Etymology Journal ยท W
Watch your tone, young man
Meaning
- A specific instruction to adjust one's attitude and volume when being disrespectful. It is the gold standard of parental scolding.
Authoritative, firm
Used in a sentence
- Watch your tone, young man, I am still your mother.
- You will apologize for that remark, watch your tone, young man.
- I do not like the way you are speaking to me, watch your tone, young man.
The backstory
This reflects the cultural expectation that children should maintain a respectful volume and inflection when addressing adults.
Heard in
Nationwide
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