Oxford compiles list of top ten irritating phrases

Heading the list was the expression 'at the end of the day', which was followed in second place by the phrase 'fairly unique'. The phrases appear in Jeremy Butterfield's Damp Squid, named after the mistake of confusing a squid with a squib. The tautological statement "I personally" made third place – an expression that BBC Radio 4 presenter John Humphreys has described as "the linguistic equivalent of having chips with rice." Also making the top 10 is the grammatically incorrect "shouldn't of", instead of "shouldn't have". The phrases appear in a book called Damp Squid, named after the mistake of confusing a squid with a squib, a type of firework. The researchers who compiled the list monitor the use of phrases in a database called the Oxford University Corpus, which comprises books, papers, magazines, broadcast, the internet and other sources. The database alerts them to new words and phrases and can tell them which expressions are disappearing. It also shows how words are being misused. As well as the above expressions, the book's author Jeremy Butterfield says that many annoyingly over-used expressions actually began as office lingo, such as 24/7 and "synergy". Other phrases to irritate people are "literally" and "ironically", when they are used out of context. Mr Butterfield said: "We grow tired of anything that is repeated too often – an anecdote, a joke, a mannerism – and the same seems to happen with some language." The top ten most irritating phrases: 1 - At the end of the day 2 - Fairly unique 3 - I personally 4 - At this moment in time 5 - With all due respect 6 - Absolutely 7 - It's a nightmare 8 - Shouldn't of 9 - 24/7 10 - It's not rocket science

http%3A//www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/debates/3394545/Oxford-compiles-list-of-top-ten-irritating-phrases.html%23



• Shouldn't 've?

• With all due respect, I have problems of my own.

  Mariah%20from%20Datalounge

• Bitches will be BITCHES

• Chips with rice? Blimey!

• Ironically, "actually," did not make the list.

• While I agree that all those phrases are very annoying, it has to be said that compiling and publishing such a list is also very annoying.

• This list is very OLD news. I like the expression 'It's not rocket science'. It makes sense. What I don't like is the smug British sense of humor. Thanks.

• Brilliant!

  It's BRILLIANT!

• "It is what it is" didn't make the list?

• Sorry, R7 is right - this list is ancient. George W. Bush was still President (though barely.) I didn't look (or think) before posting, so apologies.

  OP%20

• R9 and others, this is a list of words/phrases in common *British* parlance, not American. "It is what it is" apparently isn't commonplace in the UK.

• You mean it wasn't commonplace in UK parlance back in 2008, when this list was compiled.

• I heard "24/7" in my inner-city community and in rap/hip hop waayy back in the 80s. It caught the ear of the business world much later, like mid-90s at the earliest.

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• I say 'shouldna' Example "You shouldna done that."

• AAA-MAAAAAAA-Zing!

  Do not effing say that word again!

• What about that extremely irritating PR-speak special: 'reaching out' to someone? Instead of fucking calling them or -- wow -- talking to them?

• 'Super' anything.

• Oh, has 'Gi-normous' finally died in a hideous grease fire? One can only HOPE!

• Guys who wear Dockers use a lot of these phrases, I've noticed. And they think they're cool.

• I love you, R14. Will you whisper 'shouldna' in my ear?????

• Just sayin' Hate it.

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• Awesome! Totally awesome! I mean, totally awesome! I mean totally awesome, you know? Like, I mean totally awesome, you know? Like, I mean totally awesome, you know? Absolutely!

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• I, personally, don't like them. Personally, I don't like them. Am I missing a grammar error here? I don't see why this is irritating. The current summation statement is always hated, whatever it is. For example, "At the end of the day," is just as bad as "Bottom line". It has less to do with the expression than the context it is always used in.

• [quote]I, personally, don't like them. Personally, I don't like them. Am I missing a grammar error here? I don't see why this is irritating. I believe it's a matter of redundancy, r23. "I" [italic]is[/italic]personal.

• I knew a girl who used many of those phrases. But then she died.

• It's not redundancy, it's emphasis.

• One of my least favorite phrases: "it's in my wheelhouse". How irritating!

• The use of "puppy" to substitute for any word.

• Coulda, shoulda, woulda

• [quote]The phrases appear in Jeremy Butterfield's Damp Squid, named after the mistake of confusing a squid with a squib. ... The phrases appear in a book called Damp Squid, named after the mistake of confusing a squid with a squib, a type of firework. I guess repetitive prose did not make the list.

• R23, "personally, I" is irritating because the "personally" is unnecessary and smacks of cliche and thoughtless habit. That this thoughtless habit involves a self-regarding distinction "seals the deal," "brings closure," "nails it," and stuffs the proof into that pudding concerning the phrase's irritating grate.

• r31 - sure, if you say it all the time it would be irritating. I use "Personally" or "for my part" occasionally when I'm making a point of personal preference. It's usually followed by a "but" clause. I'm with you on "brings closure". I want to punch someone when they say it.

• Seriously

• "The last time I checked …. " grrrr!

• No problem!

• Ya think!!????

• Genius.

• "That's so pretentious," always coming from the most pretentious person in the room.

• I am glad that "should of" made this list, it is one of my biggest pet peeves in grammar. Oddly enough, I recently read a Shirley Jackson novel printed in the 50's, and "should of" appeared about 20 times throughout the book. I thought it was unusual as I had assumed that this was a fairly recent development.

