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The Lunacy Of The English Language - Education - Nairaland

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The Lunacy Of The English Language by harbdulrasaq88(m): 11:46am On May 15, 2015
It's the lunacy of the English language.

A retired teacher of English once wrote: 'English is a crazy language.

There is no egg in eggplants, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore it's paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig. And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing; grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham?

If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth beeth? One goose, two geese. So one moose, two meese?.Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? . If teachers taught, why don't preachers praught?

If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane .You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an alarm goes off by going on. English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all.


http://www.edificationinfo.com/2015/05/the-lunacy-of-english-language.html

132 Likes 36 Shares

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by shakazuldadon: 11:48am On May 15, 2015
nice piece

2 Likes 2 Shares

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Nobody: 11:54am On May 15, 2015
This is awesome.

5 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by ElDeeVee(m): 2:11pm On May 15, 2015
Reminds of d phrase 'its high time' which must be followed by a past tense verb....E.g Its high time I slept...

12 Likes

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by boman2014: 2:13pm On May 15, 2015
"Let’s face it: English is a crazy language. There is no
egg in eggplant or ham in hamburger, neither apple nor pine in pineapple.
English muffins were not invented in England or french
fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies, while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly,
boxing rings are square, and a guinea pig is neither
from Guinea nor is it a pig. And why is it that writers
write, but fingers don’t fing, grocers don’t groce, and
hammers don’t ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth,
why isn’t the plural of booth beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So, one moose, 2 meese? One index, two indices?
Is cheese the plural of choose?
If teachers taught, why didn’t preachers praught? If a
vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian
eat?
In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship?
Have noses that run and feet that smell? Park on
driveways and drive on parkways?
How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same,
while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How
can the weather be hot as hell one day an cold as hell another?
When a house burns up, it burns down. You fill in a
form by filling it out and an alarm clock goes off by
going on.
When the stars are out, they are visible, but when the
lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch, I start it, but when I wind up this essay, I
end it?
Now I know why I flunked my English. It’s not my fault;
the silly language doesn’t quite know whether it’s
coming or going." -Richard Lederer.

16 Likes 7 Shares

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by okooloyun1(m): 2:14pm On May 15, 2015
Good job
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by natureblack(m): 2:14pm On May 15, 2015
Peruse at your leisure,English lovers.

* How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend ?

* I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.

* Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.

* Please excuse me while I think if an excuse.

* Hopefully the wind will be strong enough to wind the windmill.

* It's the referee's job to record the new world record.

* The bandage was wound around the wound.

* Please put my laptop to use because I never use it.

* The farm was used to produce produce.

* The dump was full that it had to refuse more refuse.

* We must polish the Polish furniture.

* I did not object to the object.

* When shot at,the dove dove into the bushes.

* They alternate between using the alternate machine and the main one.

* They were too close to the door to close it.

* The seamstress and a sewer fell into a sewer line.

* To help with planting,the farmer taught his sow to sow.

* After a number of injections my jaw got number.



Viewed freely,English language is the accretion and growth of every dielect,race,and range of time,and is both the free compacted composition of all.

37 Likes 5 Shares

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by ITbomb(m): 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
Heavy problem

How English becomes German
.
The European Commission has just announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the European Union rather than German, which was the other possibility.
.
As part of the negotiations, the British Government conceded that English spelling had some room for improvement and has accepted a 5- year phase-in plan that would become known as "Euro-English".
In the first year, "s" will replace the soft "c". Sertainly, this will make the sivil servants jump with joy.
.
The hard "c" will be dropped in favour of "k". This should klear up konfusion, and keyboards kan have one less letter. There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year when the troublesome "ph" will be replaced with "f". This will make words like fotograf 20% shorter.
.
In the 3rd year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible. Governments will enkourage the removal of double letters which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horibl mes of the silent "e" in the languag is disgrasful and it should go away.
.
By the 4th yer people wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing "th" with "z" and "w" with "v".
During ze fifz yer, ze unesesary "o" kan be dropd from vords kontaining "ou" and after ziz fifz yer, ve vil hav a reil sensibl riten styl. Zer vil be no mor trubl or difikultis and evrivun vil find it ezi tu understand ech oza.
.
Ze drem of a united urop vil finali kum tru.
.
Und efter ze fifz yer, ve vil al be speking German like zey vunted in ze forst plas

114 Likes 24 Shares

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Hidentity(m): 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
Succinct and deep. The oral English aspect worries me the most. Just yesterday, I discovered that 'Satchet' is pronounced 'SaKit'. All is well.

