Words and phrases I hate

[zeg]

I've heard before from British people that "arse" really was the original term, and for whatever reason, the Americans bastardized it to "ass".

Possibly true. Trying to figure out etymologies for vulgar terms can be pretty tricky business, though.

Getting hung up on regional variations in language, especially when talking about slang terms, is rather pointless. Claiming that your own version is the correct one is rather than amusing.

In this thread, though, it's fine with me. You don't have to have a solid logical basis for being annoyed by something, and we're all just ranting, right?

 

[BigGoat]

My boss says supposebly instead of supposedly.

And also itch it. Its scratch it. Its called a scratch and sniff sticker, not an itch and sniff sticker.

 

[drainbamage]

Possibly true. Trying to figure out etymologies for vulgar terms can be pretty tricky business, though.

Getting hung up on regional variations in language, especially when talking about slang terms, is rather pointless. Claiming that your own version is the correct one is rather than amusing.

In this thread, though, it's fine with me. You don't have to have a solid logical basis for being annoyed by something, and we're all just ranting, right?

Oh, I know. I have no basis or research behind my post other than hearsay, just providing some insight.

It's kind of like the origin of the F-word. Everyone has their own theory, and they're probably all wrong historically.

 

[mpride1911]

It's kind of like the origin of the F-word. Everyone has their own theory, and they're probably all wrong historically.

There's actually an entire documentary devoted to that word. It's 'origins' and usage and perception. It mentions most of the popular beliefs over it's origin. But says that there really isn't a specific person or event that it spawned from.

 

[bobbrews]

I've heard before from British people that "arse" really was the original term, and for whatever reason, the Americans bastardized it to "ass".

Then again, these are the same people who add an extra i to aluminum to pronounce it "aluminium", so I'm not sure they are to be trusted.

I think it's more of a slang word. Original term is relative depending on the culture. "Can I bum a fag?" is not something I would ever want to hear said either... even if it actually means, "Can I have a cigarette?" It appears as if the American version of that sentence is closer to the true English language.

 

[pig140]

"get 'er done"

 

[pig140]

My boss says supposebly instead of supposedly.

And also itch it. Its scratch it. Its called a scratch and sniff sticker, not an itch and sniff sticker.

+1 that gets on my nerves too... along with curb/curve - as in, "I hit a curve with my tire and got a flat"

 

[BigGoat]

"get 'er done"

+10.

 

[zeg]

"Can I bum a fag?" is not something I would ever want to hear said either... even if it actually means, "Can I have a cigarette?"

Well, "fag" is, of course, a shortening of "******," which is a small bundle of firewood.

 

[brick_haus]

One of my coworkers has samriches for lunch...

Boob tube

Chick Flick = any movie that makes a grown man cry.

Not tonight

Far out :fro:

Hands up!

 

[Big_Blue]

Liberry.
For all intensive purposes...
I LOL'd (spoken)
Funner.
I don't mean to sound like a dick, but...

 

[morticus]

Gun control.

 

[Big_Blue]

How many beers have you had?

 

[PhelanKA7]

This is sort of the reverse of the topic on this thread but I hate it when people tell me not to refer to them or someone else as "Sir" or "Ma'am." Like they think they're funny or that they feel addressing someone respectfully is something I should refrain from.

 

[Lushife]

This is sort of the reverse of the topic on this thread but I hate it when people tell me not to refer to them or someone else as "Sir" or "Ma'am." Like they think they're funny or that they feel addressing someone respectfully is something I should refrain from.

Don't call me sir, I work for a living. Is that what you mean?

 

[PhelanKA7]

Don't call me sir, I work for a living. Is that what you mean?

Yes! That's the one! Grrrrr...

 

[BorealBrewer]

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to....", and/or/combined with, "It's not nuclear physics!" as a way of saying performing a task is easy, or relies on common sense.

The speaker usually has neither any idea what either rocket science or nuclear physics involves, nor has spent time with those involved in rocket engineering or nuclear physicist.

I grew up in a town where we had more than the average allotment of both - and frankly, most of those guys relied on their wives to make sure they remembered to put on pants before they left for work in the morning. Brilliant people? Yup. Brilliant people with no common sense.

Hence my dislike for the terms.

 

[Big_Blue]

Speaking of which...

My father was Mr. [Surname], call me [First Name]

 

[Big_Blue]

"It's not nuclear physics!"

Best when combined with the pronunciation: noo-KEW-lehr.

 

[zeg]

While I don't share your distaste for those turns of speech, I do believe that the proper phrasing is, "It ain't rocket surgery."

 

[Dkshep]

"It is what it is." Had a bad boss that said it all the time.

 

[zeg]

"It is what it is." Had a bad boss that said it all the time.

I think "... said it all the time" is a common, unifying theme here. This is a logically empty phrase that can nonetheless occasionally carry some meaning. But if you use it except in rare cases when you really want to express, "We can't do anything about it, let's cope," in a fairly resigned way, it just becomes trite.

