FC Community
Discussion Boards => Off-Topic => Topic started by: Nancy5 on May 10, 2019, 08:21:06 am
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Last night we went out to dinner. This is the fifth time I heard the hostess say "Can I sit you"? Shouldn't it be can I seat you? Am I wrong or did I sleep through English.
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Was the person from another country? They tend to screw up the English language all the time. You can always tell when that is who you are on live chat with as well when you read things like
Let me explain you this
And other foolish lines.
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Last night we went out to dinner. This is the fifth time I heard the hostess say "Can I sit you"? Shouldn't it be can I seat you? Am I wrong or did I sleep through English.
Maybe she wanted to sit on you. :angry7:
And it should be "may I please seat you." Right?
:fish:
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Last night we went out to dinner. This is the fifth time I heard the hostess say "Can I sit you"? Shouldn't it be can I seat you? Am I wrong or did I sleep through English.
Maybe she wanted to sit on you. :angry7:
And it should be "may I please seat you." Right?
:fish:
If someone said "may I seat you please" I would think they were foolish. Probably would if they said "can I seat you". Both sound very unprofessional. Usually they ask would you like a booth or a table. Or just ask how many is in the party.
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Last night we went out to dinner. This is the fifth time I heard the hostess say "Can I sit you"? Shouldn't it be can I seat you? Am I wrong or did I sleep through English.
When I thought about it a little more, it could be their accent. Sit and seat may sound the same to them as they speak it, but different to you as you hear it.
I generally like it when I hear people speak with an accent. And when I speak to Hispanic people, they usually say they like my accent. I'm thinkin', "what accent?" :dontknow: It's all about your perspective, I suppose.
:fish:
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Was the person from another country? They tend to screw up the English language all the time. You can always tell when that is who you are on live chat with as well when you read things like
Let me explain you this
And other foolish lines.
Yo, countrygirl12, have you ever tried to speak a foreign language? The way we speak to others who speak a different language can sound pretty funny to them as well.
I took Spanish and made straight "A's", while the Hispanic students got lower grades. However, when I attempted conversation, I was a poor second to them. I spoke to others as though I were a five-year-old child. :P
Besides, English is a really difficult language to master. I love it, but it's tough. That includes spelling and grammar.
:fish:
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Last night we went out to dinner. This is the fifth time I heard the hostess say "Can I sit you"? Shouldn't it be can I seat you? Am I wrong or did I sleep through English.
When I thought about it a little more, it could be their accent. Sit and seat may sound the same to them as they speak it, but different to you as you hear it.
I generally like it when I hear people speak with an accent. And when I speak to Hispanic people, they usually say they like my accent. I'm thinkin', "what accent?" :dontknow: It's all about your perspective, I suppose.
:fish:
Most of the hispanics around here do not have any accept but they speak very poorly as far as grammar is concerned.
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Was the person from another country? They tend to screw up the English language all the time. You can always tell when that is who you are on live chat with as well when you read things like
Let me explain you this
And other foolish lines.
Yo, countrygirl12, have you ever tried to speak a foreign language? The way we speak to others who speak a different language can sound pretty funny to them as well.
I took Spanish and made straight "A's", while the Hispanic students got lower grades. However, when I attempted conversation, I was a poor second to them. I spoke to others as though I were a five-year-old child. :P
Besides, English is a really difficult language to master. I love it, but it's tough. That includes spelling and grammar.
:fish:
If you are going to work in customer service and deal with people who speak English then you need to be able to fluently and correct speak the language.
My point was even in "live chat" you can tell when you are conversing with someone from India or where ever they are from. They cannot grasp or understand what you are saying or asking and they way they word things even when typed is a little crazy. I cannot remember the one phrase that was said to me several times in recent months when dealing with Amazon and also PayPal. But it was the same way every time.
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You are correct.
