Whatcha?

Posted by Brian from Shawnee on November 17, 2003

In Reply to: Whatcha? posted by Henry on November 17, 2003

: : -Whatcha doing Hugo?
: : -Nothing.
: : -How can you do nothing?
: : -Easy - just stop doing something.

: : It is a conversation between 2 kids.
: : What 'whatdra' mean? It is not used often, I think.
: : IS it an American word?

: It means "What are you doing?" Whatcha/Wotcha is an approximate phonetic spelling of the way "What are you" is informally pronounced.
: In England, "Wotcha, mate" would be an informal greeting.

I think the English expression "wotcha" or "wotcher" comes from a different root than "whatcha" in this sense. I found out from this site that "wotcher" is short for "what cheer" and originated in English pubs. (Browse the archives under "wotcher" for that info).