Pain in the English
Pain in the English

Unpacking English, Bit by Bit

A community for questioning, nitpicking, and debating the quirks and rules of the English language.

Pain in the English
Pain in the English

Unpacking English, Bit by Bit

A community for questioning, nitpicking, and debating the quirks and rules of the English language.

Username

Count Flatula

Member Since

November 28, 2022

Total number of comments

1

Total number of votes received

0

Bio

Latest Comments

“Can I get” vs. “May I have”

  • November 28, 2022, 9:34pm

“Can I get…” is not perceived as rude in North America; merely uneducated. Language does drift, but it is worthwhile to fight against drift when it tends to denigrate meaning. As others have pointed out, “Can I get….” is, properly understood, an inquiry about the questioner’s physical ability to go obtain the thing himself. Unless the thing itself doesn’t exist, the proper response to a “Can I get…” question is, “You would know better than I whether you can or not.”