Questions tagged [vocatives]
Questions relating to nouns used in direct address, such as “John, what do you think you’re doing there?” or “Someone wants to see you now, Mr. President,” or in the archaic “O ye of little faith!”
44
questions
25
votes
8
answers
7k
views
Is the "stupid" in "Keep it simple, stupid" a form of address or a second adjective that you should "keep it"?
i.e. is the comma to signify the boundary between the instruction and the recipient of it (that is to say, "Hey, stupid! Keep it simple"), or is it serving the function of an "and" ...
- 376
21
votes
5
answers
368k
views
Is it acceptable to drop the comma in "Thanks, John"? [duplicate]
I grew up learning that the comma must be placed there, but it seems like an unnecessary interruption in a phrase that isn't ever spoken that way.
- 553
18
votes
6
answers
4k
views
Why can I use 'guys' in the plural but not in the singular vocatively
We went to a pizza restaurant the other evening and the waiter insisted on referring to us as 'guys'.
I responded by calling him 'guy'. 'What kind of beer have you got, guy?'
My wife said she ...
- 64.7k
12
votes
6
answers
2k
views
Confusion from a Vocative Comma before a List
Is there any alternative punctuation to eliminate the ambiguity between the vocative comma and the list comma in a sentence like "John, Paul, George, and Ringo arrived earlier." The idea is ...
- 137
10
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Addressing boys and girls differently in (Victorian?) English schools
In Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë I read:
“Burns” (such it seems was her name: the girls here were all called
by their surnames, as boys are elsewhere)...
So my question is: were there (or ...
- 201
10
votes
1
answer
9k
views
Where did we get "buster" as in "Look here, buster"?
Americans, at least, have for some time used buster in speech or dialogue as a generic form of address. It has a range of tonalities, from light to affectionate to grimly confrontational.
Listen, ...
- 152k
9
votes
3
answers
214k
views
Should I put a comma after "Thank you"? [duplicate]
A coworker replied to an earlier email from me with some very good news. I wanted to thank him for his help. I was hoping to start with
Thank you, Jim. That is wonderful news...
OR is it
...
- 93
9
votes
3
answers
276
views
What explains the restrictions on determinative "you"?
As Huddleston & Pullum note, "you" can sometimes be used as a determiner:
You idiots never learn.
I'll never understand you idiots.
But this generally can't occur in the singular:
*...
- 18.5k
7
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Is ‘USAers’ just an ordinary English word today?
I saw the word, ‘USAers’ in the lead copy of Reuter’s news titled ‘Gippered’ in Time magazine (September 6), which says:
“More than 1/3 of USAers say they are worse off under Bam.
Warning-sign ...
- 70.2k
7
votes
3
answers
1k
views
What case is used for pronouns in the vocative?
A coauthor and I are drafting a letter, and we're not yet sure whom we're going to be sending it to. So I sent a draft to my coauthor, which started
Dear [whomever]:
Now, that line in a letter is ...
- 3,955
7
votes
5
answers
1k
views
Dad, auntie, nana, grandpa, etc... What is this group of words used as informal family nicknames called?
When explaining to someone learning French when one has to use vous (the “formal
you” pronoun) or tu (the “informal you” pronoun), there is a basic rule of thumb I
find useful:
Vous — Used when ...
- 205
6
votes
3
answers
6k
views
Comma after address
Here's an example:
Chocolate lovers rejoice!
Chocolate lovers, rejoice!
To my understanding, the first one says that chocolate lovers are rejoicing and in the second one, we are asking the ...
- 113
6
votes
2
answers
69k
views
"Happy Birthday sir!" or "Happy Birthday, sir!"?
Which one is grammatically correct?
Happy Birthday sir!
Happy Birthday, sir!
And where should I put "sir" in this sentence?
Congratulations for completing another trip around the sun!
Also suggest ...
