We use the indefinite article, "a dildo." Never: "*your* dildo."

February 18, 2008 10:45 PM

What causes the practical difference between "the hospital" and "hospital" in British and Imperial English?

While I'll tell someone I'm going to the hospital, the brits will say they're going to hospital, but like I say I'm going to school or church.

What causes us to prepend "the" in front of hospital or, say, store, but not those other words? (Do the brits also say "I'm going to market," or some such?)

What is it about the words we do that with or their place in our language that causes us to use a definite article or not use it?

(Mostly paging languagehat, I 'spect.)

posted by disillusioned to Writing & Language (10 answers total)

Best answer: Previously.
posted by holgate at 11:06 PM on February 18, 2008

(just a note, you probably mean "British and American English" as "Imperial" is another way of saying the british version.
posted by blue_beetle at 11:28 PM on February 18, 2008

Response by poster: Hah, I was like "um, this isn't really imperial... too lazy... go with it."

And meanwhile, searching metafilter for "the" usage is bad news. :-)

Thanks! Way to blow a question.
posted by disillusioned at 11:51 PM on February 18, 2008

I bit off topic I guess but something I hear from Americans that always sounds strange is "I could care less" when they really mean "I couldn't care less".
posted by tetranz at 4:13 AM on February 19, 2008

Not necessarily, tetranz. It doesn't sound like it makes sense, but it does in context. We've got a high rate of American rate of sarcasm, and you'll often hear somebody say, "I could care less, but why (bother)?"

We use them dually, "I couldn't care less" for "I don't care," and "I could care less," for "I really don't give a shit." The latter is more emphatic, and, well, generally proof that you really, really, really do give a shit, but would rather pretend you didn't.

ObArmchairLinguist: Could be regional only. (Central Indiana.)
posted by headspace at 5:34 AM on February 19, 2008

also previously.
posted by mdn at 6:59 AM on February 19, 2008

We use them dually, "I couldn't care less" for "I don't care," and "I could care less," for "I really don't give a shit." The latter is more emphatic, and, well, generally proof that you really, really, really do give a shit, but would rather pretend you didn't.

I think you might be reaching a bit, headspace. At the end of the day, it really means "I don't care, or give a shit". I think you are rationalizing the mistake of saying "I could care less" as being intentional as it can have a similar meaning. But ultimately, the phrase and meaning is "I couldn't care less".

Why do most Americans screw it up? Who knows. Likely it just doesn't role off the tongue well enough with adding the "not" or "n't". I fear laziness is to blame, not duel use.
posted by qwip at 7:26 AM on February 19, 2008

What I find interesting is that it is inconsistent. We say "I am going to the hospital" but never "I am going to the school" or "I am going to the church" in the same context. I am betting that people said going to "the" hospital so infrequently that when they did, using "the" was appropriate in the same way I would say "I am going to the church on the corner tomorrow." So "the" became so joined to hospital in the US that it became an exception to the rule that you needn't use "the" when talking about general comings and goings or when not talking about a specific place.

This would be supported by the fact that nobody on any side of the Atlantic says "I am going to airport."

Now if we could figure out why the British say things like "The army are on the march," or British Airways fly to Timbuktu 7 times a week."


Tetranz, headspace
I remember growing up in New York (Queens - the garden borough, borough of dreams) and I never heard anybody say "I could care less" It spread like wildfire in the 80s and 90s such that it has become the American way of using that phrase even in New York.

Still sounds strange to me and I always say "I couldn't care less," but the irony factor makes the phrase have more sense that I ever gave it credit for.
posted by xetere at 7:38 AM on February 19, 2008

I always guessed that the use of the definite article in front of the word hospital in American English, as opposed to the usage in British English had to do with the differences in the health-care system. As Britain has the NHS then it doesn't make any difference which hospital you went too, but this does make a difference in the US. Now that I've read the previous thread especially this answer, I realize that I was wrong. Thinking about it, the construction must predate the establishment of the NHS.
posted by ob at 8:29 AM on February 19, 2008

If we're having an airing of transatlantic linguistic peeves, will someone explain why the US usage is "I have a couple things" instead "I have a couple of things" like a normal person would say?
posted by Abiezer at 1:04 PM on February 19, 2008