“New lease of life” vs “new lease on life”
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I have encountered both forms of the idiom new lease of life and new lease on life. Is there an interesting story behind the difference?
idioms
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
add a comment |
I have encountered both forms of the idiom new lease of life and new lease on life. Is there an interesting story behind the difference?
idioms
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
1
Maybe it's just me, but I find this question very reminiscent of the ripe/rife with opportunities US/UK split on usage.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 24 '12 at 18:59
add a comment |
I have encountered both forms of the idiom new lease of life and new lease on life. Is there an interesting story behind the difference?
idioms
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
I have encountered both forms of the idiom new lease of life and new lease on life. Is there an interesting story behind the difference?
idioms
idioms
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
edited Jan 24 '12 at 20:29
user2683
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
asked Jan 22 '12 at 23:29
Drew NoakesDrew Noakes
3194617
3194617
1
Maybe it's just me, but I find this question very reminiscent of the ripe/rife with opportunities US/UK split on usage.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 24 '12 at 18:59
add a comment |
1
Maybe it's just me, but I find this question very reminiscent of the ripe/rife with opportunities US/UK split on usage.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 24 '12 at 18:59
1
1
Maybe it's just me, but I find this question very reminiscent of the ripe/rife with opportunities US/UK split on usage.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 24 '12 at 18:59
Maybe it's just me, but I find this question very reminiscent of the ripe/rife with opportunities US/UK split on usage.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 24 '12 at 18:59
add a comment |
1 Answer
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Just to set out the usage history - new lease of life was around first, and is still more common...
...but since it's common these days to speak of taking [out] a lease on [something], it's easy to see why increasing numbers of people mishear or misremember the "original", or have only ever heard the revised form anyway.
EDIT: I won't clutter up this answer with two more charts, but if you click on the link above, and toggle the corpus between American and British, you'll see that almost all "new lease on life" usages are American. I have no authoritative source to back me up here, but I believe this kind of minor adjustment to phrasing happens more often in US than UK usage. Probably for several reasons, but in particular I would single out the (to me, still astonishing) fact that for one in five Americans, English is not exactly the "Mother Tongue". Even though I imagine most of those 47M people would say they do in fact speak perfectly good English, it seems to me if you don't grow up in an English-speaking home (or, setting the bar higher, where everyone only speaks English, as did their parents), there's a far greater chance that non-standard usages will catch on if they seem more logical and thus easier to "learn").
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
1
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
1
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
1
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
add a comment |
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1 Answer
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Just to set out the usage history - new lease of life was around first, and is still more common...
...but since it's common these days to speak of taking [out] a lease on [something], it's easy to see why increasing numbers of people mishear or misremember the "original", or have only ever heard the revised form anyway.
EDIT: I won't clutter up this answer with two more charts, but if you click on the link above, and toggle the corpus between American and British, you'll see that almost all "new lease on life" usages are American. I have no authoritative source to back me up here, but I believe this kind of minor adjustment to phrasing happens more often in US than UK usage. Probably for several reasons, but in particular I would single out the (to me, still astonishing) fact that for one in five Americans, English is not exactly the "Mother Tongue". Even though I imagine most of those 47M people would say they do in fact speak perfectly good English, it seems to me if you don't grow up in an English-speaking home (or, setting the bar higher, where everyone only speaks English, as did their parents), there's a far greater chance that non-standard usages will catch on if they seem more logical and thus easier to "learn").
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
1
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
1
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
1
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
add a comment |
Just to set out the usage history - new lease of life was around first, and is still more common...
...but since it's common these days to speak of taking [out] a lease on [something], it's easy to see why increasing numbers of people mishear or misremember the "original", or have only ever heard the revised form anyway.
EDIT: I won't clutter up this answer with two more charts, but if you click on the link above, and toggle the corpus between American and British, you'll see that almost all "new lease on life" usages are American. I have no authoritative source to back me up here, but I believe this kind of minor adjustment to phrasing happens more often in US than UK usage. Probably for several reasons, but in particular I would single out the (to me, still astonishing) fact that for one in five Americans, English is not exactly the "Mother Tongue". Even though I imagine most of those 47M people would say they do in fact speak perfectly good English, it seems to me if you don't grow up in an English-speaking home (or, setting the bar higher, where everyone only speaks English, as did their parents), there's a far greater chance that non-standard usages will catch on if they seem more logical and thus easier to "learn").
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
1
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
1
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
1
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
add a comment |
Just to set out the usage history - new lease of life was around first, and is still more common...
...but since it's common these days to speak of taking [out] a lease on [something], it's easy to see why increasing numbers of people mishear or misremember the "original", or have only ever heard the revised form anyway.
EDIT: I won't clutter up this answer with two more charts, but if you click on the link above, and toggle the corpus between American and British, you'll see that almost all "new lease on life" usages are American. I have no authoritative source to back me up here, but I believe this kind of minor adjustment to phrasing happens more often in US than UK usage. Probably for several reasons, but in particular I would single out the (to me, still astonishing) fact that for one in five Americans, English is not exactly the "Mother Tongue". Even though I imagine most of those 47M people would say they do in fact speak perfectly good English, it seems to me if you don't grow up in an English-speaking home (or, setting the bar higher, where everyone only speaks English, as did their parents), there's a far greater chance that non-standard usages will catch on if they seem more logical and thus easier to "learn").
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
Just to set out the usage history - new lease of life was around first, and is still more common...
...but since it's common these days to speak of taking [out] a lease on [something], it's easy to see why increasing numbers of people mishear or misremember the "original", or have only ever heard the revised form anyway.
EDIT: I won't clutter up this answer with two more charts, but if you click on the link above, and toggle the corpus between American and British, you'll see that almost all "new lease on life" usages are American. I have no authoritative source to back me up here, but I believe this kind of minor adjustment to phrasing happens more often in US than UK usage. Probably for several reasons, but in particular I would single out the (to me, still astonishing) fact that for one in five Americans, English is not exactly the "Mother Tongue". Even though I imagine most of those 47M people would say they do in fact speak perfectly good English, it seems to me if you don't grow up in an English-speaking home (or, setting the bar higher, where everyone only speaks English, as did their parents), there's a far greater chance that non-standard usages will catch on if they seem more logical and thus easier to "learn").
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
edited yesterday
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
answered Jan 23 '12 at 0:01
FumbleFingersFumbleFingers
120k33245430
120k33245430
1
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
1
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
1
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
add a comment |
1
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
1
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
1
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
1
1
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
+1 with "authoritative source" to back you up.
– Irene
Jan 23 '12 at 7:13
1
1
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
"on life" is definitely the more common of the two in the U.S.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 14:59
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
@Kevin: Yes, I more or less said that. Here's the evidence from Google Books (in my first link), which clearly shows that on became dominant in US written usage around 1940.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 23 '12 at 16:58
1
1
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
@FumbleFingers, I was agreeing with you.
– Kevin
Jan 23 '12 at 20:34
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
Wow, didn't even know the "on life" variant was a thing until I saw what I thought was a typo in a TV series review and came here to find out the truth ^_^
– Lightness Races in Orbit
Dec 2 '17 at 18:32
add a comment |
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Maybe it's just me, but I find this question very reminiscent of the ripe/rife with opportunities US/UK split on usage.
– FumbleFingers
Jan 24 '12 at 18:59