"until" vs "before" or "to"

[Wilson Gray]

I, on the other hand, used to say "to" and "till," but, in the fall of
1959, switched to "of." This change was made quite consciously, unlike
more and more of what I do, these days. My wife has astounded me with
her quotations of some of my favorite catch phrases, of which I have
no conscious knowledge. E.g., "I'm freezing my ass off!" Who knew? I
never use that kind of language!

-Wilson

On 7/18/07, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at YAHOO.COM>
> Subject:      Re: "until" vs "before" or "to"
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> I used to say "of" but at some point switched to "to" and "till."  The change was made quite unconsciously, like more and more of what I do these days.
>
>   JL
>
> Susan Rosine <basenjiluvr at MSN.COM> wrote:
>   ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: Susan Rosine
> Subject: Re: "until" vs "before" or "to"
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> My mother is from Alabama, my father from Indiana. I was born in Colorado
> but grew up in Washington state. I say "10 til 6" and "quarter til 6". The
> "til" seems to be to be Southern, while "of" seems very Northern or East
> Coast. Just my two cents worth.
>
>
> Date: Mon, 16 Jul 2007 22:46:11 -0400
> From: sagehen
> Subject: Re: "until" vs "before" or "to"
>
> >Did the announcer say "until" or "till"? "Till" is more common, and the
> >standard term in the Midland (and South, I believe). It goes way back,
> >noted in early travel journals as of Scotch-Irish origin. Dictionaries
> >cite it as a separate lexical item, if I'm not mistaken, more related to
> >"to" than to "until." (I don't have my sources here at home, but I've
> >cited this in my Encyclopedia of Appalachia entry of 2006, and Michael
> >Montgomery has discussed it long before that.) As a common daily usage, it
> >goes deep: I always tell my students that I, a Northerner born and bred,
> >will always say "quarter to," but my Indiana/Ohio son will forever say
> >"quarter till." The third option is usually "quarter of"; I've never heard
> >"quarter before" (or 15 minutes before). This seems to me simply
> >dialectal, not semantic. I forget where you live, Sage Hen?
> >
> >Beverly Flanigan
> >Ohio University
> >
> >At 08:02 PM 7/16/2007, you wrote:
> >>---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >>-----------------------
> >>Sender: American Dialect Society
> >>Poster: sagehen
> >>Subject: "until" vs "before" or "to"
> >>------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>-
> >>
> >>(a) It is now 25 minutes until 6.
> >>(b) It is now 25 minutes before 6.
> >>(c) It is now 25 minutes to 6.
> >> ~~~~~~~~~~~
> >>What's the difference?
> >>
> >> (a) feels wrong to me, unless sthg important is going to happen at 6.
> >>
> >> (b) & (c) as simple announcements of the time seem right.
> >>
> >>Is this just me, or do others have the same sense? I would probably never
> >>have thought of this if one of our local radio announcers didn't use the
> >>"until" form regularly, catching my attention. Most of them say
> >>"before."
> >>AM
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> This particular announcer definitely says "until." The station is in
> Canton NY, but its personnel come from all over the country.
> I myself would be more likely to say "25 of 6" or "quarter of" than "
> till" or "to" or "before." I grew up in Lincoln NE.
> AM
>
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