#IStandOnLine
Do you stand ‘on line’ or ‘in line’? | The Tylt
Do you stand ‘on line’ or ‘in line’?
Language doesn’t change just from country to country. Occasionally, regions house certain phrases their neighbors would find unfamiliar. Such is the case with “on line” versus “in line.” Some folks say they’re “standing on line” while others are “in line.” How do you wait?
Real-time Voting
Do you stand ‘on line’ or ‘in line’?
If you’re standing “on line,” you’re probably from New York. However, “on line” isn’t exclusively a New York thing. Grammarphobia notes that there are tiny pockets throughout the U.S. that use the colloquialism. North Easterners especially can be heard dropping the idiom.
However, “on line” is not common. An internet survey displayed how only 5.49 percent of participants use “on line” to indicate they’re queuing up for something. Still make sure to say you’re “next on line” while you’re waiting for a sandwich in a West Village deli. It'll appease the locals.
#IStandInLine
The majority of the country goes with “in line” (88.3 percent, to be exact). How or when the divide happened is unclear. It’s also not the only way New York speech has clashed with other dialects around the country.
#IStandInLine
Due to its nationwide usage, “in line” is popularly viewed as being grammatically correct: There’s no physical line you’re actually standing on, after all. The Atlantic points out, however, that it really depends on the speaker’s preferences. Either way gets the point across.
