1y ago

Nobody says it anymore

I've heard it explained that "hey" used to be more of an urgent way to get someone's attention, rather than a casual "hello" like it is now, so it sounded rude to some older folks.

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Y'all was different back then too. Now it's the most neutral greeting and that's really odd for my 90s brain.
- I will die on the hill that "y'all" is a more concise way to convey the same information than any of the alternatives.
  
  Many languages have a plural second person pronoun, English can too y'all. It's a legitimately useful linguistic feature.
  
  I think we used to, but it fell out of use. Now it rises again with the South. (Wait...)
  
  I haven't gotten a chance to use it yet, but one day the construction "all y'all'd've" will be relevant in my life.
  
  I'm pretty sure I've legitimately busted out "y'all'd'n't've" before

123 comments