This.
OMG. You know what’s totes ridic? The number of new words I’m overhearing in tween and twenty-somethings’ conversations.
From the OMGs to the whatevs, it seems like every word has been condensed and replaced with one or two syllable versions of its former self. Totally has become ‘totes.’ People has become ‘peeps.’ Professional is ‘profesh.’ And then there’s the word combinations. Awesomesauce, anyone?
What’s even more ridic is that suddenly I’m totes finding myself using this words in everyday conversation. My friends are now my ‘babez’. When I feel indifferent about something, ‘whatevs’ says it all. And when I go home to visit the ‘fam’, I don’t go to Melbourne, I go to ‘Melbies’.
I keep telling myself it’s just a passing phase. That these words – which are ruining the English language BTW IMHO – will go away. (BTW IMHO = by the way, in my honest opinion). But the addition of ‘devo’ (colloquial for devastated) to the online Macquarie dictionary earlier this year is probably a good indication that the English language evolves and these words are here to stay.
If you could eliminate a word (or two) from the English language what would it be?
That’s the question the New Yorker asked of its readers recently in an online game they called Questioningly. They asked readers to nominate the words they hate via Facebook and Twitter and the suggestions flooded in:
Words came in, marked for death. Popular objects of dissatisfaction included “awesome” and “epic” (pointlessly inflationary), “phlegm” and “fecund” (pointedly ugly), “bling” and “swag” (self-conscious slanguage), “impacted” and “efforting” (boardroom blather), “like” and “but” (only ever taking up space), and “irregardless” and “inflammable” (are they even words?). That was how the pack travelled, in the main.
If Mamamia’s Managing Editor Lana had her way, she’d probably remove the word ‘moist‘ from the English language. News Editor Rick is not a fan of ‘whilst’ (“it’s not a real word, people!”) or ‘utilize’ (“that’s just an inefficient way of saying use”). And for Editorial Assistant Nat it’s the word ‘flannel’ (she just doesn’t like it).
I could do without the words ‘blog’ (I think it’s ugly) and ‘irregardless’ (not a word!). And of course, ‘OMG’ and ‘ridic’ are top of my list. But before they’re eliminated from the English language entirely, I should probably work on removing them from my own daily conversations.
Which I totes will soon.
Over to you… What words grate on you?
Comments
538 Comments so far
“Youse”. IT’S NOT A WORD AND IT MAKES YOU SOUND LIKE A BOGAN.
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For me it’s another example of word I say in jest all the time and then it sticks. And then it’s not funny, just really embarrassing.
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Out here where I live when someone says “Youse” we say…. “Ewes are sheep don’t you know?”
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I’m with Lana, “moist” must go, as should “turdid”
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turdid or turgid? Agree though.
But then turd on it’s own is a particularly colourful adjective. There are times when it works so much better than calling something/someone shit haha
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I am rather ashamed to admit I use a lot of OMGs and AWESOME it even annoys me! It’s a really bad habit which I can’t seem to break especially when I get excited! *blush* guilty of using too many exclamation points as well!!!!!!
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“nice”- thisonef from my mothers in ‘nice is not a nice word’
“like”- especially from teenage girls
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Someone in my area has the numberplate OMG WTF
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First off, I have to say I find it jarring to see “ize” used in an Australia English context (ie. “utilize” instead of “utilise”).
I actually use some words as a joke, like “whatevs” and “a whole nother…” (that’s been my favourite for about five years), usually teamed with a wry smile.
Generally language fascinates me but it grates on me when words are not used or spelled correctly. Seeing “definately” kills me a little bit every time, as does hearing “without further adieu”…and yeah, I’m not a big fan of “whilst” I guess.
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Without further adieu…..are you kidding? That’s so bad it’s wonderful!
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You’ve made me see the funny side of that phrase.
I often hear “without further adieu” in speeches and wish I could yell out “yes, go away” but somehow I don’t think many people would get the joke. Maybe I’ll just laugh when I hear it from now on.
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‘sheila’ it makes me cringe everytime I hear it and makes me want to slap whoever said it. Oh, and my apologies to those poor unfortunate souls who got lumped with it for a first name!