• "Lynn Stairmaster"

• "With all due respect." I don't see what's so wrong with that phrase. It's a good way of making it clear that you strongly disagree with a person on a particular point but you still respect them as a person. "Absolutely." Again, what's the problem "Should of." This shouldn't be on the list, because it's the only phrase that's grammatically incorrect -- and glaringly so -- rather than being annoying because of over use, or redundancy, or being used inappropriately. I've never understood how anyone, no matter how stupid, can make the "should of" mistake, given that the words "of" and "have" have entirely different functions. R39, it's hard to believe that a Shirley Jackson novel would have contained even one "should of," let alone several. Do you remember who published the book?

• R41, I am afraid I don't remember who published it, but it was the paperback of "The Bird's Nest" that touted the upcoming film version, "Lizzie" starring Eleanor Parker. The film came out in 1957, so I assume it was arund that time.

• I don't like 'absolutely' because it's hyperbolic in the same way 'awesome' is. It has a kind of ersatz hyped-up business speak tone to it. The phrase I detest is 'price point'. I don't see how it is different in meaning from 'price'. Worse, people use it to mean 'price range'. And 'range' has a completely different meaning from 'point', so it's just an example of language degrading and becoming less articulate and more about association than clarity. For the people who say 'price point' -- what are you trying to convey?

• "It is what it is" One of the laziest phrases ever. It has no meaning.

• Just sayin' - what you're really saying is you've just said something nasty and offensive and now you're distancing yourself from it. Passive-aggressive bullshit. Same with " no offence" - if you don't mean any offence then keep your mouth shut. People who say LOL out loud. Or use it in text at the end of something really inappropriate "Soz your dogs dead. LOL".

• Using the noun "source" as a verb is trendy and irritating. "We use ingredients sourced from the finest farms." "We sourced it from recycled materials" Don't ever recall hearing source as a verb until about a year ago. Now I hear it all the time.

• Nothing is simply "made" anymore, it's "crafted". Even the lazy good-for-nothings in Congress "craft" a bill. Someone earlier noted "reach out" instead of simply contacting someone. One of the worst examples of "office memo speak" is "going forward" instead of simply henceforth or from now on. Time does not go forward any more than it goes backward. Who thinks of all this shit and why? I tend to think they don't wipe their asses enough when they take a shit resulting in pesky dingleberries that make them say stupid shit like this. Another example is the American inability nowadays to know the differences between a HOUSE and a HOME. Newsbabes all across the land practice in the mirror looking sad as they announce, "hundreds of homes were destroyed when..." which is to say "houses" if it is really houses. A better example is in real estate--a realtor sells HOUSES, not homes; they are homes when someone moves in and even then it is more a subjective thing.

  anonymous

• r47 you really think 'henceforth' is better than 'going forward'? Who would ever say 'henceforth'? it sounds fake and stilted.

• "In my/your own skin" "Thinking out of the box" So-and-so "opens up" about such-and-such in entertainment headlines. And misuse of the words "surreal" and "seminal" is almost as frequent as "ironic" and "literally."

• I hate "By any chance". Just ask if I did or didn't, not if you thought there was a chance I did something.

• "At the end of the day" is #1. Will this ruin Les MIs's chance for an oscar?

• To you maybe, r48,--I don't care how it necessarily "sounds" in a business environment, just so it gets the point across accurately. To me "going forward" sounds odd and equally fake and stilted as well as incorrect because, as I said before, time does not move forward or backward. Besides, henceforth is one word, going forward, as stupid as it is, is two words. I'm not saying it necessarily needs to be used instead, I'm just giving it as a "viable alternative"--it can't be any worse than "going forward" which I have always found mildly annoying to say the least. There is always the tried and true "from now on" also.

  anonymous

• PS--You wouldn't happen to be an office manager would you r48, hmmmmm??

  r52

• I also dislike "going forward." Reeks of office speak. Would rather hear "from now on" or "in the future." I've never used "henceforth" in my life.

• no, i'm not an office manager, r52. I've just never heard anyone say 'henceforth' except in memo-speak.

• At the end of the day it is what it is. The homes crafted and sourced from recycled materials, should of been literally awesome.

• R47 likes to say 'henceforth,' as he runs to his cubicle and leverages his core competency. He's not trying to use office speak, he's merely aiming for improvements in efficiency across the piece.

• Good One r56! How long did it take you to think of that?! It's almost like "Norman Borman the Mormon Doorman" on the Bob Newhart Show back in the 70s or 80s or whenever it was. Couldn't stop laughing for days over that one. Thanks, I needed the laff, my shoulder's been killing me.

  anonymous

• I hate "Touch Base" used in any context in an office. People at my work say it too much. "It is what it is" - I've never heard anyone say this personally, but it is remarkably overused on competitive reality shows for some reason.

• I haven't heard "closure" in a while, maybe people have realized how stupid that one sounds too and have given closure closure, almost like uptalk, speaking of which, does anyone think uptalk has reached its peak and is declining? William Safire was one of the earliest columnists to denounce it. I always abhored it and it seemed to sweep onto the English language (the American version at least) like a plague in the 80s and 90s. Is it my imagination or is it slowly receding?

  anonymous

• thank you R15... "amazing" has been so overused as an adjective as to render it meaningless... makes a great drinking game for some HGTV shows, though. take a drink every time the word is spoken.

• You could easily substitute awesome for amazing in the drinking game too r61. Literally has taken on meaninglessness as well.

  anon

• My bad!

• You're in good company r63, there have been a few others who mentioned yours.

  anonymous

• Fuck you whiny bitches.

• r65 feels guilty now for using literally and awesome too much, probably uptalks too.

  anon