If I were to ask how old are you

[Beardo]

I'm a news reporter for a local newspaper, and my Editor recently gave me an important rule of news reporting...: You have to ask the interviewee's age. =/

So my question to you... Would you be offended if a news reporter asked you for your age?

[Beardo]

This would be in the context for example... You're at an event and a news reporter wants your opinion on how the event is going so far blah blah, blah blah.

[Soulja Girl]

:sl:

Nope. Not at all. Not the slightest bit.

:wa:

[Beardo]

:sl:

Nope. Not at all. Not the slightest bit.

:wa:

I would assume people in their 40s or 50s would get offended.

Or if I'm interviewing people I know. =/

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[Woodrow]

I would assume people in their 40s or 50s would get offended.

Or if I'm interviewing people I know. =/

I doubt if many would be offended, but I feel that is the age group most likely to be a bit erroneous in what they report their age as.

Once a person reaches my age, it becomes a source of pride to tell your age to everybody who will listen.

[cat eyes]

I would assume people in their 40s or 50s would get offended.

Or if I'm interviewing people I know. =/

yup they would get offended. they will either slap you or lie about there age;D

it can be sensitive question for some women so thread carefully

but my opinion is it shouldnt be of any importance when interviewing someone unless your doing an important survey on something

[mudassara]

Ya agreed that depends on the mentality of the people… I u ask me a will straight away will tell my age….

[abdussattar]

I dont think anyone would be offended.


Never ask a woman her age, though.


Even the Old age women... dont ask their age, ask their age group...if you tell them that you are from a newspaper and show then your ID card, i think they wont be offended.



But no guarantees from my side! If any of them slaps you :omg: then dont come fuming at me :embarrass

[Alpha Dude]

I think it's mostly insecure women that would feel offended.

Perhaps a way around that would be to ask an age group and not for an age directly.

[Asiyah3]

Not at all.

I think some insecure people ashamed of their old age and with the silly "be young & enjoy life" mentality would be.

Live as a traveler.

[Rhubarb Tart]

No I wouldn’t be offended.

[kashmirshazad]

I thought women were very defensive if you ask them this kind of question

[PouringRain]

I thought women were very defensive if you ask them this kind of question

It is not polite to ask a woman her age........... of course when do people do what is polite anymore? :)


For me, if someone asks my age, I am not offended, but it also depends on the context. There can be a lot of age discrimination-- for both young and old. Knowing an individual's age can cause bias.

[Beardo]

I thought women were very defensive if you ask them this kind of question

lol. True that. But I typically don't interview women though. Usually because they come in large clusters, and I prefer attacking the stray sheep.

Looking at stats, though, it seems as if most people will not be offended. Not much to worry about, in that case.

[S_87]

i would only think its rude if you guessed me older, even if my birthday was the next day and you said that age!

otherwise not bothered

[Beardo]

i would only think its rude if you guessed me older, even if my birthday was the next day and you said that age!

otherwise not bothered

Well, as a news reporter, you don't guess anyone's age. You just ask them their name, age, and profession. So I guess I'm safe in that aspect.

[Ğħαrєєвαħ]

An early Eid Mubarak : D. . . . . .

['Abd Al-Maajid]

Well I don't really mind if anyone asks me about my age....Why would I ponder on such an unimportant thing...Rashad, you are being too silly these days...lol...jk

An early Eid Mubarak : D. . . . . .

That's too early...;D

[Life_Is_Short]

So my question to you... Would you be offended if a news reporter asked you for your age?

I won't get offended so long as s/he does not assume I am 15 and still attend secondary school.

[أحمد]

:sl:

For anyone feeling "insecure" about their age; always remember one thing. This life isn't very long; there's nothing to feel "insecure" about.

(79:46) It will be, on the Day (Al-Qiyamah) they see it, as though they had not remained [in the world] except for an afternoon or a morning thereof.

:wa:

[PouringRain]

I won't get offended so long as s/he does not assume I am 15 and still attend secondary school.

When was pregnant with my fourth, there was a lady at a church I visited who asked me if I was going to come to the youth class! ^o)

[Ansariyah]

Nope, I wouldnt mind.

[Abdul Wahid]

No I wouldn't mind.

Maybe its just insecure people who will offended. What's the worst that's going to happen? They won't talk to you. Move on to the next person.

[Snowflake]

:sl: I wouldn't be offended at all. But is it necessary? However, I do forget how old I am sometimes.

However I don't like telling random people on the internet how old I am. (for security reasons/ID theft etc)

I dont think anyone would be offended.


Never ask a woman her age, though.


