The Innovative Usage Thread

[R.Rusanov]

People around here are devoicing medial stops and codas: <edin gvozdey> [ɛtín gvósdej]

[Salmoneus]

today, I accidentally used the word "dryened". This wasn't a neologism relating to ironing, but rather by analogy with "dampened".

[linguoboy]

I just received a memo from someone in the Personnel Office about upcoming "staff outages". As if their staff were the equivalent of an online service as opposed to, you know, actual human persons.

[hwhatting]

I just received a memo from someone in the Personnel Office about upcoming "staff outages". As if their staff were the equivalent of an online service as opposed to, you know, actual human persons.

The only possible response to that post.

[TaylorS]

I just received a memo from someone in the Personnel Office about upcoming "staff outages". As if their staff were the equivalent of an online service as opposed to, you know, actual human persons.

That's disgusting!

[gach]

"staff outages"

Are there any more "official" euphemisms for larger company wide layoffs? In Finland these are called "cooperation negotiations" (yhteistoimintaneuvottelut) due to the procedure they have to follow.

[alynnidalar]

My company used "involuntary separation program" last year.

The internal announcement itself was pretty blunt (there's not too many ways to interpret "[Company] intends to reduce global employment by [number] people"), but it still managed to never once use "lay off" or "fire". Somewhat humorously, our subsidiary company did layoffs at the same time, but just straight up said "lay off"... so I guess they weren't so worried about softening the blow for them?

[jal]

"staff outages"

Are there any more "official" euphemisms for larger company wide layoffs?

I don't think "staff outages" means layoffs, I take it as meaning "when the staff is not available" or such.


JAL

[linguoboy]

"staff outages"

Are there any more "official" euphemisms for larger company wide layoffs?

I don't think "staff outages" means layoffs, I take it as meaning "when the staff is not available" or such.

Exactly. I would've used the term "staff absences" myself.

[Salmoneus]

Maybe he was being literal: staff kept being out.

Or maybe it's a typo and was meant to read "staff outrages"...

[gach]

Exactly. I would've used the term "staff absences" myself.

The actual facts seem boring, though immensely good since you are still getting paid.

[Astraios]

"Nothing ever's gonna happen between us anyway."


Kinda like /sgənə/ is one inseparable unit.

[Salmoneus]

I think more likely that "nothing ever" is being treated as a noun phrase.


From John Oliver's "Last Week Tonight" HBO show (paraphrasing here but you can look it up if you want): anyone who says they do are lying.

Spread of plural agreement with gender-indefinite persons even in the absence of "they"? Or just spread of plural agreement to any-X constructions due to semantic plurality?



[Also, BBC football article: a player "fell between two schools" in deciding whether to shoot or pass]

[jal]

From John Oliver's "Last Week Tonight" HBO show (paraphrasing here but you can look it up if you want): anyone who says they do are lying.
Spread of plural agreement with gender-indefinite persons even in the absence of "they"? Or just spread of plural agreement to any-X constructions due to semantic plurality?

More likely a contemination caused by "to be" following "they do", and assigning the right form for "they". I've seen such errors in Dutch as well, where there's a plural at the end of a subclause, or the like.

JAL

[Yng]

Yeah - I can't remember what this phenomenon is called (something like 'dragging' or 'attraction' or who knows what) but that sort of production error is very common when there's something plural hanging around and messing with your brain.

[----]

Have any of you ever heard somebody say [pəɹɛnθəsi] (i.e. the apparent singular of parentheses)?

[Astraios]

I think more likely that "nothing ever" is being treated as a noun phrase.

Oh probably.

Yeah - I can't remember what this phenomenon is called (something like 'dragging' or 'attraction' or who knows what) but that sort of production error is very common when there's something plural hanging around and messing with your brain.

In Hebrew it happens with gender too of the copular pronoun, which is supposed to agree with the thing before it, but often ends up agreeing with the thing after instead:

hanésher hu tsipór "the vulture[m] is[m] a bird[f]" - good
hanésher hi tsipór "the vulture[m] is[f] a bird[f]" - bad

[Kereb]

Have any of you ever heard somebody say [pəɹɛnθəsi] (i.e. the apparent singular of parentheses)?

this is super super super wrong and makes my pedantic blood boil

but then also i remember this song from high school ...

[Pogostick Man]

Have any of you ever heard somebody say [pəɹɛnθəsi] (i.e. the apparent singular of parentheses)?

I think I myself have actually said that.

[jal]

I think I myself have actually said that.

+1 for honesty :)


JAL

[vtardif]

I once had a math teacher whose singular for 'axes' /aksi:z/ was 'axe', like /aksi:/.

[linguoboy]

"Firstable" now a word. *clutches pearls in sympathy*

[KathTheDragon]

How was that created?

[linguoboy]

How was that created?

By misanalysis of [ˈfɝstəvɫˌ].

[Boşkoventi]

"Firstable" now a word. *clutches pearls in sympathy*

I saw that just ... this morning? My first thought was that it had something to do with people posting "FIRST!!1!!1!!" in comments sections. But, alas.

*cries for humanity*