Why do Americans say off of when they tell someone to get off them?
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1How do you say it? Some Americans say Get off me, some say get off of me (this would be particularly appropriate in written English), some say get (the @#$%) off. You might be interested in ELL, our sister site, which is a good site for basic English questions. – anongoodnurse Oct 31 '14 at 02:05
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1I know it sounds a bit smart-ass, but the only answer is 'because they are Americans'. – Roaring Fish Oct 31 '14 at 03:16
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2Why do you take things out of** boxes, and not just out boxes? Taking something off of** a shelf isn't any more illogical than taking something out of** a box. – Peter Shor Oct 31 '14 at 03:46
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@PeterShor How would Taking something off a shelf differ in meaning? Would you say or write, 'Get the cat off of the table.'? If such use is now official American grammar then so be it. – Joe Dark Oct 31 '14 at 04:19
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@Joe: Most Americans don't say off of, they say off. And there really isn't much difference in meaning. If there is any difference, it's that off of is the opposite of onto, and off is the opposite of on. But you can find off of used in most situations you find off. – Peter Shor Oct 31 '14 at 10:43