- 315
6
votes
4
answers
2k
views
The vocative case and comma splices
I've been trying to find an answer to this question for some time, and have finally decided to... well, buck up some courage and ask.
In sentences like these two
"Hello, Mary, how are you?"
"Don'...
- 61
6
votes
2
answers
9k
views
"Madam President" vs "Mrs. President"
Last year I noticed some T-shirts for fans of the female presidential candidate in the US:
However, there is a female US President in one of my favourite TV shows, who is always addressed "Madam ...
- 161
6
votes
2
answers
202
views
Addressing a person by occupation
In Dorothy Gladys “Dodie” Smith’s 1956 children’s novel, The Hundred and One
Dalmatians,
the author writes:
But though you can call a cook ‘Cook’, the one thing you cannot call a butler is ‘Butler’
...
- 3,910
5
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Can an imperative sentence have a subject?
Can an imperative sentence have a subject?
This is a followup to this comment.
User Schmuddi asserted that:
English imperative sentences are subjectless.
but did not cite any source or authority.
I ...
- 237
5
votes
3
answers
249k
views
Do you always have to put a comma before someone's name? [duplicate]
Example:
(1) Hello John. (2) Hello, John?
(3) How are you today John? (4) How are you today, John?
(5) I wish I could John. (6) I wish I could, John.
Must there always be a comma before ...
- 73
4
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What's the subject in "You, go to the store"?
In the following sentence, what is the function of "You"?
You, go to the store.
I know the sentence is in the imperative mood, and that generally means there is an implicit second-person subject. ...
4
votes
1
answer
6k
views
Is vocative comma rule vanishing?
According to some grammars[1][2] and CMS...
"Interjections and vocative should be separated from the rest of the sentence by commas".
The vocative case [1] is used to indicate direct address (i.e., ...
- 157
2
votes
3
answers
2k
views
What is the vocative expression we can use to attract the attention of someone whose name or surname we don't know?
I was reading one of my old English Language books when I came across this:
"Madame, Señora, Signora, etc, are foreign vocative expressions and they have no equivalent, in either ...
- 50k
2
votes
2
answers
11k
views
What is the connotation of the word 'O'? [closed]
What is the author trying to convey with the word 'O' in the following:
He has told you, O man, what is good;
- 1,048
2
votes
1
answer
220
views
Vocative comma or comma splice?
If I wanted to start a sentence with "hey" and follow that with someone's name, would a comma go after the name too? Here's what I mean:
1:
"Hey, Thomas, I'm staying home today."
2:
"Hey, ...
- 83
1
vote
1
answer
198
views
Why isn't there a comma in "Unloose him Frodo!"?
I was rather shocked by the extremely sparse use of commas by Tolkien, but in most cases, it still falls "within reason". However, there is one place (so far) in The Two Towers which just ...
- 19
1
vote
1
answer
436
views
What is the difference between a vocative and an epithet?
I've seen them used in almost similar circumstances, and I'm not sure what the difference is.
The victim cried out in despair.
He was a real idiot.
Are those vocatives, epithets, or neither?
...
- 43
1
vote
2
answers
2k
views
Comma issue: noun of direct address in the middle of the sentence after conjunction
Another nitpicky comma question that I hope you will help me to resolve.
How does one need to punctuate the noun of direct address (or vocative) in the middle of the sentence that goes directly after ...
- 369
1
vote
1
answer
106
views
Do you need a comma before directly adressing someone, when their name is preceded by some short word?
I was wondering which one of these sentences is correct. In the first example, the name of the person we are directly addressing is placed between commas, just as I was taught since forever. In the ...
user462842
1
vote
1
answer
572
views
Vocative case and plural - 'thou art' [duplicate]
In a previous question about the English of the KJV a link was helpfully supplied and I read the following
The vocative case is used when directly addressing a person with a noun identifying the ...
- 24.5k
1
vote
1
answer
173
views
Keeping Up with the Joneses, Vocative Edition
TLDR: This question is about vocatives. Is there a rule to explain
how to know whether you can drop a person’s name when addessing someone
just by their title alone, or whether that form is ...
