My dear, not only is it "champing at the bit," it's "stamping grounds" and not "stomping grounds."
Perhaps the solecism that bothers me most in recent years: "one of the only." NO--instead, it could be: "only one" "the only one" "one of a few" "one of only a few"
Misuse of “begs the question”. It does NOT mean raises the question, or dodges the question. It is a type of logical fallacy, where a truth is presumed but stated as proven based on the presumption.
you realize, of course, that the old-time English would have pronounced this as "chahmp" right? Same word Americans spell "chomp."
This has got me thinking of when Nigel Farage infamously stood up in the EU Parliament and told the EU President, "you have the charisma of damp rag, and the appearance of a low-grade bank clerk." As he spoke those words, the controversial British pol said all of them as most Americans would except for clerk - which he pronounced as clark.
And that, my friend, is an example of the actual meaning of cat-calling! Bravo.
The OP is saying that "couldn't care less" is correct.
The incorrect saying, of course, is "could care less." Oh, you could care less? Well, that means you must care some now!
“Couldn’t care less” could also mean it’s important, so you absolutely cannot afford to care less. As in, I couldn’t care less if the snakes in this pool are venomous or not because if I cared less, I’d end up in a watery grave.
“Couldn’t care less” could also mean it’s important, so you absolutely cannot afford to care less. As in, I couldn’t care less if the snakes in this pool are venomous or not because if I cared less, I’d end up in a watery grave.
No, even if not caring might kill you, you can in fact still not care. "Can" and "couldn't" is about what is possible, not what you think someone should do or what would be good for them. "Couldn't care less," means, "It is impossible for me to care any less." I.e. "I can't care any less because I don't care at all."
In your snake example, it is definitely possible for someone not to care about the risk of death whether you think they should or not. It might be reasonable to argue that they "shouldn't care less," but it's simply not true to say they "couldn't care less." Regardless, "could care less" clearly means the opposite of what people intend when they say it.
Anyway, another example is people saying "hone in on" instead of "home in on." And since I just used the word "regardless" above, I'm reminded that lot of people incorrectly say "irregardless." There's many other examples, but I don't keep a list of them fresh in my mind. I just notice them when they come up.
The OP is saying that "couldn't care less" is correct.
The incorrect saying, of course, is "could care less." Oh, you could care less? Well, that means you must care some now!
“I could care less” as in this topic is so insignificant that I could care less compared to how much you are making me care about it by subjecting me to this discussion.
Would you like some pepper on your pasta?
Yes, I could use some (as in I would like some).
No, I could care less (as in I would like to care less).
“Couldn’t care less” could also mean it’s important, so you absolutely cannot afford to care less. As in, I couldn’t care less if the snakes in this pool are venomous or not because if I cared less, I’d end up in a watery grave.
No, even if not caring might kill you, you can in fact still not care. "Can" and "couldn't" is about what is possible, not what you think someone should do or what would be good for them. "Couldn't care less," means, "It is impossible for me to care any less." I.e. "I can't care any less because I don't care at all."
In your snake example, it is definitely possible for someone not to care about the risk of death whether you think they should or not. It might be reasonable to argue that they "shouldn't care less," but it's simply not true to say they "couldn't care less." Regardless, "could care less" clearly means the opposite of what people intend when they say it.
Nope, I can say I couldn’t care less if I think it’s impossible for me to care any less. It doesn’t matter what you think in that context. That is how language and opinion works.
"try and" bugs me the most. It is "try to". You can't "try and win". You can "try to win."
Yes, bugs me too, just sounds wrong. Using it in the past tense, does this sound proper-“he tried AND make a good impression”. No, it sounds silly. But the usage is prevalent and has been around for some time, so I try and ignore it. :)
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