On having done something yesterday

An Australian correspondent writes to say that he's encountered sentences like I have been to the cinema yesterday which, he says, would be 'completely out in British English'. It seems like a natural development, he adds, but asks: 'isn't this against the "rules" of simplicity, which languages are so keen to comply with? Isn't it more "economical" to use simple structures than complex ones and aren't languages prone to such economy?'

I don't think economy has anything to do with it. Simplic...
 •  0 comments  •  flag
Share on Twitter
Published on March 23, 2010 14:18
No comments have been added yet.


David Crystal's Blog

David Crystal
David Crystal isn't a Goodreads Author (yet), but they do have a blog, so here are some recent posts imported from their feed.
Follow David Crystal's blog with rss.