"Can I borrow a piece of paper?"

14 Jun

You ever notice that’s usually what people say when they have absolutely no intention of returning that piece of paper.  Some of the language we use is really quite comical, or at the very least often inaccurate.

When you ask someone to borrow a piece of paper or to borrow a pencil, you’re not going to return those things.  Don’t ask to borrow!  What you really mean is, “Can I have..?”

On some subconscious level, as humans we’d prefer to lie to one another and fake politeness, rather than be straight forward.  Perhaps I’m just a little too upset about this.

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  • http://www.TheConstantComplainer.com The Constant Complainer

    Wow! Someone is on edge today! LOL. Just kidding. It’s like when someone says, “We should get together sometime.” To me that means you’re putting me off. Otherwise, give me dates, dammit!

  • The Stabbing Pen

    Lol…It also applies to when someone asks a stranger for a cigarette — “Can I borrow a cigarette?” Borrow?

  • The Stabbing Pen

    *sometimes applies — “bum a cigarette” is also popular — bum is I guess a hipper perhaps more polite way to say what they really mean, which is “have”