turn up vs show up

[ostap77]

"A receptionist never turned up for work."

OR

Can we say?

"A receptionist never showed up for work."

 

[lauralie2]

"A receptionist never turned up for work."

OR

Can we say?

"A receptionist never showed up for work."

Both are OK. By the way, 'the receptionist' works better than 'a receptionist' because it was a specific person who didn't turn/show up.

 

[philadelphia]

Not a teacher

"The receptionist has never showed/turned up for work". Just saying.

 

[bhaisahab]

Both are OK. By the way, 'the receptionist' works better than 'a receptionist' because it was a specific person who didn't turn/show up.

"A receptionist never showed up for work."
You mean that the receptionist didn't come to work until the end of time?!:shock:

 

[ostap77]

"A receptionist never showed up for work."
You mean that the receptionist didn't come to work until the end of time?!:shock:

Yes. Any difference with show up?

 

[lauralie2]

"A receptionist never showed up for work."
You mean that the receptionist didn't come to work until the end of time?!:shock:

I don't understand your question, nor your use of '!?'. Please explain.

 

[ostap77]

I don't understand your question, nor your use of '!?'. Please explain.

Would you prefer saying "turn up for work" to "show up for work"?

 

[lauralie2]

Would you prefer saying "turn up for work" to "show up for work"?

Both are perfectly acceptable English to me.

 

[bhaisahab]

I don't understand your question, nor your use of '!?'. Please explain.

"The receptionist never showed up" is incorrect English. Perhaps the receptionist "didn't show up" that day, if you say "never" it suggests from the beginning to the end of time itself.

 

[ostap77]

"The receptionist never showed up" is incorrect English. Perhaps the receptionist "didn't show up" that day, if you say "never" it suggests from the beginning to the end of time itself.

Perhaps sometimes in speech we might well say things like " she nevr came" instead of "she didn't come''?

 

[lauralie2]

The receptionist never showed up" is incorrect English.

On the contrary, it's perfectly good English, as is emphatic 'she never did show up / turn up (as was expected).'

 

[bhaisahab]

On the contrary, it's perfectly good English, as is emphatic 'she never did show up / turn up (as was expected).'

Perhaps it's OK in the US.

 

[lauralie2]

Perhaps it's OK in the US.

Is there a grammar rule out there that you could post that explains the reason 'never showed up' is incorrect in British English? I'd like to understand this a little more.

 

[bhaisahab]

Is there a grammar rule out there that you could post that explains the reason 'never showed up' is incorrect in British English? I'd like to understand this a little more.

If you use "never showed up" it doesn't say what the OP wanted to say in his original post. You can't use "never" with the past tense that way. "He never went to school" means "Never in his life did he go to school". "He never had dinner" means "never in his life did he have dinner. "He never showed up" means "never in his life did he show up".

 

[riquecohen]

In the context of your sentence, I prefer show up. Turn up generally refers to something surprising or unexpected. You could say that someone turned up for work after a long, unexplained absence.

 

[lauralie2]

If you use "never showed up" it doesn't say what the OP wanted to say in his original post. You can't use "never" with the past tense that way. "He never went to school" means "Never in his life did he go to school". "He never had dinner" means "never in his life did he have dinner. "He never showed up" means "never in his life did he show up".

I get what you are saying. It's just that I was wondering if there was a rule that we could work from. You see, I have never seen a rule that says 'never' + past tense is ungrammatical. Where can I find this rule? There has to be one; I believe you when you say that you find 'never' + past tense incorrect English, but are we discussing a personal judgment or a characteristic of BrE grammar?