Timeline for Specific word to describe someone who is so good that isn't even considered in say a classification
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
18 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Nov 12, 2017 at 22:25 | vote | accept | TrisT | ||
| Oct 21, 2016 at 18:07 | comment | added | PLL | @LightnessRacesinOrbit: “It being an idiom doesn't magically rewrite the grammar of the English language.” How else is the grammar of a language ever made, except by the way people speak it? A whole nother (however one chooses to write it) is a phrase that native speakers use, deliberately and consistently and predictably. By any linguistic standard, it’s part of the grammar of the language — albeit associated with an informal/colloquial usage, not formal usage. | |
| Oct 21, 2016 at 8:49 | comment | added | Lightness Races in Orbit | @sgroves: I didn't say how much it "matters" that it's grammatically incorrect; I merely pointed out that it is. (Indeed, I have already stated: "Of course, I am not asserting that people are not allowed to use the phrase as written, or anything so draconian"). | |
| Oct 21, 2016 at 8:49 | comment | added | Lightness Races in Orbit | @barbecue: It being an idiom doesn't magically rewrite the grammar of the English language. As for "a whole other" I don't think that's "wrong", but have nothing to back that up and it's too early in the morning for research.. so don't quote me on it. :) | |
| Oct 21, 2016 at 1:48 | comment | added | barbecue | Related: We don't count professionals, and similar phrases. Implication is that when compared to all the others, this person is literally at a professional, as opposed to amateur, level. Usually applied to non-sporting fields that don't actually have professionals. "Bob can hold his liquor like nobody I know." "Except for Shawn..." Shawn is a pro, he doesn't count. " | |
| Oct 21, 2016 at 1:42 | comment | added | barbecue | @LightnessRacesinOrbit The phrase "a whole 'nother" is not grammatically incorrect because it's an idiom. If you say "a whole another" you're saying it wrong. And if you say "a whole other" you are also saying it wrong. | |
| Oct 20, 2016 at 19:21 | comment | added | user428517 | I don't think grammatical correctness matters in speech nearly as much as being colloquial. There's certainly nothing wrong with saying "he's in a whole 'nother league". | |
| Oct 20, 2016 at 15:58 | comment | added | Lightness Races in Orbit | @Jim: Indeed, you may notice that I myself have employed cadence in my prior comment ("X, or Y, or Z") for purely stylistic reasons; I am not sure of the technical correctness of this structure, but I would wager it is just as "wrong". :) | |
| Oct 20, 2016 at 15:50 | comment | added | Lightness Races in Orbit | @JimReynolds: "A whole another league" is not grammatically correct in any dialect, or context, or genre of English with which I am familiar. That is due to the effective repetition of the indefinite article; yes, even though it was hidden by an apostrophe! Substituting "other" for "another" would be fine. Of course, I am not asserting that people are not allowed to use the phrase as written, or anything so draconian; I'm merely pointing out that it's a bit hokey from a technical standpoint. (It also, to my ears, sounds clunky for the same reason.) I hope that helps. | |
| Oct 20, 2016 at 13:37 | comment | added | Jim Reynolds | @Lig What's your definition of grammatical correctness? And upon what grammar (there are many) do you make such a judgment? You may be confusing grammaticality with formality, or not recognize that grammar takes context and genre into account. Such an utterance as the one I mention above is quite commonly accepted in Standard English. Its register matches quite closely with the OP's yeah he doesn't count. I'm not aware of any difference between Standard American English and other Standard Englishes with respect to this, but I'd be interested to learn of any. | |
| Oct 20, 2016 at 9:02 | comment | added | Lightness Races in Orbit | @JimReynolds: That's a US-specific variant from what I can tell (as well as being grammatically incorrect!) | |
| Oct 20, 2016 at 5:42 | comment | added | Jim Reynolds | Another variant commonly used in speech, and usually in informal situations, goes something like, He's/she's in a whole 'nother league. There are similar additional variants. | |
| S Oct 19, 2016 at 4:59 | history | suggested | Wildcard | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
Add the variation that fits the question even better. :)
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| Oct 19, 2016 at 4:45 | comment | added | Wildcard | I think the variation given by @plast1k is more applicable for the question. I recommend editing it into the answer—I've proposed an edit. :) | |
| Oct 19, 2016 at 4:45 | review | Suggested edits | |||
| S Oct 19, 2016 at 4:59 | |||||
| Oct 18, 2016 at 19:42 | comment | added | plast1k | Common variation on this: "Bolt is in a league of his own." | |
| Oct 18, 2016 at 19:20 | comment | added | Ryan | Everyone seems to be trying to find a word meaning the best or greatest, but only this answer includes the part about excluding them for being so good (so far). | |
| Oct 18, 2016 at 18:03 | history | answered | cbh | CC BY-SA 3.0 |