"The" Walmart

[Stuart and Thea 95]

Okay, this seems rather weird, but it makes sense to me, being the Canadian, and my husband cracks up everytime I say it. He's tried badly to explain it to his friends, and ends up just making fun of me... well here goes, tell me if you do this too:

I say, "we can get it at the walmart on the way home"

It's the "the" that's the big deal to him.

We have two walmarts, I call one The walmart, and one The Supercenter. If we only had one, I think, but can't be sure, that I'd just say "we can get it at walmart" instead of "the" walmart.

We only have one Target, so I only say Target. Same with KMart. If the store had The in the title, I normally do say it, but have been known to just say Home Depot instead of The Home Depot, if there is only one in town.

On the flip side, because there are SO many McDonalds in town, I would probably just say McDonalds instead of The McDonalds. Unless I was meeting someone at a McDonalds close to where I was regularly, like if I was going for lunch, I'd probably say "I'll meet you over at the McDonalds" instead of just plain McDonalds.

I also find that I say things like "over 60 you need to go to the bingo" instead of just bingo, and I KNOW I'm not the only one who does that.

My American husband finds this highly amusing, so I've been listening to my friends and family closely to see if they also say the, when not really needed. A lot of them do! But here it's just weird.. I'm trying not to.

I explained it to him that the sentence kind of ends with the unspoken WHICH walmart I mean when I say the. He thinks I should only say the if there's one in town, but that's not how it works. It's that we need to go to the walmart (near his work) or the mcdonalds (across the street) for example. Rather than any of them being okay to choose.

(please tell me I'm not alone in being made fun of over this... is it a Canadian thing? I'm from Kitchener Waterloo...)

[nickbits 43]

I've only heard British people talk like that. Maybe you northerners talk more British (I'm from Windsor area)

Edited June 13, 2012 by nickbits

[Cathi 5,769]

It's a Canadian thing. I have never heard anyone out "the" in front of Walmart, or any other store for that matter. But don;t worry, I won;t make fun of you, that's your husband's job

[decocker 7,198]

hell naw it isn't canadian.

i do it and i'm american. i always thought it was redneck slang, coming from small southern towns such as boyce, virginia - where we live now. we go to "the sheetz" for gas or stop at "the light" cause there's only one in our town or travel to "the foodlion" in the next town over..i still say "the walmart". there isn't one in our immediate area, but there are three in winchester - about 15 minutes away. and they are all "the walmart".

[SapphireDreams 71]

I know exactly what you're saying and it's funny because my hubby will always ask "which one" after I say something like, we go stop at "the Key Food" haha. He doesn't do it!

Funny.

[Krikit 1,164]

I do it too! It's a British leftover. lol

[Stuart and Thea 95]

lol, my mom is British so I probably get it from her then!

[Hugglebuggles 60]

Yep, I totally do that... I put "the" in front of most places actually.

[Tithen 4]

I only use "The" if the place isn't the actual name of the place. Walmart is Walmart. Our Bank is "the bank" or I'd use it's name. Honestly if someone said "I'm going to the walmart" I'd probably poke them about it for a very long time.

Even back home I've never heard "the walmart"

[JohnR! 5,495]

Problem is you's talking Canadian!

You's in America now, so you better start learning how to talk good Murkhan!!!!! LOL...

You can get right back at him by adding 'the' to all these places, a perfectly timed pause, followed by an adverb of place as in 'I went to the McDonalds... ...on Main'... Make sure you make eye contact and look smug... LOL

[warlord 73]

Hmm, I have never heard anyone in either the US or the Canada ever say that before with the 'the'. I do hear stuff like "can we get it at Walmart, the one near blah blah"? But maybe if it is a British thing that's why since I don't really know too many people here that are actually British or with direct British parents so maybe that's why.

Of course I got corrected saying "The Ukraine" the other day, apparently that's actually kind of insulting to Ukrainians and looked it up and sure enough there is no "the" like as in "The US" or "The Netherlands" or "The UK", it's just Ukraine. Then I felt stupid since I've always grown up saying "The Ukraine"...

[Krikit 1,164]

Of course I got corrected saying "The Ukraine" the other day, apparently that's actually kind of insulting to Ukrainians and looked it up and sure enough there is no "the" like as in "The US" or "The Netherlands" or "The UK", it's just Ukraine. Then I felt stupid since I've always grown up saying "The Ukraine"...

It's a fairly "recent" change. I believe it refers to when it was a border country in the former Soviet Union so it made sense to have the "The" in front of it.

[BlueBonnet 84]

This is wierd to me. My parents were both born in Scotland, I was raised in Canada, and Ive never heard that. I dont do it either. Ive been around all the situations that you guys are claiming and Ive never heard this.

Its not bad or good, it just is what it is. Sometimes our significant others like our little quirks, its what make us who we are.

[SapphireDreams 71]

See I don't think Canadian realize that they do it. And I know I never did it all the time.

I would never say, "I'm going to the Wal-mart", but I would say, "Let's go the Wal-mart to get the patio furniture and the the Pizza Hut for dinner". I would only use it when I'm referring to a specific location that correlates with the next place.

It's kind of hard to explain, but I think it's used more in the context of, "Let's go to the Wal-mart [on Main St.] for the XXX" - we are leaving out the specific location details.

At least that's how I would use it. I don't think Thea means in a redneck kind of way.

[S and P 9]

it's not the extra 'the' .... it's the missing 'the' that I've noticed .... as in....." I'm going to visit my sick dad in hospital"..... my brain says "in THE hospital"..... every time I hear or read that...