[Jukebox-list] etymological

[David Breneman]

--- Joey McDonald <joe400f at shaw.ca> wrote:

> David,
> 
> I am sure you are aware that etymological means the study or
> words. I had to look it up.
> I don't get the question.
>

Hi, Joey -

I'm curious as to why you said "the wiring needs replaced" rather
than the gramatically correct "the wiring needs *to be* replaced."
"Needs" is future-looking, "replaced" is past-looking. I never
heard sentences formulated this way until about 10 years ago,
and most of the people I heard using this fromulation were
from the Washington DC area.  I don't mean to be critical,
it's just interesting; like where, geographically, "pop"
gives way to "soda", or "standing in line" gives way to
"standing on line".  About 15 years ago, I started to hear
people use "anymore" to reinforce a *positive* observation,
whereas it has always been used to reinforce a negative
observation, ie "Nobody does that anymore" vs. "I'm doing
that anymore" or even the more extreme "Anymore, people
do that."  Formulations like "my house needs painted" are
becoming more common in my part of the country and I'm
fascinated to find out where that comes from, and if it's
long established in those areas, or relatively new, like
the positive assertion "anymore" is here in the Northwest.
Your reaction leeds me to believe that it's long engrained
in your area.  Sorry for being such a Henry Higgins! :-)



David Breneman         david_breneman at yahoo.com


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