As a native English speaker from the southern part of the united states of America "very good' is not considered offensive and i am unable to think of a situation that it would be.
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I see. I am beginning to think it is an urban legend.
I think "very good" as a response to a question is somewhat rare and may indicate dishonesty or sarcasm. "Very good!" as an exclamation, for example as reaction to an impressive display, is the only scenario I can think of where it would come across as genuine. I am Californian so who knows, it could just be a California thing.
That is interesting!
I once learned that native speakers unconsciously have certain response patterns in mind when they ask a question like "How are you?" and feel uncomfortable when they get an answer that does not fit the pattern, and that sounds like a similar phenomenon.
But is that a feeling unique to California or the western United States? That is curious.
in the u.k. it's only offensive if used in a patronising or condescending way, because it is common to say to young children and to hear on young children's tv shows.
Most of the time though no one would find it offendive or rude, especially if the person saying it did not express that with the tone of their voice, which would be sarcastic if they meant insult.
That is a new way of thinking! The impression of a phrase can be different depending on where one hears it and where one has heard it.
As you said, if this phrase has been used for a long time to evaluate a child, this word can give the impression that the speaker is an "evaluator" of the partner.
Very good is not offensive.
Unless you're actively trying to be sarcastic and/or passive aggressive, you should have no issue.
Thank you for your comment!
I've heard that people in limited areas like the UK and California find it offensive because it's a word used to praise children on TV shows. But as you said, it doesn't seem to be widespread.
Bundeluxe
I really do not think "very good" is considered offensive by anyone, or at least most people. I don't live in the US or any other native English-speaking country so I might not have the best perspective, but I've never heard of anything like that. Maybe there are specific people who would see "very good" as sarcasm or an insult, but that would probably be their own mistake.
It is true that the meaning of words can change depending on the way you say it, though. Just a short and quick "very good!" will mean exactly that, but a long and drawn out "veeery gooooood..." will likely be used for (and seen as) a sarcastic comment. I don't think the first one would ever be seen as an insult.
Precipitation24
That makes sense. The impression can be different depending on how one say it.