- 135k
1
vote
1
answer
2k
views
Vocative comma before "all"?
When using the vocative comma, would it go before "all"?
"Thank you, all, again!"
Or would it be without the comma?
"Thank you all again!"
Is this different from "everybody"?
- 109
1
vote
2
answers
6k
views
“You Guys” or “You, Guys” [closed]
The simple rules of using a comma before and after the vocative case state that you write, for example, What do you, Mark, think about the book?
But what about “you guys” / “you, guys”? Or, for that ...
- 19
1
vote
0
answers
219
views
Is it necessary to use a vocative comma in an email, specifically a professional email?
I received an email this morning from a candidate for an Executive Director position.
Thanks Kim.
This is how the email began. It immediately made a negative impression and caused me to feel ...
- 11
0
votes
2
answers
310
views
On the capitalization of familial honorifics
We all know that Mom and Dad are capitalized when used in dialogue as a substitute for a name.
But is it the same for big sister, big brother, big sis, and big bro?
One example of the sentence would ...
- 71
0
votes
1
answer
315
views
He "called himself Bob" / "said his name was Bob." Natural wording? Alternative expressions?
I think the sentence "When Alice met him, he said his name was Bob. (But I suspect it may be a pseudonym.)" makes sense. But I'd like to know if there are more natural expressions, or alternatives. ...
- 257
0
votes
1
answer
154
views
Brothers everywhere, raise... or Brothers, everywhere raise...?
In the song "Warriors of the World United," how should one punctuate the following sentence?
Brothers everywhere, raise your hands into the air!
or
Brothers, everywhere raise your hands into ...
0
votes
1
answer
340
views
ending a statement with a name
Is it possible to end a statement with a person's name, without the name being a direct/vocative address?
For example, I say, "Please hand me the jar, David." It is clear that I am ...
- 49
0
votes
2
answers
51
views
vocative comma when talking
If I say, "IwilldocardiologyHoney........Will I get richer today?
By default, since there is no increased pause between cardiology and Honey, must the words "I will do cardiology" ...
- 49
0
votes
0
answers
27
views
What kind of word is "Brother" or "Sister"? [duplicate]
Some Christians use "Brother" or "Sister" before referring to someone, and usually they prefix the word before their name (e.g. Brother Aaron).
I am asking what the use of this ...
- 11
0
votes
0
answers
230
views
vocative comma by default
If I say, "I will go skiing Nonna....." By default are the words preceding Nonna being addressed to Nonna? Or can I argue that my words preceding Nonna are not being addressed to Nonna, but ...
- 49
0
votes
0
answers
30
views
punctuating speech - comma versus period
If I said, "I will go fishing John will I go shopping today." If I take "Will I go shopping today" to be a separate sentence on its own. Is there a way of punctuating it so that ...
- 49
0
votes
1
answer
174
views
Commas, commas everywhere and not a proper comma placed!
I'm a complete imbecile when it comes to grammar. Could someone kindly help me properly place the punctuation in this sentence:
Hi, I'm a lost cause, people!
Hi; I'm a lost cause, people!
Hi! I'm a ...
- 11
-1
votes
1
answer
230
views
Different forms of addressing parents
In my language there is an older form in which you use kinship term in the middle of a sentence, in which normally you would use "you". Here's how this would look translated to English
Normal -> "Dad,...
-2
votes
1
answer
164
views
Is the vocative comma a recent thing?
It's usually considered necessary in the modern day, but I find the further back you go, the less frowned on its absence seems to be. I seem to remember a few vocative sentences in The Hobbit without ...
- 391
-2
votes
1
answer
5k
views
Omitting commas in brief statements
In a brief exhortation followed by the name of a sports team, such as "Let's go, Dodgers!" or "Go, Phillies!" is it ever appropriate to omit the comma?
