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Osama91 Posted 15 years ago
Vocabulary

Sleep in OR oversleep. An American wanted, please

Hi,

The other day I watched a video that said when you are late for class and want to excuse yourslef, you have to say to the teacher: I slept in and NOT I overslept...Is it correct? And is it I've overslept or I overslept? The teacher said it's wrong to use overslept in English.

Please correcct my question as well, so next time I don't make the same mistakes while asking.

Here is the video at http://www.engvid.com/classroom-vocabulary/

Thanks alot.
  

Top answer

Dear Osama91, I watched the entire video. The woman is incorrect and I have no idea why she would have made such a statement. We DO say oversleep (overslept) in English.

— JohnParis

  • Dear Osama91, I watched the entire video.
  • The woman is incorrect and I have no idea why she would have made such a statement.
  • We DO say oversleep (overslept) in English.
  • It is perfectly acceptable and used all the time.
  • r'slep| verb ( past and past part.
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9 Answers
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Dear Osama91,

I watched the entire video.

The woman is incorrect and I have no idea why she would have made such a statement.

We DO say oversleep (overslept) in English. It is perfectly acceptable and used all the time.

Here is the definition of the word (along with an example of usage) from The Oxford Dictionary of the English Language
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Thank you, John. I guess Canadians do not use oversleep! Lol
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If you tell your teacher that you slept in she might very will assume that you were deliberately late for class.

"Overslept" means that you slept longer that you intended. Ex. "I overslept and ended up missing the bus."

"Slept in" means that you deliberately slept longer than usual. Ex. "Saturday is the only day of the week I can sleep in."
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Hi,

I guess Canadians do not use oversleep! Yes, we do!
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Clive, my reaction was the same as MalRey's (which is why I verified his post.) To me, "I slept in" suggests that it was intentional.

I would also disagree with the video teacher's sugggestion that "Can I please go to the bathroom/washroom" is just as good as "May I.... ." Certainly "Can I" is often heard, but I believe that when you are requesting permission, "May I" is definitely pre
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Hi,

To me, "I slept in" suggests that it was intentional.
Maybe it's a British English thing.
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Wow -- another British/American difference!
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khoffI would also disagree with the video teacher's sugggestion that "Can I please go to the bathroom/washroom" is just as good as "May I.... ." Certainly "Can I" is often heard, but I believe that when you are requesting permission, "May I" is definitely preferred.
As early as 1965 the British linguist Palmer was writing how old-fashioned may is in tha
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CalifJims early as 1965 the British linguist Palmer was writing how old-fashioned may is in that context:
Darn it -- I missed that announcement when I was 11 years old! I think I remember "Can I..." requests in my school being answered with some form of "maybe you can, but you may not." Or maybe it was just someone in my family who was a stickler f
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