[Ads-l] "my first ask"
Peter Reitan
pjreitan at HOTMAIL.COM
Sat Jan 5 01:02:00 UTC 2019
A quick search of the text string "that's a big ask" on newspapers.com
shows hits as early as 1988. But every single hit from 1988 through
2006 is either from an Australian newspaper, or quotes a native
Australian, typically athletes. Several examples of high-profile
Australian tennis players and golfers being quoted in US newspapers -
perhaps that's how it seeped into the language here. The earliest
non-Canadian result was from Canada in 2006. The earliest US result
that is apparently not from a native Australian speaker is only from
2010.
------ Original Message ------
From: "Jonathan Lighter" <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
To: ADS-L at listserv.uga.edu
Sent: 1/4/2019 4:11:03 PM
Subject: Re: "my first ask"
>---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>Poster: Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
>Subject: Re: "my first ask"
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>I've been hearing "ask," n., frequently from TV newspersons for maybe a
>year, maybe more. They say it instead of "request," which is boring.
>
>JL
>
>On Fri, Jan 4, 2019 at 4:26 PM Margaret Winters <mewinters at wayne.edu> wrote:
>
>> Yes, I got the personal note from Ms. Pelosi too. "ask" as a noun is
>> standard development-speak and has been for decades, at least among
>> university fund-raisers.
>>
>>
>> best,
>>
>> Margaret
>>
>>
>> ----------------------------
>> MARGARET E WINTERS
>> Former Provost
>> Professor Emerita - French and Linguistics
>> Wayne State University
>> Detroit, MI 48202
>>
>> mewinters at wayne.edu
>>
>>
>>
>> ________________________________
>> From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of
>> James A. Landau <JJJRLandau at NETSCAPE.COM>
>> Sent: Friday, January 4, 2019 4:18 PM
>> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>> Subject: "my first ask"
>>
>> (in reply to a post I unfortunately deleted and cannot locate in the
>> archives)
>>
>> At 2:07 PM today Speaker Nancy Pelosi send out a fund-raising e-mail with
>> the subject line "re: my first ask"
>>
>> - Jim Landau
>>
>> _____________________________________________________________
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>
>
>--
>"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>
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