Skip to main content

grammaticality - In what dialects is "I don't like it too" grammatical?


Consider:


Too — (adv.) also, as well, in addition.


We don’t usually use too in negative clauses; we use either instead:



  • I don’t like that kind of stuff.

  • I don’t like it either.


That said, here’s my concern: I’ve heard a native speaker from the Lake District (in the UK) say “I won’t do it and she won't do it too.”


When asked if that's how he usually phrases such sentences, I got an affirmative answer. This then reminded me of John Lennon’s lyrics to his song “Imagine”, which I had always thought must be wrong:



Imagine there’s no countries
It isn’t hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too



Is it grammatical in the UK (or in certain regions) to use too instead of either in such sentences?



Answer



WELSH ENGLISH


The term is recent and controversial. English is, however, the majority language of Wales, and as in other parts of the English-speaking world, a concise term such as "Welsh English" appears unavoidable. (Nikolas Coupland, English in Wales, Clevedon & Philadelphia, 1990.)



Dialects of English in Wales are as diverse as elsewhere in Britain. They vary in terms of pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary, but can be broadly categorized as: (1) The English of people who are bilingual, Welsh/English, and whose English is strongly influenced by Welsh. (2) Dialects of English similar to those of neighbouring counties of England, and often sharing features, especially at the syntactic level, with other working-class BrE dialects. (3) Standard English with an RP accent. (Loreto Todd, University of Leeds)



Among non-standard phrases and colloquialisms which reflect an influence from the Welsh Language, we can cite: "We're going out now, isn't it?", "Money they're not short of.", "There's lovely you are!". For more examples and detailed explanantions, see Language in the British Isles, page 192



Finally, typical of Welsh English is the substitution of "too" for "either" in negative sentences.



  • I don't like it.

  • I don't like it too.


Tom McArthur, The Oxford Companion to the English Language, Oxford University Press, 1992.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

etymology - Origin of the greeting "Sweet dreams".

Does anybody know the etymology of the phrase "sweet dreams"? I tried googling but did not find anything satisfying. Is this a relatively new phrase of the modern world or has this been in use for some time? I think it's the latter one. Answer The OED has the interjection as "a farewell to someone going to bed" from the 20th century: 1908 Sears Roebuck Catal. 198/1 Tenor Solos..Good Bye, Sweet Dreams, Good Bye. But it goes back until at least the 19th and possibly 18th centuries. John Wolcot, writing under the pseudonym of Peter Pindar, used it in his poem "Orson and Ellen; A Legendary Tale" published in 1801: Also from 1801 in The infernal Quixote (Page 287) by Charles Lucas: In the March 1776 of The Universal Magazine was published "The Serenade. A Pastoral Tale. From the German of Gesner" , where the shepherd Daphnis watches over his beloved as she sleeps and sings: The same tale appears in 1776's as Idyl XI, " Daphnis ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is there a word/phrase for "unperformant"?

As a software engineer, I need to sometimes describe a piece of code as something that lacks performance or was not written with performance in mind. Example: This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. Based on my Google searches, this isn't a real word. What is the correct way to describe this? EDIT My usage of "performance" here is in regard to speed and efficiency. For example, the better the performance of code the faster the application runs. My question and example target the negative definition, which is in reference to preventing inefficient coding practices. Answer This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. In my opinion, reads more easily as: This coding style leads to unmaintainable and poorly performing code. The key to well-written documentation and reports lies in ease of understanding. Adding poorly understood words such as performant decreases that ease. In addressing the use of such a poorly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What are the similarities between the relationships of the characters in The Outsiders and Romeo and Juliet?

At first glance, it might appear as if the characters in  The Outsiders  by S. E. Hinton and  Romeo and Juliet  by William Shakespeare do not have much in common; however, when one isolates the core of the conflicts, it becomes clear that the relationships in both stories are rooted in rivalry and secrecy.  In both  The Outsiders  and  Romeo and Juliet , an overarching theme is rivalry. While   socioeconomic status separates the greasers from the Socs in The Outsiders , last names separates the Montagues from the Capulets, who appear to be relatively equal in terms of socioeconomic status. Due to these rivalries, there are instances of deadly interactions in both stories. In  The Outsiders , Johnny kills Bob (whether his actions were justified or not is debatable). In  Romeo and Juliet , Romeo kills Tybalt and Paris, and Tybalt kills Mercutio. These deaths have profound effects on the main characters. In Ponyboy's case, the Johnny's death and other events in the novel inspire h...
Post a Comment
Read more