a strange structure: He is an a***kicker is what he is

[zzang418lee]

I was watching an English drama and there some guy says "He is an arsekicker is what he is"

I don't think this sentence is grammatically possible, but I've seen this sort of sentences quite often in dramas and movies.

I would really appreciate if you could explain this sentences and how naitive speakers use this expression.

Thanks in advance.

 

[White Hat]

In spoken English such things are possible, I guess. There is a website that features all those dialects of English in different parts of England. I was appalled at what I discovered.

 

[emsr2d2]

I was watching an English drama and there some guy says "He is an arsekicker is what he is"

I don't think this sentence is grammatically possible, but I've seen this sort of sentences quite often in dramas and movies.

I would really appreciate if you could explain this sentences and how naitive speakers use this expression.

Thanks in advance.

We use it quite a lot. We usually use it when expressing an opinion different from one previously stated.

Person 1 - Wayne Rooney's a great footballer.
Person 2 - He's a really nice guy as well.
Person 3 - And he's gorgeous.
Person 4 - He's an ugly, talentless prat is what he is!

As you can see, person 4 is quite vehement in his conviction. 1, 2 and 3 have said nice things about someone but person 4 strongly feels the opposite. You're right that grammatically it's a disastrous sentence but it's used quite frequently. Here's another example:

Four flatmates are shopping for a new sofa:

Flatmate 1 - How about this one? It's a nice colour.
Flatmate 2 - It's quite a nice shape.
Flatmate 3 - It's perfect.
Flatmate 4 - Are you all blind? It's absolutely hideous is what it is!

 

[5jj]

As some members may be offended by seeing certain words printed in their full form, we tend to use asterisks - 'a***kicker', especially in thread titles.

 

[allenman]

Interesting, in AmE it is not offensive to say "arse" -- it sounds like a derivative of "ass"?

Not a teacher -- AmE native

 

[Tdol]

I have edited the thread title- please avoid using rude words in title- we're happy to discuss slang, etc, but not everyone wants to see it, so ***** in titles helps. Thank you.

 

[Tdol]

We use it quite a lot. We usually use it when expressing an opinion different from one previously stated.

Could this be regional? I am just wondering because I haven't come across this much..

 

[BobK]

Could this be regional? I am just wondering because I haven't come across this much..

I didn't think it was regional, until you asked. It's widely used in those parts of southern England that I've lived in, which would make it possiible that it's little used north of Watford!

b

 

[konungursvia]

I think it's definitely totally English. In AmE we seldom, or perhaps never, see segmentation -- the duplication of the subject:

He's a nice bloke, he is.
It's a lovely painting, that one.

 

[Tdol]

Those examples sound natural to me. The OP's sentence doesn't. It appears that I should get out more and listen.

 

[Raymott]

Could this be regional? I am just wondering because I haven't come across this much..

It's not heard in AusE.

 

[Pokemon]

I think it's definitely totally English. In AmE we seldom, or perhaps never, see segmentation -- the duplication of the subject:

He's a nice bloke, he is.
It's a lovely painting, that one.

In Cambridge Grammar of English (by R.Carter, M.McCarthy) these constructions are classified within the group of tag sentences as statement tags.

 

[zzang418lee]

Sorry. I will put ** instead.

 

[zzang418lee]

Thanks all. I really appreciate it.