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Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by noisy_boy on Sunday May 23, 2021 @02:10AM (#27252786)
Most of the time, the non-native speakers learn English from the books instead of absorbing the local dialects/nuances since they don't hear people around them speaking English. However, depending on the quality of books / teachers, this means they pick-up a weird/artificial view of English (speaking is still difficult because you don't get to do it everyday - this is changing though). Then when one lands a job requiring English communication, they pick-up the "do the needful" type of oddities by observation/convention. So when they communicate with a native speaker, what comes across is a unique edition.

Interestingly, I can speak four languages (three fluently and one semi-fluently) and there is no equivalent of "do the needful" that is actually used in any of them - you just specify what is required - the closest non-specific equivalent I can think of is "take a look at it"/"take care of it"/"resolve it". God knows where that came from.

Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by lovelearning on Sunday May 23, 2021 @02:23AM (#27252843)
"do the needful" is found in British English books from the 19th century.[1] I suspect it's officialese that never went out of usage in bureaucratic and judicial circles in former colonies.

[1] : https://www.google.com/search?q=%22do%20the%20needful%22&tbm...

Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by bluepizza on Sunday May 23, 2021 @05:29AM (#27253619)
This is the correct explanation.

Also: it's not common, but still acceptable and not weird at all in some languages, like the Portuguese "fazer o necessário".

Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by noisy_boy on Sunday May 23, 2021 @03:39AM (#27253119)
I didn't know that - thanks for sharing.
Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by airhead969 on Sunday May 23, 2021 @02:18AM (#27252823)
My next door Danish neighbors learned English in the late 70's and early 80's by watching TV.

The guy worked at Spectra-Physics and drove a Wankel Mazda RX-7 that he backed-in to their garage.

Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by WalterBright on Sunday May 23, 2021 @02:43AM (#27252914)
Ah, Gilligan's Island English :-) I've heard many people tell me they learned English from GI.
Re:Non-native speakers navigate the world of 'good' and 'bad... by airhead969 on Sunday May 23, 2021 @02:55AM (#27252955)
Lol. Probably. And MASH.