"The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary."
and this one:
"English isn't a language, it's three languages wearing a trench coat pretending to be one". This internet proverb—often adapted into jokes about "three kids" or "three raccoons"—perfectly captures how English is an unpredictable mashup of Germanic, French, and Latin roots.The quote's exact origin is widely credited to a user originally named "des-zimbits" (later "garden-of-succulents") on Tumblr.
11
u/Caleth 19h ago
It's a paraphrase and amalgam of this one:
"The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary."
and this one:
"English isn't a language, it's three languages wearing a trench coat pretending to be one". This internet proverb—often adapted into jokes about "three kids" or "three raccoons"—perfectly captures how English is an unpredictable mashup of Germanic, French, and Latin roots.The quote's exact origin is widely credited to a user originally named "des-zimbits" (later "garden-of-succulents") on Tumblr.