Eh

"Eh" is also used in situations to describe something bad or mediocre. In which, it is often pronounced with a short "e" sound and the "h" may even be noticeable. Eh also has the same pronunciation as æ.

It is quite prevalent in the New York area to use the term "ey" as a general substitute for such basic greetings, such as "hey" or "hello".[3]

In the Upper Midwest, it is used to end sentences.

The first clear evidence of eh’s usage in Canada was in 1836. This was through the writings of Thomas Chandler Haliburton. A Nova-Scotian district judge and comical writer.[2] Eh was first recognized as being a marker of being Canadian in 1959 by Harold B. Allen, when he stated that eh is “so exclusively a Canadian feature that immigration officials use it as an identifying clue.[4]" However, despite mainly being perceived as a stereotypical marker of Canadian identity, eh was not recognized initially as a Canadianism in the Dictionary of Canadianisms on Historical Principles (DCHP-1).[5] Chief editor of the DCHP-1, Walter Avis, argued that it should not be included due to its historical use in British English and its frequency in American, Australian, and New Zealand English.[5] However, despite eh’s origins, it has become more frequently used in Canada than in the UK and the US, and in a broader variety of contexts.[6] Due to this frequency, it has since been included in the DCHP-2 as a Preservation of British English that is Culturally Significant.[7]

According to the DCHP-2, there are five main uses of eh with 4 subtypes.[7] The first is used to elicit confirmation (1a).[7] This can be used in sentences like “So that’s what he thinks, eh?” A subtype of this use is to elicit acknowledgement (1b).[7] This applies to the acknowledgment of a fact in contrast to belief or opinion.[7] For example, you could say "I have a new dog, eh?" The second subtype (1c) is to confirm agreement.[7] This is used to increase the chance of acceptance of a suggestion, toning down statements.[7] The fourth, (1d), is used as an exclamative over a shared experience, for example "What a great game, eh?"[7] The final (1e) is to confirm compliance, like asking "Will you?" The belief is that this tones down a command or request.[7]

The second main use of eh is as an expression of disbelief to express one’s surprise over the offered information (2).[7] Use 3 is to elicit repetition, and is referred to as the “Pardon eh.” It is used synonymously with “I beg your pardon?” in the sense of asking for a repetition of what was said.[7] The fourth use is a distinctly Canadian use, identified as the narrative eh.[7] It is a rarer form, and is claimed to be found primarily in oral evidence of Canadian origin.[5] The final use of eh is as a metalinguistic commentary to express a link with Canada or rural Canada (5).[7] This form is commentary on the Canadian status of eh and has contributed its share to the registration of eh and commodification of the form in association with Canada.[7] A popular example of its use is in the phrase “How’s it goin’, eh?[7]”

Due to English and French being Canada's official languages, the popularity of eh’s usage in Canada is believed to be influenced by French.[6] The French Canadian hein sounds similar to a nasalized Canadian eh, and the two share similar functions. Due to this, the increased use of eh in Canada may have been influenced by the frequent use of hein in Canadian French.[6]

The term is used most frequently among blue-collar workers, and the most popular form used is for opinions and exclamations.[7] While there is a prevalent stereotype that men use eh more than women, survey results suggest similar use frequencies. Overall, between both men and women, the pardon-eh is used much less than the observation-eh.[6] The most positively viewed usage of eh is the imperative “I know, eh?’ form with the exclamation-eh and opinion-eh close behind.[6] The most negatively viewed usage is the anecdotal, narrative-eh.[6] This perception is due to opinions surrounding the speakers of the narrative-eh, who is categorized as uneducated, lower class, rural, and male, akin to the McKenzie brothers from the comedy sketch “Great White North,” which first appeared during Second City Television’s (SCTV) third season.[6]

Regionally, while usage is similar across the ten provinces, with the use of eh not having changed significantly over the past 25 years, there is some variation.[6] For example, in Quebec, respondents use eh for ‘pardon’ more than other Canadians.[6] While usage has not changed significantly across Canada, the overall frequency of eh has declined among speakers born in the 1960s or later. This decrease has been prevalent in big cities such as Vancouver and Toronto.[7] Despite this decline, there have been high recognition rates and uptake of the Canadian eh among immigrant populations.[6]

Eh has gained such recognition among Canadians that it is used consciously and frequently by newspaper journalists and others in informal articles and reports.[7] Also, eh is attributed freely in reported conversations with all men, including athletes, professors, and politicians, such as Pierre Trudeau.[6]

The prevalence of eh in Canadian iconography is strongly associated with its recognition as part of the Canadian national or regional identity. In print, it is used primarily to signify ‘Canadian,’ with many websites incorporating eh into their URLs to indicate a Canadian connection.[6] It is also popularly incorporated into Canadian-targeted marketing campaigns, such as when Smarties’ Canadian-themed packaging was labelled “SMARTIES eh?[6]”

The usage of eh in Canada is occasionally mocked in the United States, where some view its use as a stereotypical Canadianism. Such stereotypes have been reinforced in popular culture and were famously lampooned in South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut. Singer Don Freed, in his song "Saskatchewan," declares, "What is this 'Eh?'-nonsense? I wouldn't speak like that if I were paid to". There are many merchandise items on the market today that use this phrase, such as T-shirts and coffee mugs.[8]

