I teach English at a Japanese high school, and some fellow collegues seems to think "I beg your pardon" is a little out of date. What do you think?
2006-11-30 18:04:56 · 10 answers · asked by Izumioha 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
I don't think so. I still hear it quite a bit but keep in mind that I am from a small southern town where even our speech takes a while to get updated.
2006-11-30 18:10:01 · answer #1 · answered by chr1 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's not necessarily old-fashioned, but I agree that it is more formal and, depending on intonation, could be seen as confrontational.
That being said, all languages have formal and informal tones - English is not unique in this sense. The word "ain't" is an entirely acceptable contraction in the grammar of the English language yet is viewed by many as an improper construction. This comes from the view that certain forms of a language are somehow inherently better than others.
The prescriptive grammar taught in many schools is considered to be "proper" English when, in fact, many so-called improper constructions conform to the structure of English. One oft-cited prescriptivist rule is to never end a sentence with a preposition. This rule has nothing to do with comprehension or the underlying structure of English. Sentences ended with prepositions are equally as understandable as their rule-following counterparts. It just happens that a long time ago, for no practical reason, it was "determined" that one way of speaking was better (search for "The Queen's English" for some historical background).
Language's primary purpose is communication. It's important to acknowledge that all languages change over time and the notion of language "corruption" is in the ear of the listener. The social judgments reached based on language use are not inherent to languages themselves but a result of socialization and history. I shall now descend from my linguistic soap box. Have a pleasant day!
2006-12-03 17:12:26 · answer #2 · answered by Iowa G 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's not really out of date, just very formal - and considered to be correct use of the English language.
The modern alternatives such as "What?" and "Huh?" and so on are slang terms.
It's the same with time. Using "five and twenty past" as opposed to "twenty five past" is considered old-fashioned - but again is simply correct use of the English language.
In spite of many people's opinions, English is actually a very formal language. It has become corrupted by too many slang terms, which have unfortunately ended up in everyday use.
2006-12-01 02:18:54 · answer #3 · answered by Andrew W 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No its not old fashioned i don't think!! some say I beg your pardon or just pardon or sorry & they even say ( I BEG YOUR PARDON ) when they are cranky when someone says some thing they don't like
2006-12-01 03:57:20 · answer #4 · answered by ausblue 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't agree that it is out of date. It may be too "formal" in modern society... we have modified it to be ... Huh? or "excuse me?" or "say what?". I like I beg your pardon, it should be used more often, its a bit more respectful than the alternatives.
2006-12-01 02:09:44 · answer #5 · answered by ••Mott•• 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not old fashioned but certainly very formal, and possibly aggressive - not generally used in normal conversation in english english.
2006-12-01 02:18:06 · answer #6 · answered by Ken B 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is somewhat old-fashioned in a casual setting; most of the time, simply saying, "Excuse me" or "I'm sorry" is sufficient. However, if in doubt, it is better to err on the side of caution in matters of politeness.
2006-12-01 02:13:18 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
out of oyur date like a jar of vegemite labeled used by feb64
2006-12-03 04:28:12 · answer #8 · answered by brenthba 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yep....I usually just exclaim "excuse me!?" when I really mean I beg your pardon...
2006-12-01 02:13:50 · answer #9 · answered by ♥Lucky♥ 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I hear 'excuse me' a whole lot more today.
2006-12-01 04:36:48 · answer #10 · answered by ericscribener 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