it's BLATANTLY not PATENTLY grrrr

[blink_babe13]

Why does ITV insist upon butchering our language? First it was Jeremy Kyle on about someone being "patently ignorant" then on Emmerdale tonight it was apparently "patently obvious" - it's "blatantly"!! What is wrong with these people?!?!?!!?!?

[crisgal]

i know what you mean! It drives me mad too!
The one that really gets me is when someone says they are being "pressurised" instead of being put under pressure. Even newsreaders have said it "So and so is being pressurized into resigning" etc
Aaaggghhh!!!!
Maybe the offending people should be truly pressurized so that they know the difference!

[lady_p_gold]

I hate to disagree with you, but patently is correct as far as I can see .....

[goldenfield]

Sorry blink_babe13 but patently ignorant could well be quite correct - patently adv openly, obviously.

[goldenfield]

Snap, lady_p_gold! Pressurised into resigning is also correct - pressurize or pressurise vt to adjust the pressure within (an enclosed compartment such as an aircraft cabin) so that nearly normal atmospheric pressure is constantly maintained; to subject to pressure; to force by pressure (into doing something), to coerce.

[Postdog]

She's probably blonde, bless her!.

[joko]

i hope 13 refers to your age not your birthday....

[Loosehead]

Patently is more usually correct I'm afraid. Patently means no doubt. Blatantly means irrespective of the effect . Not quite the same thing. Although both can be used 9 times out of 10 the sayer meant patently even though they may not have said it.

[spudqueen]

Yes it is patently obvious! Which reminds me that this dinner time I saw one of those butty vans advertising corned beef ash, which put me right off as it sounded as though it had been cremated. Now if it had said corned beef HASH...........................!!!

[goldenfield]

Er now there I think I have to disagree spudqueen - with patently meaning obviously, it would surely not be good English to in effect say 'obviously obvious' - there is a word for this but I cannot remember what it is.

[THECORBYLOON]

I think the word you're looking for is tautology .

[kempie]

goldenfield - your reasoning is not sound...

Blatant has the original meaning:

Of persons or their words: Noisy; offensively or vulgarly clamorous; bellowing

but in more recent usage:

obtrusive to the eye (rather than to the ear as in orig. senses); glaringly or defiantly conspicuous; palpably prominent or obvious

therefore "blatantly obvious" is as much a tautologism as "patently obvious" but both are being used to emphasise a point, which I would have thought is "plainly obvious" ;-)

[bernardo]

They are both perfectly good words! What is wrong with you?!?!?!?

[misto]

The presenters on BBC Breakfast are thr worse of all. Last week,twice in the same paragraph, we had "But there is light at the end of the rainbow".

[goldenfield]

kempie - what are you talking about? I said NOTHING about blatant in any of my posts! I most certainly did not say that blatantly obvious was any better than patently obvious! Tautologies do nothing, in my opinion, for the English language - if you say patently obvious just to emphasise a point then you do not have command over your own language as far as I am concerned. There is certainly no reason why you would have to ever use patently obvious when obvious is strong enough to cover any given situation.

My reasoning is perfectly sound, thank you very much, and I think it would be sensible for you to actually read my posts before suggesting that they are not!

[gary baldy]

I am dead clever and got loads of degrees and stuff and i never use either.
Anyway, in such situations i use 'clearly'.
I would say in this instance you are clearly all wrong and i am clearly right!

[littleoldme]

I see what goldenfield is getting at and quite agree. Something is either obvious or it isn't. It doesn't have degrees of obviousness. It's like when something is described as "fairly unique". Grrr.

[claireyfairy]

ok well here is one that is 'patently' wrong - people who say 'pacific' instead of 'specific'! hello? do you actually speak English?!

[blink_babe13]

Ok replies lol

1) yes i am blonde :)
2) no the 13 doesnt refer to age :( sorry
3) i know what you mean about specific and pacific
*and*
4) my bad! patently just didnt sound right but i accept it probably is...back to english lessons for me i think!!

thanks for all replies tho :)

[IzzieQ]

Talking 'pacifically' to Claireyfairy - I 'wholeheartedly agree with your comment. I have heard so many people use it unstead of 'specifically', it drives me round the bend!