Lil' Ruby Rose  +  340447 Sun, 18 Mar 07 08:54 AM I've noticed the American idiom "my bad!" meaning "it's my fault" or "my mistake" creeping into tv shows and magazine interviews.  Is it a relatively new expression, or has it always been around?  Why has it suddenly appeared on the radar?  Lil' Ruby Rose Joined on Wed, Dec 20 2006 Regular Member 879 Enlightenment is always preceded by confusion. Idioms, Interviews

	nona the brit  +  340477 Sun, 18 Mar 07 11:47 AM I think it emerged from some American teenager shows - I'm sure it was used a lot in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. nona the brit Joined on Wed, Sep 22 2004 England Veteran Member 11,713 The name says it all.

	Yankee  +  340483 Sun, 18 Mar 07 12:16 PM Yes, the expression is new -- at least in "mainstream" AmE.  I remember being horrified the first time I heard it used in a business meeting. Yankee Joined on Sat, Apr 15 2006 Connecticut, USA Veteran Member 6,494 Amy "You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." - Mark Twain

	Philip  +  340540 Sun, 18 Mar 07 03:13 PM  It's an extension (about 15 years old, I'd say) of "my fault"....an exact translation of mea culpa". Philip Joined on Thu, Jun 23 2005 Veteran Member 8,733 At reise er at leve! - H. C. Andersen

	Grammar Geek  +  340548 Sun, 18 Mar 07 03:26 PM I don't find it horrifying, because I find that people are far too reluctant to accept fault, and this is a fairly painless way for people to admit it was their mistake. The "non-apology" has become standard - I regret that there were difficulties resulting from my action. If people find it easier to say "Yes, it was my bad. Sorry about that." then it's a good thing. At least they are using a first person pronoun. But I think it's only been a couple years that I've been hearing it in mainstream English. Grammar Geek Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006 Veteran Member 19,652 Barbara, who answers in American English. My housekeeping skills attest to the truth of the second law of thermodynamics: Left to themselves, things get more and more random! Nouns, Pronouns

	Yankee  +  340580 Sun, 18 Mar 07 04:55 PM Hi Barb I agree with your point, but do you actually like the expression?  My first exposure to it was at a time when I was living overseas.  The first time I heard it was when I was helping a student out with a telecon.  Suddenly one of the native speakers said "My bad".  I honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry.  My feelings toward it have mellowed somewhat since then, but I still don't like the expression itself very much. Yankee

	Grammar Geek  +  340593 Sun, 18 Mar 07 05:59 PM Hmmm. Do I like it? I don't know. It's so easy to say and makes it easy to do something that otherwise is hard for people to do (admit a mistake). It would be cool if "mea culpa" were in vogue like "my bad" is - equally easy to say. I like its compactness - it's quicker to move on than it is with "Oh, sorry, that's an error," or "Oops, yeah, that was a mistake." I don't have an aversion to it the way I did "... NOT!" that mercifully seems to have faded. And in a business setting, I probably prefer it to "oopsie!" One of the things I find interesting is how some people have a negative reaction to words or phrase, while the same phrase to another person is like putting on the most comfortably pair of jeans... I just hate seeing "wanna" in text, for example. And I hate that "vision" is now a verb in the buzzword lexicon of consultants. Grammar Geek Verbs, Negatives

	Philip  +  340651 Sun, 18 Mar 07 09:30 PM A number of years ago I was at one of those membership warehouse stores, and the cashier's assistant was juggling a 3-pound can of coffee.  When she lost control, it fell on my Birkenstock-clad foot, and it hurt like heck.  "Oh, my fault," was all she could come up with.  I was so angry that I shouted something like, "You're darn right it's your fault - you don't expect me to take the blame for something so stupid, do you?  What ever happened to, "Oh sir, I'm sorry.  Do you think you're alright?  Please don't sue Costco and make me lose my job!"   I left it at that.   I was o.k., but bruised and in pain for several days.  Philip