[Ads-l] "my bad" redux

Tue Oct 23 21:25:39 UTC 2018

I have always assumed that, in the expression "my bad," "bad" is being used adjectively, with the noun it modifies being implicit, rather than "bad" being used as a noun.

Fred

________________________________
From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2018 4:51 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Re: "my bad" redux

Here is another example in 1980 of the parallel structure with "my
goods" and "my bads". This seems closer to the modern meaning of "my
bad(s)" because the context is clearly apologetic.

Newspaper: The Evening Sun
Newspaper Location: Baltimore, Maryland
Date: September 15, 1980
Page: C2

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[Begin excerpt]
"I blew it," he said. He was not being noble. "I made all the [play]
calls. They were my goods and my bads."
[End excerpt]

Garson
On Tue, Oct 23, 2018 at 4:40 PM ADSGarson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Great thread Ben, Peter, and LH. Below is a use in June 1980 of "my
> bads" meaning "my mistakes", but it does not quite match the modern
> meaning. Perhaps it can be viewed as a precursor.
>
> The team of a basketball coach named John Pellegrino has been
> penalized because of the coach's actions. Pellegrino says he knows how
> General George Custer felt. Pellegrino "acknowledges some of the
> administrative errors/judgments that led to problems". He uses "my
> bads" to refer to his errors.
>
> Issue Date: June 7, 1980
> Newspaper: The Tampa Tribune
> Newspaper Location: Tampa, Florida
> Article: The Morning After: The Darkest Days of John Pellegrino
> Author: Tom McEwen (Sports Editor)
> Start Page 1C, Quote Page 6C, Column 3
> Database: Newspapers.com
>
> https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newspapers.com%2Fimage%2F335363311%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=mvQBrivFbYjQwljdtgDBC5sZLdHIYlEmkNjWNk5IVJA%3D&reserved=0
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> As for George Custer Pellegrino's last stand, "All I can say is I
> believe my goods outweigh my bads by far. Put us on probation if they
> must, but don't cancel the season, and let me keep coaching."
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
> On Tue, Oct 23, 2018 at 4:11 PM Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Well spotted! Here's Peter's clipping of the whole slang list:
> >
> > https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newspapers.com%2Fclip%2F24780469%2Fthe_montgomery_advertiser%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=1BCKeDlgTfVAgW5FEBtiiatScOaq8EobNNl%2BCSHCmzg%3D&reserved=0
> >
> > (Manute Bol was still in Khartoum in 1981, so we can safely rule him out as
> > the originator of "my bad.")
> >
> > On Tue, Oct 23, 2018 at 3:51 PM Peter Reitan <pjreitan at hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > > From a "list of slang words in current use in Montgomery [Alabama], and
> > > was compiled from high school and college students. . . .  My bad -
> > > admission of a mistake, as 'Sorry, my bad.'"
> > >
> > >
> > > The Montgomery Advertiser (Montgomery, Alabama), May 3, 1981, Section D,
> > > page 1.
> > >
> > > ________________________________
> > > From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Ben
> > > Zimmer <bgzimmer at GMAIL.COM>
> > > Sent: Tuesday, October 23, 2018 9:20 AM
> > > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> > > Subject: Re: "my bad" redux
> > >
> > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > > -----------------------
> > > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > Poster:       Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at GMAIL.COM>
> > > Subject:      Re: "my bad" redux
> > >
> > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > > In the 2010 thread I linked to, Jesse Sheidlower mentioned that the OED had
> > > "my bad" from The Back-In-Your-Face Guide to Pick-Up Basketball (1986),
> > > which is cited in the OED3 entry (after the 1985 cite Garson found). Jon
> > > Lighter seemed to think it might be in the earlier edition, The
> > > In-Your-Face Basketball Book (1980), but I believe an OED researcher
> > > checked and it wasn't there. But we still may be able to find it in some
> > > pre-1985 source, since, as Larry said, the '85 cites take it as a known
> > > phrase (at least among sportswriters who presumably enjoyed playing pick-up
> > > basketball).
> > >
> > > On Tue, Oct 23, 2018 at 11:51 AM Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu>
> > > wrote:
> > >
> > > > We had a thread on this in October 1997; the consensus was that it
> > > > originated in the mid 1980s in a basketball context (presumably from
> > > > players admitting they were responsible for a foul), so basically
> > > > consistent with the findings below.  It would seem from the Dan Rooney
> > > > quote, though, that that usage must have established (although perhaps
> > > not
> > > > attested in print) before April 1985.  The truth is out there!
> > > >
> > > > LH
> > > >
> > > > > On Oct 23, 2018, at 11:31 AM, Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > On the Woot.com blog, Ken Jennings has a post in his "debunker" series,
> > > > > "Did Manute Bol Coin the Phrase 'My Bad'?":
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.woot.com%2Fblog%2Fpost%2Fthe-debunker-did-manute-bol-coin-the-phrase-my-bad&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=k8g6yHhbY9JrMMbPN0tWw7rP2QJrpDWoi7EtdI3Gotw%3D&reserved=0
> > > > >
> > > > > This appears to rely on research I rounded up in a Word Routes column
> > > in
> > > > > 2010, after Manute Bol died:
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.visualthesaurus.com%2Fcm%2Fwordroutes%2Fthe-manute-bol-theory-of-my-bad%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=bur8QAFWaDsIthjhUg%2Fl%2B83U49loI3s2aAnksmcGbHI%3D&reserved=0
> > > > >
> > > > > In that column, I noted that the earliest known citation was one that
> > > > > Garson found from Nov. 1985 and posted to ADS-L. (It was subsequently
> > > > > included in the OED3 entry for "bad.")
> > > > >
> > > > > ----
> > > > > 1985 Gainesville Sun 14 Nov. 3E Yes, the Vols still must host Vandy the
> > > > > following weekend, but c'mon, Vandy? Oops, my bad, I forgot for a
> > > moment
> > > > > what the Commodore did to Georgia. Silly me.
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.google.com%2Fnewspapers%3Fid%3Dya4RAAAAIBAJ%26sjid%3DvekDAAAAIBAJ%26pg%3D3244%2C4369872&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=ndvQSpMsuMkNscRc4SRKt9RozB23vsbbAr6BF095698%3D&reserved=0
> > > > >
> > > https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Flistserv.linguistlist.org%2Fpipermail%2Fads-l%2F2010-April%2F098781.html&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=iNdB%2BD42UwCxgKrcbwiGGBkE424Sgt5L1lx3nbVFAyg%3D&reserved=0
> > > > > ----
> > > > >
> > > > > That example was from Bobby Tyler, a sportswriter in Gainesville,
> > > > Florida.
> > > > > Here it is earlier in 1985 from Dan Rooney, a local sports columnist in
> > > > > Muncie, Indiana.
> > > > >
> > > > > ----
> > > > > The Star Press (Muncie, Indiana), Apr. 14, 1985, p. C7, col. 3
> > > > > I know. I picked Fuzzy Zoeller to win the Masters and he didn't even
> > > make
> > > > > the cut. My bad.
> > > > > https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newspapers.com%2Fclip%2F24771896%2Fmy_bad%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cfred.shapiro%40yale.edu%7C9d3cdfdef23842c5a0ae08d639295fe4%7Cdd8cbebb21394df8b4114e3e87abeb5c%7C0%7C0%7C636759247214223031&sdata=HZ8ywoEm3NXX2Agi1FISqj21HqxpSfbw%2BnsdWXMIM%2FY%3D&reserved=0
> > > > > ----
> > > > >
> > >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
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