A high school teacher told us not to say "yeah",

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A high school teacher told us not to say "yeah", but "yes". Why? She was just being dumb.

It makes you sound a little more refined. She means well. The reality of it is there's a time and a place for everything and most people say yeah, especially in speech. In work emails however, you would use yes.

I'm a high school teacher and I say yeah all the time. Meh. It might just be a pet peeve of hers. Just say yes to her instead of yeah and you'll make her happy - she'll feel she's made a difference in the world.

So that when you need it in formal speech, you're trained enough that you can switch to 'yes' as appropriate. For example, job interviews, if you're ever in court or on jury duty, making a good impression with your future mother-in-law...

"Yeah" sounds lazy, slackjawed and slobbish, no matter the dialect. I imagine she's trying to encourage you to sound less slatternly and indolent where it matters, in regular speech. Seriously, "yeah" sounds like a disrespectful sneer, particularly in informal situations, on either side of the pond, whether you're applying for a job at Oxbridge or at the local version of the quickymart. You should be grateful your teacher cares enough, in spite of what you think, to care. She must know you think she's an idiot, but she's giving you good advice anyway because she wants you to do well.

It's a word. It's in the dictionary.

I had an elementary school teacher who did the same thing. I think if they don't want you to say yeah, insist no one use contractions.

It's more proper just to say, yes.

In "yeah right" use of "yeah" is mandatory. You cannot substitute "yes" there.

My mom used to fuss me about that when I was a kid & she used to correct her students to(she teaches pre-K) but nowadays says yeah sometimes to. I think she still corrects her students thou. English was her best subject when she was in school; she was the teachers pet. She could never learn me good English despite her best efforts thou. Nice to knowthat I kinda taught her bad English thou

I mumbled so bad as a teen that my parents couldn't tell "yeah" from "neh" much of the time. While these days I favor "yup" I can see a teacher in a class preferring a nice clear "yes" what with the other noise and distractions. Mind you, some teachers also frequently have a gift for saying a thing in a way that makes you want to think it's stupid... They make everything from good advice to to gentle suggestions sound like military orders, some of them...

But to a kid of a certain age, anything you're told to do is going to be the opposite of what you end up doing...

What I tell my kids is, do what you do because you think it's right. Don't just do it because someone told you to do it... and don't avoid it just because someone told you to do it... that last one is more likely with my kids.

If I was a teacher, I would prefer a respectable 'yes', rather than a mumbled 'yeah...'. It is all about classroom decorum I believe.

"Yeah" probably comes from the German word for yes which is pronounced "yah".

Now since English is based on the German language that the Angles and Saxons brought with them then yeah or yah probably pre-date "yes" by 1000 years.

That would make "yeah" the correct word and "yes" a modern slang.

Try that argument out on your teachers.

"Yeah?"

_________________
Blint.

When I was a child, my Grandma used to tell me to not speak ja (yes in local dialect) instead tak (yes). It doesn't matter that many people do it, exactly like no (yeah). It's ok to use those words, but when you are in formal situation, you should speak correctly. Those words make that you seem a chav.

I remember a situation from school:
Somebody: Good morning, is Mrs Headteacher here?
Secretary: Yeeeeah
Somebody: Could I talk with her, please?
Secretary: Ok

Does it sound properly? I don't think so...

I have to agree, that in many cases, the use of "yeah" is lazy. School is supposed to be a place to learn, and to show and earn respect. That's probably why the teacher said that. After all, it's not that long ago that you had to follow up the word "Yes" with either "Mam" or "Sir" in school, when speaking with an adult. We've progressed from that, at least.

Charles

A high school teacher told us to not say uh, or um...hasn't stopped me....that's how I live my life!