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> The threat of american english, mengancam our british english.

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fabianz03
post Oct 9 2014, 11:35 PM

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QUOTE(cyhborg @ Oct 9 2014, 06:03 PM)
AE or BE is fine, as long as you're consistent. Kejap AE, kejap BE, tu yg I tak tahan.

Since we're on the topic of English, I find that a lot of Malaysians get these wrong:
1. "Follow" vs "go with"
2. Proper pronunciation of "flour" (it rhymes with "our", not "far")
3. Proper pronunciation of "film" (sometimes I hear "flim" or "filem")
4. "Bungalow" (a "bungalow" by its very definition is a one-story building, so a "two-storey bungalow" is a contradiction [there's a second definition in the Oxford dictionary that mentions what we use in M'sia, but I feel we should use less colloquialisms])
5. "handphone" (a colloquialism; better to stick with "mobile phone" if writing for an international audience)
6. "slang" vs "accent"
7. the correct use of "revert"

Any more to add?
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I thought British uses 'flour' (far) rather than 'flower'?
cyhborg
post Oct 9 2014, 11:38 PM

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QUOTE(fabianz03 @ Oct 9 2014, 11:35 PM)
I thought British uses 'flour' (far) rather than 'flower'?
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Nope, in both AE and BE it's pronounced as "flower". Click on the speaker symbol and the lady will pronounce for you:
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/flour
fabianz03
post Oct 9 2014, 11:38 PM

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From: Tāmaki Makaurau
QUOTE(cyhborg @ Oct 9 2014, 11:38 PM)
Nope, in both AE and BE it's pronounced as "flower". Click on the speaker symbol and the lady will pronounce for you:
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/flour
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nice, thanks!
Zgames
post Oct 9 2014, 11:44 PM

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leonhang
post Oct 10 2014, 12:14 AM

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QUOTE(cyhborg @ Oct 9 2014, 09:35 PM)
Of course not, AE (because of America's cultural/political influence) and BE (because the English created the language and colonized a large chunk of the planet in the past) are the two major forms , so it would make sense to follow one or the other. If you say "mobile phone" or "cell phone", everyone knows what it is because of that "clout". But "handphone" does not have the kind of "reach" that "mobile phone" and "cell phone" have (in fact, as I understand it, "handy" and "handphone" in Germany are informal/borrowed terms used when speaking in German, and not English as it is spoken in Germany) so the "selfie" example doesn't apply. If you have that kind of influence, you can coin a new word or a new meaning and it will disseminate quickly. Apart from the US and UK, which country has that? Using "handphone" is OK when addressing M'sians, but formal writing should keep the international audience in mind. You might think "Well, they can surely guess what 'handphone' is", which is true. However, we are told as editors that the less mental "double takes" a reader makes, the better. I learnt this the hard way editing text from India.
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http://german.about.com/library/blvoc_dengl_Handy.htm

(in Europe) a mobile phone.

That's because people like you are blocking it, it is also found that Korea is using the term handphone as well. Like it or not, each of these words are derived from certain situations and have their own reasons as well. Americans call it a cell phone because it has battery and another reason could be this
http://gizmodo.com/5840939/why-do-we-use-t...of-mobile-phone

British call it a mobile phone because it's the original name. The first mobile phone call was placed in 1946 over Bell System's Mobile telephone service, a closed radiotelephone system. And the first commercial mobile phones were installed cars in the 1970s.

So judging by this, Americans actually have the correct term.

My point is, all these are part of the positive culture of how many places have different derivations of English. It's part of the beauty of language.

The bolded one, are you suggesting the concept of Might is Right ? This if anything is a form of bullying. Also, I'm sorry to burst your bubble but UK has less cultural influence in today's society. I believe if they don't know what it means, they will have to learn it, we're not going to spoon-feed them.

I certainly don't agree with the editors part, are you suggesting that a reader should just read whatever they like and none that would challenge their brains and bring out their curiosity ?

cyhborg
post Oct 10 2014, 12:43 AM

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QUOTE(leonhang @ Oct 10 2014, 12:14 AM)
http://german.about.com/library/blvoc_dengl_Handy.htm

(in Europe) a mobile phone.

That's because people like you are blocking it, it is also found that Korea is using the term handphone as well. Like it or not, each of these words are derived from certain situations and have their own reasons as well. Americans call it a cell phone because it has battery and another reason could be this
http://gizmodo.com/5840939/why-do-we-use-t...of-mobile-phone

British call it a mobile phone because it's the original name. The first mobile phone call was placed in 1946 over Bell System's Mobile telephone service, a closed radiotelephone system. And the first commercial mobile phones were installed cars in the 1970s.

So judging by this, Americans actually have the correct term.

My point is, all these are part of the positive culture of how many places have different derivations of English. It's part of the beauty of language.

The bolded one, are you suggesting the concept of Might is Right ? This if anything is a form of bullying. Also, I'm sorry to burst your bubble but UK has less cultural influence in today's society. I believe if they don't know what it means, they will have to learn it, we're not going to spoon-feed them.

I certainly don't agree with the editors part, are you suggesting that a reader should just read whatever they like and none that would challenge their brains and bring out their curiosity ?
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According to the link you provided, it's a borrowed term (thus "das Handy" and not "the handy" (German nouns are capitalized, IIRC)), ie it is used when speaking/writing in German. Which I already mentioned.

I understand that many places have different derivations of English, but I always stress on clarity and effective communication. It's not about "might makes right" but finding a common ground. If a lot of English speakers already know "mobile phone" and "cell phone", then why not use those instead?

Also, you challenge people's minds by the content/message of the text, not the variety of the language used.

This post has been edited by cyhborg: Oct 10 2014, 12:47 AM

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