You lazy bones/You're a lazy bones

I heard many native speakers said the following phrases leaving out ‘the verb to be’ and ‘articles’.

1. You lazy bones (You're a lazy bones)
2. You idiot (You're an idiot)

I don’t know how to explain to my child. Could anybody explain to me, please?

Is it common for native speakers to say ‘e.g you jerk instead of you are a jerk?

Thanks.

NOT A TEACHER

I have heard native speakers say things such as, 'You idiot', so, yes, I guess it's pretty common in spoken English. There is an implied verb, 'You (are an) idiot'.

You cannot, however, say, 'He/she idiot' (although I can't say why). You also cannot say, 'You smart'. 'You genius' does work on the other hand.

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Originally Posted by Chicken Sandwich

NOT A TEACHER

I have heard native speakers say things such as, 'You idiot', so, yes, I guess it's pretty common in spoken English. There is an implied verb, 'You (are an) idiot'.

You cannot, however, say, 'He/she idiot' (although I can't say why). You also cannot say, 'You smart'. 'You genius' does work on the other hand.

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Thanks, Chicken Sandwich.

What does "implied verb" mean? I wonder if it is common to say 'you stupid' (When parents talks to their children)?

Thanks again!

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Originally Posted by Winwin2011

I wonder if it is common to say 'you stupid' (When parents talks to their children)?

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No. Parents who wish to speak to their children in such terms might say, "You stupid boy/girl", but not just "You stupid".

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Originally Posted by Winwin2011

Thanks, Chicken Sandwich.

What does "implied verb" mean? I wonder if it is common to say 'you stupid' (When parents talks to their children)?

Thanks again!

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No. The implication is in the context. If I look at you and say 'Dimwiit' the implication is 'You are a ...'. So to say you think someone's stupid, you just look at them and say 'Stupid. However, if a colleague and I are both complaing about a new HR proposal, I can say to him/her 'Stupid' and mean '[IT is] stupid.

Finally, there is a possible explanation for the utterance 'You stupid [...]' - it could be 'You stupid idiot' or 'You stupid fool' or 'You stupid <any-noun>. Sometimes people start out to say 'You stupid...' and then can't think of a suitable noun. Often, they justify the [...] by saying something like 'You stupid... I can't think of a word that fits.'

b

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Winwin2011

Thanks, Chicken Sandwich.

What does "implied verb" mean? I wonder if it is common to say 'you stupid' (When parents talks to their children)?

Thanks again!

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No. The implication is in the context. If I look at you and say 'Dimwiit' the implication is 'You are a ...'. So to say you think someone's stupid, you just look at them and say 'Stupid'. However, if a colleague and I are both complaining about a new HR proposal, I can say to him/her 'Stupid' and mean '[IT is] stupid.

Finally, there is a possible explanation for the utterance 'You stupid [...]' - it could be 'You stupid idiot' or 'You stupid fool' or 'You stupid <any-noun>. Sometimes people start out to say 'You stupid...' and then can't think of a suitable noun. Often, they justify the [...] by saying something like 'You stupid... I can't think of a word that fits.'

b

I just want to say that the question itself makes me sad. :-( I would never, EVER say "You are stupid" to my children, or "You idiot!" as a way to address them.

More to the point:
The reason you can say "You genius!" but not "You smart" is that genius, lazy bones, smart ass, idiot, etc. are all nouns. I have seen many English learns say "He is a stupid" but that is wrong - "stupid" is only an adjective, not a noun.

There are hundreds of things you you can say after "you" in this manner: You miracle worker, you! You prince! You clever boy! You naughty kitten! (Yes, I talk to my cats.)

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Originally Posted by Barb_D

(Yes, I talk to my cats.)

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They expect it and understand every word you say.

Rover
:olympic:

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Originally Posted by Barb_D

I talk to my cats.

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I talk to my wife's cat. When my wife is not at home I do tend to say, "You ******"

Incidentally, this is a cat that is not the brightest of feline beasts. It has a surname, "Branez", and a forename "Sheetfer". At least, that's the way I have to spell and pronounce its name in a family forum.

Hi teachers,

I heard some native speakers said something like "You hungry" in the moive, but I am not sure whether they were just saying "You're hungry".

Thanks.