Terminology Debate

[Alztybrn]

OK...I have heard this mentioned both ways, and I am curious how you feel about it. There are so many podcasters out there that say this the "wrong" way I just have to see what others think.

So...you are waiting for a particular attraction/ride/show.
Are you waiting "in" line...or are you waiting "on" line

I firmly believe in waiting "in" line...waiting "on" line makes absolutely NO SENSE!

What do you think?

 

[UrsulasShadow]

Well, maybe they're connected to the internet via their iPhones whilst they're IN line, therefore they truly ARE online.

 

[NWOhioAngela]

I think its a regional thing, but I always stand in line.

 

[luke]

I'm firmly in the in-line camp. Not even sure how the other way makes sense!
Just a little English point of view

 

[pklein09]

Ok, my first thought: I get "on" line to wait "in" line. Go figure. When I actually thought about it, I use them both interchangeably.

 

[Sapper383]

You definitely queue up in line, or do you line up in a queue?

 

[pklein09]

You definitely queue up in line, or do you line up in a queue?

Yep! (But that's coming from someone on this side of the pond!)

 

[tinkbutt]

Well, maybe they're connected to the internet via their iPhones whilst they're IN line, therefore they truly ARE online.

IN line Definitely!!!!

 

[Soccermom-Cheri]

I've always wondered about this... if it's on the ground (sand, grass, sidewalk) I stand on it. If I'm waiting with others for something, I am in a line.

 

[danv3]

"On" line is a NY/NJ thing, I think. It's not all yankees, b/c my parents are from PA and they say "in" line.

 

[Alztybrn]

I am originally from upstate NY...went to college in Ohio...and have lived in VA for 14 years...still call it "in" line

 

[wishspirit]

'in' line. Its only ever 'on' line if it is a physical line you need to stand on or surfing the internet!

 

[robind]

Another vote for IN.

Now that that's settled maybe the UK folks can tell me why they say a person went to hospital, instead of went to THE hospital. It always sounds so strange to me but I'm sure I say very odd things as well. Having lived up and down the east coast, I use every slang word in the book.

 

[stitchlover]

"In" line for sure. That's from a Texas girl.

 

[wishspirit]

Another vote for IN.

Now that that's settled maybe the UK folks can tell me why they say a person went to hospital, instead of went to THE hospital. It always sounds so strange to me but I'm sure I say very odd things as well. Having lived up and down the east coast, I use every slang word in the book.

It depends on the context and who says it. I usually leave out the 'the'. This person was admitted to hospital. I am going to hospital. That person just finished recovering in hospital. Oh dear that wrench in your eye looks bad, i should take you to hospital.

They all sound right to me! The only time i do use the 'the' is when i say, why are they shutting all the hospitals in the area down?

 

[parrotheadlois]

definitely waiting in line.

 

[*NikkiBell*]

I love grammar debates! I guess that is why I teach reading and LA.

Here's the official end to this debate from Grammar Girl. She uses many reference, writing, and style guides to validate her conclusion so the correct response is below. I've also included a link to the podcast about it.

In Line Versus On Line
http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/regionalisms.aspx

A common regionalism that listeners ask me about is people using the phrase on line instead of in line to mean they are physically waiting in a row with other people. For example, Mary wrote that she read a story in the New York Times describing people standing on line instead of standing in line. She said she's been hearing it more and more in the past few years and thinks it sounds ridiculous, and Julie noted that it's irritating because when someone says they are on line, she assumes they are on the Internet.

There's nothing grammatically incorrect about using on line to mean standing in line; it just sounds strange to people who aren't used to hearing it. From the dialect map I've linked to from the website, it's clear that people who say on line are clustered in New York City, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, possibly Philadelphia. This is a very small but densely populated, media-rich area. The phrase standing on line will probably spread as it becomes widely distributed by large New York television programs and publications and as people travel and move in and out of the region.

A Google search for “standing in line” returns about 37 times as many hits as a search for “standing on line,” so it would appear that for the time being in line is still much more common.

 

[safetymom]

I stand in line, not online

 

[Missin'Disney]

Never though about this before, but I've said both for sure, used them interchangeably I suppose.....and yup, I'm a New Yorker

 

[UrsulasShadow]

It depends on the context and who says it. I usually leave out the 'the'. This person was admitted to hospital. I am going to hospital. That person just finished recovering in hospital. Oh dear that wrench in your eye looks bad, i should take you to hospital.

They all sound right to me! The only time i do use the 'the' is when i say, why are they shutting all the hospitals in the area down?

This makes sense if you take the meaning to be a condition, rather than the physical plant. "Admitted to hospital" meaning "hospitalized".

Of course, when you describe the building, you add "the".