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Thanks, Grunger. I was concerned that I might be monopolising this thread - 'I think this...', 'I dislike this', ''I get annoyed when...' so I was hoping other people would join in!

It's always good to see what other things, uses of English, irritate other Forum users. Other people's moans can be very satisfying.

I don't know whether anyone has mentioned these but here goes. I'm a member of an amateur operatic & dramatic society and I daren't mention the number of times someone has talked about a single rostra or wondered if they could borrow a chaise lonje (sic) . Yesterday I lost count of the number of times the word amachewer came up at rehearsal. That was eventually corrected though.

Thanks, Dandybandy. I'd wince - but only a little - at the singular 'rostra' and the 'chaise lonje'. I think foreign words that are now used in English are often tricky, for all sorts of reasons. I had a friend who got annoyed if anyone said 'cul-de-sacs'. Th at used to be considered an incorrect plural, but it is now widely accepted. And I feel it should be accepted - if not, we should all be using the foreign pronunciation as well as the spelling.

Although the 'amachewer' is a little irritating, it doesn't bother me unduly.

I suppose the increasing `Americanisation` of English is inevitable given the dominance of American culture, but it`s not something I look forward to.
I can just about cope with `color` and `theater` but I refuse to take the elevator when a perfectly good lift is available!

@dandy: I'm also in an amdram group and have heard 'chaise lonje' too. Fortunately, it's only been part of the set in two shows.

Tyke51, I'm quite ambivalent about Americanisms. I used to think, 'why should I use - or even have to hear - their word when English has a perfectly good one of its own?' I then reminded myself that language evolves over time, and also that the dominance of American culture certainly has had an influence on vocabulary. As Spoffy said on another thread, we've accepted words such as 'duvet', 'kaput' and 'junta' from other languages. If Americanisms are accepted by, and used by, many of us, are they really so wrong?


Having said all that, there are, of course, Americanisms that we all particularly dislike. I don't mind your 'elevator', but I'm not a fan of 'sidewalks'.

I did maths at school, not math.

Malone

I agree with you about accepting cul-de-sacs and so on. The problem is with the plural of certain words e.g. Grand Prix. The only plural that makes sense is Grands Prix. I have heard Grand Prixzes which is ridiculous. Although I was a Latin scholar, I prefer stadiums to stadia and forums to fora, as I regard the words as English not Latin.

If people insist on using the foreign plurals for words that have since become part of everyday English then they should use all the other declensions as well. So if they visit a place where old artefacts are kept, they should say they are in a museo. You see how silly it can get.

Grunger, I'm relieved that I've never had to refer to more than one Grand Prix! Maybe I could just use 'Grand Prix races'?

Orson, maybe I'll just stick to the Latin words and terminology that I know and am totally sure of!