Correct usage of "awhile"


I've seen "awhile" defined as "for a time," and I've seen examples like "Go play awhile" and "stay awhile." But what about the phrases, "Do you want your salad awhile?" or "Would you like your coffee awhile or with your meal?" They seems to define "awhile" as "while you wait" instead of "for a time."


Do these phrases correctly use "awhile" or are they more in line with a colloquialism?



Answer



As suggested by Brandon Boone in a comment above, this is a Pennsylvania regional usage. More specifically, it's a feature of the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect of English. See wikipedia for a list of features of the dialect, including this one. This usage of "awhile" is relatively common in south central PA even among people who are not Amish or Mennonite, unlike some of the other items on the list. (I grew up in south central PA and recognize this usage, although I don't use it that way myself.)


For a more academic reference than Wikipedia, see section 2.2.6 of Vicki Anderson's Ph.D. Thesis.


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