0

I read this today:

That Da Vinci kid needs watched your highness.

I assume they meant:

That Da Vinci kid needs watched, your highness.

The part I'm confused about is the "needs watched" one.

Needs watched? I assume that they mean "needs to be watched" or "needs to be surveiled".

Is this specifically a UK/British phrase? Is it also used in American/International English?

It sounds to me like something a "lowly peasant" who doesn't quite know how to express themselves would say, but it could also be that I'm the peasant who doesn't understand English well enough...

C. Kofler
  • 1
  • 1
    I've only noticed it recently since it came up in a previous question on EL&U. However I think it's well established in Irish dialect and, to some extent in Scottish dialect as well. Yes it does mean "needs to be watched" or "needs watching" but it's used with all verbs that can be used with "needs to be". For example "Your car needs washed", "My coat needs mended" and so on. – BoldBen Jun 23 '20 at 04:42
  • @BoldBen, your comment seems to be an answer; it needs posted as such. – jsw29 Jun 23 '20 at 05:09
  • 1
    See also Qs tagged with Pennsylvania accent. – Phil Sweet Jun 23 '20 at 09:44
  • Related - https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/9331/needs-cleaned-or-needs-to-be-cleaned – Phil Sweet Jun 23 '20 at 09:46

0 Answers0