MissMeiya:


What language are you speaking? Is it any Nigerian language, or even pidgin? So, by your own criteria, you wouldn't even respect yourself, would you. Stop excusing mediocrity.

I suppose because the Internet was invented in America, you would have no problem paying a Nigerian web designer to build you a website that didn't work. "Cuz it's the slave man's invention."

You are a fool, and you will never develop or improve.

solomonsojay:


SIr OP.
With all humility, I don't quite understand why you started this thread sef!

You said and I quote "immediately,I felt the
"spirit of bad English' in what he said above". If your main reason was to question why most Nigerian students hardly speak correct english, then you sure have a big problem with presentation which equally portray your poor english language skills.

If you don't mind sir, I will gladly support my arguments with a few salient points.

1. There is NOTHING like GOOD or BAD English like you said in the parted I quoted earlier.
Its either its CORRECT or INCORRECT English.

2. English has NO spirit hence, bad english spirit can not be in a statment. 'also quoting from your statement'. Am sure u just wanted to say u weren't too sure if that clause was ok for the intended purpose in which it was used.

3. Seeing all the flaws in your write up and studying various poorly placed patterns in your writing skills, I SAY WITH ALL HUMILITY...you DO NOT have the intellectual capacity to dabble into a topic such as this which tries to invalidate the proficiency of somone's use of a language such as the western english.

I rest my case.
but knowing that there is not one who is perfect...I STAND TO BE "WISELY" CORRECTED.

Keenysbojan:
what course did you study in school?

valmunich:
I opened, read and decided to book space

I then noticed that there's a nigga out there craving to have this space....



I was like ok, this property is not for sale

Joenice:
Hey girl :-) just take it easy and don't let that hold you back. Nairaland is like a war zone for some folks:-)

INNOisBACK:

IYANGBALI:
just like the op

roymary:


"Then, i noticed..."

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

Tbken:
the guy nailed you
you are the one dull here:::better fasten up
no be must say we go speak vocab sef::americans no even see beta english speak

Karleb:


That explains why you quoted me twice, just to say this.


Some people can be silly sha.

Keenysbojan:
please explain to us..we are to learn

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

Karleb:
There is nothing wrong with that phrase, it's just that it is no formal English.

fulfillment22:


Oyinbo gun ni o, chai...
it should be: 'which course did you study in the school?' yet, u say sm1 is dull*

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

Teen slang: What's, like, so wrong with like?
By Denise Winterman BBC News Magazine

Emma Thompson: Teenage slang - do I not like that?

Actress Emma Thompson says young people make themselves sound stupid by speaking slang outside of school. But while the use of the word "like" might annoy her, it fulfils a useful role in everyday speech.

"That's, like, so unfair."

One response to Emma Thompson's comments likely to trigger a rush of steam from her ears.

The Oscar winner has spoken out against the use of sloppy language. She says people who speak improperly make her feel "insane" and she criticises teenagers for using words such as "like" and "innit".

But is peppering one's sentences with "like" such a heinous crime against the English tongue?

Language experts are more understanding of teen culture than Thompson, pointing out the word's many uses. It's the unconventional uses that are probably getting the actress hot under the collar. One of the most common is using "like" as a filler word in a conversation.

But fillers are a way we all stall for time when speaking and historically always have. It has nothing to do with sloppiness, says John Ayto, editor of the Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang.

"It is not a lazy use of language, that is a common fallacy among non-linguists," he says. "We all use fillers because we can't keep up highly-monitored, highly-grammatical language all the time. We all have to pause and think.

[size=13pt]"We have always used words to plug gaps or make sentences run smoothly. They probably did in Anglo Saxon times, it's nothing new."
[/size]
[size=18pt]But crucially, we often use non-word fillers, such at "um" and "ah". The fact that "like" is an actual word could be why Thompson doesn't like it.

“Start Quote

Using 'um' may seem more correct to Emma Thompson because using 'like' as a filler is not a feature of her language”

Robert Groves Editor of the Dictionary of the English Language


"When words break out from a specific use and become commonly used in a different way, people come down on them," says Dr Robert Groves, editor of the Collins Dictionary Of The English Language.

"Using 'um' may seem more correct to Emma Thompson because using 'like' as a filler is not a feature of the language she uses. The more disassociated you are from the group that uses a word in a different way, the more that use stands out. It will be invisible to teenagers."
[size=17pt]
Another common use of "like" by young people is as a quotative, which is a grammatical device to mark reported speech. For example: "She was like, 'you aren't using that word correctly' and I was like, 'yes I am'."[/size]
[size=13pt]
It is also commonly used to indicate a metaphor or exaggeration. "I, like, died of embarrassment when you told me to stop using slang." Alternatively, it is employed to introduce a facial expression, gesture or sound. A speaker may say "I was like..." and then hold their hands up, shrug or roll their eyes.[/size]

While certain uses of language - such as fillers - have probably always been around, the appropriation of "like" in this context can be traced to a familiar source of so much modern day slang- California's Valley Girls.

Teenage girls

A guide to teenage slang

"Many of these uses of 'like' originate in America," says Dr Groves. "They were probably introduced into British English through the media, like films and television."

Using "like" in this way is also about signalling membership of a club, says English language specialist Professor Clive Upton, from the University of Leeds.

"If they [young people] do deploy the sort of language they're using on the streets in formal settings then it could well be a disadvantage to them but at other times it's quite clearly the way they get along, the way that they signal they belong in a group, the way that they fit in.

"And we all do that in our professional lives as well. We've got all our acronyms and our little words that we use that send a signal - I'm one of the club."

Thompson just isn't part of the "like" club.

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.

chucky234:
ITK "I Was like ok" is a wrong grammar.

It's a good job Emma didn't live in the late 16th Century/ early 17th Century. There was a guy running around back then who didnt use language as his peers did, he made up words, changed the structure of how he used these new made up words and flouted the conventional thinking on most aspects of English. He was called William Shakespeare... Language is not a set of rules, its a way of communication. The one constant thing with a thriving language is change.

briantex:
[size=58pt] I was like lemme comment but ah said no,its of no use[/size]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a6Kna-xF5g