The most annoying expressions...

It's starting to drive me crazy when they talk about a family member and they say "our Suzanne..." I know who you are talking about if you JUST say "Suzanne" (She's the only one with that name!) I find it pointless in saying "our" in front of any name!

But that's a local dialect... it's a defining part of the local culture (and has been used for a long time), so they're not gonna stop saying it any time soon. From what you've said, I'm guessing you live somewhere near the Manchester area (or maybe the family is from that area)?

Not in that context.  They can win you something, in the sense of win it for you, eg "He won me a prize."

yeah that is why its weird - I know they can win you something or he won me a prize.

But that's a local dialect... it's a defining part of the local culture (and has been used for a long time), so they're not gonna stop saying it any time soon. From what you've said, I'm guessing you live somewhere near the Manchester area (or maybe the family is from that area)?

Ha I am in the northeast and this was weird for me as well but ya just get used to it I even caught myself talking and saying our (insert dsd name here) i know who they know but it has slipped!

But that's a local dialect... it's a defining part of the local culture (and has been used for a long time), so they're not gonna stop saying it any time soon. From what you've said, I'm guessing you live somewhere near the Manchester area (or maybe the family is from that area)?

Oh no, there is no expectation of them EVER changing it, I just find it annoying (which applies to the thread topic!) LOL!  

I live in Newcastle Under Lyme, so yeah! Not far from Manchester at all! I didn't realize it was a local thing though, I just figured it was something everyone says! I have a co-worker that lives in Barnsley (sp?) and she says it too...Is it like a larger regional thing? Or maybe she used to live down here? I don't know! (I learn new things every day! LOL! But I'm impressed how you've been able to pinpoint where abouts I live! I've got much to learn!)

I live in Newcastle Under Lyme, so yeah! Not far from Manchester at all! I didn't realize it was a local thing though, I just figured it was something everyone says! I have a co-worker that lives in Barnsley (sp?) and she says it too...Is it like a larger regional thing? Or maybe she used to live down here? I don't know! (I learn new things every day! LOL! But I'm impressed how you've been able to pinpoint where abouts I live! I've got much to learn!)

It's mostly a Northern England thing, but is usually associated with the Manchester area (the Mancunian accent)... phrases like "our kid" and "our mam" are used a lot in TV shows like Shameless and Coronation Street which are set in Manchester (and they've also been associated with band Oasis, who are from Manchester).

I'm from Bristol in the South West and I've never said it in my life . It's not really part of the dialect down there.

In Bristol we're more likely to say things like: "Alroight moi luvver" or "Alroight me babber?" (how are you?) and "Wurrsat to?" (where is that?)... and we stick 'L's on the end of words that shouldn't have an L, - like "areawl" instead of "area" and "Americawl" instead of "America"... in fact, I believe that's how Bristol got it's name: it used to be "Bristowe" and over time it evolved to "Bristol" due to the local pronunciation of the name.

In Bristol we're more likely to say things like: "Alroight moi luvver" or "Alroight me babber?" (how are you?) and "Wurrsat to?" (where is that?)... and we stick 'L's on the end of words that shouldn't have an L, - like "areawl" instead of "area" and "Americawl" instead of "America"... in fact, I believe that's how Bristol got it's name: it used to be "Bristowe" and over time it evolved to "Bristol" due to the local pronunciation of the name.

Haha! That's kinda like how they say "innit" instead of "isn't it" here! It would take some time for me to get used to that! I still find it funny that around here, they add an "R" to any word that end with an "A" and an "AH" with words that end with "R" (i.e. Pander Beah instead of panda bear or the one that drives me crazy: Rhianner instead of Rhianna Lol!) I've only been here for a little over a year though, so I don't notice these things as much as I used to!

Haha! That's kinda like how they say "innit" instead of "isn't it" here! It would take some time for me to get used to that!

Yeah . I don't really have the accent myself because my mum grew up in Scotland and although my dad is from the area, he just never developed the local accent... so I'm not totally fluent in the Bristolian dialect (people with really strong local accents can be hard to decipher), but I can usually understand most of it.

Haha! That's kinda like how they say "innit" instead of "isn't it" here! It would take some time for me to get used to that! I still find it funny that around here, they add an "R" to any word that end with an "A" and an "AH" with words that end with "R" (i.e. Pander Beah instead of panda bear or the one that drives me crazy: Rhianner instead of Rhianna Lol!) I've only been here for a little over a year though, so I don't notice these things as much as I used to!

That sounds like the "Boston, MA" accent.   

Going back the "our (insert name here)" bit, my husband and his family say that, too.  It took a bit to get used to, but I've grown quite fond of hearing it now.  BTW...hubby's from Hull, Yorkshire, but I've never heard it said in the south bit of England...just the north.   

