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Pedants' corner

I et it earlier or I ate it earlier?

11 replies

PeacesOfAte · 23/07/2013 23:51

My son said that he 'et' something earlier, and I corrected him and told him to say 'ate' (to rhyme with mate) instead.

My mother was there, and said I was wrong, and that she had apparently always been told at school that she should say 'et' not 'ate'.

I'm convinced that if you're speaking properly you'd never say 'et'. Who's right please?

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fieldfare · 23/07/2013 23:53

I think ate is the correct thing to say. I sometimes slip the odd Lincolnshire slang in and it becomes et instead.

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Spinaroo · 23/07/2013 23:54

Ate! Et is a Scottish colloquialism too.

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cephalicdream · 23/07/2013 23:55

Eat surely not et ?

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SupermansBigRedPants · 23/07/2013 23:56

I say et, it's just a different pronunciation of ate to me Hmm like live is live /wind is wind - am I wrong Blush probably. . I don't mind, everyone I know does it.

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WillieWaggledagger · 23/07/2013 23:56

both are correct

I use both interchangeably I think

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SupermansBigRedPants · 23/07/2013 23:57

Ooh I'm Scottish!

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OldLadyKnowsNothing · 23/07/2013 23:58

Eat; doing it atm. Doing it in the past, ate.

I have heard et, and as part of an accent/dialect it's fine, but correct English (says she, as a Scot) is "ate".

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WillieWaggledagger · 24/07/2013 00:00

Neither is incorrect though - it's like forehead/forred

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SupermansBigRedPants · 24/07/2013 00:09

I say foe-uhr haid Grin

awkward

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PeacesOfAte · 24/07/2013 08:36

Thanks for the replies.

So you could say 'I et it' and be correct?

I find it very odd that she was corrected from 'ate' to 'et' though, surely no-one would think 'et' to be more correct?

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TwasBrillig · 24/07/2013 08:40

I'd use et for past tense if I think about it and thought that was correct.

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