English is a Whore!

I love the English language. What I love most about it is its variety, dynamism, and sheer joie de vivre. We don't have any board or committee to tell us how to speak it like the French. The speakers shape the language themselves through speaking and writing. Thus, English is a constantly evolving and supremely flexible language. It's a beautiful thing.

I've heard English described as the whore of languages. I've always loved that analogy because it is a whore: a warm, friendly hooker (with a heart of gold, naturally) always willing to spread her legs and receive new vocabulary and speech patterns. Or, to put it more succinctly:

“The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don’t just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.” - James D. Nicoll