"y'all"

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Replies

  • kapeluza
    kapeluza Posts: 3,434 Member
    A Southern "thang". I'm from the North and live in Texas and I hear it everyday. Drives me insane.
  • nerdyandilikeit
    nerdyandilikeit Posts: 2,185 Member
    Canadian here, and we don't really say anything different, maybe "You guys." Instead of "y'all". I've actually heard people say, "Yous" like "use." Which sounds ridiculous.

    I've heard that here in the states too. To me, it just sounds uneducated. It's not a word.... but even more so, it's not a word accepted by the community such as y'all. :)

    Y'all or ain't didn't start out as 'words' either, til you guys used it long enough.

    I don't find either terribly educated-sounding.I say ain't casually if I'm being silly, though. It just sounds like you got your delicate southern feelings hurt by the big bad yankees. *rolls eyes*
  • rbrannock
    rbrannock Posts: 169
    I am from and grew up in Upstate NY...I now live in NC where I've been for 16 years. In NY we said "you guys" (NOT yous guys...just you) which meant the same as what we say in NC which is y'all. :) I have a friend down here who is from PA and they say "youins"....that sounds dumb IMO!
  • JanieJack
    JanieJack Posts: 3,831 Member
    Y'all is singular AND plural.

    hehehe yes but the true plural of "y'all" is "all y'all" :laugh:
  • stephabef
    stephabef Posts: 936 Member
    I say it at work (I work at a bar in Atlanta) to make people... feel more comfortable? It wasn't a conscious decision. It's like how some people use a higher voice on the phone or something! I'm a New Yorker originally, but I've lived down here for a while. I'd never use y'all in conversation outside of work... strange.
  • luvJOJO
    luvJOJO Posts: 1,881 Member
    I'm from NC and I ALWAYS say y'all lol
  • TheFitHooker
    TheFitHooker Posts: 3,357 Member
    Most other languages have a plural you; English doesn't. So the southerners kindly made one up for us.

    Wasn't that Just so sweet of us!

    I say y'all a lot. I write it here sometimes because it reflects how I talk. I also write/say 'ya' instead of 'you' sometimes. I would never use either in formal writing though. And I will never ever ever say or write ain't. I've worked very hard to keep that atrocity out of my vocabulary!

    Another colloquial where I grew up is fixin' to. As in, 'I'm fixin to go to the store - do ya need anything?' :p

    I say "fixin to" all the time! My husband makes fun of me every time though. I also say used to could (usedtacould). Ex: "can you do a handstand? No, but I used to could." Another phrase my husband makes fun of.

    I also use "Fixin to" and my husband also picks on me about it, he say's "What are you fixin?" lol. I use the word "ain't" as well Yeah that's a word that usually brings up a hot topic. "ain't " isn't a word. It is in my book :P mean's isn't, aren't :D

    I thought both "ain't" and "y'all" had been inducted into Webster's dictionary?

    It might have been, but people still argue with me about it lol.
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,228 Member
    Canadian here, and we don't really say anything different, maybe "You guys." Instead of "y'all". I've actually heard people say, "Yous" like "use." Which sounds ridiculous.

    I've heard that here in the states too. To me, it just sounds uneducated. It's not a word.... but even more so, it's not a word accepted by the community such as y'all. :)

    Y'all or ain't didn't start out as 'words' either, til you guys used it long enough.

    I don't find either terribly educated-sounding.I say ain't casually if I'm being silly, though. It just sounds like you got your delicate southern feelings hurt by the big bad yankees. *rolls eyes*

    Really, bron! Are we going to argue now about who really should have one the big war?? LMAO!
  • Roadie2000
    Roadie2000 Posts: 1,801 Member
    Every time I hear someone way "yous" it makes me throw up in my mouth a little bit.

    I believe proper grammar is just to use "you" but since it's tough to differentiate whether it is singular or plural "y'all" is generally just easier.

    Plus it's more fun to say.
  • chelsea_thatsme
    chelsea_thatsme Posts: 138 Member
    It's a Southern thing! I didn't realize how much I said it until I got onto this site and was throwing "Y'all's" all over the place. I bet some people get annoyed but I honestly can't help it! lol.

    same here. i use it all the time!!! and being from and living in Texas, its just a common word we use all the time. its only when i am around people who are not from the south that i realize how much i use it. lol.
  • Andie_loops
    Andie_loops Posts: 93
    Y'all

    You all
    You all are
    All of you

    EX: Y'all funny (All of you are funny)
    Y'all need to shut up! (You all need to shut up!)

    Personally unless you're using it as dialog, I wouldn't use Y'All on a paper of any kind...unless of course you go to school in Texas, then it's okay.

    lol that would have been awesome if my professors would have accepted y'all in midterm essay, but no they dont haha i am from texas but i dont use it on papers i say during conversations with buddies but thats pretty much it =)
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,810 Member
    I'm from the south (Texas girl, born and raised). I literally don't know how to speak without saying "y'all." Instead of saying "you guys" or "you all" I say "y'all."

    I.e. If talking to more than one person, "Do y'all want to go grab a bite to eat?" or "I'd love for y'all to come to this party" etc. Basically just the plural of "you" and it's generally used in southern United States English dialects.
  • AmberJslimsAWAY
    AmberJslimsAWAY Posts: 2,339 Member
    I was having this conversation the other day. It's weird for a northerner to hear "yall" being said, and I know I personally make fun of people that say "you all" or "you guys"

    I use yall on an hourly basis....

    You can tell who is and who isn't from here ;)
  • ampa916
    ampa916 Posts: 189 Member
    I think i'm getting a feel for this dialect :glasses: thanks... y'all!

    so what do u think people who dont use it say in its place? for example ahem... canadians?

