I HAVE NEVER USED THAT SILLY PHRASE BEFORE.
IT ANNOYS ME WHEN THIS MUMU GIRLS USE IT. SOME SILLY GUYS USE IT TOO.

tintingz:
and I was like OK you also deserve a LIKE.

It is a Naija thing.

Even the Americans have their own slangs that's is not good English command.

Thank you, but pls go and read the modified post. Its only correct in infomal/semi-formal speech making e.g. talking and totally wrong in writing except for direct speech writing style.

At first, I was like ok maybe its correct, at dsame time I was like ok am not sure if its correct, so I was like ok lemme make further research on it !

Keenysbojan:
I have been wondering why Nigerian students always use the word 'i was like ok' in every of their saying... I found it difficult to believe that 'i was like ok' is a correct short sentence, in English...

because I have sat down and think about this all over and over and over,and through research I found that there is no short sentence in English, like 'i was like ok'.. but some Nigerians are so terrible when it comes to the aspects of speaking or writing standard English...

A student of unilorin came to meet my big bro at home,and he said I have been trying your number since I left Lagos and I WAS LIKE OK LET ME CALL YOUR YOUNGER BROTHER TO CONFIRM..

immediately,I felt the 'spirit of bad English' in what he said above... since then I have been searching,I have been asking those who are highly educated and those who study English in universities.. if the use of I WAS LIKE OK is good to speak..

to nairelanders do any of you have anything to say about this topic... share your own points of view and let some 'BAD English speaker(s)' learn from you.. thanks

Yours Faithfully
k e e n y s b o j a n

In Nigerian society, no one encourages good English. Sometimes, you have to speak or write what they're used to, otherwise they'll ignore you :-) Most people here pronounce words incorrectly.

MissMeiya:


So English is only the official language on paper, huh?

Ask the Native Americans what America's "indigenous" language is.

you are now digressing from our original argument.

There is nothing wrong with it if properly punctuated.infact it can even be used in formal writing if properly punctuated

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Lemme strt dis way;
'I was like,ok' is a very correct sentence if u put d punctuation marks into consideratn. it is correct in d written form buh because d P.Marks r soundless in speech, it makes it look incorrect.

Some words/sentences hv bcome fashion in dis part of d world n I think dis is one of such cases.

Finally, whether it is grammatically correct or nt. Let us embrace our own n stop makin it a bone of contentn because no b all white fit even speak their language correctly. #Gbam!

SeverusSnape:
That's "Nigerian English"... Nigerian students must not speak the "queen's English".Great Nigerian Student's!........ GREAT!

A very big lie.... The phrase "I was like" is an idiomatic expression that simply means "I said", it is mostly used in California.

"I was like" is a correct grammar, but it is informal like someone earlier said.

Keenysbojan:
I can some traces of dullness..(no offence please)

I guess u went to cambridge university

YungwizzzyChina:
Before I opened this thread I was like ok this thread will make sense

I was like ok am going to comment on your post

MissMeiya:


Yes, it does. This "English is not my father's language" is a shoddy excuse for poor grammar. Which language are you using right now? Whatever language you are using, you must use it correctly.

Did you know that English is not America's official language? But it is Nigeria's official language. Who should speak it better? Smh.

Nah
You have it all wrong
English is the construct of colonialism
I would not judge anyone's intelligence (an African) by their ablity to speak, or write good English

But I would totally judge anyone and see them as without class, cruel and even still with slave mentality..(did anyone ever read those books on slavery?) if they judged people or treated them unkindly in real life or online because of simple inability to speak or write good English

During slavery in America, the slave in charge of the others (usually chosen cos he learnt the language of domination first, or better)
would be treated a bit more nicely, and then, what happens is that he feels better than other slaves, treats them with disrespect, gets uppity and starts feeling like the master

But you know what? He was still a slave, he knew it, the other slaves knew it, and their master knew it

So what gives?
(I give up, at us!)

English is nt our language n I'm lyk y take ibucap for another man's ache...freedom of speech nt english

Shyna112:
Its becoming more and very common amongst nigerian student, i will advice dem to stop dis poor and wrong use to english language

"I was like" is a very correct grammar... I don't use it but it's absolutely correct.

