Timeline for The use of "hey" in North America
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
10 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Jul 20, 2012 at 18:55 | comment | added | CamelBlues | Maybe in Canada, eh is for orses? | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 18:48 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | @Geoist: I can only repeat that the "Don't say 'Eh?', say 'Pardon?'" sense is given first in the later editions of Partridge. I'll also note that "Hey" is never used instead of "Pardon?" in my experience, so possibly the jokey allusion to 'ay for 'orses is more established in British (Cockney) usage, where aitches are commonly dropped by people whose "common" speech is more likely to be thus corrected. I'll also note that "Hey" for "Hi" is very much an Americanism (but it is spreading to Britain recently). | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 18:32 | comment | added | nagytech | @FumbleFingers I have no objection to the historical context, clearly you've mastered that subject. Your accusation, however, that "'ay is for 'orses" is supposed to teach you to say 'Pardon?' instead of 'Eh?'" is inaccurate. | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 15:11 | comment | added | Mark Beadles | Here in N America, since we never drop initial H's, it's less likely that "Eh" and "Hey" are confused. Probably the saying 'hay is for horses' came over the pond intact, but here it's used as a response to "Hey". I can attest to its use as an admonishment in the late '60s/early '70s USA. | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 11:54 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | @Geoist: Partridge acknowledges that the first recorded use (Jonathon Swift, 1738) was a counter to "Hey!" in a "beckoning" context. But my definition comes first in his later editions. | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 11:54 | comment | added | JamesHH | @Geoist No. It was originally used in England to teach Cockney kids to say "pardon" or something similarly polite, rather than "eh". | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 11:09 | comment | added | nagytech | I'm Canadian, and I've never heard of "for horses" being used in the context of "eh?". I have, however, been subjected to many a "for horses" whenever I would "Hey" someone. You're clearly mistaken in stating that the "for horses" is supposed to reprimand you for saying "Eh?" alone. | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 3:14 | comment | added | Mark Mayo | Ah yes. However, He certainly seemed to think it was that "for horses one". | |
| Jul 20, 2012 at 3:05 | history | edited | FumbleFingers | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
added 174 characters in body
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| Jul 20, 2012 at 3:00 | history | answered | FumbleFingers | CC BY-SA 3.0 |