# EN: be a-running, a-changing, etc. - "a-" prefix before V-ing



## MONGOLIA

Pouvez vous m'expliquer la présence de "a" devant le verbe, SVP?
"They're just a running their own game"

*Note des modérateurs :* Plusieurs fils ont été fusionnés pour créer celui-ci.


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## marget

I would say that there is no grammatical reason for it. It is probably just slang and most likely regional. Maybe the speaker has a habit of using an "a" before some verbs or other structures.


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## pointvirgule

Was "The Twelve Days of Christmas" written in regional slang?


> On the twelfth day of Christmas,
> my true love sent to me
> [...]
> Ten lords a-leaping,
> [...]
> Eight maids a-milking,
> Seven swans a-swimming,
> [...]


Just the way people from England's popular classes used to speak, I guess.


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## brian

Take a look here, especially panj's post #6.


panjandrum said:


> Another interesting lesson, though not much use in modern English as we tend not to use the a-prefix versions these days.
> The a- prefix to verbs of motion, in particular, is an intensifier.
> Here is what the OED says after lengthy explanations about the different reasons that words acquired a- prefixes ...
> Don't you just love the sound of that sentence


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## marget

pointvirgule said:


> Was "The Twelve Days of Christmas" written in regional slang?


 I have no idea as to the origin of the Twelve Days of Christmas. I can't answer for British English.  I was attempting to answer according to my impression as a native speaker of American English.  So sorry to disappoint and mislead. In the expression, "they're just a running their own game" to me, the "a" still seems superfluous and possibly regional.


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## pointvirgule

Oh, agreed, it is superfluous and archaic, and it is true that nowadays, you may only hear it in certain regions. I was stressing out the fact that the origin of the "a-" was probably not specifically regional, though.


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## brian

The older generation still use it down here in the south of the US.


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## marget

pointvirgule said:


> Oh, agreed, it is superfluous and archaic, and it is true that nowadays, you may only hear it in certain regions. I was stressing out the fact that the origin of the "a-" was probably not specifically regional, though.


 

I'm sure that you are right to state that this usage was not regional. I did a little research and found that it was used in old English to indicate continual action and that "a"  is short for "at". The example I saw was "He is at playing" and another one cited was "lords a leaping". 

I don't think I hear this expression much in the area of Mid-Atlantic States of the US where I live, but I can imagine it being used with verbs of motion as an intensifier. It just seems unusual or slang in the expression "They're just a running their own game".


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## Jad

Grammatically I believe this construction has been dubbed a *circumfix* (a-...-ing). I disagree that it is slang, but it may be regional and it definitely has an antiquated feel to it.

However in your particular case it might be there for a completely different reason... depending on where that sentence is from


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## Lacuzon

Hi :

*David Bowie 1984 lyrics*

_Someday they won't let you, now you must agree

The times they are a-telling, and the changing isn't free

You've read it in the tea leaves, and the tracks are on TV

Beware the savage jaw

Of 1984
_


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## brian

In all honesty, though, _a-telling_ sounds kind of weird. Keep in mind that:

1) music, like poetry, has a rhythm, so sometimes you might need to add a syllable like _a_ here and there

and more importantly

2) these lyrics refer to Bob Dylan: _the times, they are *a-changing*_. (Hence why Bowie says _the changing isn't free_.


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## Al'x

Hello everybody,
Now i fully understand what Del Shannon  meant in his song "Runaway" : 'I'm _a-walkin'_ in the rain'.
Notice in the very same song we can also find 'I wonder _A-what_ went wrong with our love' and 'My little runaway _A-run_, run, run, run, runaway'


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## Scarface Ron

Que signifie cette abréviation que l'on trouve dans les chansons?
"I'm a' be singin'"
"I'm a' listenin' close"
"I'm a' tell so all"
"But a' I'm alright"
Merci.


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## Jim in Phila

The use of _a_ in your examples is called in linguistics "_a" prefixing.  _It's used in dialect forms to add immediacy or vividness to the verb.  It seems to be used with a verb to indicate that the action is progressing or continuous.  In standard English, the first two examples would be written_ I am (_now_) singing_ and _I am (_right now_) listening close_. I'm not sure about the last two examples.


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## Hildy1

There are two or three different uses of "a" or a'" in #1.

1. The meaning that Jim in Phila explains: a + present participle
This construction has been around for a very long time.
- I'm a' listening close.  (usually written "a-listening")
_Added examples:
- They're a-singing.
- Keep a-goin'._

2. A short form of "going to": a + infinitive
This seems to be a newer usage.
- I'm a be singing.
(and possibly) - I'm a tell so all.
_Added example:
- I'm a let you finish, but..._

3. A use that I don't understand: a + subject and verb
- But a' I'm alright
(Could it be a different spelling of "ah"?)


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## broglet

Bonjour Scarface Ron et bienvenu!  

En générale le préfixe 'a' est inséré pour des raisons rythmiques et n'a aucun effet sur le sens


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## petit1

Comme le dit *Broglet* :
"_The Times they are a changin_'  " Bob Dylan


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