Words, usages, and phrases that annoy the shit out of you...

Four Words: Use Other Words Please
"Use other words please."
Commonly used phrases that inexplicably bug you
Most irritating cliche/phrase/expression
"Taking Things to a Whole `Nother Level!"
words that annoy
Words that should earn the author a slap
PROVERBIAL and other tip offs to poor writing

-- caitlin (wpsal...) (webmail), December 23rd, 2003. (caitlin)

Oh yes, yes yes. I second that one. And the people who say it, say it over and over.

I also have a horror of people who write prolifically in all caps.

This is true.

But, this is a topic that should be dealt with routinely and harshly... the only way we can correct the language and suppress it's organic growth is by exposing and banning every new usage as it occurs... Isn't that what the French do?

Also: 'fridge,' girls who refer to each other as 'girl,' proactive...i'll be back when i think of more....

'poetic justice'. Used by the lazy to describe all 'justice' the speaker approves of, instead of a particular type. The adjective is rendered meaningless.

Agree re 'bird' for woman/girl, and lament its threatened return. Stinks of 'I'm being un-PC, where's my medal?'. Also the C-person uses it, which kinda ends the argument.

Wait, huh? Fridge is the thing you put food in, whats wrong with it?

I'm picturing him saying things such as "Would you like me to remove another beverage from the refrigerator for you, whilst we watch some association football?"

As used to describe a footballer running into a streak of good form

When used in phrases like "a raft of policies" or "a raft of new measures" - why?!?!??!!?

Or a colon.

COINKY-DINK, "guestimate," and any time someone ends an interrogative sentence with "at," as in "Where's my keys at?" or "Where's your head at?"

"hating on"

"Action" used as a verb. (Especially with regards to some annoying little thing I had already been doing.) "Can you please action this?" Actually, no I can't. Action is a noun. If you would like me to DO it, then just ask. Argh.

Especially when coming from the same irritating marketing bods who last week asked me to "manage the relationship" with one of our suppliers. Fuck. Right. Off.

"the"

POV: ineluctable modality of the visible: at least that if no more, thought through my eyes. Signatures of all things I am here to read, seaspawn and seawrack, the nearing tide, that rusty boot. Snotgreen, bluesilver, rust: coloured signs. Limits of the diaphane.

I'm sorry but "root for" elicits a queasy feeling in my gut and nothing anyone has said has done anything to address this.

i'm rooting for all of you. you got this.

Oh sure, but here we would say "fan" instead of "supporter." Not a verb form of that, though.

yeah i completely get that, i was just responding to CaAL that (in UK parlance) "root for" isn't an exact synonym for "support". i guess you could use "cheer for" if you have deep-seated personal issues with rooting?

"cheer for" is equally lame, sorry.

lol i honestly had a feeling you'd say that

anyway there needs to be a verbal distinction for being a fan of a particular team and being a temporary fan of anybody playing a particular hated team

ride for

or what about "love". just "i love nottingham" or whatever.

or "they are my friends". i'll be watching my friends play football today. i hope that they win.

it's the hierarchies of hate in watching sport that makes this complicated

hmm i see

for example, in the World Cup, i don't have any love for the Australian football team, they aren't my friends, i don't love them. i will root for them to batter the USA tho.

"I'm hoping they win/do OK/don't get beat/etc" will do

they're your frienemies.

depends what you're doing.

supporting a team: we have a word for this
picking a team and going to watch them play: you're just watching them
joining in with "I believe that we will win" chants: don't do that
hoping a team will win a match: we don't need a word for this

i follow tottenham, who i fucking hate with every fibre of my being

"I'm ride or die for them"

You say you support Tottenham, but do you fuck with them?

name 5 albums by them

not commonplace outside the USA. well, in Australia it's fairly commonplace but means something else.

LOL, yeah, pretty sure I've not heard it in a sporting context in AU. (Not unrelated: router, the IT device, pretty much *has* to rhyme with outer to avoid giggles, whereas a route on a map, where it doesn't suggest a verb, almost invariably rhymes with root.)

for example, in the Maine Senate election, i don't have any love for Graham Platner, he's not my friend, i don't love him. i will root for him to batter Susan Collins tho

#onethread

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKH-Khz7kQU

i have probably mentioned it here before, but every time i see the word “creative” or “creatives” used to describe “artists” or “writers” or whatever, i want to punch the person who used the term in the fucking face

Not quite as bad but I also hate "professional". Especially people describing themselves as one. It's like, cool, I'm glad your job is so tedious it has no name, but thanks for clarifying you don't fiddle around with spreadsheets all day for the sheer amateur love of it.

Irl lol + otm

well you're both uninvited to my root for administrative professionals party

LOL that ‘professionals’ self-ID gives me horrible flashbacks to looking for flatshares in eg. Islington in the days of Loot and encountering viscose warrior women who began their chat with ‘so we’re all professionals’ and in that moment knew that I would not be living there.

hard agree on 'creatives,' they should all be drowned along with the influencers

there's a new ice cream shop down the road that has a banner saying 'Soft Opening' and I decided that's a really gross term

going to say isn’t the whole point of a soft opening is you don’t really advertise it? It could be that’s the business name.

Cronenberg's Delightful Scoops?

I like it when someone has a nice soft opening.

"A warm hand on your opening," old theater joke

hard agree on 'creatives,' they should all be drowned along with the influencers

when someone self-describes as a “creative” i know their art is shit without experiencing it in any way

otm

I see it used this way as well:
https://i.ibb.co/FLnjTmqY/2026-06-12-19-38-01.png

"Can the design team resize this creative so it fits on a mobile screen?"
"The client approved all the creative."

Not a big fan of "conversions" either

calling yourself a creative is surely cope for artists who aren't "independently wealthy" enough to do art full-time, and have to make do with taking filthy money doing design work for betfair or natwest. they need to realise its okay to have a shit job like most people, and art can be your hobby on the side; neither has to define how you describe yourself to people at dinner parties

not actually sure if i enjoyed my own use of "cope" there

calling yourself a creative is surely cope for artists who aren't "independently wealthy" enough to do art full-time, and have to make do with taking filthy money doing design work for betfair or natwest. they need to realise its okay to have a shit job like most people, and art can be your hobby on the side; neither has to define how you describe yourself to people at dinner parties

I actually don’t think this is it— I think that it’s a marketing term that was happily taken up by “artists” who see the main point of art to be selling it, which explains why most of the art they make is trash.

“artists” who see the main point of art to be selling it

sad, but understandable. in the US everything in life is subsumed by monetization. breaking free of that mindset is a daily battle.

An awful yet popular T shirt seen here in Amsterdam, usually worn by young males, is "Creatives Are the New Athletes"

And, yet, I was included in a recent photo project titled "Creatives In Amsterdam." Nice project, risible title.