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Irk, irk, pet peeve....that and frustrated vs flustrated.
Hey, I use flustrated. Not out of ignorance but because it describes exactly my feeling at work when I am being trained on a new procedure and I am under a lot of stress. I get both flustered by the insane pace and frustrated that I am expected to keep up with the seasoned pros in the department. After an hour of being pushed to the limit this way I'm quite flustrated.
The complete laziness of the American people in the use of the word supposably has caused it to become a generally accepted term. Just like words such as chillax, dis, and ax (ask). Some words are completely made up but give the speaker a false sense of sounding educated: irregardless, exspecially, and misinterpretated. However I think I will actually pull out my hair the next time my neighbor axes me if I'll borrow my lawnmower to her over the weekend!!
Thankyou bostonguy. I HATE HATE HATE that non-word "supposably"!!!!!
A pet peeve of mine
Do people have marbles in their mouth or ar they just plain lazy?
Since it did not elaborate on a definition, it supposedly follows the literal form of the -able ending added to the defined word. In other words, something capable of being supposed would be 'supposable'.
If it is possible to suppose something, that something is supposable. A second gunman on the Grassy Knoll is supposable, an alien from Jupiter is not. By rule, every adjective has an -ly form that can be used to describe an action of the thing so described, no matter the contortions necessary to use it in a sentence. Hence, "supposably".
However, 'supposedly' derives from "things that are supposed", as opposed to things that are undisputed. Her unverified activity in the bathroom was supposed, so she was supposedly washing her hair when I called.
Interestingly, though, 'presmuable' and 'presumably' have made a full divergence, and the dictionary no longer lists 'presumably' as an adverbial form of 'presumable'. 'Presumable' means capable of being presumed. But 'presumably' means probably. Which sounds like pretty much the same thing, to me, but the dictionary splits them up into two unrelated words.
I find pronunciation of words is more interesting as I age and my ability to hear lessens. I hear some very interesting things. So interesting that I often tell Mrs. Tek what I just heard before I respond.
Hmmm.... it's interesting that it may be a regional thing. I've never actually heard (or at least was aware of hearing) "supposably" as a word before actually reading this and I'm Canadian.
However I think I will actually pull out my hair the next time my neighbor axes me if I'll borrow my lawnmower to her over the weekend!!
Instead of actually pulling out your hair, try telling your neighbor how educamated her use of the language makes her sound.
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