"own it for a limited time"

[Dave Wilton]

I did turn up two instances of "own it for a limited time" in regards to
video sales when I Googled it yesterday. But I don't suppose that's enough
to call it a regular usage.

--Dave Wilton
  dave at wilton.net

-----Original Message-----
From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of
Benjamin Zimmer
Sent: Monday, February 27, 2006 5:46 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Re: "own it for a limited time"

On 2/26/06, Benjamin Zimmer <bgzimmer at ling.upenn.edu> wrote:
> Disney only releases its classic movies on DVD for brief periods in
> order to boost demand, with _The Lady and the Tramp_ the latest to get
> this treatment. A commercial currently running for the DVD exhorts,
> "Own it for a limited time!"
>
> Has the verb "own" shifted while I wasn't looking, from 'possess' to
'acquire'?

Ah, never mind. I just caught the commercial again, and it turns out I
misheard it the first time. The line is "only for a limited time," not
"own it for a limited time." Sorry about that!


--Ben Zimmer

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org