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Sorry, was the I meant to go before the E?
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Mareeba, that’s my (very prim and proper English) mum’s name. My Australian cousins think it’s hilarious and took the piss a lot when she visited last year. Not in a nasty way, more in a ‘OK this is getting boring and you are coming across as ever so slightly ‘hickey’ they more you go on about it’ sort of way. It was a little embarassing. It’s a perfectly normal name for an English woman in her 60s.
Oh and you got the spelling right (apart from the cap ‘S’).
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It is my sister in law’s name too. However, she is not very prim and proper and hers is actually spelled wrong with the ‘i’ before the ‘e’.
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Although I’d love to ban the words ‘poo’, ‘panties’, ‘vajayjay’, ‘swevs’, ‘awkies’ and ‘douche’ from ever been spoken again, ever, I can actually live with them.
It’s grammatical errors that really annoy me though… “should of” (should have), “here, here!” (hear, hear!), “sooner then” (sooner than), “use to” (used to), “curve your appetite” (curb), “could give a damn” (couldn’t), “could care less” (could not), “day in age” (day and age), “in mass” (en masse)… the list goes on……..
The universal misuse of the word “irony” also really gives me the shits.
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Like when you have ten thousand spoons, and all you need is a knife?
Sorry Alanis, that’s not ironic, that’s just inconvenient.
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Hahahaha – EXACTLY.
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Like rain on your wedding day?
Only if you marry the weather man and he sets the date.
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*from ever BEING spoken again
I hate myself.
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I also hate when people say “should of” instead of should have. gives me the absolute shits. should of doesn’t even make sense!
My friend also thought that “something or other” was “something a rather” LOL!
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I love the word “poo”!!!! Insert age inappropriate emoticon here.
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Also, the incorrect usage of ‘literally’
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I read an article recently about the fact that the use of the word literally when the correct terminology would be figuratively as a way to hyper-emphasise the point being made is so common that it has actually become a new definition of the word.
e.g. when someone says something like “the hailstones were literally the size of bowling balls”: The speaker knows they weren’t really that big; the listener knows they weren’t really that big; they both know the person means “figuratively the size of bowling balls”, but “literally” is there to add emphasis to the statement about how big they were.
I agree though, the misuse annoys me too, but maybe one day it won’t be a misuse and just a new definition of the word
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It probably will be and I find that pretty irritating, honestly. I wish we cared more about preserving the true meanings of words. A lot of dictionaries have added the meaning “unusual” to the entry for “unique”, which is not what it means. It means “one of a kind”. Why do we have to make common mistakes officially correct? It’s dumbing down the language.
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I totally agree with you, but with regard to the word literally I remember the article saying its deliberate misuse could be traced back to the 17th century or something!!! So this corruption of true meanings is not unique
to our times!
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I’m going to put up my hand though and admit that as much as I try I just cannot get a handle on the correct use of ‘ironic’. I am too scared to use the word lest I be pulled up on it. It’s like that post a week or so ago about things that one just cannot seem to learn. I am a university-educated person… surely I should get it. But every time I look up a definition I find it a bit ambiguous, or the definition just goes in one ear and out the other!
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I had someone call me up on my use today actually, but in reverse. I said “it was quite sarcastic” and university lecturer said “not quite sarcastic, more ironic”.
I’m not 100% on irony either to be honest. I think it’s when what is presented is actually the opposite of what the real meaning is that you’re attempting to convey. But the example from today doesn’t suit that definition, so I’m as lost as you are.
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Thanks bedizz!
Do you know I wrote a second comment above about “literally” and I wanted to say “the ironic use of the word ‘literally’” but then was too scared to in case I was wrong.
Can anyone tell me whether saying “the ironic use of the word ‘literally’ when one actually means figuratively” is a correct use of ‘ironic’?
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I think that’s the correct use of irony, yes.
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Irony is when (a) a statement is made; and (b) the truth is the exact opposite of that statement.
My favourite example? Barry Mannilow DID NOT WRITE “I Write The Songs”.
(a) Barry Mannilow states “I write the songs”
(b) Barry Mannilow did NOT write that song.
