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ahyatt t1_j7fualf wrote

I haven’t heard it used that way. But just to check my sanity I googled it and from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boroughs_of_New_York_City it says that “outer boroughs “ refer to all the boroughs besides Manhattan.

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veyd t1_j7g2npi wrote

Colloquially, outer Burroughs has started to be used in a way that excludes easy to get to portions of the non Manhattan Burroughs. No one thinks of Williamsburg or Long Island City as “the outer Burroughs.”

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brownredgreen t1_j7g5145 wrote

That's wrong.

Outer Boros means "non Manhattan"

So yes, downtown Brooklyn is "outer boro"

Also, I don't use that phrase myself, cause its pointless.

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veyd t1_j7gq2gj wrote

The “right” or “wrong” definition of a thing doesn’t really matter when you’re talking about the context of how a term is being used.

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brownredgreen t1_j7gw9p7 wrote

Speakers of language are capable of using language incorrectly.

Saying "LIC isnt part of the outer boros" is a misuse of language

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veyd t1_j7gwy3i wrote

Irrelevant to the discussion. The statement was that the term has started to only to be used in a manner that excludes neighborhoods close to Manhattan, not what the dictionary has to say about it.

Language is ever evolving. Describing it in terms of “right and wrong” is only useful academically.

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brownredgreen t1_j7gy0w7 wrote

Individuals dont get to redefine words.

Calling my shoes Gavagai doesn't make it so.

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veyd t1_j7h4bqf wrote

This is a laughably awful take.

Historians can give you enormous lists of words that have changed meanings over time, starting with an influential local colloquial meaning that spread to the rest of the speakers of that language. This is how dialects and, eventually, new languages are born. How do you think the Romance languages emerged from Latin?

Awful and awesome, for instance, used to be synonyms, and awesome meaning “great” was a relatively recent linguistic change. Meaning of the word cool changing due to slang usage is another obvious example.

These changes start with individuals using words and phrases in different ways, and those changes being spread by word of mouth. People can, do and historically have changed the meaning of words.

In short, /u/brownredgreen - what you just typed was one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever read. Everyone in this thread is now dumber for having read it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

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brownredgreen t1_j7hp8lz wrote

People =/= a person

People change language. A person does not.

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