Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2021 October 16
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October 16
editabout usage of the word 'most' in Canadian English
editRecently, I heard some Canadian speakers saying "That’s the most name I’ve ever heard." and "That's the most profile picture I've seen". On searching this in Google, I got no answer. Could anyone please clarify what it means (is it proper grammar or just slang), as it looks rather weird to me as a non-Canadian. Moto=234 (talk) 05:19, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- As a Canadian of long standing, I've never heard that before. How old were these speakers, and from which region? The only thing I can think of that could be evenly remotely connected is the 1950s(?) Beatnik slang expression "you're the most [, daddy-o]". Clarityfiend (talk) 11:06, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- Thanks for your response. They were from Alberta and not too old; they were university students. Moto=234 (talk) 15:01, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- It's slang and can stand for "most extreme", "most unusual" or "most strange" (which would properly be "strangest") or some similar combination, the missing word being understood thanks to the context. It's a common young person thing to remove words they find extraneous, even if it makes it harder for outsiders to follow the conversation - in fact, it's probably because it makes it harder to understand that they make these types of elisions. Xuxl (talk) 17:40, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- I don't think there's anything wrong with "most strange", after all, we have The Most Noble Order of the Garter and the British military had "Most Secret" before we were allied to the Americans. Alansplodge (talk) 21:13, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- So if William Henry Gates III had been Canadian, his favourite phrase[1] might have been, "That's the most thing I've ever heard." --Lambiam 22:17, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- Thank you so much everyone!Moto=234 (talk) 04:57, 17 October 2021 (UTC)
- I haven't heard it, but I think it kind of goes along with the bare "extra." Temerarius (talk) 18:36, 17 October 2021 (UTC)
- Thank you so much everyone!Moto=234 (talk) 04:57, 17 October 2021 (UTC)
- It's slang and can stand for "most extreme", "most unusual" or "most strange" (which would properly be "strangest") or some similar combination, the missing word being understood thanks to the context. It's a common young person thing to remove words they find extraneous, even if it makes it harder for outsiders to follow the conversation - in fact, it's probably because it makes it harder to understand that they make these types of elisions. Xuxl (talk) 17:40, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
- Thanks for your response. They were from Alberta and not too old; they were university students. Moto=234 (talk) 15:01, 16 October 2021 (UTC)