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Pedants' corner

Little things which really annoy!

(77 Posts)
Foxygloves Wed 16-Aug-23 19:34:58

I hesitated about whether I should perhaps have put this in TV etc but I know I am being pedantic.
It’s little things like mispronunciation of place names or getting them just wrong.
Edinburgh grans may wish to correct me but in tonight’s Annika, they referred to the Walter Scott Memorial.
All my life I have known it as the Scott Monument.
No?

fourormore Sun 20-Aug-23 20:02:23

Not the same as mispronunciations and perhaps not relevant on this thread but I really get irritated when contestants on various television programmes fail to say 'Please' or 'Thank you' Even when at the end they are told they have won hundreds or thousands of pounds there is often not even a 'thank you'
It doesn't even 'sound correct' to us oldies especially when we have brought up children and grandchildren to add those two simple words automatically!
A recent episode of celebrity Tipping Point featured Colin Jackson and on one occasion only did he say please! The other two contestants (Lisa Riley and Phil Tufnell) were great.
Why does a silly thing like that irritate so much???
More relevant to this thread is that we have relatives who live on the Isles of Scilly NOT the Scilly Isles!

Callistemon21 Sun 20-Aug-23 20:28:03

Elegran

Callistemon21 Clearly the public performance was a bit premature. more private rehearsal needed. Try a bit less hawking and add a light touch of gargling.

😁
By Jove, I think I've got it!!

It it a bit like Och Aye The Noo - everyone knows how to pronounce that?

Elegran Sun 20-Aug-23 20:49:29

Och, loch! I hope Mr C wasn't too traumatised by the research.

Callistemon21 Sun 20-Aug-23 20:50:48

😁
He's the one with Scottish ancestry!

Georgesgran Sun 20-Aug-23 21:32:32

There’s a new ad where at the end the girl says ‘can I get a pina colada’. Every time the fact that there’s no ‘please’ afterwards really annoys me.

NotSpaghetti Sun 20-Aug-23 22:25:19

"Can I get" is pretty grim too, Georgesgran

Aveline Mon 21-Aug-23 09:51:56

'Can I get' is awful. I cringe every time I hear it.
Also I dislike it when I ask how someone is and the answer is, 'Good'. My dear late Dad would say, ' I'm glad you're good but how are you feeling?'

eazybee Mon 21-Aug-23 10:52:33

The use of 'mayo' instead of mayonnaise.

Wheniwasyourage Mon 21-Aug-23 19:00:27

fourormore

Not the same as mispronunciations and perhaps not relevant on this thread but I really get irritated when contestants on various television programmes fail to say 'Please' or 'Thank you' Even when at the end they are told they have won hundreds or thousands of pounds there is often not even a 'thank you'
It doesn't even 'sound correct' to us oldies especially when we have brought up children and grandchildren to add those two simple words automatically!
A recent episode of celebrity Tipping Point featured Colin Jackson and on one occasion only did he say please! The other two contestants (Lisa Riley and Phil Tufnell) were great.
Why does a silly thing like that irritate so much???
More relevant to this thread is that we have relatives who live on the Isles of Scilly NOT the Scilly Isles!

I do agree with you about contestants with missing manners. I always hope that the rude ones on Only Connect don’t win!

Thank you for the information about the correct name for the Isles of Scilly. I wish people would stop referring to the Orkneys/ Shetlands. It should be Orkney/Shetland or the Orkney Islands/Shetland Islands.

Oopsadaisy1 Tue 22-Aug-23 08:17:33

So what’s the plural of Loch?

Do I visit 3 Scottish Lochs

Or 3 Scottish Loch?

I understand the pronunciation, I won’t do it now as I’ve just had breakfast…..

Marydoll Tue 22-Aug-23 08:42:16

It's lochs

Oopsadaisy1 Tue 22-Aug-23 14:42:06

Thank you MD it must be all about the pronunciation then.

I’m guilty of saying what sounds like ‘locks’

Sigh…..

Marydoll Tue 22-Aug-23 15:13:43

You are forgiven! 🤣

Callistemon21 Tue 22-Aug-23 16:54:21

Marydoll

It's loch*s*

That's even more difficult!

MerylStreep Tue 22-Aug-23 17:19:39

Not saying please and thank you is generally a cultural thing.
Some years ago I socialised with South Africans and Zimbabweans.
It was very noticeable that non of them said please or thank you to the barmaids.
I asked them why. Their answer was that the bar staff were only doing their job, why should I thank them.
To be fair, when they knew they were upsetting the bar staff they changed. If they forgot the bar staff would say and what’s the word

It was the same when I lived in Bulgaria.

hollysteers Tue 22-Aug-23 17:30:55

I’m in an off and on little band. One guitarist, when discussing what we are doing with a song, refers to me as ‘she’, as in “Then she will come in third bar” etc and I’m standing next to him. I wish he would use my name, it sounds rude and I have said
“Who is she, the cat’s mother?”

Witzend Tue 22-Aug-23 17:33:29

wheniwasyourage, people pronouncing Bach as Bark make me want to slap them!

MrsKen33 Tue 22-Aug-23 18:27:18

Once in N Wales, a chap, I think who was from Liverpool asked for directions to ‘Egglesbatch’. Luckily I knew he meant Eglwysbach. A good approximation but it still makes me laugh.

MaggsMcG Tue 22-Aug-23 18:45:06

At the moment, the expression "unalived" or "unalive" is driving me mad. I hated passed away too. Dead is Dead. I don't understand why its so triggering. LOL I can just about take passed on to a better place but even that is only because these people tend to believe in God or something similar.

If its an accident or an attack of some sort "did not/failed to survive" would be acceptable to me at least.

Wheniwasyourage Tue 22-Aug-23 18:52:45

Witzend

*wheniwasyourage*, people pronouncing Bach as Bark make me want to slap them!

grin

Thought of another one. Why does a preview always have to be described as "sneak"? if someone is giving you a preview of something they are doing or making, they are allowing you to have it, so no sneaking is involved.

Germanshepherdsmum Tue 22-Aug-23 18:55:10

I’ve never heard of that one, thank goodness.

I don’t mind ‘passed away’ but can’t stand ‘passed’. Passed what? The bus stop!

eddiecat78 Tue 22-Aug-23 19:55:28

Germanshepherdsmum

I’ve never heard of that one, thank goodness.

I don’t mind ‘passed away’ but can’t stand ‘passed’. Passed what? The bus stop!

Me neither GSM. When the time comes I'm going to die. I'm not going to pass away, pass on, or pass !

Theexwife Tue 22-Aug-23 20:18:12

In some cases tautology irritates me e.g., added bonus, and also, very rare, to name a few.

I don't know why they do as I’m not that proficient in grammar.

Aveline Tue 22-Aug-23 20:29:42

It's not a new novelty Theexwife!grin

NotSpaghetti Wed 23-Aug-23 07:32:00

Really, very, completely, or totally unique is annoying.