Watch Your Language!

Thought for the day:  Man invented language to satisfy his deep need to complain.  [Lily Tomlin]

Book-burning is abhorrent, but aren't there some overused words and phrases you'd like to see blown to smithereens?  Like the inexplicable trend these days of taking perfectly good nouns, slapping an -ize or -ate on their behinds, and then using them as verbs: We need to strategize fast, because we're about to destinate. 

I mean, reeeeally? That's like putting a saddle on my cat and trying to enter her in the Kentucky Derby.

Tell me, what pet words and phrases did you and your friends latch onto as teenagers? With me, everything was either gross, neat, or cool, and my friends and I  came up with scathingly brilliant ideas. Oh, and how about this one? Tough toenails... you grew 'em, you chew 'em! Or Gotta make like a tree and leave. And just a couple more I'm real proud to claim: That's enough to gag a maggot, and Gag me with a spoon.

But, to be fair, teenagers aren't the only ones who adopt pet words and then kill them through overuse, are they? Remember the phase a couple decades ago when it seemed like everybody called absolutely everything awesome? We knew a gal who used to say the word absurd so much, it was completely... absurd. My fifth year French teacher salted her lessons with the phrase c'est a dire, but I'm telling ya, she didn't sprinkle; she pulled the top off the shaker and dumped the whole thing. I have it on (ahem) good authority that  she once said it a whopping 138 times in the course of a 50-minute session.

Well, here's the thing... did you know there's such a thing as an annual Banished Word List?

 Ooooh, I'm telling you, it's enough to give an English teacher goosebumps.











Yep, in his efforts to promote Lake Superior University, fun-loving PR Director Bill Rabe came up with some scathingly brilliant ideas, including a tongue-in-cheek list of banished words. Every year since he released the first list to the media on January 1, 1976, hundreds of nominations have poured in from all over the world, helping to keep this tradition alive.

So. Wanta hear what made the list this year?

• fiscal cliff
• kick the can down the road
• double down
• job creators/creation
• passion/passionate
• YOLO  (You only live once)
• spoiler alert
• bucket list
• trending
• superfood
• boneless wings
• guru

(Um, I ask you, what in the world is wrong with passion?) Anyhow, so tell me, what words or phrases would YOU like to see drop kicked to the moon? For me, it's any way, shape, or form. How about you?

Go ahead... I'm all ears.

To give you an idea of some past picks:

• at this point in time (1976)
• by and large (1987)
• close proximity (1990)
• in my humble opinion (1992)
• orientate (1988)
• peacekeeping force (1996)
• phone tag (1997)
• refudiate (2011)
• same difference (1987)
• truthiness (2007)

                                                   

If you're interested, here's where you can see the full alphabetized list of banned words, as well as a place to suggest words that peg your annoy-o-meter.
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Language has created the word 'loneliness' to express the pain of being alone. And it has created the word 'solitude' to express the glory of being alone. [Paul Tillich]

If the English language made any sense, a catastrophe would be an apostrophe with fur.  [Gary Larson]

Political language ... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.  [George Orwell]

I think it would be cool if you were writing a ransom note on your computer, if the paper clip popped up and said, 'Looks like you're writing a ransom note. Need help? You should use more forceful language, you'll get more money.'   [Demetri Martin]

Slang is a language that rolls up its sleeves, spits on its hands, and goes to work. [Carl Sandburg]

Language is wine upon the lips.  [Virginia Woolf]
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                                      Hmmm, I believe I'll have a glass of red ... language.

                                      Until next time, take care of yourselves. And each other.