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Re: USAGE: YAEUT: "proper"

From:Paul Kershaw <ptkershaw@...>
Date:Tuesday, January 13, 2009, 14:09
---- Original Message ----

From: Eldin Raigmore <eldin_raigmore@...>
What about a teacher telling a class,
"Everyone get back to your proper seat!"
vs
"Everyone get back to your own seat!"

=====

For me (US, Metro Detroit), the first one implies that there was assigned seating;
the second one makes no such implication. Both, however, mean "Get back to the
seat I expect you in." Even if a teacher has been allowing students to violate
the assigned seating chart for the last three weeks, I would still expect "your
own seat" to refer to "your proper seat" if there is an assigned seating chart,
not to the seat the child has been using for the last three weeks.

-- Paul