of a particular usage, then it must be of recent origin). Both articles mention the verse from Chaucer�s Troilus and Criseyde:So on a day he leyde him doun to slepe, And so bifel that in his sleep him thoughte, That in a forest faste he welk to wepe For love of hir that him these peynes wroughte;
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6 May 2019
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spinney
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Rather interesting, as it goes. Mind you, I�m not sure if Chaucer was the best example. Clearly, the guy couldn�t spell to save his life. |
6 May 2019
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almaz
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And let�s not forget his crap syntax |
7 May 2019
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MoodyMoody
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almaz, I saw just your comment about "crap syntax" on the forum before reading the whole thread, and I at first thought you referred to "esteemed" US President Donald Trump! I am relieved to see Chaucer instead! I like Chaucer! |
9 May 2019
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cunliffe
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So I�m afraid this usage IS a recent thing in everyday life, although its usage in story-telling goes way back. So Chaucer is innocent. I�m not sure about Donald Trump in this particular matter... |
10 May 2019
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almaz
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Yes, you�re almost right. But as the linguist Mark Liberman observed (second link above), incipient so isn�t half as recent as people think. And talking of the Great Goblin, you might say its recent usage isn�t exactly "unpresidented" |
11 May 2019
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cunliffe
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Very clever! I�ll have a look at the links. Annoyingly, I�m starting all my sentences with �So,� and it used to be �Well,� So, what will it be next? @Bruce, We had I mean ages ago! |
11 May 2019
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