Hairy Scot
Joined: January 31, 2011
Number of comments posted: 299
Number of votes received: 133
Expat Scot now living in NZ. Home town was Greenock. Achieved SCE(H) levels in a number of subjects. Was employed by a multi-national company so spent a fair bit of time in other parts of Europe. Moved to South Africa in 1981 and then to NZ in 2007.
Questions Submitted
“Harsh but true” vs “harsh but fair”
Discussion on appropriate use of these two phrases came up o...
“deal to”
Another oddity from my favourite source, The New Zealand Her...
Preferred forms
What would be the preferred form of each of these:- ...
intend on doing?
“I intend on doing something about that” Just came across t...
“make a decision” or “take a decision”
Does one make a decision or take a decision? I favour the f...
“in regards to”
It’s one I had not encountered before moving to NZ. Now I he...
“it caught on fire”
In NZ I have often seen in print and heard people say “it ca...
“nearby to where he lives”
Another interesting phrase from The Independent: “nearby to...
“Liquid water”?
The phrase “liquid water” seems to have become very much in ...
“Bring” vs. “Take” differences in UK and American English
English (other than American English) has a clear differenti...
“get in contact”
Pet peeve 3 Saying “get in contact’ or “keep in contact”...
Pronouncing “mandatory”
Pet Peeve 2. People pronouncing “mandatory” as “mandayt...
Pronouncing “début”
Pet Peeve 1. Lots of antipodeans (particularly sports com...
Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
We often hear sentences like:- “Your teen is more at risk w...
“As per ....”?
I have noticed that here in NZ a lot of people use the phras...
Difference between acronyms and initials?
I have always believed that an acronym had to be a pronounca...
-age words
New Age Words? Just how far will the practice of adding “...
How to use floccinaucinihilipilification
I recently stumbled across the word “floccinaucinihilipilifi...
Unusual use of “trespassed”
Yet another antipodean oddity? Found these examples of an u...
The Best Euphemism for Shithouse?
What is the best euphemism for shithouse and/or urinal? I...
Perpendicular
When did perpendicular lose its verticality? I have always ...
“would of” instead of “would have” or “would’ve”
The phrase “would of” seems to be coming more and more commo...
Stood down
In the antipodes it is common to use “stood down” as a synon...
“I’ve got” vs. “I have”
Is there not a redundancy in the use of “got” with “have”? ...
Signage
The word signage seems to keep popping up more and more and ...
Correct preposition following different?
I am sure most of us will agree that “from” is the only prep...
Recent Comments
on: Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
Spell checker was using default setting of ENG-US. Problem ...
on: Repeated
Some might say idiotic. :-)) ...
on: Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
I suspect that any publication on the English Language that ...
on: Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
I too prefer to maintain a diplomatic silence on that subjec...
on: Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
As goofy says the use of "they" and its derivatives as a com...
on: Pled versus pleaded
@Brus I left God's country in 1981 and there are still so...
on: Pled versus pleaded
@Brus Beware!! Last time I referred to something as an...
on: Pled versus pleaded
Interesting entry :- http://grammarist.com/usage/pleaded-pl...
on: Pled versus pleaded
I tend to use both "pled" and "pleaded" depending on the con...
on: Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
@AnWulf Does a "pet peeve" have to be valid, and who determ...
on: Pled versus pleaded
OOPS!! Should have typed "I am so glad that none of DAW's p...
on: Pled versus pleaded
I am so glad that none of DAW's posts on this thread are on ...
on: “We will have ... tomorrow” or “We have ... tomorrow”
I wouldn't say that one is any more or less correct than the...
on: “Me neither.” or “Me either”
In the context of:- "Speaker A: I don’t like going to the b...
on: Nother
@cgtay33 "Nother" is already a real word and has been in ...
on: Correct preposition following different?
@vf My memory of the English taught in the Scottish scho...
on: Correct preposition following different?
Dear vf, Aye, very good. We'll just have to agree to d...
on: Correct preposition following different?
@John C You are of course entitled to hold to your stance...
on: Correct preposition following different?
@John C Please do not confuse Britain with England. There...
on: Correct preposition following different?
Good to see that this old thread is still alive. @vf Tom...
on: Difference between acronyms and initials?
I think you'll find that in English those words that end in ...
on: Difference between acronyms and initials?
From Chambers:- acronym noun a word made from the first let...
on: Difference between acronyms and initials?
I think I covered that in my initial post. I believe that a...
on: Difference between acronyms and initials?
@DAPster I agree that all acronyms consist of initials, but...
on: What is the word for intentionally incorrect spelling?
Ve haf vays ov making u tok!...
on: Difference between acronyms and initials?
@nblor I think what you mean are mnemonics....
on: Word in question: Conversate
@AnWulf There is an interesting and amusing entry in the Ur...
on: Word in question: Conversate
Conversate does not appear in the OED, or Chambers, or Colli...
on: “hack” in “hackathon”
The OED shows a usage of "hack" from 1745 as :- To make a h...
on: It had impacts on...
For once I agree with JJMB. :-) I would also avoid the us...
on: Pronunciation of “Nova Scotia”
@Brus I agree. It is No-va Scoh-shia. Certainly not Scoh-t...
on: of a
@JJMB I should add that humour is also sadly absent from ...
on: of a
@JJMB I have been reviewing some of your other pronouncem...
on: “Fine” as a complete sentence
Maybe a bit off topic but it does illustrate the dangers of ...
on: of a
Pity we don't have a facility to include images in posts. M...
on: of a
'Twould seem the emoticon I seek is 8-;) Found it after a...
on: “Fine” as a complete sentence
The one word sentence "Fine." when uttered by your wife or p...
on: of a
@Brus I expected someone to bite and come back with a lucid...
on: Nother
@Anwulf I omitted the smiley in my last post, and you will ...
on: -age words
I am aware that we have had -age words for quite some time, ...
on: of a
"Petty snobbery"! ROFLMAO...
on: Nother
I would seriously doubt that anyone saying "That's a whole n...
on: Nother
@goofy I would think we should perhaps strive to communicat...
on: Nother
&goofy The language has been, and is being, subjected to a ...
on: of a
Saying "canon of a ministry" is a long way from saying somet...
on: Nother
Unfortunately not all change results in improvement. ...
on: The Best Euphemism for Shithouse?
