Yes, there are small close-knit groups of friends who develop their own expressions, but they don't intend that outsiders should have any idea what they're talking about. ( That makes smart. ) Avangi was using "That makes

I'm guessing you probably didn't see it, Correct, at least in my case. but it came on the movie channel schedule so I took a look... Words can't begin to describe how utterly awful it is in every conceivable way. Maybe three jokes made

A day with the animals. (is the title correct for capital letter usage/) I was still lazing in my bed on a sunny Saturday morning when I heard my sister screaming with excitement. My father had offered to take us to visit the zoo. Immediately, I

Once there was a prospector who got lost in the middle of the desert. He had to crawl for hours under the scorching sun, until he stumbled upon a bottle. He was as thirsty as hell, so with hope in his eyes he took the bottle swiftly in his hands,

Hi Paul! Thank you for taking the risk of an answer. The example you mentioned is exactly the kind I had in mind. I'd like to get more information about the origin of this usage, similar to the usage of "ain't"

Great, I was even called a dick. Thanks a lot. Don't take it too seriously. People in this newsgroup enjoy punning off each others messages. there's nothing personal in it. However at least one person noticed that I really use this tool to

But "hell" and "damn" equally have non-swear-word usage; unlike say ... "A go-to-hell attitude" is not swearing. "Go to hell!" is. Strictly speaking, "Go to hell" is not swearing but cursing, and

It's presumably an attempt to be "gender neutral", but it seems very oddto me. Yes, that is its purpose. I learned of it from an Australian linguist who said she sees it these days in students' work. What's needed, it seems,

something I still don't understand in (british) English is the usage of 'one'. In old movies, or speeches by (older) ... etc. However, I've also heard it in mock Queen's speeches or when some person was to be portrayed as posh.

This paragraph implies that you believe regional accents to be class markers, not just in the UK but everywhere. Have I got that right? No. They are often class markers in the US, much less so in many other countries. The class obsession in the UK