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I fractured a bone in my hand last week and had it x-rayed in the ER and put in a cast. The next day the ER doctor, who seemed Middle Eastern to me, called to tell me they also found some bone spurs in my "tum." I was confused. Then I realized what he meant and I replied, Oh, in my thumb." He said, "yes, in your tum." I thought it was funny, but makes communication a little more difficult.
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Oh, lighten up, accents are charming. As far as gramer goes, some in this forum don't know the difference between 'accept' and 'except', Bahahahaha! Glass houses.....................
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Oh, lighten up, accents are charming. As far as gramer goes, some in this forum don't know the difference between 'accept' and 'except', Bahahahaha! Glass houses.....................
I see what you did there. ;)
(Also it's 'grammar', not gramer. Sorry, couldn't help it.)
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When it comes to grammar I am the worst, sorry cant help you here
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Was the person from another country? They tend to screw up the English language all the time. You can always tell when that is who you are on live chat with as well when you read things like
Let me explain you this
And other foolish lines.
Yo, countrygirl12, have you ever tried to speak a foreign language? The way we speak to others who speak a different language can sound pretty funny to them as well.
I took Spanish and made straight "A's", while the Hispanic students got lower grades. However, when I attempted conversation, I was a poor second to them. I spoke to others as though I were a five-year-old child. :P
Besides, English is a really difficult language to master. I love it, but it's tough. That includes spelling and grammar.
:fish:
If you are going to work in customer service and deal with people who speak English then you need to be able to fluently and correct speak the language.
My point was even in "live chat" you can tell when you are conversing with someone from India or where ever they are from. They cannot grasp or understand what you are saying or asking and they way they word things even when typed is a little crazy. I cannot remember the one phrase that was said to me several times in recent months when dealing with Amazon and also PayPal. But it was the same way every time.
Patience and kindness go a long way.If we treat others that way hopefully we will get treated back the same way.We can understand others have a bad day and hopefully they can understand if we do too.
This has nothing to do with a bad day. It has everything to do with not knowing the language. Good day or bad day the customer service I have dealt with lately were so poorly versed with the English language that is was pathetic. I had one idiot almost closed my credit card (which cannot be just reopened) because the stupid idiot could not understand what I was saying. This is about being stupid not having a bad day.
Companies need to hire customer service to serve the country they are from.
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I fractured a bone in my hand last week and had it x-rayed in the ER and put in a cast. The next day the ER doctor, who seemed Middle Eastern to me, called to tell me they also found some bone spurs in my "tum." I was confused. Then I realized what he meant and I replied, Oh, in my thumb." He said, "yes, in your tum." I thought it was funny, but makes communication a little more difficult.
I don't think I would have thought that was funny. I had a middle eastern doctor once that I was referred to who came in asking me stupid questions and I was like what are you talking about. He had the wrong folder.
This is a very serious mistake. One that could cost me my life if I were unconscious or in surgery.
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Last night we went out to dinner. This is the fifth time I heard the hostess say "Can I sit you"? Shouldn't it be can I seat you? Am I wrong or did I sleep through English.
Was the person from another country? They tend to screw up the English language all the time. You can always tell when that is who you are on live chat with as well when you read things like
Let me explain you this
And other foolish lines.
Nope she was as American as I am. She was young, probably in mid 20's.
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Of course when I'm calling support or something I hope I get a person who speaks flawless English too.. but does it really interfere with communication if someone (especially whose first language isn't English) makes the occasional pronunciation or grammar flub? "Can I sit you" isn't correct, but I'm certain you still understood. None of us speak in a 100% grammatically correct manner at all times, even at work, and I am willing to cut people some slack.
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Of course when I'm calling support or something I hope I get a person who speaks flawless English too.. but does it really interfere with communication if someone (especially whose first language isn't English) makes the occasional pronunciation or grammar flub? "Can I sit you" isn't correct, but I'm certain you still understood. None of us speak in a 100% grammatically correct manner at all times, even at work, and I am willing to cut people some slack.