Even the Old age women... dont ask their age, ask their age group...if you tell them that you are from a newspaper and show then your ID card, i think they wont be offended.



But no guarantees from my side! If any of them slaps you :omg: then dont come fuming at me :embarrass

Does any one else struggle to read this minute font? It's a crime : \

['Abd Al-Maajid]

Does any one else struggle to read this minute font? It's a crime : \

LOL you'll probably need a magnifying glass to read that...carry it when you are coming on board ;D

[Periwinkle18]

no i wouldn't mind telling my age, i dun get y ppl don't lyke telling their ages :P LOlz if u interview ppl here in Pak they'll gather arund u n would b dying to get interviewed :P its so funny wen i watch the news

An early Eid Mubarak : D. . . . . .

Eid mubarak to u too sis :) May u hav a blessed eid and may Allah forgive awl ur sins Ameen remember me in ur prayers :)

[~Raindrop~]

I get asked that all the time. And about one person in 30 believes me when I tell them my age. The rest just have a huge fake smile on their face and say: come on, really?
It does get annoying.

[Ğħαrєєвαħ]

^Come on, Reallly?? o_O

[IslamicRevival]

A stranger asking me how old i am? Thanks but no thanks!

[abdussattar]

got the answer
http://www.islamicboard.com/forum-he...-computer.html

[elina]

I would assume people in their 40s or 50s would get offended.

Or if I'm interviewing people I know. =/

i wouldnt be offended at all and im in my 40's :)

[Endymion]

Why would i get offended.I will simply give them a wrong idea about my age :D

[Haya emaan]

bieng offended.. not at all....

[Revert 2010]

I would say guess, it's always interesting to hear the answers lol.

[Nσσя'υℓ Jαииαн]

:sl:

Why do people get offended anyway? Yea sometimes these questions are unnecessary and maybe for some reason or other you don't want to give out personal information...but some people are just unnecessarily offended like they were just insulted lol! Your age is your age, you cant change how old you turn. Most if not all will go through this, granted you're living, so why be offended? Its a natural phase...if Im still alive I'll too be old, big deal.

And to answer your question, no I would not be offended :D

[Ğħαrєєвαħ]

hmm, is it Eid yet!?

[sherz_umr]

As long as u dont guess their age to be older than their actual age,its fine..esp women. If u ask a woman 'ur 40?' evn if shes 39 nd a hlf..she'd b ofnded. It may b coz she'l feel ..i dunno, unattractiv/wrinkly old/ugly?.. Evrybdy wants to luk and feel gud abt their appearance.
I wont b ofended.......yet :p
Tel thm ur a reporter,ask their age. No offence..unles they r silly.

[Ranya]

In Italy it's normal to ask how old are you. It's not a problem for me.

[Zuzubu]

Obviously not? O.o It's just an age.

[Nσσя'υℓ Jαииαн]

How could you possibly be offended by what is only a natural occurrence? :/

[Ğħαrєєвαħ]

^Eggsactly!....

[AlbertWesker]

If a news reporter asked how old I am, I would tell them I am 23.

[AslamP]

It would depend on why the reporter was asking for the age - yes and no.

[laila_99]

the youth would definitly not mind whereas the elders would ..even though they shouldnt ..

[GuestFellow]

Salaam,

No, I won't get offended over something so trivial.

[Just_A_Girl13]

Asaalamu alaikum brother Beardo,

I work for a newspaper and my editor allows me to ask older adults for their occupation instead of their age. You might try that.

Peace and blessings be with you :)

[Who Am I?]

I'd say I was 29....

... and a half.

;D

[Karl]

I wouldn't be "offended" but I would consider it very rude because it's quite a personal question, a bit like asking for my bank account number. It wouldn't be so bad if we in the West didn't live in such an ageist time. Age discrimination is utterly rampant, and it is a prejudice that affects young and old alike. This discrimination runs SO deep that they even have LAWS based merely on one's lunar age. People seem to get all sensitive and uptight over racism, but ageism is just as bad, yet it is not even recognized by many people even AS a bigotry. Many people are ageist bigots and that's why I would refuse to tell anyone what my own age is.

[ardianto]

I asked my wife :

"Some women were lying when people asked their age. They gave false answer and pretended as younger women. If some people ask your age, will you lie and pretend as younger woman ?"
"No, I won't"
"Why ?"
"If I pretend as younger woman, they will look at my face and start thinking I am look older than my age. So, if I must lie, it's better if I pretend as older woman, and they will think I am look younger than my age".