Irony.
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Thanks
I also just found a helpful definition of the 3 types of irony and have copied it below (and I agree with their comments that ‘situational irony’ is the hardest to get right: one example I found of situational irony (I think): car crashes into a ‘safe driving’ sign!?).
“An ironic remark conveys a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. So, in an ironic statement one thing is said, while another thing is meant.
For example, if you were trying to be ironic on a stormy, dreary day, you might say: “What glorious weather!”
Or if you were suffering from a bad cold, you might ironically say: “I feel like a million bucks.”
These are both examples of verbal irony, the most common occurence of the figure of speech.
Irony is often confused with sarcasm. While the two are similar, in sarcasm there is a stronger intent to ridicule or mock, often harshly or crudely.
Dramatic irony is inherent in speeches or a situation of a drama and is understood by the audience but not grasped by the characters in the play. Situational irony is an outcome that turns out to be very different from what was expected. This third type is the most prone to ambiguity and personal interpretation, setting up the potential for misunderstanding, and misuse.”
Read more at http://hotword.dictionary.com/ironic/#qXetGVUmFfIkrYJZ.99
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Who doesn’t love the word ‘va-jay-jay’?!
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Get OUT
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“Youse” and “Fraped”. Fraped is a charming term often used when someone else hacks into the person’s facebook, aka “raping” their facebook. So insensitive.
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Oooh yes “fraped” gets my blood boiling.
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Chillax. Can’t stand it!
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And here I was thinking I’m an old fuddy fuddy for LOATHING words like “awesome”. Glad to see someone else has a problem with “whilst”….. Ugggghhh….it is actually a real word but it grates!!!! Can’t stand pretentious fashion words like “luxe” ( NOT a word) and “bespoke” ( ok maybe not the word so much as it’s overuse….EVERYTHING is bespoke). LOL and other acronyms go without saying.
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You must watch Grand Designs. “Bespoke” is rather overused on that show.
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I hate “special”. It’s either too vague (it/they are significant in what way?), or it’s patronising (eg special olympics, what’s wrong with intellectually disabled/challenged?), and it’s overused.
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I don’t even know where to start, so I’m just going to say that I’m officially feeling old. And terribly out of touch. At 29. That’s tragic.
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I get seriously irritated with “disorientated”. It’s “disoriented” people! It’s even worse when I hear a newsreader say it.
I also despise “lol” being used as a substitute for punctuation. And being used excessively in one sentence. Actually, being used at all.
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It’s a word and it’s correct in British English. I think disoriented was invented by people who were too lazy to spell properly.
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Sorry, as already mentioned ‘disorientated’ is correct British English. Your version is a lazy abbreviation as per the point of this article.
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I guess my five years experience as an editor means I’m a lazy speller. Who knew?
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Both are correct – I think the shorter version is more elegant and preferable. Same with “preventive” instead of “preventative”
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Back in the day…
My bad.
HATE THEM!!!
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I hate it when guys include
in texts. Are you a cheeky, sassy, adorably clumsy girl I’m wooing? No, you’re a MAN, a big manly man, who doesn’t stick his tongue out to show how wacky he is. Yuck!
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Even worse – when your (female, fortyish) uni professor thinks it appropriate to use emoticons in communications with students. FAIL!
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Everyone totes just uses ‘totes’ as a joke, right? My friends and I use OMG, FML, whatevs (my personal favourite) in our conversation frequently, but as a joke. I think outsiders do think we’re idiots though….
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What is FML? (34yo) fuddy duddy here! Many thanks
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fml=f&*% my life
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Thank you
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It’s ‘eff’ my life … but we obviously use it completely tongue in cheek – when we are talking about ‘first world problems’.
As in, ‘my boss won’t approve my leave FML’. or me today: ‘All I was craving when I got out of bed was an omlette but my room mate ate the last two eggs FML’.
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Moist.
Horrid word.
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I hate that word too. It’s a bit of a pain though when complimenting a cake that someone has made. What else is a suitable word?
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They’re all words. If people use it to communicate a shared idea, then it’s a word.
If you don’t like it, don’t use it.
