Grammar that makes you cringe

[Cudzoziemiec]

Along with "yourself". I think, like you, that many people see it as a more formal and polite version of "me" or "you".

[Cudzoziemiec]

I was thinking of Billie Holiday but Wikipedia says there are at least ten songs (or versions of songs) by the same name.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Me,_Myself,_and_I

[Peter]

Then there's George Harrison's "I, Me, Mine".

[Nuncio]

It's all 'myself, myself, myself' with some people.

[Tim Hall]

^^^ 'myself' seems to be on the increase. I think I have 2 or 3 entries in this thread bemoaning my colleagues' usage. The most common one I see at work is,"For more information, please do not hesitate to contact myself." I suspect some of my colleagues think 'myself' is a formal version of 'me'. Even worse is, "Myself and Bob are going to..."

It really is one of my pet peeves at work. Hate it, hate it, hate it.

Bonus points for "...contact myself going forwards."

[Cudzoziemiec]

^^^ 'myself' seems to be on the increase. I think I have 2 or 3 entries in this thread bemoaning my colleagues' usage. The most common one I see at work is,"For more information, please do not hesitate to contact myself." I suspect some of my colleagues think 'myself' is a formal version of 'me'. Even worse is, "Myself and Bob are going to..."

It really is one of my pet peeves at work. Hate it, hate it, hate it.

Bonus points for "...contact myself going forwards."

Does this mean "Walking while touching my toes"?

[ian]

I spent far too many milliseconds there wondering how someone wanks while touching their toes.

[L CC]

Seen on a buy & sell FB group: "please inbox myself". 

 

The pretentious use of "myself" instead of "me" is my least favourite faux - formal.

ETA: Doh. We are as one on this, Jasmine.

[Paul]

Myself also! It makes my toes curl, listening to someone referring to me as ‘yourself’, regardless of the hideously ugly resulting construction.

[Kim]

I find it so objectionable that I nearly overlooked the verbificationising of 'inbox'.   

[Mr Larrington]

I once had a long phone conversation with a very Scottish lady from Horseybank's credit card fraud department who substituted “yourself” for “you” 100% of the time.  I wot not whether this is a generic Scottishism but if it is it shouldn’t be.

[ian]

I'll let a bona fide Scotchoid confirm, but from my tenure in the Wet Place, 'yourself' seemed to be common. I lived in the posh bit they called Edinburgh, though.

You should hear what Americans do to Edinburgh though. I know how the French must feel when they visit Des Moines. (We have never been, ian!)

[citoyen]

You should hear what Americans do to Edinburgh though. I know how the French must feel when they visit Des Moines. (We have never been, ian!)

I wonder if the residents of Des Moines know the name means "some monks".

[Cudzoziemiec]

I wondered how Des Moines is pronounced so checked it out on Wikipedia. Surprised not to hear any S.

[ElyDave]

I once had a long phone conversation with a very Scottish lady from Horseybank's credit card fraud department who substituted “yourself” for “you” 100% of the time.  I wot not whether this is a generic Scottishism but if it is it shouldn’t be.

I once corrected every "outwith" in a procedure written by a Scot, nowadays I dinnae bother, it's just the way they talk

[Cudzoziemiec]

"There is a green hill far away outwith a city wall" Would that be more or less confusing for the kids that sing it (if they still do)?

[citoyen]

"There is a green hill far away outwith a city wall" Would that be more or less confusing for the kids that sing it (if they still do)?

Don't know about that, but you've reminded me that there's a village/suburb near Canterbury called Thanington Without. I doubt it would be any more or less confusing if it were called Thanington Outwith. (I assume there must be other places across the UK that have 'Without' in their name, for the same reason, ie being just outside the city walls, but that's the only one I know of.)

[Cudzoziemiec]

St Michael's on the Mount Without is a church and associated primary school in Bristol. Apparently the name owes its origins to it having been one of the first churches outside the old city walls.

[ian]

I wondered how Des Moines is pronounced so checked it out on Wikipedia. Surprised not to hear any S.

It's semi-authentic for Iowans, but everyone passing through seems to call it Dez Moins.

[Kim]

I once had a long phone conversation with a very Scottish lady from Horseybank's credit card fraud department who substituted “yourself” for “you” 100% of the time.  I wot not whether this is a generic Scottishism but if it is it shouldn’t be.

I once corrected every "outwith" in a procedure written by a Scot, nowadays I dinnae bother, it's just the way they talk

'Outwith' is a perfectly good useful word.  'Yourself' as a substitute for 'you' is just the wrong useful word.

[Tim Hall]

I once had a long phone conversation with a very Scottish lady from Horseybank's credit card fraud department who substituted “yourself” for “you” 100% of the time.  I wot not whether this is a generic Scottishism but if it is it shouldn’t be.

I once corrected every "outwith" in a procedure written by a Scot, nowadays I dinnae bother, it's just the way they talk

Outwith is a perfectly cromulent word.

[ElyDave]

without = lacking
outwith = outside

is my understanding, and there is no interchangeability or venn diagram alignment?

[hatler]

But the classic carol line "... without a city wall ..." means outside too.

[citoyen]

without = lacking
outwith = outside

is my understanding, and there is no interchangeability or venn diagram alignment?

As noted earlier, without in place names and trad carols means outside.

There is no semantic distinction, any more than there is between 'built in' and the modish 'inbuilt'.

[T42]

without = lacking
outwith = outside

is my understanding, and there is no interchangeability or venn diagram alignment?

As noted earlier, without in place names and trad carols means outside.

There is no semantic distinction, any more than there is between 'built in' and the modish 'inbuilt'.

According to Chambers', without is derived from the Anglo-Saxon withutan. I wonder if they argued over withutan versus utwithan.  I like utwithan better.