That's my wife. :statisfie

[SFatima]

Im always 18 :D so doesn't really matter if chronologic age exceeds the age of my heart and mind :D So I'll say 18, since thats my heart's age, soul is just like 5,6 yrs old lol. ( by that definition all new recent reverts are currently babies at the moment, soul wise :) )

[joyous fairy]

I wouldnt be offended if someone asked my age. A lot of the time when I tell people my age they be like ':omg: You look so young' and I get embarrassed lol. Once this lady asked me and when I told her, she was like ':O You nearly gave me a heart attack, you look 16! '. I get annoyed sometimes though, cos of the way people react. :heated:

[Pure Purple]

I wouldnt be offended if someone asked my age. A lot of the time when I tell people my age they be like ' You look so young' and I get embarrassed lol. Once this lady asked me and when I told her, she was like ':O You nearly gave me a heart attack, you look 16! '. I get annoyed sometimes though, cos of the way people react.

I always tried to avoid to tell about my age.Because almost everyone who come to know about my age got shocked.
because I look very young than what is my age is.Heights some people think that I am in School .sometimes it's Irritating.And they think that my younger sister is elder than me.Even they had heard that i am elder than her than also they are asking She is elder than you?

[flowergarden]

salaam :)
well it depends on the story, if it is relevant to the story than of course not... but if it has nothing to do with it, what the point... but no i don't think i'd get offended in any case.

As the saying does, with age come wisdom, and beauty! :P

[Pure Purple]

but no i don't think i'd get offended in any case.

Even I don't get offended.Just telling fact.

[noorseeker]

Are you in directly asking people age age bro;D

I see a lot of people on here say they dont mind, but not revealing their ages ^o)

Im 29 , going to be 30 next month

[Pure Purple]

I see a lot of people on here say they dont mind, but not revealing their ages

.They are not revealing their because Question is Are you offended If someone ask about your age and not How old are you.:p
you misunderstood the question:p

[noorseeker]

No i did understand the question:D

I think op was scared to ask how old are you ;D

There was a thread about this , a lot of people were not happy to answer

I wish i was 22

[flowergarden]

I always tried to avoid to tell about my age.Because almost everyone who come to know about my age got shocked.
because I look very young than what is my age is.Heights some people think that I am in School .sometimes it's Irritating.And they think that my younger sister is elder than me.Even they had heard that i am elder than her than also they are asking She is elder than you?

LOL I get that... but I LOVE it. To look younger is a blessing from Allah!
People always get shocked when they hear my age, then they always say "girl be grateful for the blessing of youthfulness from God" :D
And I sure am, I am in my twenties, and I always get 15 even 12 hahahaha!

It shouldn't be embarrassing, because when your older you'll look 20 when your actually 40 :) I'm short too..

Cute things come in small packages, and looking youthful is always a beautiful thing! Be proud!

['Abd Al-Maajid]

Heights some people think that I am in School .sometimes it's Irritating.And they think that my younger sister is elder than me.Even they had heard that i am elder than her than also they are asking She is elder than you?

Same here, People think that i am 'younger' than my younger brothers.

[Riana17]

Salam

83% said no, hmm when I reach 30, I would think twice before giving my age hahaha lool

[AmineH]

Salaam

I think i'm the youngest member in this forum .

[Ğħαrєєвαħ]

As'Salaam Alaaykum

Would you be offended if a news reporter asked you for your age?

No, I would not be offended.

[joyous fairy]

I always tried to avoid to tell about my age.Because almost everyone who come to know about my age got shocked.
because I look very young than what is my age is.Heights some people think that I am in School .sometimes it's Irritating.And they think that my younger sister is elder than me.Even they had heard that i am elder than her than also they are asking She is elder than you?

It gets very annoying sometimes. Me and my sisters all look young and people always assume we're still in school/college, even though we are in our twenties!

[Al-Mufarridun]

the old want to be young
the young want to be old

[Al-Mufarridun]

salam

83% said no, hmm when i reach 40, i would think twice before giving my age hahaha lool

lol Haha! .......,,,....

[Innocent Soul]

^o) You changed the quote.

Salam

83% said no, hmm when I reach 30, I would think twice before giving my age hahaha lool

salam

83% said no, hmm when i reach 40, i would think twice before giving my age hahaha lool

[Al-Mufarridun]

^ lol, yea i was hoping Riana would notice first.

lame joke.

[sis muslimah]

nope not at all =)

[Marina-Aisha]

i wouldnt be bothered if someone ask my age, age is just a number..

