look at television

Hello,

Will it cause raised eyebrows if I say , “Then we sit and talk or look at television” ?
I did raise mine when I saw it in a book. I only say “watch television / TV” .

Thanks.

No. It's fine. I've heard people say this.

Maybe it's a regionalism. I've never heard it said that way.

It sounds awkward, like maybe a foreigner trying to say "watch television." I assume you don't really want to go down that route.

However, you could say that someone just sits and looks at the television, which out of context implies that they watch it too much. Kind of an expression, I guess.

Also, at least in the United States, most people just say "TV" rather than television.

To 'look at the television' would imply that there is something on the screen that deserves your attention.

ie 'Quick! Look at the TV, our neighbour* is on there'

*BE spelling

I've lived in several parts of the US and it doesn't sound weird, maybe a little "rural", but that's it, or something an older person would say.

Right, those older people must be keeping it from years back, when the book was published (1967). It must have been much more common then.

Thank you very much.