RE: A question about one of my most disliked expressions.
November 10, 2012 at 6:18 pm
(This post was last modified: November 10, 2012 at 6:24 pm by Edwardo Piet.)
Yes, I like the meaning of "whatever floats your boat" but for some irrational reason I don't enjoy the metaphor. Perhaps because it is dated and overused. I'd rather not be someone who instead of saying "I don't like X" always says "whatever floats your boat", because I'd simply overuse the metaphor. I would like a clear and direct literal version of the meaning rather than a metaphorical one.
I would rather like variations of the metaphor though... although I'm not sure that they'd be understood? Maybe I should create a new thread for some.
Anyway, as for the "I'm not fond of X" part... I can still imagine some people reacting in the same way: Thinking that that means I'm against X.
I guess the problem is that they may be misinterpreting a true statement as an understatement. They may for example translate "I am not fond of X" as just a polite understatement of something like "You're an idiot to like X" when actually what is meant really is what is explicitly said.
I would rather like variations of the metaphor though... although I'm not sure that they'd be understood? Maybe I should create a new thread for some.
Anyway, as for the "I'm not fond of X" part... I can still imagine some people reacting in the same way: Thinking that that means I'm against X.
I guess the problem is that they may be misinterpreting a true statement as an understatement. They may for example translate "I am not fond of X" as just a polite understatement of something like "You're an idiot to like X" when actually what is meant really is what is explicitly said.
