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[-] xantoxis@lemmy.world 102 points 1 month ago

On the one hand, a sign like this definitely did have enough room for the full spelling of "through". There seems to be no reason to abbreviate it.

On the other hand, isn't drive-thru just, like, its own noun now? Part of me thinks this was always spelled correctly.

[-] The_Picard_Maneuver@lemmy.world 55 points 1 month ago

It seems like shorthand for signs that has been used enough that it's basically normal now, like "lite" instead light, or "donut" instead of doughnut.

[-] xantoxis@lemmy.world 34 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Right, the distinction I'm making is this isn't just "normalized" but actually the correct spelling. As in, if a newspaper editor saw it written as "drive-through" they would be obliged to correct it.

[-] brbposting@sh.itjust.works 15 points 1 month ago

Suppose both aight?

drive-through or drive-thru (a sensational spelling of the word through), is a type of take-out service provided by a business that allows customers to purchase products without leaving their cars.

Sensational spelling is the deliberate spelling of a word in a non-standard way for special effect.

[-] someguy3@lemmy.world 5 points 1 month ago
[-] iAmTheTot@sh.itjust.works 15 points 1 month ago

All my homies call them aerodromes.

[-] CoggyMcFee@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago

My kid calls it a plane station and frankly it’s growing on me

[-] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

I’m down for that

[-] Sternhammer@aussie.zone 1 points 1 month ago

Or we could go with train-port.

[-] ThePantser@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

I'm gonna take a ride in a aero

[-] sawdustprophet@midwest.social 5 points 1 month ago

“I would like to send this letter to the Prussian Consulate in Siam by aeromail. Am I too late for the 4.30 autogyro?”

[-] nilloc@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 1 month ago

How about a nite-lite?

[-] Kolanaki@yiffit.net 1 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

The correct way would be "drive-through."

"Drive-thru" is purposely spelled wrong to attract attention. The same as "Krispy Kreme" or "Dunkin' Donuts." It's only "correct" in that it has become ubiquitous through usage.

[-] bisby@lemmy.world 18 points 1 month ago

It's only "correct" in that it has become ubiquitous through usage.

What you are describing is called "language"

"You" wasn't always allowed to be singular. Colour vs color. Doughnut can be donut. Etc. Languages evolve over time, and "drive-thru" is in plenty of dictionaries.

[-] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 6 points 1 month ago

Yup, "drive through" is an instruction, "drive-thru" is a noun. So you'll drive through the drive-thru.

[-] someguy3@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Pretty sure thru is to save space.

[-] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 month ago

Yup, esp since it's often written on the pavement.

[-] lseif@sopuli.xyz 13 points 1 month ago

"lite" has a different meaning (or at least connotation) to "light"

[-] pendingdeletion@lemmy.world 9 points 1 month ago
[-] USSEthernet@startrek.website 2 points 1 month ago

I can hear the commercial in my head...

[-] then_three_more@lemmy.world 12 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Ohh I thought donut was the American spelling of doughnut.

[-] DAMunzy@lemmy.dbzer0.com 11 points 1 month ago
[-] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 0 points 1 month ago

Yup, doughnut if you're being fancy, donut if it's some trash from the grocery store.

[-] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 4 points 1 month ago

Not necessarily. Some hole in the wall serving the best damn breakfast pastries our country has to offer is gonna call it a donut. A donut is a working class doughnut.

[-] sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 month ago

Yup, fancy is usually less tasty IMO. I prefer the ghetto donuts at our grocery store to the fancy doughnuts at the fancy bakery.

[-] Lucidlethargy@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 month ago

Donut is straight up just another way to spell doughnut, though. It's fully accepted, and not shorthand.

[-] bleistift2@sopuli.xyz 5 points 1 month ago

According to Merriam Webster, “thru” is an acceptable, albeit less common, variant of “through”. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thru

[-] merc@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 month ago

Dictionaries are descriptive, not prescriptive. They don't decide if something is "acceptable", just if it is widely used enough to report. If a mistake becomes common, it will enter the dictionary.

[-] kelargo@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Maybe they meant, only drive on Thursday?

this post was submitted on 06 Jul 2024
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