I don't say whilst or fortnight either, I feel stupid saying both when they aren't natural to me. It's starting to drive me crazy when they talk about a family member and they say "our Suzanne..." I know who you are talking about if you JUST say "Suzanne" (She's the only one with that name!) I find it pointless in saying "our" in front of any name!

That's one that doesn't bother me at all.  Besides what ksand said:

But that's a local dialect... it's a defining part of the local culture (and has been used for a long time), so they're not gonna stop saying it any time soon. From what you've said, I'm guessing you live somewhere near the Manchester area (or maybe the family is from that area)?

...it also seems to be an affectionate thing.  My hubby's brother is "Our Kid" (usually used for the younger / youngest sibling, but in this case he's actually a bit older than hubby).  For the longest time, I thought hubby was saying "Arkid"!

That's one that doesn't bother me at all.  Besides what ksand said:...it also seems to be an affectionate thing.

You know, I never thought of it that way...It does make it a lot nicer when you think of it like that! I like that!...You've Changed my mind! 


 

That sounds like the "Boston, MA" accent.   

Going back the "our (insert name here)" bit, my husband and his family say that, too.  It took a bit to get used to, but I've grown quite fond of hearing it now.  BTW...hubby's from Hull, Yorkshire, but I've never heard it said in the south bit of England...just the north.   

I haven't done loads of traveling all over the UK, so I haven't heard a lot of the different dialects from the different areas, but my hubby's ex moved up to Hull with his 2 daughters, so I do hear some of the stuff the girls say...I don't think I've ever noticed things from them...but then again, it's because usually our conversations are based around them correcting every other word that comes out of my mouth! LOL! (They're funny kids, they mostly do it to tease me).

I need to find a video or something with all the different regions and accents and dialect...I think I heard somewhere there was something like 10 different variations of accents (or something like that!)...is that right?

I need to find a video or something with all the different regions and accents and dialect...I think I heard somewhere there was something like 10 different variations of accents (or something like that!)...is that right?

There are tons and tons of different dialects and accents in the UK - hundreds probably.

Where I grew up, you only had to drive 5 or 10 miles down the road to hear a different accent. I currently live in Lincoln and work with about 16 people... I think every single person in the office has a different accent .

This BBC page has audio samples from loads of different accents in the UK: http://www.bbc.co.uk/voices/recordings/

Yeah, it's amazing the amount of different accents.  When I first met my hubby's dad (met him a year before I met hubby believe it or not!), I couldn't understand a word he said.  Hubby's family is from Manchester.  We live in Leeds, less than an hour away and the accent is quite different.  Even within Leeds you get different accents and of course degrees of how strong the accent is in a particular person.

There's one check-out clerk at Morrisson's whom I avoid because her accent is so thick I can't understand her (and she's slow and talks too much--ha!).

DH is an academic and I have to say that I've spent the better part of the past year and a half figuring out the "translations" of academic terminology. To think lecturer vs professor was just the tip of the iceberg---but add in "revision" "reading a course of study" "tutor" "time-table" "module" "mark" etc etc etc...Ack!!

You do gradually get to understand it all without having to mentally translate. But my husband was a "reader" -- how do you explain that one to Americans? Because it is different to "professor".

You do gradually get to understand it all without having to mentally translate. But my husband was a "reader" -- how do you explain that one to Americans? Because it is different to "professor".

"reader" always makes me giggle. It sounds like someone who gets paid to sit and read stuff all day. My ideal job!     

There are tons and tons of different dialects and accents in the UK - hundreds probably.

Where I grew up, you only had to drive 5 or 10 miles down the road to hear a different accent. I currently live in Lincoln and work with about 16 people... I think every single person in the office has a different accent .

This BBC page has audio samples from loads of different accents in the UK: http://www.bbc.co.uk/voices/recordings/

Ohhh!! Awesome! Thank you!! I can't wait to check this out! 

For some reason all my friends in the U.S. think that everyone sounds like the posh upper-side English people (they can't seem to understand how such a small place has so many different accents!). I hear different accents here all the time and that is just between Newcastle, Stoke and Stafford which is like 15 minutes away from each other! (Or at least they sound different to me!) That doesn't include any place even just 30 miles away! (Manchester in one direction and Birmingham in the other! LOL!)

I've been with DF for almost four years now, but I only realized this week that he's always saying "that's ace!" Contextually, I'm interpreting it as "that's excellent" or "that's cool." It's not my favorite of his sayings mostly because he says it all the time.

On the flip side, he's constantly having to translate for me when I tell waiters and waitresses that I'm "all set." He's started counting the number of times I say it in one day. Apparently, I say it all the time.