What the difference between being "up for" or "down for" something ? I've seen the "up for" expression a couple of times already and got used to it. But recently I listened to the "down for" expressio

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José Alves

What the difference between being "up for" or "down for" something ? I've seen the "up for" expression a couple of times already and got used to it. But recently I listened to the "down for" expression. I don't remember if I didn't know it or just didn't pay too much attention but listen it this last time made me realize there are two similar expressions with opposite words (up and down).

3 set 2018 21:26

Commenti · 7

They mean the same thing, at least in American English. It is a strange quirk of English slang that to be "up for [something]" and to be "down for [something]" both mean to be "interested/available to do [something]."

I've always interpreted "up" as coming from its meaning "ready, available" and "down" from its use in expressions like "put my name down" i.e. write down that I'm interested.

3 settembre 2018

Andrew is correct. In US slang they mean the same thing.

To be „up for something“ is much older. It`s not archiac, but something you would have heard in the 1970s and 80s, as well as earlier. To be „down“ for something is of fairly recent vintage. The people I hear saying „down for“ are those who were teens in the late 90s and beyond. I don’t know when the change exactly occurred but I never heard anyone say „down for“ something in the 1980s or earlier. I don’t know if the expression, „down for“ is still being used by teenagers today, or if it`s been replaced by something else. But think of it as a generation split. People over 40 tend to say „up for“ while those under 40 might say „down for“ but they are the same.

3 settembre 2018

I agree. To be up for and to be down with have nearly the same meaning. To be up for is often used in spontaneous situations and implies a willingness with a touch of surprise or eagerness. The use of one or another probably varies among age groups and/or locals.

3 settembre 2018

You're right, SHL; I agree. To walk "up the street" in modern-day (current) English means the same as "walk down it," too. "Up" and "down" are more extent oriented, as are several main locative prepositions and adverbs (called "particles" in this syntactic/grammatical role) nowadays. They are more generic now i think because of the explosive growth and sweeping influence of Hollywood movies and TV shows in American (and not British) usage. British English is more expert-prescriptive; American - more active usage-based. These idiomatically mean to walk on a street (city road) extensively, fully, or for a considerable distance. However, in my grandmother's heyday, they meant completely opposite things: to walk up to the commercial or business center of town or away from it - also up or down a hill in altitude on the road. I think "up" and "down" as phrasal-verb particles have become more extent-relative now in their verb-flavoring focus; more idiomatic in use and less literally spatial/locative as a result. Isn't it due to movie/TV usage? Dialects in America are blending or flowing into each other. Broadening/generalizing meaning through their usage/actual applications seems a likely first step. As a result, I have been turning to the practice of teaching extent or degree-related meanings for certain groups of phrasal verb particles recently. "Out" and "in" are a similar pair. Their phrasals and idioms can be taught efficiently in groups based on verb alterations due to the particles' current, broad image.

3 settembre 2018

Interesting post. In Canada, up for and down for are used interchangeably. Language evolves with cultural norms. "Bad" can now be used to describe something "really good." For example, that car is "bad." Meaning it's really hot, fast, sporty, beautiful.

6 settembre 2018

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