this post was submitted on 06 Jul 2024
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[–] xantoxis@lemmy.world 96 points 1 year ago (3 children)

On the one hand, a sign like this definitely did have enough room for the full spelling of "through". There seems to be no reason to abbreviate it.

On the other hand, isn't drive-thru just, like, its own noun now? Part of me thinks this was always spelled correctly.

[–] The_Picard_Maneuver@lemmy.world 52 points 1 year ago (5 children)

It seems like shorthand for signs that has been used enough that it's basically normal now, like "lite" instead light, or "donut" instead of doughnut.

[–] xantoxis@lemmy.world 31 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (7 children)

Right, the distinction I'm making is this isn't just "normalized" but actually the correct spelling. As in, if a newspaper editor saw it written as "drive-through" they would be obliged to correct it.

[–] brbposting@sh.itjust.works 14 points 1 year ago

Suppose both aight?

drive-through or drive-thru (a sensational spelling of the word through), is a type of take-out service provided by a business that allows customers to purchase products without leaving their cars.

Sensational spelling is the deliberate spelling of a word in a non-standard way for special effect.

[–] someguy3@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago (5 children)

I still call it an air-port.

[–] iAmTheTot@sh.itjust.works 14 points 1 year ago

All my homies call them aerodromes.

[–] CoggyMcFee@lemmy.world 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

My kid calls it a plane station and frankly it’s growing on me

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[–] then_three_more@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Ohh I thought donut was the American spelling of doughnut.

[–] DAMunzy@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)
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[–] lseif@sopuli.xyz 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"lite" has a different meaning (or at least connotation) to "light"

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[–] bleistift2@sopuli.xyz 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

According to Merriam Webster, “thru” is an acceptable, albeit less common, variant of “through”. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thru

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[–] Drusas@kbin.run 52 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Don't get me started on "donut" instead of "doughnut".

[–] BigFatNips@sh.itjust.works 12 points 1 year ago

Deez nuts are my favorite

[–] merc@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 year ago

Surely you mean doughknot?

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[–] idiomaddict@feddit.de 42 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I wonder what the Venn diagram of prescriptivists and graffiti artists is

[–] brotundspiele@sh.itjust.works 35 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

Wy do yu insist so strongly on writing thre mor letters that do nothing to chang the pronunciaton of the word? Ar yu French?

[–] funnystuff97@lemmy.world 18 points 1 year ago (5 children)

If ther's on thing I hat, it's words ending with silent e's. And whil we'r at it, we ned to get rid of doubl e's as well.

[–] Nelots@lemm.ee 13 points 1 year ago (8 children)

I don't mind silent e's, they do actually change the way words are pronounced at least.

[–] eatham@aussie.zone 4 points 1 year ago (5 children)

They work like an e after a vowel, making it a long vowel, but with a letter in between. They have absolutely no reason to exist as haet is pronounced the same as hate but has the letters in a more logical order.

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Magic Es they taught them to me as. Come to think of it as an adult a magic e could mean something entirely different...

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[–] Enzy@lemm.ee 13 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (6 children)

Americans don't like "ou" in their words.

So it is thereby, by law, and without question, "Drive throgh".

[–] zbyte64@awful.systems 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)
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[–] Ephera@lemmy.ml 13 points 1 year ago

For a moment, I thought, this was a misprint and they had to officially get out a spray can to complete the word...

[–] notsure@fedia.io 12 points 1 year ago (2 children)

there are two "l"'s in cancelled, i will die on this hill.../s

[–] Stoney_Logica1@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Merica gave England that other L.

[–] notsure@fedia.io 3 points 1 year ago

language, though imprecise... brings a methemetician's paradise

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[–] user1234@lemmynsfw.com 10 points 1 year ago (6 children)

Loved the show Dress to Kill by Eddie Izzard. He thought thru was much better than through coming to the conclusion that through should be pronounced like thruff.

[–] Whelks_chance@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

You say erbs, and we say herbs. Because there's a fucking h in it.

[–] The_Picard_Maneuver@lemmy.world 23 points 1 year ago

I don't think the British need to pick the "who's worse about skipping letters" fight. Lol

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[–] Mycatiskai@lemmy.ca 9 points 1 year ago (5 children)

If you want to be more accurate it is a Drive Next to, unless you drive through the building to get your food.

Oil change places where you don't get out of your car are drive through, everywhere else is a drive next to.

[–] trslim@pawb.social 3 points 1 year ago

Car washes too!

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[–] marius@feddit.org 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] someguy3@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Sounds Canadian.

[–] QaspR@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Darn. They missed the hyphen.

[–] Godnroc@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Ah, yes, the drive thro-ugh

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[–] tacosanonymous@lemm.ee 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Thru /throo͞/

preposition, adverb & adjective

  1. Through. 

preposition

  1. Alternative spelling of through

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition • More at Wordnik

[–] Anyolduser@lemmynsfw.com 8 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Just a quick reminder that dictionaries are descriptive, they document existing language use rather than set down rules.

If enough people break an existing rule often enough, it makes it into dictionaries. Just ask anyone who doesn't think that "ironic" should mean "coincidental".

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[–] spacemanspiffy@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Drive-thru

Hi-way

Tonite

Rite

These spellings are extremely pervasive at my workplace and they drive me nuts. Granted, many people there are non-native English speakers. But that just means the people teaching them English are doing it wrong.

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[–] Duamerthrax@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago
[–] MehBlah@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Kinda sad where you live in a state where every little misspelling or mangled punctuation causes such stress.

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