An annoying little thing I hear often used on radio and TV is the addition of "go ahead" to a verb, such as "you should go ahead and turn left" instead of "you should turn left" or "I'll just go ahead and add some sugar", etc. I never hear it used in person where I live, so I assume it is regional and the TV and radio people have retained part of their local way of speaking and don't even realize they add "go ahead" to almost every verb.
Where does this come from and am I alone in finding this annoying?
I hear that phrase used in person, and use it myself. I suspect that it's a way to make a directive or statement sound less assertive, to soften the tone (I can't remember what that's called)...it's like when I ask a question instead of giving an order, "Will you pick that up?" instead of "Pick that up". "Go ahead and turn left" is similar to saying "You can turn left up here". Of course they can (ability to do it), and they don't need permission (can=may) but it sounds less blunt to phrase it that way.
Thanks for the response, Word Nerd. It now makes sense, so I'll just go ahead and stop being annoyed
The instinct to use what seems like a motion verb in the imperative mood to grant permission (to oneself or another) is not unique to English. If you were at a restaurant in Mexico and asked someone at another table if you could borrow one of their chairs, you might well hear "ándele,"as an affirmative reply. It's a command form of "to walk or move" and in different situational contexts is often used to urge someone to "hurry up" or sometimes, "go away." In this case, though, the sense if very much equivalent to "go ahead," i.e., permission is granted.
I find it interesting that the go can be used not only as a detensifier as above, but also as an intensifier, depending on context.
Go x off is stronger than simply x off. In this case, the x can be any one of several words, primarily various corporeal activities.
While both statements are strong, with or without the go, I don't think I am splitting hairs in saying that the go functions to intensify the imperative.