{"id":9930,"date":"2020-12-26T23:07:30","date_gmt":"2020-12-26T23:07:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/?p=9930"},"modified":"2022-09-18T14:59:49","modified_gmt":"2022-09-18T14:59:49","slug":"subject-to-change-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/subject-to-change-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"What is the Meaning of &#8220;subject to change&#8221;?"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>img#mv-trellis-img-1::before{padding-top:150%; }img#mv-trellis-img-1{display:block;}<\/style><p>I am convinced that I can speak English, at least to a decent level. However, I cannot count the number of times I&rsquo;ve found myself listening to other people talk in &ldquo;English&rdquo; yet be unable to understand them at all.<\/p>\n<p>I could even make out a few words here and there, but I was not able to follow the thread of the conversation.<\/p>\n<p>However, after doing a little reading, I realized that my English wasn&rsquo;t compromised.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-instead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"> Instead<\/a><\/strong>, the issue is that different subcommunities develop their own version of English, producing their own unique words and expressions.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, the online gaming community has come up with countless expressions, such as <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/the-meaning-of-poggers\/\">Poggers<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/the-meaning-of-pepega\/\">Pepega<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>What&rsquo;s more, these subcommunities indirectly influence how the rest of us communicate.<\/p>\n<p>Today, we use emojis when texting, we tell each other that something made us &ldquo;LOL,&rdquo; and we use countless sports analogies, including &ldquo;hitting a home run,&rdquo; without even noticing.<\/p>\n<p>That said, one of the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/the-meaning-of-esketit\/\">subcommunities<\/a><\/strong> that use an extremely esoteric version of English is the business world, giving us the dreaded legalese and the unpenetrable finance jargon.<\/p>\n<p>To make matters worse, unlike the gaming community or online chatters, the business world directly influences our lives, affecting our livelihoods and constraining our actions.<\/p>\n<p>So, I would like to take some time today to explore a few unique business expressions, starting with something being &ldquo;subject to change.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>What does &ldquo;subject to change&rdquo; mean?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>When something is &ldquo;subject to change,&rdquo; this means that it will likely change if the surrounding circumstances dictate so. This is a term used by businesses to give themselves some leeway and to be able to adapt to changing circumstances. For instance, if a train station wants to let you know that they might change their train schedule at the drop of a hat, they&rsquo;ll give you the schedule but add an asterisk, and next to the asterisk will be the phrase &ldquo;these times are subject to change,&rdquo; probably written in italics.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Right about now, you might be wondering why don&rsquo;t business people just come out and say, &ldquo;we might change the prices if we have to&rdquo;? Why do they need to develop an incomprehensible language, one that needs to come with an interpreter?<\/p>\n<p>This paves the way for a quick digression, one that will pay dividends later on.<br>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Why is business lingo difficult to decipher?<\/h2>\n<p>For starters, when subcommunities develop their own lingo, they do this for several reasons. Firstly, it can be useful to have shorthand expressions to describe more complicated concepts.<\/p>\n<p>This not only saves time but also helps keep the conversation concise. You can find this phenomenon among scientists, doctors, engineers, and any field that requires some level of expertise.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, it is this requirement of expertise that allows these professionals to demand such a high price from their clients.<\/p>\n<p>And, here comes another reason. When experts use esoteric terms, the kind that the layman wouldn&rsquo;t understand, it creates a sense of exclusivity and guards the expert&rsquo;s knowledge.<\/p>\n<p>After all, finance experts want their clients to remain baffled when it comes to things such as the stock market, bonds, and derivatives.<\/p>\n<p>And, when you have exclusivity, you also have inclusivity. In other words, these esoteric terms act as a badge of admission, a way to show that someone belongs to a certain group.<\/p>\n<p>So, when a lawyer throws around a bunch of legalese that leaves you scratching your head, they&rsquo;re showing you that they are part of a special group and you&rsquo;re not.<\/p>\n<p>However, even gamers will use esoteric language to show that they belong to a certain group or fans of a famous Twitch streamer.<\/p>\n<p>All that said, there are a few things that set <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/basic-business-english-vocabulary\/\">business language apart<\/a><\/strong>, and these are the ones that matter for our purposes. To begin with, businesses use plenty of qualifying language.<\/p>\n<p>This means that rather than saying something definitively, businesses would prefer to use cautious language that hedges their position and covers their ass in case things go south.