Do you, or anyone you know, use the term, “What do you got?” I’ve been hearing it for several years now in police procedurals like NCIS and Hawaii 5-0, and it still grates on me. So I looked it up to see if anyone else is bothered by it.
Someone asked,
I recognise this as an American construction which sounds strange to me — Brits invariably say either “What have you got?” or “What do you have?”. But I’d be interested to know if it’s considered “normal” by most/all Americans, or if it’s regionally or otherwise restricted.
And here were some of the answers:
“What do you got” is used frequently in American shows such as NCIS and just about any procedural police show. I’m Australian and it grates for me too.
I’m American, native New Yorker, and for me the expression “What do you got?” is sooooo off! I just googled it after reading it in a novel written by a Bree Wolf (Remember Me), who I believe is British.
As an American raised just north of NYC (not far enough north to not know a lot of Yiddish), “Whaddaya got?” sounds very normal to me, sorta maybe Bronx-ish?
I’m now watching the Australian TV series The Dr. Blake Mysteries, and they don’t use “do you got?” but instead say, “What have you got?” That still gets my attention. To me “What do you have?” sounds better.
TV as a cultural experience. As well as an exercise aid.
There are wannabe Americans here who have made brief visits to the USA, who use that obnoxious construction but purists like yours truly will use “What have you got there?” or What do you have there?”
I’ve never heard the expression in real life, just on TV, so I’m surprised that they adopted it.
I think it’s like country music lingo.
for instance they always use the word ‘don’t’ for doesn’t.
“don’t it make my brown eyes blue?”
but now that you mention that phrase … it does stand out!
I had noticed it but I guess I’d become so used to it that it really doesn’t “don’t” LOL! bother me. 😀
our language overall is changing rapidly now. with the new generations putting their own spin on it. things that were never allowed or were avoided as improper usage are now mainstream and totally accepted.
double negatives stand out to me.
I have a friend with a doctorate in psychology who is constantly using that.
“it don’t take nothing for… ” blah blah blah…
it drives me crazy! she’s from texas. I finally called her on it one day.
her answer… “I’m from TEXAS! it’s how we talk down here whether we’re educated or not!” seriously? can you imagine that answer? oh well!
it’s a living thing. interesting to think that after we’re long gone… as in shakespeare and his buddies… the way we speak and write will no doubt be the olde english! 🙂 i’m sure my lack of capitals drives most people nuts.
and yet I’ve hated them since I was a little girl. very strange!
I’m guessing it originally came from a New York dialect. Something like “Whadayagot”. That doesn’t sound so strange to me.
I’m a “what do you have” person. But, there are other phrases that grate on my ears as well. One of my pet peeves is “there is nothing like this” when they mean “there is nothing ELSE like this.” If there was nothing like this then this wouldn’t exist either.
It’s funny what we notice and what we don’t. At the moment I can’t think of anything else that bothers me, but I know that I mentally rewrite some things when they don’t sound right to me.
and then there is your american “gotten” – I just don’t understand that either…
English is just a widely spoken language but it changes at the well-o-wisp to suit something…maybe the strange sentences are meant to wake up the sleepy viewer/listener…
I had to look that up. Yes, “gotten” is the past participle of “get” in North American English, but not British English. Who would have guessed? Thanks for telling me.