It's totally wrong..Nigerians,(especially ladies) are fond of this,and their expression while uttering that grammatical blunder makes u think it's right.
Why would a so called graduate use these words together "should incase","extreme end","still yet". In english it's referred to as tautology. So "I was like ok" is not and cannot be correct

The expression is not formal and not popular outside Nigeria but until a set rules is used to prove that it is wrong, it remains right. This is the law of linguistic variation and dialectology. This expression when written appears as, "I was like....... ok,...". And that goes a long way to explain that it is only found in spoken English (as against written English) and thus qualifies as acceptable given the fact that disjointed speeches are not uncommon in spoken language. While talking, one could say, "Stella Obasanjo was killed by...... well I don't know. Let me not say what I don't know". Now, what makes the subject matter peculiar is the fact that it has become, more or less, a regular expression.

Here is a more academic explanation for fellow linguists:

The word. 'like' is expected to be followed by a noun or a pronoun. Example: "I was like a king in my class then". However, while in conversation, it is not abnormal for the speaker to have difficulty choosing the right word (mostly nouns) to use to explain a particular situation or action. Such a speaker might then have a brief pause (indicated by the ellipsis [...]) and then switch over to a phrasal explanation of the needed word (which normally starts with 'ok' to indicate resignation). Such break-and-continue pattern is very common even with native speakers and while writing direct speeches/quotations, they must be indicated in as much as they are not acceptable in written English.

Examples:

1) When he said he wouldn't marry her, I was like....... (can't pick the correct word here)........ ok, what are your reasons? (goes for an expression instead).

2) When I saw Mother Theresa crying, I was like....... (again can't pick the correct word here)........ Jeez, what could have made the Holy Mother so sad? (again, goes for an expression instead).

What is rather amazing is the way this expression is now employed as if it's some sort of phrasal verb or idiomatic expression even in well prepared speeches. But then, that's the nature of linguistic variation and, in case you do not know, this is how expressions originate in languages (linguistic growth).

So, OP, it is not totally wrong (acceptable in spoken English only) but abnormally popular.
Nice observation, though.

A nice day to you all.

milychocs:




Nah
You have it all wrong
English is the construct of colonialism
I would not judge anyone's intelligence (an African) by their ablity to speak, or write good English

But I would totally judge anyone and see them as without class, cruel and even still with slave mentality..(Uncle Tom anyone) if they judged people or treated them unkindly in real life or online because of simple, inability to speak or write good English

During slavery in America, the slave in charge of the others (usually chosen cos he learnt the language of domination first, or better)
Would be treated a bit more nicely, and then, what happens is that he feels better than other slaves, treats them with disrespect, gets uppity and starts feeling like the master

But you know what? He is still a slave, he knows it, the other skaves know it, and their master knows it

So what gives?
(I give up, at us!)

You are so terribly and pitifully wrong. I hate colonialism and the lasting effects it has had on Africa more than anyone. But don't you dare use it to excuse mediocrity. If you are that much against the English language, you had better find a new language to speak.

Ridiculous. If you are going to do something, freaking do it right. I am actually involved in researching and developing mother tongue literacy and standardizing the written form of my language. And what are you doing? Encouraging Nigerians to shame themselves by speaking incorrect English, which for many young Nigerians, is actually the only language they know.

So stop it.

Question, "who is knocking?"
Answer , me or I

I is grammatically correct
Me, while bad grammar, is idiomatically correct

And idioms of expressions are like, totally okay
Deal with it

MEILYN:
A very big lie.... The phrase "I was like" is an idiomatic expression that simply means "I said", it is mostly used in California.

"I was like" is a correct grammar, but it is informal like someone earlier said.

Sir, I was only joking.

Keenysbojan:
are you a member of 'I was like ok' group?

This cud perhaps change your mindset :"a large portion of the OXFORD DICTIONNARY was written by a MURDERER FROM A MENTAL INSTITUTION"...source:@factbook..wat does that tell you about the English language? Infact I was listening to the BBCnews,it said that the english language,has been able to survive,largely due to it's ability to evolve and adapt to changes instead of been static..so tink again..all this our follow follow don too much,nigeria is old and big enof to have it own version of the English language,known as "Nigerian English",so get use to that

SeverusSnape:
Sir, I was only joking.

lool... I never knew

Keenysbojan:
I have been wondering why Nigerian students always use the word 'i was like ok' in every of their saying... I found it difficult to believe that 'i was like ok' is a correct short sentence, in English...

because I have sat down and think about this all over and over and over,and through research I found that there is no short sentence in English, like 'i was like ok'.. but some Nigerians are so terrible when it comes to the aspects of speaking or writing standard English...

