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Thread: example: this needs washed

 
  1. #11
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    Default Re: example: this needs washed

    Possibly it's a Scottish thing? I have heard Scottish people say 'this needs washed' etc, but not English people. Except for me, because it's catching!

  2. #12
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    Default Re: example: this needs washed

    "Needs" or "wants" + past participle is standard Scots not standard English.

    So in Scotland one would say "The baby needs fed" and that would be grammatically correct. A Scot would never say "The baby needs feeding". It's not *wrong*, as such, but we wouldn't say it. We would of course understand "The baby needs feeding" but it would sound a little odd to our ears.

    Interestingly the use of needs/wants + past participle is also used in some American dialects - Pittsburgh and parts of Pennysylvania. Thought to come from Scots originally.

    In England it's the other way around. They use need/want + gerund (verb-ing).
    Last edited by Rachel Harris; 06-26-2011 at 03:36 PM.

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