Changes in English

Languages change over time. Younger people adopt newer forms of expression, while older people often resist change; so even people who speak the same standard language do not speak it in exactly the same way. There are several reasons for change.

Communicative need

Several centuries ago, standard English had two second-person pronouns: thou (singular) and ye (plural). Standard modern English uses you for both. But people still feel the need to distinguish singular and plural, and so expressions like you guys (used for both men and women) are beginning to function as second person plural pronouns.

Influence from other varieties

Modern British English is heavily influenced by American English. Some structures which were not used by British speakers half a century ago are now as common as their older British equivalents.

• I feel like I’m getting a cold. (informal) (formal British still: I feel as if I’m getting a cold.)
• Do you have today’s newspaper? (older British form: Have you (got) today’s newspaper?)

Languages simplify themselves

As languages develop, complicated structures often become simpler and more regular. This may be happening with English conditional sentences – structures with would or would have in both clauses are quite common in speech.

• If you’d have asked I’d have told you.

Small, less important distinctions are confused or disappear

Some irregular verb forms like sank/sunk, sang/sung or lay/laid are quite often confused in speech. Examples from the British radio:

• He wrote eight operas, all of which sunk without trace.
• … a song she sung in yesterday’s concert.

Infinitives and -ing forms after verbs also sometimes get mixed up. An example from a British letter:

• I now have pleasure to enclose the correct proposal form. (instead of … pleasure in enclosing … )

When confusions like these become widespread, they can lead to language change. This may well happen with the possessive ’s form: more and more people are leaving out the apostrophe or putting it in the ‘wrong’ place, so that this spelling convention might one day lose its importance and even disappear.

New forms and uses spread through the language

Progressive verb forms came into English a few hundred years ago, and gradually became used more and more widely. There are still a few verbs that are not generally used in progressive forms (see here), but even these are losing their resistance. Some typical modern examples:

• I’m understanding Italian a lot better now.
• How many eggs were you wanting?
• I’m loving it.

‘Underground’ forms become respectable

Some forms have always existed in the language, but have been ‘driven underground’ by prescriptive rules (see here), so that they have been avoided by careful speakers. People are now more tolerant of such forms, so they are becoming more common. Some examples:

• Here’s your papers. (instead of Here are … (see here)
• Somebody’s left their umbrella behind. (instead of … his or her umbrella, (see here)
• Alice and me went to the same primary school. (see here)
• between you and I (see here)

Mistakes become part of the language

Sometimes a mistake is made by so many people that it becomes the normal form, and can no longer be called incorrect (see here). This has happened with the word data. It was originally a plural, from a Latin word meaning ‘given things’, but its use as a singular uncountable noun is now established and correct (see here). And recently people have started using between … to instead of between … and (e.g. There were between 50 to 60 people on the bus). This, too, could end up as a normal and correct expression.

Phonetically weak forms disappear

The weak form of have in I’ve got is so quiet that it is often not heard at all; and people are beginning to say I got instead of I’ve got. Other auxiliaries are tending to disappear in fast speech.

• What you thinking about?
• Where you been, then?
• We better get ready.
• What you think of the new timetable?

If this trend continues, the English auxiliary verb system could end up being completely restructured in speech, and ultimately in writing.

Some more examples of changes in modern British English

• Will and would have now practically replaced first-person shall and should.

  • We will be in touch soon.
  • I would be grateful for some help.

• Subjunctive were is becoming less common.

  • If I was ten years younger I’d do the job myself.
  • I wish it was Friday.

• The common American use of a past tense with just and already is also becoming common in British English.

  • Daniel just went out. (instead of Daniel has just gone out.)
  • I already told Megan about the party.

• May have is increasingly used (like might have) for unrealised past possibilities (see here).

  • Better treatment may have kept woman (who died) alive.

• Stood and sat are now frequently used in standard English for standing and sitting (see here).

  • We found Smith sat in a corner reading a newspaper.

• Be like is now very common in spoken English as a way of introducing direct speech (see here).

  • She was like, ‘What are you doing here?’.

• Who is replacing whom.

  • Who do you trust? (George Bush’s 1992 election slogan)

• Some adverbs without -ly are becoming more common.

  • You pronounced it wrong.

• Comparatives and superlatives with more and most are gaining ground in two-syllable adjectives.

  • ‘Commoner’ used to be commoner, but ‘more common’ is now more common.

• Plural noun modifiers are becoming more common. For example, antiques shop is now as common as antique shop, and drugs problem is replacing drug problem.

• The (very old) use of less with plurals is becoming more respectable.

  • There were less people than I expected.

• Some Amercian English prepositional uses and phrasal verb forms are moving into British English.

  • The following trains will not run due to engineering work on weekends. (instead of … at weekends.)
  • We met with the unions yesterday. (instead of We met the unions …)
  • Can I speak with Cathy? (instead of … speak to …)
  • We haven’t seen Granny in ages. (instead of … for ages.)
  • You have to fill out this form. (instead of … fill in …)

Older English verb forms: Tell me what thou knowest.

The English of a few hundred years ago was different in many ways from modern English – grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and spelling have all changed greatly. Some of the most striking differences are in the way verbs are formed. Older English had distinct second person singular verb forms ending in -st, with a corresponding second person singular pronoun thou (object form thee, possessives thy, thine ). There were also third person singular verb forms ending in -th, and ye could be used as a second person plural pronoun.

• Tell me what thou knowest.
• How can I help thee?
• Where thy master goeth, there goest thou also.
• Oh come, all ye faithful. (Christmas carol)

Older forms of be included second person singular art and wert.

• I fear thou art sick.
• Wert thou at work today?

Questions and negatives were originally made without do; later, forms with and without do (including affirmative forms with do) were both common.

• Came you by sea or by land?
• They know not what they do.
• Be not afraid.
• Then he did take my hand and kiss it.

Simple tenses were often used in cases where modern English has progressive forms.

• We go not out today, for it raineth.

Subjunctives (see here) were more widely used than in modern English.

• If she be here, then tell her I wait her pleasure.

Inversion ( (see here) was more common, and infinitives and past participles could come later in a clause than in modern English.

• Now are we lost indeed.

• Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended.

  (Shakespeare)

• And she me caught in her arms long and small
  and therewithal so sweetly did me kiss
  and softly said ‘Dear heart, how like you this?’

  (Wyatt)

Some of these forms were still used in 19th-century and early 20th-century literature (particularly poetry) long after they had died out of normal usage. Modern writers of historical novels, films or plays often make their characters use some of these older forms in order to give a ‘period’ flavour to the language. And the forms also survive in certain contexts where tradition is especially valued – for example the language of religious services, public ceremonies and the law. Some dialects, too, preserve forms which have disappeared from the rest of the language – second person singular pronouns (tha, thee, etc) are still used by many people in Yorkshire.