MODIFIED: The electronic dictionary checked was wrong. It is not pronounced 'sakit'. Thanks

1 Like 1 Share

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by iykebesbt1(m): 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
Just negodu. Anyway shaa,that's not my mother tongue

1 Like

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by DrSage(m): 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
really really crazy,datz y people who take much interest in dah language often end up perceived as mad fellaz. E.g Hon.Patrick

2 Likes

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Nobody: 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
Reasons why the English language is so hard to
learn;
1) The bandage was wound around the wound.
2) The farm was used to produce, produce.
3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more
refuse.
4) We must polish the Polish furniture.
5) He could be lead if he would wear the lead.
6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the
desert.
7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought
it was time to present the present.

3 Likes

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by 1N9a: 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
grin grin grin

16 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by maggilove(f): 2:15pm On May 15, 2015
I understand u very well because I studied English in the university, all languages have their own dynamism that's what u should try to understand.

1 Like 1 Share

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by laurel03(m): 2:16pm On May 15, 2015
Nice one
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Nobody: 2:16pm On May 15, 2015
Very enjoyable
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by TeGaTeGa1(m): 2:17pm On May 15, 2015
Na broken English sure pass abeg

3 Likes

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by iiiichidodo: 2:17pm On May 15, 2015
Wi tak creole an neber iinglish...dat ah fi di backras an tapanaris pon de society ..
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by sirsharks(m): 2:17pm On May 15, 2015
[size=15pt]Damn trickish[/size]
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Blurry: 2:18pm On May 15, 2015
hhmmm
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Kinkale(m): 2:18pm On May 15, 2015
Op yer head they dre.. English too rubbish, but its best for chyking shaa.. Gurls love confusion and whats best if not a confused lingua??

1 Like

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Nobody: 2:18pm On May 15, 2015
Just like saying Naira in the land.

This government sef grin
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by MrBasketball: 2:18pm On May 15, 2015
Crazy but can't run me mad. cool
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by ghostofsparta(m): 2:18pm On May 15, 2015
[size=24pt]Read why Africans shouldn't regard the film on the biblical Prophet Moses 'Exodus: Gods & Kings' more than it's entertainment value[/size] here [size=24pt]on Nairaland.[/size]
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by xynerise: 2:19pm On May 15, 2015
Thought provoking unanswered questions grin
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by AAinEqGuinea: 2:20pm On May 15, 2015
Yet proof of intelligence is mastering systemic lunacy
Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by Prettydiamond(f): 2:20pm On May 15, 2015
So sweet. Nice piece

1 Like

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by youngberry001(m): 2:21pm On May 15, 2015
ghostofsparta:
ddddd
dont ,do,dat,dump,decks

1 Like

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by xynerise: 2:21pm On May 15, 2015
sirsharks:
[size=15pt]Damn trickish[/size]
Tricky bro... that is part of the lunacy grin

1 Like

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by kradleber: 2:21pm On May 15, 2015
I'm so in love with the English Language. I don't care if you tag the language 'lunatic'..Always scored A1/B2 in it. so addicted to the language that I read the dictionary everyday routinely and novels.


One thing I love mostly about it is the vastness, limitlessness and infiniteness. So many words, plus its wild fun trying to bend those words and try manipulating them like a cruciverbalist would.. say like creating puns, entendres etcetera.

English is such a blessing to the world..I wish it was my first language though.

I think the closest to English in depth is Roman...or maybe Greek..

2 Likes

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by adewaletb3(m): 2:22pm On May 15, 2015
Just like give her her book. Why can't we say give him him book

2 Likes

Re: The Lunacy Of The English Language by kradleber: 2:23pm On May 15, 2015
maggilove:
I understand u very well because I studied English in the university, all languages have their own dynamism that's what u should try to understand.


What university did you study English?

3 Likes

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