Completely disappointed (collocation)

Question

In the LTP Dictionay of Selected Collocations: Exercises and Activities for the Classroom, a small companion booklet that comes with Oxford Collocations dictionary for students of English, the following exercise appears on page 3:

1:Correcting Common Mistakes

There is a collocation mistake in each of these sentences. Correct them by looking up the word in bold in DOSC. All the mistakes are similar to those made by candidates in the First Certificate exam.

1. I was completely disappointed when I failed my exam.

When I checked the dictionary I did not see the adverb "completely" as one of the collocates for "disappointed". So I guess this is the mistake that needed to be fixed and many candidates of the First Certificate exam make.
So I checked the American corpus and found 3 hits for "completely disappointed" ~~and also "totally disappointed"~~ which made me think that "completely disappointed" might only be jarring to a British ear but not to an American ear.

What is your take guys on this? British speakers, do you agree with the book on that completely disappointed don't collocate? Or is it just one of those things about stiff high-handed linguists who are detached from the real English and insist on prescribing collocation rules that don't seem to work in real life.

What do Americans think of this? Australians? Newzelanders?

Avangi · Accepted Answer

Are you saying that Oxford prefers "totally disappointed" to "completely disappointed?  I'm afraid since the advent of the Valley Girl, "totally" has suffered the same fate as "gay."  There's an unconscious proscription.  I vote for "completely disappointed."  (AmE)<img src="http://www.EnglishForward.com/emoticons/emotion-21.gif"/>

Delmobile · Answer

"Completely disappointed" is only slightly jarring to this American ear, but it's not something I'd use. I'm betting they're looking for something along the lines of "completely devastated."

Magic79 · Answer

Thanks guys.

"totally" was not mentioned in the dictionary as a collocate. However, I found 3 hits in the American corpus, the same number of hits for "completely" which according to the Oxford dictionry of collocation does not collocate with "disappointed".

So adverbs "completely" and "totally" don't collocate with "disappointed" in the Oxford dictionary of collocations, yet they are in the corpus with 3 hits each.

The exercises in dictionary companion booklet indicates that "completely" is wrong and thus needs to be replaced with some other adverbs mentioned in the dictionary such as:
bitterly, deeply, desperately, extremely, greatly, hugely, really, sadly, sorely, terribly, very disappointed

also: almost, a bit, a little, midley, pretty, quite, rather, slightly, somewhat, crealy, obviously, naturally, oodly, visibly

As you can see from the list of adverbs, "totally/completely diappointed" did not make it into Oxford collocations. What is more, in their exercise "completely disappointed" is considered wrong and marked wrong in the first certificate exam.

In the light of this, I am concluding that "completely/totally disappointed" is prescribed as wrong though widely used OR that it's only wrong in British English but correct in other English varieties.

What do you think?

Anonymous · Answer

I don't really like Americal English so I can't tell you for sure, but in British English disappointed occasionaly collocate with bitterly.

Avangi · Answer

Hi, Magic. I'm afraid I didn't understand the rules of the game. I thought we were to choose between the two.

I agree with your source that "disappointment" cannot be perfect, or full, or complete, or total; although people use it that way.

When you tell me, "I couldn't be more disappointed in you," I must reply, "Wanna bet?!"

Your list of acceptable adverbs makes the point clear that disappointment is quantifyable - from zero to infinity.

I'd say the construction compares to something like, "The new model has been completely improved." Here the absurdity is obvious, but I think the principle is the same. I agree with Oxford.

Avangi · Answer

Anonymous I don't really like Americal English . . . collocate with bitterly.

Hey, no need to apologize. "Bitterly" is on the list.

BarbaraPA · Answer

I was working on the same lines as Del.

She was completely devastated. But I do like bitterly disapointed, too.

Magic79 · Answer

"I agree with your source that "disappointment" cannot be perfect, or full, or complete, or total; although people use it that way." Avangi

Thanks. It's much clearer now.

Anonymous · Answer

UK English speaker checking in. I would say "thoroughly disappointed".

Completely disappointed (collocation)

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