What’s not to like about this word? alike? The short answer to that question is “a lot.” Alike has been a particular source of annoyance for those who are annoyed by the language habits of others: while most offensive words, such as despitefind a single major and stick with it, alike annoying people in two different ways. In each case, however, one could argue that alike not as bad as one might think. If you tend to argue about the word alike—or if you just want to know how lexicographers can justify using the word—read on.
People have been complaining about the supposedly incorrect use of ‘like’ for a long time. But there’s nothing wrong with using ‘like’ as a conjunction—and the seemingly meaningless use of ‘like’ by young people isn’t really meaningless, nor is it limited to a specific age or gender. body.
Discomfort #1: Using Alike As a combo
In 1954, an advertising agency that worked for Winston cigarettes adopted a tried and tested method to get their products noticed: they infuriated people. They did this in such a spectacularly wicked, vile way that people still talk about it today. Mentally prepare. Are you ready?
They take a word that many people think should be an adverb, and they use it as a conjunction.
The 1950s were a different time, but the advertising that resulted in one of the most famous commercials of the 20th century: “Winston tastes good, like tobacco should be.” The crowd was hysterical and indignant soon after. Journalist Walter Cronkite, when presented with this ad script to read between news broadcasts, turned it down – not because he was promoting a cancer-causing product, but because he didn’t like the syntax. there. Instead, Cronkite promotes the cancer-causing product with the phrase “Winston is delicious, EQUAL a cigarette should.”
Here is the interesting part: alike has been used as a conjunction in English since the 14th century. It is uncommon, which may explain why complaints about it did not appear until the late 18th century, but there are enough conjunction users. alike from 1800 to 1950 that we noticed a steady stream of people following the language warning against it:
Alike always widely abused by illiterate people; It has recently been used by knowledgeable and informed people, who find it fascinating or liberating, and who use it as if they were in the slums. —Strunk & White, Elements of style1959
Shorts are not acceptable dinner wear at most higher end restaurants…. Similarly, the use of alike as an unacceptable combination in better writing… —Theodore Bernstein, Careful writer1965
The copywriter who came up with the Winston ad should be jailed. —Charles Kuralt, in Harper’s American Usage Dictionary1975
Despite this mid-century advice, people continue to use alike as a conjunction. Actually, the conjunction alike It’s so popular nowadays that many people don’t pay attention to it. And why should they? Again, the conjunction alike been used for 600 years. It is firmly established. It has been used by many prestigious literary figures in the past, though perhaps not in their most high profile works; In modern usage, it can be found in literature, journalism, and academic writing. One can avoid it as a matter of preference, but one cannot deny its existence.
However, this does not mean that alike ended the attack on the sanctity of our language. It does not have.
Discomfort #2: Using Alike When it doesn’t, like, mean anything
Once people stop being upset about alike As a conjunction, they found a new reason to dislike it: the youth’s use of it as a meaningless word.
Fair enough. Except for this novel use of alike It’s not just limited to young people—it’s found in all ages of English speakers—and it doesn’t make any sense at all.
Linguists study this usage alike defined many functions. When someone says, “It must be so, alikefiftieth time you told me not to use alike,” the word functions as an approximate adverb and informs the listener that some estimate of quantity is included in the sentence. When the person himself said, “My mother was alike‘please don’t use likes too much,’” alike serves as a citation separator: something that indicates part of a sentence is quoting or paraphrasing another speaker.
Alike usually found at the beginning of a sentence, in a position commonly considered a discourse marker. Discourse mark is the word you use at the beginning of a sentence when you say “Goodi think use alike in a way that makes you sound silly.” It plays a very similar role to the word at the beginning of a sentence that is uttered in response to your objection: “AlikeIt’s just your opinion.”
A hundred years ago, some writers of language instructed writers to avoid Good for many of the same reasons that people condemn alike Today. Ambrose Bierce, in his 1909 book Write correctlyallusion to Good as “a mere meaningless prelude to a sentence.” But there has never been any outcry against discursive signs, largely because most people, including language writers, don’t know what they are. Unless you’re planning on pursuing a career in linguistics, you shouldn’t be overly concerned with the subject, except to know that discursive accents are common, especially in speech, and most of the time. everyone uses them.
Alike contentless and meaningless when used in these circumstances. It provides information, although that information can be subtle and difficult to parse. If you are not patient enough to decipher whether you are hearing a quote separator or a discourse marker, note that alike is serving another hugely important lexical role, and one that is quite understandable: that of giving millions of people something to complain about.
Categories: Usage Notes
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
