all right or alright?

kjarva · Jun 19, 2010

Got one that's annoying me. I thought it was perfectly acceptable to use 'alright', having seen it millions of times in various books, websites and magazines. A friend told me that alright was completely incorrect and I should never use it.

Is that correct? Should I really use 'all right' every time I use the expression?

Your input is much appreciated!

alleycat · Jun 19, 2010

Alright may one day be acceptable for all usage, but for now use all right for any kind of writing for publication.

This is one of those word choices that bugs the hell out of grammar sticklers.

kjarva · Jun 19, 2010

ah, thanks for the advice

donroc · Jun 19, 2010

I say yes although I have seen alright used in novels published by one of the big boys. I remember one of my English profs took the position that if more than half the population misuses it as they do with normalcy and irregardless, it should become acceptable usage. I continue to use all right, normality, and regardless.

alleycat · Jun 19, 2010

If you do a search here (or on Google) you will see a lot of debate about using alright. You won't have any problem if you just use all right.

I suspect that sometime in the not-too-distance future the grammar sticklers will give up and finally accept alright, but until then it's not alright. ;-)

kjarva · Jun 19, 2010

Thanks guys, I knew that all right was the correct way to use it but thought that nowadays 'alright' was accepted as correct as well. To steer clear of any problems I'm just going to use 'all right'.

RJK · Jun 23, 2010

Someone in another thread asked if you would write alwrong? Of course you wouldn't, so using the same logic, don't use alright. The correct form is all right and all wrong.

Chase · Jun 23, 2010

I'm deaf and "hear" TV and DVD dialog via closed captions and subtitles.

Almost all captioners use "alright," "gonna," "wanna," et cetera, even when the character's lips clearly pronounce "all right," "want to," and "going to." Thus, so many of us deafies and others who need captions think the misspellings are correct.

On the other hand, subtitles more closely follow the character's actual pronunciation.

I'm with those thinking alright is alwrong (good one, RJK).

scarletpeaches · Jun 23, 2010

donroc said:
I say yes although I have seen alright used in novels published by one of the big boys. I remember one of my English profs took the position that if more than half the population misuses it as they do with normalcy and irregardless, it should become acceptable usage. I continue to use all right, normality, and regardless.

I love you.

Deleted member 42 · Jun 23, 2010

One of the reasons I adore the Blessed American Heritage Dictionary for American diction questions is that it includes Usage Notes. Like this one:

AHD said:
Usage Note : Despite the appearance of the form alright in works of such well-known writers as Langston Hughes and James Joyce, the single word spelling has never been accepted as standard. This is peculiar, since similar fusions such as already and altogether have never raised any objections. The difference may lie in the fact that already and altogether became single words back in the Middle Ages, whereas alright has only been around for a little more than a century and was called out by language critics as a misspelling. Consequently, one who uses alright, especially in formal writing, runs the risk that readers may view it as an error or as the willful breaking of convention.

bonitakale · Jun 24, 2010

Speaking for those who are offended by 'alright,' I have no reason why it causes such a visceral reaction, but it does. 'All right' works, and, in dialogue, 'awright,' (which is closer to what I actually say) works sometimes, but 'alright' makes me think of poverty and lack of education and long fingernails and chewing gum and cheap perfume and everything nasty.

It's really quite strange.

all right or alright?

kjarva

figuring it all out

alleycat

Still around

kjarva

figuring it all out

donroc

Historicals and Horror rule

alleycat

Still around

kjarva

figuring it all out

RJK

Sheriff Bullwinkle the Poet says:

Chase

It Takes All of Us to End Racism

scarletpeaches

Deleted member 42

bonitakale