who?

Well, the kids who were engaged in distracting me used to utilize a grammar attack that was particularly frustrating. It was an Ebonics lesson. A girl picks up some little impulse item -- a mood ring, and says, "How much this?" I say, "Two-fifty." Her friend leans forward at me and yells, in outrage, "WHO??" I understand her of course to be using the word "who?" as an Ebonics stand-in for "what?" and I say, "Two-fifty." The original girl says to her friend, "I'm not payin' you two-fifty for THIS?" She throws it down and picks up a copy of the book Free Stuff For Kids and says, "How much this?" I say, "Six ninety-five." Her friends says, in an angry voice, "WHO??". . .

Of course my rising frustration is related both to the fact that I can see these girls' accomplices off roaming around the store picking up and throwing down lots of different products and yet these girls themselves have got me pinned at the cash register -- but, ALSO, because I can NOT get over my Grammar Police instincts regarding this novel use of the word "who?" to mean "what?"

It gave them such pleasure to deploy "who?" in this manner. It made me so annoyed. Why did I always bridle? Why did I want to tell them that they were using the word "who?" incorrectly?? This was an absurd emotion to be feeling at such an instant!

And yet, after the group of teens rush out of the store, abandoning me at my cash register -- I do have to say that I would often rehearse this new meaning of "who?" as if I were learning a new language. Proud of myself for not actually coming out with a censorious correction of their "misuse."

I wonder if the dictionaries have caught up with this use of the word "who?" yet.