I’m sure Shakespeare’s parents were totes dev at his plays, with all those new words and sayings that “da kids” were really into.
English changes. That’s the most beautiful thing about it. Stop crying about broken rules that aren’t even rules and deal with it.
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Well, thanks for that, Drew. I’ll just get my tissues out.
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I think I have some moist wipes back here somewhere…
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Touche, you wicked boy!
Or ‘toosh’ as I’ve heard some people pronounce it. Oh dearie me….
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I am SO over people spelling words they know the correct spelling of PURPOSELY wrong in an effort (i think?) to look cute! They aren’t even shortening the word! Examples include:
Hi – ‘Hai’
You – ‘yhu’
Boy – ‘boi’ (not referring to the term boi in LGBT)
I’d prefer reading something by someone who had difficulty spelling than by a person who knows better yet subjects me to this! ‘Boyfi’ (for boyfriend) is also a pet hate.
I do have to admit I’m a user of ‘totes’, didn’t realise how much I said it until my boyfriend started dropping into every other sentence to mock me…
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Don’t know where to start, really. here are a couple …
‘Significant’ – meaning ‘important to me, so why don’t you think it is, too?’
‘Gay’ – used to mean pathetic or uncool.
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So so many! Not real words but all these shortened words like whatevs or jelly ( used for jealous ) I am only 26 yrs old and find that there is whole new way of speaking thats ridiculous. I think half these words are invented in songs and catch on but are totally unnecessary.
The worst one is LOL especially when you hear kids saying LOL instead of actually laughing. Very unsettling!
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I thought gay meant happy!
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Panties and Conceptualize.
Erase them now people.
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I’m with you Lucy, I hate all those abbreviations you mentioned. I have never heard of ‘Melbies’ though – yuk!
I hate the word ‘smear’.
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And last weekend I went to ‘Canbies.’ Oh….
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Moist
Epic
Totes
I can’t stand it when people say ya instead of you.
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The most grating, over-used words that I keep reading in the weekend newspapers and fashion magazines (fash mags!) are:
- ‘Slaw’ as in Coleslaw
- Bespoke
- Sartorial
However I’m very guilty of saying Melbs!
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what does bespoke even mean?! I actually don’t know.
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custom made
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I would never have guessed that.
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I have less of a problem with abbreviated words than with this stupid new craze of adding letters to words when they’re written…for example, my teenage brother and his friends insist on writing things like ‘oh, i’m totes in love with my babeee’ on their facebook status. They also add extra letters into their names. Also, I hate the term ‘awkies’ for ‘awkward’. Another pet peeve text typing – ppl and gr8 for example. My personal opinion is that civilization fought a long, hard battle for literacy for the masses…and this is a gigantic step backwards.
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I hate it when people write stuff like what you said, but it doesn’t make sense. Like “I loooooooove youuu” I can understand what they mean at least, but so many people write “I loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee my boiiiiiiiiii”. Huh? lovey? What does that mean?
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The C word I hate it so much that if I hear anybody use it I hate them too. Find it so offensive and the context it gets used in!
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I knew there’d be someone moaning about the C word on here.
MOIST has been in my shit list since, like, forever. And so has panties. And for some strange reason – packet. Some my “friends” like to send me texts saying, “Hey, I just bought you a packet of moist panties!”.
Hur.
And the “Hai” thing – it’s a lolcats thing isn’t it? A lot of those “deliberate” mispellings are of lolcat origin – I know that I always read those kinds of words with “cat” voice (whatever the hell that may be!) in my head.
I’m a teacher and I have to say that I haven’t heard any really annoying teenagerisms for a while now. Gay is perennial, of course, dry had a good run for a while (means the same as gay in the stupid, lame context – short for dry balls, I do believe). If fact, I think they need to come up with something new – how else will I prove my street cred with my own kids if I don’t have the newest lingo down?
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I remember our class being lectured about the correct use of the word gay in 1988. Now I feel old!
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It’s not just teens & tweens.
I don’t like ‘source’ used as a pretentious verb (no, you didn’t ‘source’ the proscutto – you *bought* it, for pity’s sake). Also, ‘creative’ used as a noun (your agency hired 10 creatives? 10 creative whats?)
