this post was submitted on 08 Dec 2023
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Showerthoughts

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I got hung up on contractions this morning regarding the word "you've". Normally, I'd say "you've got a problem", which expands to "you have got a problem", which isn't wrong, but I normally wouldn't say. Not contracting, I'd say "you have a problem", so then should I just say "you've a problem"? That sounds weird in my head. Is this just a US English problem?

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[–] guy@lemmy.world 100 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

In the sentence "you have a problem", "have" is the main verb. When reduced to the clitic "'ve", it becomes a weak form and is only expected to be used as an auxiliary verb. These types of verbs must be followed by the main verb. "a" is not a verb. Thus, we insert "got".

If we do not insert "got", the stress in the sentence moves and it sounds overly affected.

I'm not too sure, but I think "be" ("is", "are") is the only verb that can be contracted and still remain a main verb. I'm not too sure why.

[–] reddig33@lemmy.world 17 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

🏆 Award for well thought out and educational answer!

[–] UndercoverGranny@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago

I can't find the clitic.

[–] rhythmisaprancer@kbin.social 7 points 1 year ago

To add to this, "have got" is perfect tense. "You're a man" is different because "are" isn't an auxiliary verb here, it is just added to "you" as a contraction. That phrase would probably be an existential clause.

I miss World Wide Words!

[–] AnExerciseInFalling@programming.dev 39 points 1 year ago (1 children)

English is weird. It can be understood through tough thorough thought, though

[–] jasondj@ttrpg.network 8 points 1 year ago

My god it’s a tongue twister for my internal monologue.

[–] Jhogenbaum@leminal.space 30 points 1 year ago

You've mail!

[–] Rhynoplaz@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] MorrisonMotel6@lemm.ee 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] kamenlady@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago

It seems that i'm. The solution's me.

[–] Sendpicsofsandwiches@sh.itjust.works 19 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"You've a problem" actually still works, but it's an older way of saying it

[–] crypticthree@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Yeah, I've definitely heard Brits say similar phrases

[–] Transcendant@lemmy.world 16 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (4 children)

Yes, English is weird.

'Bough' and 'cough' are not pronounced the same. 'Bough' and 'bow' are pronounced the same. 'Knee' and 'Leigh' are pronounced the same. 'Neigh' and 'nay' are pronounced the same. 'Polish' (the nationality) and 'polish' (as in what you do to a metal object) are not pronounced the same. 'Tear' (as in to rip) and 'tear' (as in to cry) are spelled the same, but not pronounced the same. Other words which are spelled the same, but pronounced differently:

resume / resume present / present record / record close / close use / use live / live

[–] TeaHands@lemmy.world 31 points 1 year ago (1 children)

‘Bough’ and ‘bow’ are pronounced the same

Except, of course, when "bow" is pronounced "bow" instead.

[–] MisterMcBolt@lemmy.world 8 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I shot the boughs with my bow and then gave a bow to my beau!

[–] teft@startrek.website 4 points 1 year ago

The last one should be spelled beau if you mean your special guy.

[–] HonoraryMancunian@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

'Knee' and 'Leigh' are pronounced the same.

Well they rhyme, but I wouldn't go as far as to say they're pronounced the same

[–] Transcendant@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Leigh can be pronounced like 'Lee' or 'Lay'

[–] HonoraryMancunian@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

No I know that, but knee isn't pronounced like Lee :P

[–] Globulart@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago

What does leigh pronounced lay mean...?

[–] DirigibleProtein@aussie.zone 4 points 1 year ago

Leigh put the Polish bough over his knee but couldn’t polish it. “What’s the use!” he coughed.

[–] Illecors@lemmy.cafe 2 points 1 year ago (7 children)

I've got all but the use/use one. What's the other usecase if one is "to consume"?

[–] frosty99c@midwest.social 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

It has utility = it has use

To consume = to use

[–] Transcendant@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

You can have a use for something, and you can also use something (first one is pronounced the same as the end of 'papoose', second one is pronounced the same as 'ooze')

[–] MurrayL@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

The noun 'use', as in 'this has a specific use'

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[–] triclops6@lemmy.ca 13 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You've a problem is proper English as well, albeit more often used in the UK than in NA, feel free to use it!

[–] answersplease77@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

'uve problm bruv?

[–] Stretch2m@lemm.ee 13 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Tom Scott has a great video on contractions.

https://youtu.be/CkZyZFa5qO0

[–] PipedLinkBot@feddit.rocks 1 points 1 year ago

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[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago

Yeah but that’s not English only. Try saying “de el” in Spanish and it sounds super wrong, for similar reasons. Sometimes contractions kill what they replace

[–] Thorry84@feddit.nl 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] PipedLinkBot@feddit.rocks 5 points 1 year ago

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[–] ElderWendigo@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

It depends on your emphasis. "You HAVE got a problem there," doesn't sound weird when you emphasize the have. You've a problem doesn't sound weird, just a bit British.

[–] HikingVet@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 year ago

No, this is a problem with the language in general.

[–] CarlsIII@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago

People do say that though.

[–] Lmaydev@programming.dev 3 points 1 year ago

It also has secret rules look up adjectives ordering and vowel ordering.

[–] intensely_human@lemm.ee 3 points 1 year ago

You’ve got mail!

Goodbye!

[–] Bunnylux@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

I actually think that 'you have a problem's and 'you have got/you've got a problem' are subtely different in meaning. If someone has something, they may have had it all along. It sort of has an ongoing ontological quality. If someone has got something, it implies that they got it at some point in time. I think.

[–] helmet91@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

"you have got a problem", which isn't wrong

Can someone explain to me, why isn't it "you have gotten a problem"?

[–] Anonymouse@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Y'all crack me up with many of these comments!

[–] RTRedreovic@feddit.ch 1 points 1 year ago (3 children)

English has quite many problems in a lot of components. It is not phonemic and is very complex. That is one of the main reasons I got interested in learning Esperanto. It is simple, phonemic and planned to be good.

Bonan tagon al ĉiuj esperantistoj ĉi tie.

[–] TeaHands@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] lupec@lemm.ee 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It says a lot that I don't know a lick of Esperanto yet even without the emote I'd have known for sure what you were saying. Working as intended!

[–] TeaHands@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

Jes!

(That's Esperanto for "yes". It's pronounced "yes" 😄)

[–] senloke@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 1 year ago

Saluton, kiel vi?

[–] Horsey@kbin.social 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Contractions are very regional and a product of spoken English which varies quite a lot from place to place. For example, I use contractions that I don’t see people around me using like: y’all (plural 2nd person pronoun that’s missing in official English speech; verbs are conjugated the same as 2nd person singular forms), shouldn’t’ve, gonna (going to/ going to want to), wanna (want to), that’re, then’ll, then’re etc.

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