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

John D in Washington

Member Since

November 15, 2012

Total number of comments

1

Total number of votes received

0

Bio

Latest Comments

injecting swear words

  • November 15, 2012, 8:52am

Does anyone know how far usages like this go back? They sound very contemporary to my ear, but I was reminded recently, at a pleasant evening at the theater, that they were in use, at the very least, in the 1950s. Recall that Eliza Doolittle sings that it would be "oh, so loverly sittin' abso-bloomin'-lutely still . . ."