I can handle not speaking perfect English or using perfect grammar but when some dumb butt starts to close my credit card that I have had for over 18 years (and this cannot be reversed once she does it) I have a right to be very P*ssed off! Especially when I said nothing about closing it.
I finally told her in a very angry way DO NOT DO ANYTHING TO MY ACCT and I hung up on her. I called right back and asked for who ever answering the phone to transfer me to the UNITED STATES. And got the issue resolved.
Obviously you have never had to deal with some incompetent buffoon struggling to understand English and answer questions or straighten out an issue on your account. Some "mistakes" cannot be undone.
It is aggravating when you ask a question and you get an answer that has NOTHING to do with the question you just asked. smh
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Of course when I'm calling support or something I hope I get a person who speaks flawless English too.. but does it really interfere with communication if someone (especially whose first language isn't English) makes the occasional pronunciation or grammar flub? "Can I sit you" isn't correct, but I'm certain you still understood. None of us speak in a 100% grammatically correct manner at all times, even at work, and I am willing to cut people some slack.
I am by far an English major, but I have never heard can I sat you. Even my daughter's 10 year old son looked at us funny when he heard that.
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Of course when I'm calling support or something I hope I get a person who speaks flawless English too.. but does it really interfere with communication if someone (especially whose first language isn't English) makes the occasional pronunciation or grammar flub? "Can I sit you" isn't correct, but I'm certain you still understood. None of us speak in a 100% grammatically correct manner at all times, even at work, and I am willing to cut people some slack.
I can handle not speaking perfect English or using perfect grammar but when some dumb butt starts to close my credit card that I have had for over 18 years (and this cannot be reversed once she does it) I have a right to be very P*ssed off! Especially when I said nothing about closing it.
I finally told her in a very angry way DO NOT DO ANYTHING TO MY ACCT and I hung up on her. I called right back and asked for who ever answering the phone to transfer me to the UNITED STATES. And got the issue resolved.
Obviously you have never had to deal with some incompetent buffoon struggling to understand English and answer questions or straighten out an issue on your account. Some "mistakes" cannot be undone.
It is aggravating when you ask a question and you get an answer that has NOTHING to do with the question you just asked. smh
I never had a credit card problem like you, but our cable went out a few years ago and when we called we got someone from the Philippines. I agree with you it's annoying and frustrating when you are asking for help and they can't understand you and you can't understand them. After about 15 minutes of this we ended the call and my husband called back and said he wanted to talk to someone in United States. He got connected and the problem was resolved immediately.
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Oh, lighten up, accents are charming. As far as gramer goes, some in this forum don't know the difference between 'accept' and 'except', Bahahahaha! Glass houses.....................
I see what you did there. ;)
(Also it's 'grammar', not gramer. Sorry, couldn't help it.)
Good for you, lol! Was not sure anyone would catch that deliberate typo. Just making a point, none of us is perfect.
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Do you think that maybe you did not hear her clearly because the restaurant was loud?
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I would say "seat" sounds better but English grammar definitely can be confusing at times haha.
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Of course when I'm calling support or something I hope I get a person who speaks flawless English too.. but does it really interfere with communication if someone (especially whose first language isn't English) makes the occasional pronunciation or grammar flub? "Can I sit you" isn't correct, but I'm certain you still understood. None of us speak in a 100% grammatically correct manner at all times, even at work, and I am willing to cut people some slack.
I can handle not speaking perfect English or using perfect grammar but when some dumb butt starts to close my credit card that I have had for over 18 years (and this cannot be reversed once she does it) I have a right to be very P*ssed off! Especially when I said nothing about closing it.
I finally told her in a very angry way DO NOT DO ANYTHING TO MY ACCT and I hung up on her. I called right back and asked for who ever answering the phone to transfer me to the UNITED STATES. And got the issue resolved.
Obviously you have never had to deal with some incompetent buffoon struggling to understand English and answer questions or straighten out an issue on your account. Some "mistakes" cannot be undone.
