Couldn't, as in I Could NOT Care Any Less!

quote:

Originally posted by Slippery Pete:
Which one of these is correct? Majority of people I hear use it go with option 1.

1) I could care less.

That's because the majority of people you hear are flaming idiots.

Could not care less properly expresses what they really mean.

quote:

Originally posted by GMan69:

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:

Probably the same folks who write "would of", or "defiantly"...

Or "irregardless".

Or doosh, instead of douche. Witch is it??

#2. Couldn’t care less.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
Both sayings are correctly phrased, the issue is how much the person using them cares.

Agreed. Often use these as #1: less caring (maybe some remains) and #2: having no more care to give (all gone).

Probably goes against all the years of money I spent going to get all those oh so helpful college degrees:

I think I say #1
Well heck now I am not sure.


My family who hails from Southern Ohio, WV, and Kentucky has a unique way of saying certain words and phrases


Kind of like this 8 hours of video conference training today on Microsoft teams that I have to sit at/through/surf the internet.

I could care less learning this stuff and couldn't care less if it would end right now.

quote:

Originally posted by jam0:

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
Both sayings are correctly phrased, the issue is how much the person using them cares.

Agreed. Often use these as #1: less caring (maybe some remains) and #2: having no more care to give (all gone).

I highly doubt most people who use #1 know the true meaning of the phrase they're spouting, however.

quote:

Originally posted by 12131:
I highly doubt most people who use #1 know the true meaning of the phrase they're spouting, however.

Indeed. I use it on occasion, but, when I do, it's always "I could care less--but not by much."

To sigmonkey's theory;

I care more about my wife than anything.
I could care less about you babe.

Which one gets you kneecapped by an angry Italian woman even though they might "mean" the same thing?

'Couldn't' is correct. Because 'could not' is commonly said as a contraction when using this expression, people sometimes hear 'could' when 'couldn't' is not enunciated properly. Over time, this mistake has been repeated enough to create the confusion surrounding this expression.

To say you could care less means that there's latitude in your feelings on the subject. To say you could not care less means you are entirely, absolutely indifferent to the matter, which is the sentiment this expression is intended to convey.

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:
To sigmonkey's theory;

I care more about my wife than anything.
I could care less about you babe.

Pretty funny when you put it that way. It's just the almost accepted wrong use of the phrase that's at fault here. To which I'm sure she'd be patient and understanding as you explain that to her.

Excellent. Maybe I picked up on this because I'm math minded.

ISTR that back in the 50's you only heard "couldn't" but in the following few decades "could" occasionally became an option, and said in a sarcastic manner. Over time, "could" became much more common, and the sarcastic tone faded away. I think, initially, you were "cool" to say "could" and boringly dull to say "couldn't."

I guess I'm "boringly dull" with couldn't...

quote:

Originally posted by Slippery Pete:


the only other one that really gets me is the,

"9AM in the morning" folks.

Or, I gotta go to the ATM Machine.

quote:

Originally posted by TigerDore:
#2 is correct, but I have always interpreted #1 as typical American sarcasm.

I interpret #1 as someone who is careless in what they say, not actually thinking about what it means.

I also bridle at "I seen", but really hate "irregardless", which appears to be a wedding of "irrespective" with "regardless" and ends up being meaningless. (What does "not regardless" mean -- that it's worth regard?)

And while I'm picking nits, one of my pet peeves is the use of "Less" when "fewer" is proper. One should use "fewer" if it can be counted; "less" if not. (Fewer slices of bread but less mashed potatoes.)

flashguy

I'll stick with "who gives a shit?" Problem solved.

Yeah, what a great contribution to this thread.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:
That's because the majority of people you hear are flaming idiots.

Could not care less properly expresses what they really mean.

^^

To do other than this would be to speak carelessly.