The future of eh in Canada is vague but promising. Three critical factors that will shape the future of this expression include speaker attitudes, the possible replacement of the expressions by young speakers, and new Canadians’ adoption of eh.[6] Students account for a large percentage of eh users and continue to contribute to the growing community.[6] Because of this projected increase in the usage of eh, the previous negative connotation surrounding the narrative-eh will most likely dwindle.[6] The future of eh is quite optimistic and there is room for expansion due to the various uses possible. In addition to the popularity amongst students, immigrants are essential to the future of eh.[6] Survey results on immigrant recognition of eh show that immigrants had high rates of recognition for most types of eh, with opinion-eh and exclamation-eh at the top.[6] The data shows that while the usage of eh in immigrant countries is different, it is still common.[6] This shows that even though native speakers still use eh more frequently, the future of eh is still optimistic. Altogether, Canada’s link with bilingualism has contributed to eh’s common usage, and its recognition amongst immigrants shows that eh will continue to be prevalent in Canadian culture.[6]

While not as commonly lampooned as the Canadian "eh", there are few features that are more eagerly recognized by New Zealanders as a marker of their identity than the tag particle "eh" (commonly spelt as "ay", although this has been contentious).[9][1][10] This commonly used and referenced feature of New Zealand English (NZE) is one of great controversy to many communication scholars as it is both a mark of cultural identity and simultaneously a means to parody those of a lower socioeconomic status. The use of "eh" in New Zealand is very common among all demographics, although initially it was frequently linked with two main groups of people, the first being young, working-class, suburban Pākehā women and the second being working-class Māori men. The Pākehā are New Zealanders of British or European descent and Māori are indigenous Polynesians.

A 1994 study by communications scholar Miriam Meyerhoff sought to examine the function of "eh" in New Zealand culture. She hypothesized that "eh" did not function as a clarification device as frequently believed, but instead served as a means of establishing solidarity between individuals of similar ethnic descent. In her research, Meyerhoff analyzed conversations between an interviewer and an interviewee of either Pākehā or Māori descent and calculated the frequency of "eh" in the conversation. In order to yield the most natural speech, Meyerhoff instructed the interviewers to introduce themselves as a "friend of a friend", to their respective interviewees. Her results showed Māori men as the most frequent users of "eh" in their interviews. As Māori are typically of a lower socio-economic status, Meyerhoff proposed that "eh" functioned as a verbal cue that one reciprocated by another individual signified both shared identity and mutual acceptance. Therefore, in the context of Meyerhoff's research, "eh" can be equated as a device to establish and maintain a group identity.[9] This phenomenon sheds light on the continuous scholarly debate questioning if language determines culture or culture determines language.

The usage of the word is widespread throughout much of the UK, particularly in Eastern Scotland, the north of England, Northern Ireland, and Wales. It is normally used to mean "what?". In Scotland, mainly around the Tayside region, "eh" is also used as a shortened term for "yes". For example, "Are you going to the Disco?" "Eh". In Aberdeen and the wider Doric Scots speaking area of Grampian, "eh" is often used to end a sentence, as a continuation or sometimes, inflection is added and it's used as a confirmation, or with different inflection, a question. For example, "I was walking home eh and I saw a badger eh", "It was a big car eh" or "We're going to the co-op eh?".

"Eh?" used to solicit agreement or confirmation is also heard regularly amongst speakers in Australia, Trinidad and Tobago[11][12] and the United Kingdom (where it is sometimes spelled "ay" on the assumption that "eh" would rhyme with "heh" or "meh"). In the Caribbean island of Barbados the word "nuh" acts similarly, as does "noh" in Surinamese Dutch and Sranantongo. The usage in New Zealand is similar, and is more common in the North Island. It is also heard in the United States, especially Minnesota, Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (although the Scandinavian-based Yooperism "ya" is more common), Oklahoma, and the New England region. In New England and Oklahoma, it is also used as a general exclamation as in Scotland and the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey. It is occasionally used to express indifference, in a similar way to "meh".

Since usage of the word "eh" is not as common in the United States as it is in Canada, it is often used by Americans, and indeed Canadians themselves, to parody Canadian English.

The equivalent in South African English is "hey". This usage is also common in Western Canada.

"Eh" is also used in Guernsey English and Jersey English.

"Eh" is very common in the English spoken in the Seychelles.

In Singapore, the use of medium Singlish often includes "eh" as an interjection, but it is not as popularly used as "lah". An example of a sentence that uses "eh" is "Dis guy Singlish damn good eh", meaning "this guy's Singlish is very good".

Similar to Singapore, Malaysia also uses "eh" in Manglish as an interjection. It is also used as an exclamation to express surprise, depending on the length & context of the "eh". It also depends how one sounds uses it as a short "eh" can be a sarcastic shock or a genuine one. Sometimes it can be used as the equivalent as "Oi" when the speaker is being angry to the listener such as "Eh, hello!?" or "Eh, can you not!?". A long "eeeh" can be a disgusted shock, annoyance, or greater surprise. The "eh" usage here is similar to the Japanese usage. It is used by all Malaysians regardless of what language they are using.