I shall be 17

[Barbara Need]

>Jim Walker <Jim.Walker at UNIV-LYON2.FR> writes:
>
>>>>>>
>Would any of you out there share this judgement, that
>
>I SHALL be 17 next month
>
>is a definite no-no?
><<<<<
>
>Ugh! -- as far as US English is concerned.
>
[stuff omitted]
>
>   Mark A. Mandel : Dragon Systems, a Lernout & Hauspie company
>          Mark_Mandel at dragonsys.com : Senior Linguist
> 320 Nevada St., Newton, MA 02460, USA : http://www.dragonsys.com

Sigh, actually, it sounds ok to me (US born (TN) and raised in OH and MA,
resident in PA, WI, SD and IL), but my "native" intuitions about modals
have been hacked to pieces by working on them. Also people say my speech
sometimes shows British features.

Of course, what most people would SAY, is

I'll be 17 next month*.

which avoids the problem entirely!

(*would that it were so, give or take a few years!)**

Barbara

(**then again....)