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I work in Surry Hills. I am surrounded by “creatives” and their fixed gear bikes and skinny jeans. It’s kind of hilarious.
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Ooh that’s great: creative when used as a noun is a good example of the verb-as-noun phenomenon I mentioned above, except of course it’s adjective-as-noun in this case.
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I research in the field of medieval literature, and in the old Arthurian texts like Malory the word “certes” is often used for “certainly”. It’s like the medieval “totes”. I lol every time I see it.
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Sometimes I say ‘lol’ without meaning to
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This isn’t a word that I dislike but it grates one me NO END….people who use the word ‘defiantly’…when they mean ‘definitely’….they mean two COMPLETELY DIFFERENT things…..drives me insane!!!!!!
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I absolutely detest the words wellness and wellbeing but they aren’t exactly new are they?
I’ve never heard of ridic or profesh and I teach undergraduates!
my teenager uses ‘poned’ which seems to mean ‘done’ or owned or some sort of wierd combination of a couple of things.
anyway I quite like it and will say it to the boys sometimes when one of them outsmarts the other one!
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It’s spelt PWNED. It is a mistake from an online gamer of Quake or Warcraft changes depending on who you ask, about 15 years ago meaning to type ‘you got owned’. Also where the phrase “All your base are belong to us” (often shortened to “All Your Base”, “AYBABTU”, or simply “AYB”) is a broken English phrase that is an Internet phenomenon or meme. The text comes from the opening cutscene of the 1991 European Sega Mega Drive version of the video game Zero Wing[1] by Toaplan, which was poorly translated from Japanese.
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Hah, that pic is amazeballs! (Yep, another rage inducing word)
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It’s a fantabulous t-shirt from my fave website.
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Oh god, I am so behind I can’t even comprehend your explanation missamoo! I’m such a loser
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ah, you just googled your answer, I do believe it is invalid…
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sorry that was meant for missamoo
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missamoo got it and accepts yes she googled BUT!!! she already knew this as she has two computer geek/game paying siblings so i knew the stories just wanted to get the “all your base” thingy right so i didn’t get yelled at. Looks like i misjudged, got in trouble any way.
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Is that ‘poned’ or ‘pwned’?
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I can’t STAND adults who use baby-talk when talking to their children. I don’t mind the ‘cutie-pie’ kind of nicknames you might give your child, but one day I heard a mother say “Is it time for yum-yums and a dwinkie” and I wanted to run her over with my stroller. Nails on a chalkboard would be more appealing to me.
I figure, kids are going to make mistakes with the things they say, and that’s fine. It’s the job of the parents to speak correctly, so that the children can hear it and eventually correct themselves.
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Your comment really made me laugh Princess.
At tennis the other day I heard a mum say to a kid (who was at least 5 years old) ‘Bubby, do you want to do wee wee in the toi toi?’
Argh! How about ‘Sam, do you need to go to the toilet before your lesson?’
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YES!! A thousand times yes!! I especially hated seeing other people talk to my children like that. Must have given a few the evil eye because they don’t do it anymore…
And I admire your restraint for not charging through with the stroller
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Completely agree! Can’t stand it. I’ve always spoken to my children using appropriate language. I try never to correct them, merely to rephrase it back to them. As in, ‘dwink?’ ‘You’d like a drink? Sure, I can get you a drink.’
Much nicer than sounding like a condescending twat
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Hahaha….my 3 year old says cry-ring instead of crying and I hear her say it so often that I accidentally said it to her the other day. I wanted to slap myself.
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“Panties”
I hate it when they use it on american TV shows.
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“Rubric” is my current least-favourite word.
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Yes!
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moist :p
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I have a friend who hates the word ‘moist’ so of course, we use it against her
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yup moist and panties together or separate are just eeeewww!
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You know, I had a friend once who told me that the worst possible sentence in the English language would be ‘Moist menstruation in your panties.’ I’m fairly certain she’s right, too. Ick.
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I have to admit I’m kind of a fan of “natch” (naturally, it’s short for naturally. Natch.)
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