How did okay become the punctuation mark to a sentence?
When I was raising kids, I was a dictator. When I said, “Time for bed,” it was a statement. At that time a popular TV program was Father Knows Best. In our house, it was Mom who knew best. Most of the time, Dad was working a shift as a cop, moonlighting driving a semi or sleeping. The little time he could spend with the kids, he didn’t want to be a disciplinarian.
After our children were grown, I noticed young parents telling their sons and daughters to do something and ending their directions with okay, which sounded like a question. Of course, when the adults said something such as, “It’s time for bed, okay?” they didn’t want to hear, “No,” but they often did.
I guess those little ones who were raised with sentences ending with okay have grown up. Much as we think we won’t, we tend to do as we were taught. Wherever I go, people end their directions with, “Okay?” The nurse in the doctor’s office at the clinic led me to the examining room and said, “Please climb up on the table, okay?”
My husband and I entered a restaurant. The hostess greeted us and said, “Follow me, okay?”
After we were seated, the server passed our table and said, “I’ll be right with you, okay?”
I was tempted to respond, “No, I want to order right now,” but I didn’t. I just murmured, “Okay.”
Not only spoken sentences end with the word. A recent post on Facebook read, “Dear church folk, your expectations of the pastor should match your commitment as a member. Okay.”
Do you end your statements with okay?