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

My latest problem is the habit of media figures, bureaucrats, and students who want to sound intelligent appending a preposition to verbs. "Separate OUT," "divide UP," "play OUT," "win OUT" – why??? In every case they're redundant and look awful on paper.

"On April 18, 2008 CASA will hold our 1st Annual 'Light the Night' event at Immanuel Baptist Church (parking lot)."

You can't have an "annual" anything if it's only happening for the first time!

People who get con-fuzzed about things.

My latest problem is the habit of media figures, bureaucrats, and students who want to sound intelligent appending a preposition to verbs. "Separate OUT," "divide UP," "play OUT," "win OUT" – why??? In every case they're redundant and look awful on paper.

-- Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Wednesday, April 2, 2008 7:55 AM (Wednesday, April 2, 2008 7:55 AM) Bookmark Link

Because that is how American English tends to be spoken?

Many compound nouns have the form verb plus preposition: add-on, stopover, lineup, shakedown, tryout, spinoff, rundown ("summary"), shootout, holdup, hideout, comeback, cookout, kickback, makeover, takeover, rollback ("decrease"), rip-off, come-on, shoo-in, fix-up, tie-in, tie-up ("stoppage"), stand-in. These essentially are nouned phrasal verbs; some prepositional and phrasal verbs are in fact of American origin (spell out, figure out, hold up, brace up, size up, rope in, back up/off/down/out, step down, miss out on, kick around, cash in, rain out, check in and check out (in all senses), fill in ("inform"), kick in ("contribute"), square off, sock in, sock away, factor in/out, come down with, give up on, lay off (from employment), run into and across ("meet"), stop by, pass up, put up (money), set up ("frame"), trade in, pick up on, pick up after, lose out.[14][15]

Using "of" instead of "have" is tremendous

xp: err, I guess you're talking about verb forms rather than nouns

Yes. And in every case I cited the preposition is unnecessary.

language would kind of suck if it was efficient and orderly

orderly efficient useless language if w'asnt and be it would

the preposition thing seems more of a spoken thing that happens a lot, and looks really awkward on the page?

basically

I agree with Alfred here, but it's hardly surprising where spoken language goes written language follows.

...surprising THAT where...

haha ...where spoken language goes down, written language follows up.

my coworker:
"we weren't doin' much. just out fiddle fartin' around..."

ugh. hurts my guts when she does that.

the preposition thing seems more of a spoken thing that happens a lot, and looks really awkward on the page?

Reporters and columnists use these formulations all the time.

you're obviously reading the wrong journalists--they must be liberal hacks

j/k, to be fair, i can see why you would be annoyed by these things in like student papers and such--seems like a first draft kind of thing that you cut when you start to edit the paper

True, but a student walked in here a couple of hours ago and said, "The professor wanted to separate us out from" something or other. It's enough just to say, "The professor wanted to separate us from..."

The preposition thing is interesting, and I can't say it's particularly bothered me, especially since most of the time there is a slight (or sometimes significant) difference in meaning.

We wouldn't have a whole load of English words, from everyday ones to your more fancy or technical long words, if the Romans hadn't loved doing the same thing. A Latin verb without a prepositional prefix was considered rather plain, so they'd add them all the time. Sometimes the meaning would drift; sometimes it would keep the original meaning but be considered a more rhetorically stylish word.

No, I didn't have a point; yes, that was so poorly written as to destroy any point I might have thought I had. Hey, it's nearly hometime.

"starving"

You are not starving. Those little pregnant-looking babies in africa with flies around their eyes are starving. You are just hungry. Which is a fair usage.

^^^ Heh heh, I had a primary school teacher who used to get really pissed off about this.

jesus.

bugs me

I've been noticing an extreme overreliance on "essentially" lately.

"Utterly" used to fly into my ears several times a day, but luckily that died off somewhat after high school.

Yeah I find myself using "essentially" way too much in essays & whatnot.

You are not starving. Those little pregnant-looking babies in africa with flies around their eyes are starving. You are just hungry. Which is a fair usage.

Well technically they may well not be starving. Malnourished, yes, but not necessarily starving.

little pregnant-looking babies

babies can't get pregnant god are you retarded?

Re unnecessary prepositions, the one that bothers me the most is "off of."

'amazing'

Since when is hyperbole off-limits, starving-hataz?

word

I don't really mind me any colloquialisms, but'n when my ex-boss gets hisself an itchin' to use simplistic when simple will do, I just got me a right hankerin' to pat his pretty little haid 'n' set the poor fellah straight.

The main problem with business writing isn't neologism - it's a kind of stiff, flowless formality. People come into business, think "hmm this is serious writing, when was the last time I did serious writing, oh yes..." and so everything is written in the passive-voice style of a GCSE science project.

Ugh, so OTM. In one office job I had every email was "I advised her X and she advised me Y" as though 'advised' was just a synonym for 'told'.

Also "from whence" aarrggghhhhh

Also someone mentioned Rachel Stevens upthread, "Sweet Dreams my LAX" is the worst for this kind of thing - "If I were in your shoes I'd worry OF the effects" wtf.
"Do you think I'm the fairer S-E-X" , so what, Rachel Stevens is a whole gender now?
"Can't you stop playing that record again" also bugs me.

And on another track - "The sweeter you taste, the bitter I feel" nnnhhhhnnngggg

Yes - I probably listen to too much Rachel Stevens....

imagine, song lyrics not conforming to standard usage.

it's easy if you try

imagine, someone mentioning the words, usages and phrases that annoy the shit out of them on this thread.

Seriously though, that many weird usages in one song that consists mainly of just a few repeated lines? It's pushing it.

I dislike "so-called".

"On-trend" *vomit*

The Australian thing (ha) of calling any baby 'bubs'. Makes me cringe.

'irregardless' makes me want to unfold my pocketknife

The Australian thing (ha) of calling any baby 'bubs'. Makes me cringe.

-- Not the real Village People, Sunday, April 13, 2008 2:14 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Link

also, everything else australians say

For some reason, "no worries!" bugs me.

Also, the fact that it bugs me bugs me, because it makes me feel like Andy Rooney or something.

Oh well. No worries!

"Badboy" as a general purpose noun.

"Be inside in a min, just gonna smoke one of these badboys."

"not for nothin"
is this just an east coast thing? i can't stand to hear it.

The Australian thing (ha) of calling any baby 'bubs'. Makes me cringe.

-- Not the real Village People, Sunday, April 13, 2008 2:14 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Link

also, everything else australians say

-- and what, Sunday, April 13, 2008 3:06 PM (3 days ago) Bookmark Link

otm

"shits and giggles"

"just putting that out there"

dapple

under the bus
soup to nuts