A student of unilorin came to meet my big bro at home,and he said I have been trying your number since I left Lagos and I WAS LIKE OK LET ME CALL YOUR YOUNGER BROTHER TO CONFIRM..

immediately,I felt the 'spirit of bad English' in what he said above... since then I have been searching,I have been asking those who are highly educated and those who study English in universities.. if the use of I WAS LIKE OK is good to speak..

to nairelanders do any of you have anything to say about this topic... share your own points of view and let some 'BAD English speaker(s)' learn from you.. thanks

Yours Faithfully
k e e n y s b o j a n

Please whenever you want to prove a statement or sentence as a wrong one, always endeavour to make it expressly done, not a shallow work like this. What rule of semantics, concord, tense principle, lexis and structure, etc that proves the clause wrong?

The best you can do is to punctuate the clause for the person very well i.e ( When he said it, I was like, ok, let us go to my house' ). That is a complete sentence and it is reasonable. Well punctuated and succinct. But the man or woman in question made a verbal expression , so, your opinion, to me, on this, is irrelevant.

You have only successfully created an unnecessary thread. What is wrong there?

Some sentences are correct provided they are used colloquially only ie. verbally and informally but people tend to say they are wrong even when they don't have a proof on that.

You cannot be a better Christian than Jesus please. Even the brit use words that are informal when they are applicable.

@op have you heard of Nigerian English before?there is what is called Nigerian English and your topic is one of them

Folks insult their elders and say no offense... ...damn! What's the wahala with 'em

For the OP, the phrase is absolutely correct when used informally in conversations. It needs to be stated that written and spoken forms of languages differ and speech forms would also vary, depending on who is being addressed. For instance, while its use would suggest lack of etiquette in formal, corporate communication, there is nothing wrong with it when used among peers.

MissMeiya:


Yes, it does. This "English is not my father's language" is a shoddy excuse for poor grammar. Which language are you using right now? Whatever language you are using, you must use it correctly.

Did you know that English is not America's official language? But it is Nigeria's official language. Who should speak it better? Smh.

Very true... The United States doesn't have an official language. I totally agree with you. We should even speak English more than them.

MEILYN:
lool... I never knew

MissMeiya:


You are so terribly and pitifully wrong. I hate colonialism and the lasting effects it has had on Africa more than anyone. But don't you dare use it to excuse mediocrity. If you are that much against the English language, you had better find a new language to speak.

Ridiculous. If you are going to do something, freaking do it right. I am actually involved in researching and developing mother tongue literacy and standardizing the written form of my language. And what are you doing? Encouraging Nigerians to shame themselves by speaking incorrect English, which for many young Nigerians, is actually the only language they know.

So stop it.

No, you stop it!!!!
Freaking is wrong, and being rude is worse

Live and let live
The Golden Rule

There is no prize for "knowing"good English
But I would totally give someone my respect if he could speak three Nigerian languages, out of a hundred, or more, good Pidgin (so he reaches the common man) and passable English...or really good English but not uppity and "oh, I am so good at dear old English, and you are not".......

Which I notice is evident in your post

So how about you stop it....and now
Rant over
Cheers

P.S....it is not mediocrity to speak or write English badly! Circumstances can lead to that.....I, born poor, live in the village, attend a bush school, speak badly.....not a reflection of who I am...
Someone else, in a totally different circumstance of life is not better than me just because he speaks and writes better English
In medical school, a "bush" person with his atrocious English always bested me during exam. Why, he was teaching us too!! In his poor English!

If this is not clear to you....then I must bid you adieu

kingingkinging:


Please whenever you want to prove a statement or sentence as a wrong one, always endeavour to make it expressly done, not a shallow work like this. What rule of semantics, concord, tense principle, lexis and structure, etc that proves the clause wrong?

The best you can do is to punctuate the clause for the person very well i.e ( When he said it, I was like, ok, let us go to my house' ). That is a complete sentence and it is reasonable. Well punctuated and succinct. But the man or woman in question made a verbal expression , so, your opinion, to me, on this, is irrelevant.

You have only successfully created an unnecessary thread. What is wrong there?

Some sentences are correct provided they are used colloquially only ie. verbally and informally but people tend to say they are wrong even when they don't have a proof on that.

You cannot be a better Christian than Jesus please. Even the brit use words that are informal when they are applicable.

God bless you jare. Kiss kiss

tintingz:
and I was like OK you deserve a Like.

And I'm like thanks gee

eunisam:
As a Nigerian,the most important thing is did you understood what he meant?

Guy please correct your grammar... Stop embarrassing us. Did you UNDERSTAND not UNDERSTOOD...

like i knew it! i was like ok u are one of dem

hoyinkansola:
;Dgeez.. i was like..i'm really guilty of dis sentence..