Nyow Zullin Unglush

**Hitcher** · 2nd April 2008, 21:50

Oh. My. God.

Longer-serving members may have noted that I have a peculiar passion (some may wish to insert the word pedantic in there somewhere) for standards of written English, about which a growing number of folk appear not to give a fuck. Unfortunately this erosion of "standards" is spilling over into how our language is spoken as well. Hands are slapped for not pronouncing Taupo as Toepaw, etc, but the same level of jurisprudence is not applied to things "English".

There are dozens of examples of gutterally-slurred mumblings that could be inserted as examples. Tonight's example that made me slop my Horlicks came from a new Kiwibank advertisement (the point of which I don't fully understand) which breathlessly exclaimed:

"Now at last the bowels of financial freedom are ringing out for all."

I had hoped that this newest of retail banks would rip the guts out of its competitors, but this is ridiculous. I fart in its general direction.

**Big Dave** · 2nd April 2008, 21:56

Your deposit is a hamster and your cheque book smells of elderberry bushes.

**Slingshot** · 2nd April 2008, 22:16

Nice one...I saw that ad for the first time in it's entirety tonight. Some interesting imagery to say the least.

It does show the "terrible" Australian owned banks making their way up the shore on D-Day. Does that mean that the Australian banks are actually our allies?

And the resistance...the bloody French blew up the Rainbow Warrior the fuckers.

**Nagash** · 2nd April 2008, 22:20

Originally Posted by Slingshot

And the resistance...the bloody French blew up the Rainbow Warrior the fuckers.

Surrendering pussies..

**Fatjim** · 2nd April 2008, 22:29

I'd prefer to give credit and assume it was intentional, rather than a malapropism.

I kinda like "the bowels of St Fatjim have a certain ring to them."

**Donor** · 3rd April 2008, 07:08

Originally Posted by Nagash

Surrendering pussies..

"Cheese-eating surrender monkeys"

As first spoken by Groundskeeper Willy.

**yungatart** · 3rd April 2008, 07:15

I hear you, H.
I remember a few years ago being told off by a young Maori girl for my pronunciation of Taupo. Her words.."Yous fullas carn teven speak our language proper."
She was serious, and she meant it too!

**Usarka** · 3rd April 2008, 07:17

John Key this morning said that he thought it was "ironical" that labour have been told off for breaching the electoral finance act with a booklet they printed.

**MisterD** · 3rd April 2008, 07:22

Well I'm going to pick on another facet of that rant - proper pronunciation of place names...why do Maori places get special treatment?

Examples?

Renwick - in English, the "w" is SILENT!
Greymouth - compare with Portsmouth, Dartmouth etc - the second syllable is pronounced "mth".

and totally running off with the Digestive, I was down in Christchurch the other week and heard a radio advert for an establishment on "An-tig-you-a street".
It's a Island in the West Indies and it's pronounced "An-tee-gah"

.....ahhhh, that's better

**terbang** · 3rd April 2008, 07:29

Well I'm wiith the aussies on this... Bloody Kaywees...

**Highlander** · 3rd April 2008, 07:31

Originally Posted by MisterD

It's a Island in the West Indies and it's pronounced "An-tee-gah"

.....ahhhh, that's better

I understood that if the word following started with a vowel it should "an" rather than "a" so that should be "...an Island..."

However it would not be the first time I was wrong (today even

)

No offence intended MrD just checking for my own benefit.

**MisterD** · 3rd April 2008, 07:45

Originally Posted by Highlander

I understood that if the word following started with a vowel it should "an" rather than "a" so that should be "...an Island..."

However it would not be the first time I was wrong (today even

)

No offence intended MrD just checking for my own benefit.

.... correct, I obviously omitted the "bloody" between them.

**Mikkel** · 3rd April 2008, 07:48

Originally Posted by Highlander

I understood that if the word following started with a vowel it should "an" rather than "a" so that should be "...an Island..."

However it would not be the first time I was wrong (today even

)

No offence intended MrD just checking for my own benefit.

Ah, you just reminded me of a question I have.

In proper english - is the a/an rule tied into the spelling or the pronounciation of the following word?

E.g. is it "an L-plate" or "a L-plate" - I would certainly go with the "an" in this case as the phonetical sound "L" starts with an "e".

On the other hand - I'd certainly go for "a Learners plate" over "an Learners plate"... That's a no brainer...

**Highlander** · 3rd April 2008, 07:51

That being the case where do the NEWS readers get "...an horrific accident "

Another of my peeves is "... seriously ill after an horrific 3 car accident..." Should that not be seriously injured?
To me ill implies disease / bacteria / virus type stuff, not arms and legs comming unattached.