Orwell has a very good essay regarding the horrors of cliches and the importance of precise language. If people more frequently followed his advice, an occasional cliche might have a bit more impact---instead of just being obnoxious.

 

[mcbaumannerb]

"got a minute?" ... wouldn't be so bad it it ever truly was a minute!

 

[rowsdower44]

Basically

It is overused. If you're explaining something, just explain it! There's no need to preface it with 'basically'!

 

[WesleyBrewViking]

While I don't share your distaste for those turns of speech, I do believe that the proper phrasing is, "It ain't rocket surgery."

A company I used to work for had a trainer who would come by once a year and give refresher courses and he would say "It's not rocket surgery" roughly every two minutes for an hour. Another one that he said even more was "It's not nuclear gynecology." I found it mildly amusing the first time. Then he came back a year later... and then another year later and still kept spouting off those same two lines!

 

[WesleyBrewViking]

- nucular
- Febuary
- ambliance
- libary
- artic

Unless someone is in the first grade or suffers from a speech impediment, there's no excuse for these pronunciations. On a similar note, I don't like comfortable being pronounced cumf-ter-bull.

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Confession... I have a dickens of a time saying nuclear.

I also cannot say "statistically significant"

My tongue is too big.

 

[WesleyBrewViking]

"It is what it is." Had a bad boss that said it all the time.

Oh, really? And here I was all this time thinking that it isn't what it is. I sure am glad you cleared that up, boss. :cross:

 

[BigGoat]

Mammogram pronounced mammy-o-gram

 

[WesleyBrewViking]

Confession... I have a dickens of a time saying nuclear.

I also cannot say "statistically significant"

My tongue is too big.

Can you say nucleus? If so, try just changing the suffix. I got a friend to pronounce it correctly by thinking of nucleus with a different ending.

Although, according to this guy, you may be right after all.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OoASZyihalc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[zeg]

Then he came back a year later... and then another year later and still kept spouting off those same two lines!

Ugh. (And I don't understand the gynecology one, I'm familiar with the parent phrases that combine into rocket surgery, but I've never heard one involving gynecology.)

Along the same lines (and nominally OT since I don't hate it), "We'll burn that bridge when we come to it."

 

[CoalCracker]

"I'll be honest" or any derivative of it. It automatically makes me think you're a liar if you have to say that before starting a sentence.

 

[WesleyBrewViking]

"I'll be honest" or any derivative of it. It automatically makes me think you're a liar if you have to say that before starting a sentence.

I know a few people (they're all related by blood or marriage) who say "I'm not going to lie..." before the most trivial statements. I just grit my teeth when I hear it.

 

[mcbaumannerb]

I agree that someone starting a sentence telling me their going to be honest (or not lie) makes me wonder what happens the rest of the time they open their mouths! In a similar vein is starting off with "I gotta tell you..." Well no ****

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Off Topic... My inlaws live in Chester Springs, which is one exit away from Phoenixville...

 

[mcbaumannerb]

Or a couple of back-roads Small world...

 

[CreamyGoodness]

Ever shop at Weak Knee?

 

[Qhrumphf]

My wife works with a bunch of hipsters who like to drop off the end of words. "Sketchy" becomes "sketch" and "crazy" becomes "cray" and it's f#*@ing annoying.

I also absolutely abhor "an historic". If you've got the right accent where you don't pronounce the h, then fine. But I hear newscasters enunciate the whole thing on a regular basis and it makes me want to smash the TV.

"I could care less" bugs me.

And I hate the way most people pronounce Julius Caesar.

 

[drainbamage]

My wife works with a bunch of hipsters who like to drop off the end of words. "Sketchy" becomes "sketch" and "crazy" becomes "cray" and it's f#*@ing annoying.

And I hate the way most people pronounce Julius Caesar.

YES. We have a co-op at my office who graduated from an accelerated high school program (so she's 2 years younger than other most students we get at her education level). She can't describe anything without using the words "sketch", "legit", or "awkward". Granted, "awkward" isn't a shortened version of anything, but a little variety of vocabulary wouldn't hurt.

How do most people pronounce Julius Caesar? I didn't realize there were that many ways to say it?

 

[Qhrumphf]

YES. We have a co-op at my office who graduated from an accelerated high school program (so she's 2 years younger than other most students we get at her education level). She can't describe anything without using the words "sketch", "legit", or "awkward". Granted, "awkward" isn't a shortened version of anything, but a little variety of vocabulary wouldn't hurt.

How do most people pronounce Julius Caesar? I didn't realize there were that many ways to say it?

Legit is legitimate as far as I'm concerned. I'm talking about what's essentially the verbal form of text message speak.

And you probably pronounce it the same way everyone does. But several years of studying Latin when I was in school drilled the correct pronunciation into my head. J is technically an I and pronounced as a Y, and the C is a hard C. Pronounced more like Kaiser (and Kaiser is derived from the word Caesar).