@Porsche You are easily confused, and obviously somewhat ...
on: “advocate for” or just “advocate”?
One can advocate something or one can be an advocate for som...
on: Over exaggeration
@Anwulf I agree that the examples you quote are valid and I...
on: The Best Euphemism for Shithouse?
@Brus Are the blanks in your final sentence intentional or ...
on: that vs. if and whether
@Banjo Thanks for the explanation. Just shows that one is ...
on: that vs. if and whether
@Banjo At the risk of going off topic, how does the pronu...
on: Pronunciation of “Nova Scotia”
Much the same as Julia Guillard mispronouncing "negotiate", ...
on: that vs. if and whether
95% certainly suggests common usage. However, as can be see...
on: “would of” instead of “would have” or “would’ve”
Ignore last line of previous comment. Forgot to clear befor...
on: “would of” instead of “would have” or “would’ve”
@mrcaleb @JJMBallantyne To a degree you are both right ...
on: What is the word for intentionally incorrect spelling?
One possibility is cacography, which is deliberate misspelli...
on: Perpendicular
@Chris I don't know when or where you learned geometry, but...
on: When “one of” many things is itself plural
@Hacovo I am aware of the correct form of the verb to use w...
on: When “one of” many things is itself plural
@Hacovo To paraphrase George Bernard Shaw: United Kingdom ...
on: “enamored with” and “enamored by”
@cathyem I agree 110% with all that you say....
on: What’s the difference between “commission” and “committee”
A committee is a group of individuals who rarely reach conse...
on: Rules for -ise and -ize
Replacing the 's' with a 'z' came about as a result of Scrab...
on: Perpendicular
@Anwulf Thanks for your support. On a latinate derivative! ...
on: Perpendicular
@Ing I do not dispute that "vertical" is more commonly used...
on: Perpendicular
@njtt Certainly the out of context usage is bothersome. Ho...
on: Perpendicular
@njtt From the OED online:- A. adj. 1. a. Situated or ...
on: Computer mouses or computer mice?
How about "pointing devices"? ...
on: Perpendicular
You forgot the "old". :) Never heard "an" being used befor...
on: Perpendicular
@Hacovo Yep, plumb would serve in some cases. However, bei...
on: Perpendicular
@Ing I agree with you on the everyday conversation. There a...
on: Perpendicular
@Ing I do not dispute any of the definitions you provide. ...
on: When “one of” many things is itself plural
Is a verb not controlled by its subject? She makes pancakes...
on: Smileys and other emoticons within parentheses
I would be nice if all blog sites and fora (forums) allowed ...
on: Perpendicular
Please forgive the typo "is at"....
on: “I’ve got” vs. “I have”
I still believe that the "got" is unnecessary since "I have"...
on: When “one of” many things is itself plural
Like Warsaw Will I often have to think a bit about sentences...
on: “I’ve got” vs. “I have”
@joeydq I agree with you. The example you quote shows that...
on: “with the exception of” or “with the exceptions of”
@Warsaw Will Ah the good old days! Lochgelly was home to t...
on: Interchangeability of possessive “s” and “of”
@New Reader Sigurd's original question actually invites dis...
on: Interchangeability of possessive “s” and “of”
@Warsaw Will @New Reader Dunno if I would use burn in that...
on: Interchangeability of possessive “s” and “of”
@Warsaw Will I was not trying to be smart or nasty and I do...
on: “with the exception of” or “with the exceptions of”
Awrrabest!! ...
on: “with the exception of” or “with the exceptions of”
@ Warsaw Will Nae problem! Just read yer profile an' had...
on: Interchangeability of possessive “s” and “of”
@Warsaw Will As Hairy Scot pointed out in another post, doe...
on: Interchangeability of possessive “s” and “of”
Should be "Caesar's murderers". Caesar did not murder anyon...
on: “If I was” vs. “If I were”
@Warsaw Will My feeling is that there is a difference betwe...
on: Interchangeability of possessive “s” and “of”
@sigurd I see your point. Perhaps it's because some phrase...
on: Backward vs. Backwards?
@steve3 The BBC also invariably uses "lawr". Regarding...
on: Correct preposition following different?
@Warsaw Will My home town was Greenock. I left Scotland in...
on: “with the exception of” or “with the exceptions of”
I agree with Warsaw Will. :) "with the excepti...
on: Correct preposition following different?
@Anwulf Since we use the term latinate to indicate latin ro...
on: Correct preposition following different?
@Warsaw Will As I said in another post, being a pedantic ol...
on: Correct preposition following different?
Hi Anwulf, How's the novel? Glad we are once again on th...
on: “hone in” vs. “home in”
@Bob Sheidler I was actually referring to TV sports comment...
on: Correct preposition following different?
From http://www.straightdope.com :- "A sensible discussion ...
on: Texted
@porsche "I would suggest that it's no different than sayin...
on: Texted
Text is a verb and its past participle is texted. The only ...
on: No Woman No Cry
WTFC!...
June 27, 2012, 10:11pm • 0 vote
on: Use of “their” as a genderless singular?
I'll concede that Noah is not responsible for "skeptic". As...