Date:  Sun, 30 Jul 1995 20:48:06 -0500

From:  "Dennis R. Preston" <preston[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]PILOT.MSU.EDU>

Subject: Re: ecstasy, Ecstacy



I note (as one may see) that Ms. Dawn Church says, in her eagerness to

depart from ADS-L, 'I just want off!' I can't remember where I learned it,

but I have always thought that I knew that 'I want off' is regionally

limited - namely, South Midland. (It is native to me; and I am SM; so far,

so good.) When I cite this to my students (mostly low-front-raising Inland

Northerners) as a regionally limited form, however, they all go (or 'are

all like' if you prefer) 'So what! Everybody can say that.' I have to dip

to multiple modals, (i) ~ (e) conflation before nasals, and other

Louisville linguistic exotica to wow them. What's up with this 'I want off'

stuff?

 Dennis Preston



preton[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]pilot.msu.edu

>How do I get off this list? I just want off! who's the owner of the list,

>so I can get off?

>

>Ms. Dawn Church

>President, Nontraditional Student Association

>nsa[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]pegasus, church[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]pegasus.cc.ucf.edu

>(407) 249-9527