Re:The Linguistic Evolution of ‘Like’
by Freak_NL on Tuesday November 29, 2016 @08:49AM
(#13062979)
> Ellipses have their place, but they seem to be abused a lot.
> Ellipses have their place, but I get the impression that they are also abused a lot.
> Ellipses have their place, but aren't they also abused a lot?
> Ellipses have their place, but maybe they are abused a bit too much.
I agree, sometimes a statement needs to be softened to indicate uncertainty or just to be diplomatic, but there are many ways to do that without resorting to ambiguity. Perhaps, maybe, seemingly, ostensibly, surely, evidently; there are so many words that can help soften (or harden!) a statement, and each carries a different connotation. The ellipse on the other hand simple conveys its meaning of omission — but there is no indication of what it was that was omitted (uncertainty? rolling-my-eyes sarcasm? fatigue?).
It can come across as laziness on the writer's part — as if they couldn't be bothered to formulate their thoughts.
> Ellipses have their place, but I get the impression that they are also abused a lot.
> Ellipses have their place, but aren't they also abused a lot?
> Ellipses have their place, but maybe they are abused a bit too much.
I agree, sometimes a statement needs to be softened to indicate uncertainty or just to be diplomatic, but there are many ways to do that without resorting to ambiguity. Perhaps, maybe, seemingly, ostensibly, surely, evidently; there are so many words that can help soften (or harden!) a statement, and each carries a different connotation. The ellipse on the other hand simple conveys its meaning of omission — but there is no indication of what it was that was omitted (uncertainty? rolling-my-eyes sarcasm? fatigue?).
It can come across as laziness on the writer's part — as if they couldn't be bothered to formulate their thoughts.