a little and a lot

Thursday, June 04, 2009

Yeah, Yea, Yay

In the spirit of the greatest Facebook group known to man, "You're vs. Your: I Know the Difference" (325 members strong!), I would like to briefly clear up a common spelling mistake that seems to be a pet peeve of mine.

Yeah: This word is pronounced exactly as it's spelled. Y-eee-ahh (or aaa). This is NOT the word that means "hooray!" This IS the word that means "yes."

(And let it be noted, that it should not be used by children in the South, especially when speaking to their teachers. I found this out the hard way in 6th grade immediately after moving from New York, and the consequence was staying in from recess. Let it also be noted that I was never allowed to say "Yes, ma'am" to my Yankee mother because she thought it meant I was "sassing" her.)

Yea: Again, this word is pronounced exactly as it's spelled. Y-eee-A. Like the word above, this word can also mean yes, but in an old-school way. ("Yea or nay.") This word can also occasionally mean "hooray!" Yea!

Yay: In my opinion, this is the correct spelling for the word that means "hooray." Yay!

Now that we are all in the same page, I better not be catching anyone saying "Yeah!" in less they are truly meaning to say "Oh yeah!" Again, no hooray-ing unless it is the word "Yea!" or more appropriately, "Yay!"

Yay! I'm glad I got that off of my chest! Yeah, I know I'm a weirdo.

15 comments:

Kristy said...

YAY! Preach on, sista! I couldn't feel more kindred with you on these particular issues!

Jamie Grizzle said...

I totally agree with all of your points. Thank you for clarifying that!

Jamie Grizzle said...

P.S. Said Facebook group is now 326 members strong!

Unknown said...

You're a good friend, sistah.

Laurel said...

I'm glad I'm not the only one bothered with the yeah/yay issue!

Lance said...

Thanks to my mother and older sister - the grammar queens, themselves - I cringe a lot while reading from various media. This is only one of many for me, too.

Kristin said...

I feel the same way, although I am guilty of spelling it "yeah" when I really mean "yay". Thanks for the thorough explanation :)

Jane said...

You know, I feel bad. As an English major it seems I should've thought about this. Thanks for clarifying. :)

melanie said...

I'm so embarrassed. I am sure my blog was a catalyst for this post. I am so terrible at spelling and grammar. I apologize...but am thankful for the lesson. I will for sure be referring back. :)

your comment on my blog cracked me up! I am glad you feel my pain!

mel

Jesse Faris said...

By no means was your blog a catalyst, Melanie! It is a common mistake--it don't know why it bugs me so much. We all have our quirks, I guess--at least I certainly do! ;)

McKinney Madness said...

I'm totally with you sister. That kind of stuff gets on my nerves too. Now, if you could just teach me how to use "there" and "their" things would be gravy...

Callie said...

I completely agree, and this post was an excellent introduction to your blog (of which I'm completely jealous because it's way cuter than mine). This issue has also bothered me. Further evidence that yea does not mean hooray: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death" . . . no one's hooraying about that.

Tesney said...

Good to know I've been using the correct spelling...YAY!

Mitzi said...

Jesse, you crack me up!

Ashley @ pure and lovely said...

AMEN. I would like for you to now cover to, two, and too, because I want to SLAP people when they get something so easy wrong, as well as there, they're and their. PREACH!


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