Is it normal to think i'm being easy to identify as non-native english speaker?

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12 Comments

Let me elaborate:
English is not my first language, but i consider myself pretty fluent in it.

Still, i am certain i make specific grammar mistakes, or mistype stuff, and, in general, have a certain way to word things that a native speaker would have put differently.

Now, if i have a question i want to ask the is it normal community, but would rather stay anonymous, i'm always concerned that these flaws and my personal writing style combine to allow people to exactly pin-point who i am.

Is it reasonable to worry about this to the point of "hating" the fact i was not raised bilingually, and oft withdraw a question while formulating it because i cannot find a way of writing it that is satisfactory(in terms of guaranteeing i'll stay unidentified) to me?

And yes, feel free to guess who i am(and crush what little hope i have)-

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65% Normal
Based on 20 votes (13 yes)
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Comments ( 12 )
  • Couman
    11 years ago

    The only thing much out of the ordinary I noticed is you consistently don't capitalize "I", but even that is a pretty common mistake.

    Anyway, I think it's normal to worry, but you don't stand out as much as you seem to think.

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  • [Old Memory]
    11 years ago

    Grammar mistakes are fine, it's the internet not a letter to the queen. It's just fucked when you can't read the questions that have been written, incidentally these questions are usually written by people who's first language is english but happen to be American.

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  • howaminotmyself
    11 years ago

    I have posted a lot of comments and anyone who has been around a while would likely notice the words I use most frequently. I think it is obvious, but it probably isn't as obvious as I think it is. But still, I over compensate and try to change things up, but then I feel I'm trying too hard. It becomes pointless. I don't like pretending to be someone I'm not for the sake of anonymity.

    It doesn't matter who you are, I will try and give you the same kindness I give everyone.

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  • …Space_Ghost?
    11 years ago

    I don't have a problem with crushing hopes. Joking! :P

    TerryVie? :}

    I don't write post anymore and when I did, some of them were kind of weird, so I purposely made {more} grammatical errors than I typically do.

    Perhaps you could do the same? ^_^

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    • TerryVie
      11 years ago

      yep, got me.
      I'm simply not good enough to make errors on purpose in a way that masks rather than proofs my identity, i'm afraid. I'll need lots of training -_- Until then, i'll simply keep silent about more serious issues and stick with the more lighthearted stuff.

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  • dappled
    11 years ago

    I think I know who you are but that's just because I know you, rather than that I pick up clues from your writing style. If you'd never have said English wasn't your first language, I don't think I would have guessed.

    Occasionally you say things differently than I would, but I too am different than most on the site because I speak English-English. I don't know many site users who would say "fortnight" and "sort it out" and "tosspot". I couldn't pretend to be North American or Oceanic for long without being detected so I do understand your predicament of being identifiable.

    When I do want a modicum of privacy, I write posts a different way and avoid words like "colour" and "doughnut" and "manouevre" and "arse" or anything to do with car parts or desserts or anything else which would identify me. It's impossible to do completely, though. As minorities, we stand out.

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    • TerryVie
      11 years ago

      yeah yeah...it's just, i am basically incapable of separating you people by writing style alone...i guess i'm simply not able to "group" certain words or phrases with certain demographic groups. As far as i'm concerned, anybody could say fortnight :)
      Ah well, guess some stuff will be withheld then. Until i perfected erronous writing. Maybe thats the reason why only 1 in 10 posts spells masturbate correctly -_-

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      • dappled
        11 years ago

        If it makes you feel any better, I thought you were American until you said otherwise. Most people learn English from American culture rather than English culture. In that sense, your English is more commonplace here than mine is.

        Even having said that, I remove a *huge* amount of local slang from what I say, and I'm still recognisable.

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  • bananaface
    11 years ago

    Aww:(. When I do post things, I worry about this too. There are certain ways I say things and words I overuse (such as "though"! Seriously, though, I can't help it:P).

    If it worries you so much, then change the way you write on a post. Try to use different punctuation, make spelling mistakes you don't usually make, use a thesaurus for certain words, stop using words which give you away, turn "i" into "I", etc. It's a bit drastic, but I guess that would work.

    And I *think* I know who it is, but I don't want to crush your hope, because *if* I'm right, you're lovely, and you need to help me eat all the chocolate I just raided;) Am I right:P?

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    • TerryVie
      11 years ago

      I believe you may be on to something - but, ah well, better raid another chocolate store, i seriously need lots of that stuff now -_-

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  • GoraIntoDesiGals
    11 years ago

    I know what you mean as a non-native speaker but if it's any comfort the quality of most people's grammar and spelling, including that of native speakers, has sunken to such deep levels nowadays that it becomes hard to identify a person's first language from their posts. Some native speakers write complete gibberish.

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  • [Old Memory]
    11 years ago

    norah?

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