まあ日本語も論理的とは言えないけど、今日遭遇したのはエッ！と思ったんで。
The dictionary treats could care less as a variant of the older phrase couldn’t care less because it is so frequently encountered. Logic and grammar are often separate considerations, but many people criticize the use of could care less because it seems illogical.
Merriam-Webster辞書のコラムより。
"I could(n't) care less"という表現。"not"が付いていようがいまいがどちらも"I don't care at all"の意味。意味的にはnotが付いているのが正しいけれど、notがなくても同じ、かつこの用法が普通に使われるってのはなんだかなぁ。
There have been numerous theories about why people began to drop the negative particle, including sarcasm, lack of education, and that the phrase simply sounds better when omitting the not.
もともとあった正しい"couldn't care less"から"'n"が落ちた理由は、
- 皮肉
- 無知
- 発音しづらい
と諸説あるけど決定的ではないらしい。個人的には3番目じゃ、と思うけど。間違ってるほうがずっと言いやすい。まあでもオチは、
But if you are the kind of person who cries out against this abomination we must warn you that people who go through life expecting informal variant idioms in English to behave logically are setting themselves up for a lifetime of hurt.
英語が論理的じゃない、と指摘する人は生涯苦しむ、という一文😄
まああんまり気にしないようにしよう。