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, businesses are famous for using <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/doublespeak\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">doublespeak<\/a><\/strong>. So, instead of saying that people were fired, which sort of sounds callous, a business will say that it had to downsize, which sounds more palatable.<\/p>\n<p>And, do you think a business can come out and say, &ldquo;We plan to steal our competitors&rsquo; best ideas&rdquo;? Of course not.<\/p>\n<p>But, they can say, &ldquo;We plan to align ourselves with industry thought leaders,&rdquo; which technically means the exact same thing but just sounds much better.<\/p>\n<p><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-9937\" src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_.jpg\" alt='The Meaning of \"subject to change\"' width=\"1000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_.jpg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-735x1103.jpg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-223x335.jpg 223w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-231x347.jpg 231w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-347x520.jpg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-427x640.jpg 427w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-512x768.jpg 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_.jpg\"><\/noscript><img loading=\"eager\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-9937 eager-load\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%201000%201500'%3E%3Crect%20width='1000'%20height='1500'%20style='fill:%23e3e3e3'\/%3E%3C\/svg%3E\" alt='The Meaning of \"subject to change\"' width=\"1000\" height=\"1500\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_.jpg\" id=\"mv-trellis-img-1\" data-src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_.jpg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-735x1103.jpg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-223x335.jpg 223w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-231x347.jpg 231w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-347x520.jpg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-427x640.jpg 427w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/The-Meaning-of-_subject-to-change_-512x768.jpg 512w\" data-svg=\"1\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>So, why do businesses use &ldquo;subject to change&rdquo;?<\/h2>\n<p>&ldquo;Subject to change&rdquo; is hedging language. It prevents businesses from committing to a specific decision.<\/p>\n<p>Here is a simple example<\/p>\n<p>Let&rsquo;s say that you are at an electronics store that is having a sale, and you find a TV that you just fall in love with. The TV is 50 percent off, so you figure that this is perfect.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, it&rsquo;s near the end of the month, and you won&rsquo;t have enough money to buy the TV until you receive next month&rsquo;s paycheck. So, you decide to go up to the nearest sales clerk and have the following conversation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\">\n<p><strong>You:<\/strong> Hi, would it be possible for you to set aside this TV for a few days? I want to buy it, but I won&rsquo;t be available to come pick it up until next Friday?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sales clerk:<\/strong> I can hold the TV for you, but I have to warn you that the price might be subject to change. We don&rsquo;t know how long this sale will last.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>In essence, the sales clerk just told you that the price might change because the sale might end before you get a chance to buy the TV. So, if you go to the store next week and the TV is no longer on sale, you can not hold the store liable.<\/p>\n<p>And, this is the heart of the matter. Declaring that something is &ldquo;subject to change&rdquo; absolves the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/thank-you-business\/\">business<\/a><\/strong> of any liability should said thing change.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, it is also worth pointing out that while businesses can use the &ldquo;subject to change&rdquo; clause as an escape hatch of sorts, there are limits preventing businesses from abusing the clause.<\/p>\n<p>Simply put, when something is &ldquo;subject to change,&rdquo; the reason for the change has to be fair and the conditions leading to the change have to be sensible.<\/p>\n<p>In other words, saying that something is &ldquo;subject to change&rdquo; is no excuse for a business to abuse its powers or to swindle its customers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I am convinced that I can speak English, at least to a decent level. However, I cannot count the number of times I&rsquo;ve found myself listening to other people talk in &ldquo;English&rdquo; yet be unable to understand them at all. I could even make out a few words here and there, but I was not &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9936,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable-in-feed":false,"article-schema-type":"Article","disable-critical-css":false,"_convertkit_action_broadcast_export":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35,1117],"tags":[265],"class_list":["post-9930","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-vocabulary","tag-subject-to-change"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9930","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9930"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9930\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9939,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9930\/revisions\/9939"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}