Britishism?

[Charles C Doyle]

Don't we most often BOOK airline reservations--or even tickets?  (Seldom do we "reserve reservations"!)

And there are "booking agents" to match entertainers with venues.

--Charlie

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From: American Dialect Society [ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] on behalf of Victor Steinbok [aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM]
Sent: Monday, October 08, 2012 3:59 AM

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I suppose, "make" is more general than "schedule"--same meaning but
without having to specify the time up front. Still, when on the phone
with an office (health services or otherwise), "make an appointment"
seems to be perfectly common as a preface to asking for specific times.
Certainly was the case I scheduled car service--more specifically, I
/made an appointment/, but /scheduled service/. On the other hand, one
can book a spot/slot on the calendar (like booking a band), without that
sounding British.

     VS-)


On 10/7/2012 10:56 PM, Arnold Zwicky wrote:
> On Oct 7, 2012, at 7:35 PM, Wilson Gray wrote:
>>
>> Harvard University Health Service site:
>>
>> " You may also _book_ an appointment."
>>
>>
>> I've always scheduled appointments, heretofore.
> me too.  on the other hand, you book tennis, squash, or racquetball courts, and you book tee times on golf courses.  "reserve" is possible, but to my ear it's more formal.
>
> arnold, a racquetball player in a previous life

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