It is aggravating when you ask a question and you get an answer that has NOTHING to do with the question you just asked. smh
I never had a credit card problem like you, but our cable went out a few years ago and when we called we got someone from the Philippines. I agree with you it's annoying and frustrating when you are asking for help and they can't understand you and you can't understand them. After about 15 minutes of this we ended the call and my husband called back and said he wanted to talk to someone in United States. He got connected and the problem was resolved immediately.
I do not even remember what the problem was. But she was like oh so you want to close your account. smh I think it had to do with a charge for something I ordered and I never received the item. I had the tracking info and it went so far and then just fell off the face of the Earth. I finally got it fixed. The charge was reversed. But yes it is extremely aggravating when you cannot get in touch with someone who can speak the language well enough to communicate. Same with people who have the credit card in other countries - they need to deal with people who speak and understand their own language well enough to communicate.
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I think they are probably told to say things a certain way so they appear more formal and authentic to the cuisine you are about to eat.
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No, you didn't flunk on that one!
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I think they are probably told to say things a certain way so they appear more formal and authentic to the cuisine you are about to eat.
Applebees?☺😊
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I would say, it should be can I seat you too. I don't know, everyone has there way of saying things. I guess as long as you know what they are talking about, then so be it.
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Of course when I'm calling support or something I hope I get a person who speaks flawless English too.. but does it really interfere with communication if someone (especially whose first language isn't English) makes the occasional pronunciation or grammar flub? "Can I sit you" isn't correct, but I'm certain you still understood. None of us speak in a 100% grammatically correct manner at all times, even at work, and I am willing to cut people some slack.
Obviously you have never had to deal with some incompetent buffoon struggling to understand English and answer questions or straighten out an issue on your account. Some "mistakes" cannot be undone.
It is aggravating when you ask a question and you get an answer that has NOTHING to do with the question you just asked. smh
Of course you had every right to be upset about that experience. I have dealt with plenty of incompetent buffoons, many of whom spoke poor English or with such a heavy accent that I could not understand - I hate that too. I have to call tech support in my job a lot and half the time it's an Indian(?) guy I can barely understand, which stresses me out and wastes my time and money.
My post was in reply to OP's question, which sounded more like a case of annoyance at someone's lazy grammar while still understanding what they said, rather than a true language barrier issue.
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As I'm quickly scanning through this thread the thought comes to me that most Americans can't speak a single foreign language so I try to give some credit to those from other countries who try to speak English. I would say the only case where it becomes frustrating is where someone has not been screened enough that they are understandable or can understand an English speaking person on a customer service call. Those are the only times I have become exasperated. One time I told the customer service agent I was having too much trouble communicating with him and needed to talk to somebody else. He didn't seem to want to transfer me so I hung up and called back getting a completely different person. I listened carefully the first few sentences to make sure this person was much more fluent in English!
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As I'm quickly scanning through this thread the thought comes to me that most Americans can't speak a single foreign language so I try to give some credit to those from other countries who try to speak English. I would say the only case where it becomes frustrating is where someone has not been screened enough that they are understandable or can understand an English speaking person on a customer service call. Those are the only times I have become exasperated. One time I told the customer service agent I was having too much trouble communicating with him and needed to talk to somebody else. He didn't seem to want to transfer me so I hung up and called back getting a completely different person. I listened carefully the first few sentences to make sure this person was much more fluent in English!
The problem is when you go to a country where they speak English you need to learn THEIR language and be able to communicate. Not expect everyone to learn YOUR language so YOU can communicate with them. If I went to a foreign country I would learn their language not expect them to learn English for me.
I have noticed a lot of the hispanics use incorrect grammar. It happens so often I don't usually pay too much attention unless it is totally absurd. But then again there are people who are Americans and have been here for 40 generations and they don't know how to use proper grammar either.
Use to that was part of having a job. smh