    Y'all=You all, I'm from South Carolina, and we don't use it for a singular person usually only plural.

    I have no idea what Canadians would say, I do know some people that say "youze" (like you's) and people just say "you"
  • Miss_dannii
    Miss_dannii Posts: 1,351 Member
    I'm in Ireland (Dublin) and our version of y'all is yiz, or yous (as in plural you) x and in the countryside in Ireland they say Ye pronounced like yee
  • 1RBelle512
    1RBelle512 Posts: 53 Member
    I just "y'all"ed in a post, lol. It's a contraction of "you all". I liken it to the Romance languages' plural "you", such as "vous" in French. However, I'm from Shreveport, which means there are plenty of people who say "y'all all" as the plural "you". Yes, as in "y'all all gotta try this gumbo" or "all y'alll have a beer and make yourselves at home."
  • NICOLED73
    NICOLED73 Posts: 183
    LOL..loving this thread y'all! :)
    I'm in Oklahoma. Y'all is for mulitple people, not one person.
  • marieautumn
    marieautumn Posts: 928 Member
    i'm from texas so i use ya'll in every sentence pretty much.
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,810 Member
    Y'all

    You all
    You all are
    All of you

    EX: Y'all funny (All of you are funny)
    Y'all need to shut up! (You all need to shut up!)

    Personally unless you're using it as dialog, I wouldn't use Y'All on a paper of any kind...unless of course you go to school in Texas, then it's okay.

    lol that would have been awesome if my professors would have accepted y'all in midterm essay, but no they dont haha i am from texas but i dont use it on papers i say during conversations with buddies but thats pretty much it =)

    Ha, yeah, I'm from Texas and went to college here as well...you can't use "y'all" in a paper, it's only acceptable in conversation.
  • TheBakerGirl
    TheBakerGirl Posts: 151
    It's used to mean "you" in the plural form. In the north, we tend to say "you guys" (hate that phrase, but I still use it!). In Ireland, "ye" is used…sounds outdated to me, but I prefer it over "you guys." I just sound like a funny foreigner when I refer to my friends as "ye" hahaha! :bigsmile:
  • ChristyP0303
    ChristyP0303 Posts: 212 Member
    From Nashville, it is short for "You all". It is plural only, 2 or more people. We do not use it when referring to one person only. "What are y'all doing this weekend?" "Hope y'all have a great day!" I say it regularly, just comes natural being I've lived in Nashville my whole life. See y'all!
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,810 Member
    I think i'm getting a feel for this dialect :glasses: thanks... y'all!

    so what do u think people who dont use it say in its place? for example ahem... canadians?

    Y'all=You all, I'm from South Carolina, and we don't use it for a singular person usually only plural.

    I have no idea what Canadians would say, I do know some people that say "youze" (like you's) and people just say "you"

    It actually warms my heart like none other when friends of mine who aren't from here, that have moved to Texas from up north begin to use "y'all" in daily conversation. I love it!
  • jeankh
    jeankh Posts: 68
    Im Canadian, Ive heard some use "Ya'll" but most seem to use you "you all". Usually I hear "ya'll" in, "Whatcha ya'll doing?" where I primary hear it from teenage boys.
  • StrongGwen
    StrongGwen Posts: 378 Member
    y'all is a plural form--we do not use y'all to mean just one person. For a bigger group, some folks even say "all y'all" as in "it's time for all y'all to get back to work". Just one person is "you."
  • nerdyandilikeit
    nerdyandilikeit Posts: 2,185 Member
    Canadian here, and we don't really say anything different, maybe "You guys." Instead of "y'all". I've actually heard people say, "Yous" like "use." Which sounds ridiculous.

    I've heard that here in the states too. To me, it just sounds uneducated. It's not a word.... but even more so, it's not a word accepted by the community such as y'all. :)

    Y'all or ain't didn't start out as 'words' either, til you guys used it long enough.

    I don't find either terribly educated-sounding.I say ain't casually if I'm being silly, though. It just sounds like you got your delicate southern feelings hurt by the big bad yankees. *rolls eyes*

    Really, bron! Are we going to argue now about who really should have one the big war?? LMAO!

    No, but apparently this is the NEXT big war! Haha!
  • jackpotclown
    jackpotclown Posts: 3,275 Member
    Interesting, was under the impression that "eh" replaced just about anything at the end of a canadian sentence, including the number of people around \m/

    Example: Nice day eh?
  • rainunrefined
    rainunrefined Posts: 850 Member
    I'm doing a linguistics paper. Can someone (preferably American) explain the usage of "y'all" for me please? And also, out of curiousity, for those who use it a lot are there any substitutes? What do you think Canadians use instead?

    I'm from the pacific northwest and grew up saying "you guys." Now that I live in the south the common slang for "you guys" is "ya'll."
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,810 Member
    Im Canadian, Ive heard some use "Ya'll" but most seem to use you "you all". Usually I hear "ya'll" in, "Whatcha ya'll doing?" where I primary hear it from teenage boys.

    Y'all has also been adapted into urban slang, not just concentrated in the south. SOUTHERN VERNACULAR IS TAKING OVER!!! lol
  • rthompson81
    rthompson81 Posts: 305 Member
    Try this: http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=y'all+english&btnG=Search&as_sdt=0,44&as_ylo=&as_vis=0

    Your school should have access to at least some of those journals. Good luck with your paper!

    Also, there is a fascinating book called "Do You Speak American?" that I would recommend if you're interested in dialectical changes throughout the U.S. It's really fun to read too!
  • crista_b
    crista_b Posts: 1,192 Member
    I've never posted a pic so I don't know if this will work.

    southern-grammar.jpg

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