I frequently hear people saying "I couldn't care less." I have said it myself.
However, when I heard it today it suddenly occurred to me that what was actually meant was that the person could not care (at all). The implication being that if I 'could not care less' then, to make sense, that had to be followed by '...than (some defined level of care).
For example: 'I could not care less about the colour of your socks' means that I care about them at a defined level. If I want to say that I actually don't care about your socks then what I should say is "I do not care about the colour of your socks".
What on earth started me on that esoteric linguistic train of thought?
Come to think of it I could not care less about the topic of this post.
I have also recently seen comments that say " I could care less" - omitting the not - which means something else entirely to my mind.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, JayCee, it's quite a little minefield if one starts analysing it.
DeleteI'm familiar with the "I couldn't care less" expression in English and might use it myself to express total indifference. To me the implied ending to the phrase would be something like "I couldn't care less if I tried". (And I agree with JayCee about "I could care less".)
ReplyDeleteI am more likely to say "I dont give a flip about that". Not that I say that about much! To give a flip, is that a Southern expression? No idea, just heard it all my life. Nice to see a post from you, Graham!
ReplyDeleteI am more likely to say "I dont give a flip about that". Not that I say that about much! To give a flip, is that a Southern expression? No idea, just heard it all my life. Nice to see a post from you, Graham!
ReplyDeleteThe phrase was discussed recently somewhere here, and analysing it gave me a headache, and so I decided I couldn't care less.
ReplyDeleteSuch a phrase makes not caring worse than not caring is how I take it. Now that you mention it, it would make more sense to let it go and say just don’t care at all. Now, I’m also caring less about it.
ReplyDeleteThank you Graham, for helping me feel I belong. 😎
May
At my son and daughter's school there was a Maths teacher called Mr Careless which I think is a great name for a Maths teacher... or indeed a "Mr Man" book. At the school where I taught there was a History teacher called Mrs Boreham which she did regularly!
ReplyDeleteMr Careless does indeed sound like a Mr Man character! At a former work place, I knew a Frau Fröhlich (Mrs Cheerful), and from what I saw of her, she really lived up to her name.
DeleteThere are radio programs here at the end of the year where people phone in about bits like you bring up. Isn't this an ugly sentence!
ReplyDeleteMy version is "I couldn't give a monkey's". It means the same thing.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't care less about what the so-called celebrities are up to, for instance. There are many different ways to express what we do (or do not) care about, and I think it is good to have such variety - as long as we understand each other.
ReplyDelete"I could care less " irritates the heck out of me.
ReplyDelete"I forgot it at home" is equally irritating.
"Couldn't care less" suggests there is no possible lower point on the care scale?
I know I wrote a comment but it disappeared! No matter.
ReplyDelete