[Huzzy_786]

Not really, Seeing I am 15 haha

[Abu Taj al Deen]

Who cares? It's just a number - not a definition... :/

['Abd Al-Maajid]

^ It's a number which describes you to some extent, no? :hmm:

[sis muslimah]

Nope not at all

[Who Am I?]

the old want to be young
the young want to be old

:sl:

This reminds me of something my father once told me, that the problem with youth is that it is wasted on the young. Of course, when I myself was a young lad, I looked at him like "What are you talking about, old man?" ^o)

I will be 36 in a few weeks, and now I understand what he was talking about. I wasted my youth on idle pursuits and dreams of fancy, and now there are things that I want to accomplish that I just don't have the time or energy for anymore that I had a decade ago.

[GuestFellow]

I think I'll be 50 by the time everyone forgets about this topic.

[UmmuShaheed]

I wouldnt be offended, I guess it depends on how old the person being asked the question is :/

[peace_maker]

I wouldn't be offended. But I wouldn't tell my age either. Against house rules. :hmm:

[Sothis Girl]

I would ask him back how old he thinks I am ;D

[real islam]

I would say i have to ask the authority.

[SorayaCali]

Im 22, Im of Yemenite Jewish and Argentine background, and I learned about Islam over the years from several sources.

[Serendipity]

No I am not that sensitive

[Scimitar]

interviewer "Your name sir?"

me "Don freakin' King"

interviewer "really?"

me "no, it's Michael wooohooo Jackson"

interviewer "and how old are you Michael?"

me "old enough to be dead, but don't quote me"

Interviewer gives himself a facepalm, and I moonwalk off.

This took place at Trafalgar square last year...

Scimi

[~Zaria~]

interviewer "Your name sir?"

me "Don freakin' King"

interviewer "really?"

me "no, it's Michael wooohooo Jackson"

interviewer "and how old are you Michael?"

me "old enough to be dead, but don't quote me"

Interviewer gives himself a facepalm, and I moonwalk off.

This took place at Trafalgar square last year...

Scimi

LOL

You're kidding, right?

Why?

[White Rose]

Forget about age, I will run away before you can even interview me. ;D

[ardianto]

interviewer "Your name sir?"

me "Don freakin' King"

interviewer "really?"

me "no, it's Michael wooohooo Jackson"

interviewer "and how old are you Michael?"

me "old enough to be dead, but don't quote me"

Interviewer gives himself a facepalm, and I moonwalk off.

This took place at Trafalgar square last year...

Scimi

Hmmm, I remember this moment. Yes, you left the interviwer with moonwalk.

But a moment later the interviewer asked me "Justin, we heard Selena Gomez left you?"

[Snowflake]

I have just realized that I actually love telling strangers my age if they ask. Just not on the internet.

[ardianto]

@sisters

In many places, asking about age to female unnecessary is considered inappropriate. So, if someone ask about your age unnecessary, it's okay if you reply with "why you ask?". However if someone ask about your age necessary and you refuse to tell your age, you would be marked as a low confidence female who afraid to being old.

[Ramadan90]

No.^o)

[ardianto]

May I out of topic for a moment?

Why Beardo said "If I were", not "If I was"?



PS: I do not speak English in daily life.

[marwen]

^ 'I were' is the subjunctive form/mode of 'I was'. It's used in an unreal conditional sentence.
In short : I use 'I was' if I want to express something possible. But I use 'I were [.. would ...]' to express something hypotethical, or unreal.

example :
1) If I was wrong, please correct me ==> it's possible that I was wrong. => real conditional.
2) If I were you, I would never get this money ==> I can't be you (not possible) : that's hypothetical. => unreal conditional.
(note that you will use 'would', after using the subjunctive 'I were'.)

In this thread, Beardo said : 'If I were to ask how old are you', he won't really ask you that. It's just hypothetical. Right Beardo ?

If I was wrong, please correct me. (<-- this is not an example, seriously correct me if I said something wrong. )




PS. : may be we need a thread dedicated for english questions, I guess it would be helpful for all.

[ardianto]

Jazak Allah Khayr, brother Marwen.

:)

[Scimitar]

Not being funny but if a reporter asked me my age - I'd reply with "you should know that already, you're the one who is doing the research, I'm only here for the interview" loool

Scimi

[Abu.Yusuf]

personally i wouldnt mind....but like you said older people may get offended... so depends on the person. Dont think anyone can answer you question, youll just have to experiment :D

let us know if you get beats lol

[real islam]

I think scimiter made a good answer

[TrueStranger]

Age is nothing but a number, it all comes down to how young or how old you look. If you have a baby-face, you could be a 30 year old woman and people will probably ignore the number, and focus on your looks.