Really? I was taught to expand that as "older than she (is old)," making "than her" sound very wrong indeed. A possessive appears similar enough to confuse the issue a bit: "...more advanced age than hers|her age."
After thinking about that for a minute, I'll add that her|hers is pretty ugly. "Are those her shoes?" "Yes, they are hers." Learning that after regular apostrophe-ess possessives must be quite challenging for ESL students.
Oh, but it very much does improve society by adding an element of common understanding and civility.
The use of improper grammar, on the other hand, adds to confusion and doubt about the what the person is actually saying.
It also reflects on the quality of education that the speaker has received.
I find nothing wrong with hers. Back to the original subject, "than she is" is a valid clause but I'll go with lingobingo below in finding "than she" or "than I" odd:
https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/i’m-older-than-her-she.3935485/
If you’re using than as a preposition, it takes an object, like any other preposition. Therefore an object pronoun, such as her or me, is needed.
If you’re using than as a conjunction, it introduces a clause with its own subject and verb. In such a case, only a subject pronoun, such as she or I, could be used in that clause. It’s not unusual for ellipsis to be used, so that all that’s left of the clause is the subject itself – but this is rare (and generally frowned upon?) in today’s English.
I’m older than her / …that you’re older than me :tick: (normal use)
I’m older than she is / …that you’re older than I am :tick: (normal use)
I’m older than she / …that you’re older than I 👎👎 (would sound odd to most people)
Our 'private schools' are like the UKs 'public schools': generally single sex, expensive to very expensive and therefore exclusive unless you can get a scholarship. Even these days, in certain circles the second thing people will ask after 'what do you do' is 'what school did you go to'.
Bluebottle: "Are all your family brainy, Eccles?'
Eccles "Well, my father was really clever'
Bluebottle: 'What did he do, Eccles?'
Eccles; 'Nothing, he was really clever'.
Some private schools here have a sometimes unhealthy emphasis on sport at the expense of art, music and culture. My father was the Art Master at a private school for many years and it took 12 years to get a heater in the art room; equipment for the music rooms even longer.
Geoff
With language, the speaker and the person being spoken to must come together. The fact that the person addressed tolerates or does not tolerate imprecision in grammar is also a sign of the context: "foreigner bonus", for example.
Grammar also slips in the everyday life of native speakers - one would think. But watch out! The grammar of English or German, for example, is not sufficiently analyzed and taught: the apparent mixed forms, the change of tenses during a narrative, for example, is not only intuitive but also correct, and serves the more concrete representation, which is also intuitively understood more concretely.
It has also been investigated that social climbers in particular attach importance to "correct language". This is due to their idea of the higher social class. They want to show that they belong to it. The upper classes among themselves, on the other hand, speak wildly and confusedly again;-)
Grammar also slips in the everyday life of native speakers - one would think. But watch out! The grammar of English or German, for example, is not sufficiently analyzed and taught: the apparent mixed forms, the change of tenses during a narrative, for example, is not only intuitive but also correct, and serves the more concrete representation, which is also intuitively understood more concretely.
It has also been investigated that social climbers in particular attach importance to "correct language". This is due to their idea of the higher social class. They want to show that they belong to it. The upper classes among themselves, on the other hand, speak wildly and confusedly again;-)
I remember the 'like' thing from my teen years, just a short half century ago. i think it'll be evergreen.
I can't tell from the responses here whether the "like" thing is being done in other countries, or we are just plagued with it in the US.
Perhaps some others outside of the US can comment on whether they have the same thing going on there or not.
Perhaps some others outside of the US can comment on whether they have the same thing going on there or not.
We're plagued with 'like' in Oz, too; used instead of 'said'. Years ago it was 'goes'.
A typical conversation might be:
"so he's like, you're an idiot;
then I'm like, you're a cretin;
then he's like shut your mouth, manure brain;
then I'm like up yours, ferret face"
etc etc ad nauseum. Thank goodness for headphones so I don't have to endure such drivel....
Geoff
Language image = world image(-:
Language is currently highly highly relevant in another respect: the assertion of the interests of a minority via propaganda: the creation of a collective reality that cannot be observed by the individual.
An example: 5 years ago, a short film was shown on European televisions: some green trucks driving in the dark under lanterns. The spoken or written word is interesting! As I said: we ONLY see some green trucks driving in the dark. NOTHING more;-)
Language is currently highly highly relevant in another respect: the assertion of the interests of a minority via propaganda: the creation of a collective reality that cannot be observed by the individual.
An example: 5 years ago, a short film was shown on European televisions: some green trucks driving in the dark under lanterns. The spoken or written word is interesting! As I said: we ONLY see some green trucks driving in the dark. NOTHING more;-)
OT posts removed.
Can we avoid derailing this thread with arguments unrelated to the subject?
Unfortunately I have not the time to encompass this thread in its entirety, but asking kindly, have we yet touched on the:
I was vs. the I were yet?
How about the less vs. fewer?
For those who were not around 20 years ago, I started this. I hope you engage, and or enjoy.
I was vs. the I were yet?
How about the less vs. fewer?
For those who were not around 20 years ago, I started this. I hope you engage, and or enjoy.
I somehow could not get the link to post. It really was a good thread. Maybe I have to reopen it. Let me check.
The most colorful abuser of the English language is Pennsylvania US Senator Fetterman. He refers to political enemies as "jagoffs"
In Cleveland, we call the residents of Pittsburgh to be "yinzers"..
In Cleveland, we call the residents of Pittsburgh to be "yinzers"..
As with many trendy modes of speech which drift across The Pond, 'like' is prevalent here in the UK too. It won't be long, I suspect, before we start hearing 'aks' and 'had went' too... Ghastly, to my British Grammar School ears.
We also have the dlightful:
"Jnaar'ameen?" (Do you know what I mean?)
"Litchr'lee" (Literally)
"Innit?" (Isn't it?)
"Whagwan?" (What's going on?)
We largely have MLE (Multiethnic London English) to thank for the most ugly-sounding bastardisations of the English language, which began about four decades ago.
Last edited:
No but I thought about it. One of my favorite childhood songs is "If I Were A Carpenter." I've read in recent years that the word were is going away from the English language. The move to "if I was" was probably the first change in English I noticed.
I think I mentioned the express aisle naming 'controversy' of the 1980s