When invited to submit expressions that ticked them off, readers responded enthusiastically--with clichés, usage errors, redundancies, misspellings, mispronunciations, and specimens of slang, jargon, and textspeak. Here (with readers' comments in parentheses) are 200 pet peeves submitted in 2009 by some very ticked-off defenders of the English language.
To add an expression that ticks you off, visit 100 Words and Phrases That Ticked You Off in 2012 and click on "comments" at the end of the post.
- @ (instead of "at")
- actually
- added bonus
- ain't
- aks (instead of "ask")
- all I’m saying is
- all-new
- alot (instead of "a lot")
- appropriate and inappropriate
- asterick (instead of "asterisk")
- ATM machine
- at the end of the day
- at this point in time
- awesome!
- baby bump
- back in the day
- back to you at the studio
- basically (as a sentence adverb)
- beautiful (a favorite of real estate agents, writers of travel brochures, and Martha Stewart)
- been there, done that
- between you and I
- birthing
- bling and bling-bling
- boots on the ground (News readers, politicians, military men, congressmen, bureaucrats--they’re all guilty of this idiotic tautology.)
- bottom line
- breaking news
- breaking weather
- buy one, get one
- cain’t
- change (political talk)
- comprised of
- couch potato (favorite phrase of the woman whom my husband left me for)
- could care less (instead of "couldn't care less")
- crisis
- cruisin’ for a bruisin’
- cutting edge
- decimate (to mean the total annihilation of something, rather than a tenth)
- defensing
- definly, defaly, and definally (misspellings and mispronunciations of "definitely")
- devastated (as in "I was devastated," meaning I was very upset)
- different than (instead of "different from")
- dog do-do
- dress it up and dress it down
- drill down (as in "look further into a situation or document")
- dude
- due to the fact that
- efforting (instead of "making an effort to find")
- empathetic (instead of "empathic")
- end result
- Enjoy! (as used by waiters and writers)
- estate homes (when describing new housing developments with 1/4-acre lots)
- exact same
- ex cetera (instead of "et cetera")
- executive driven (when referring to used cars)
- expresso (instead of "espresso")
- facilitate
- fire me off one
- fixin’ to
- folks
- fresh baked bread
- from day one
- from now (redundancy after time phrases, as in "The game starts in 20 minutes from now")
- future plans
- give 110%
- Give it your best.
- going forward (as in "We will adopt the new policy going forward”)
- go out there (sports talk)
- got (using "they’ve got" instead of "they have")
- graduated college (instead of "graduated from college")
- ground zero (for the shabby start of any project or idea, as in “I’ve been hungry for pizza from ground zero, dude”)
- guesstimate
- guys
- harm's way
- has (for "have," as in “There’s been two accidents”)
- Have a good one.
- Have a nice one.
- healthy food (instead of "healthful food")
- hisself
- hopefully (and other so-called sentence adverbs)
- *Hugz!*
- hunker down
- I (as in “The gift was given to Tom and I”)
- ID (for "identify" and "identification")
- I’d like to be perfectly honest
- If we don’t have it, you don’t need it!
- I mean
- I’m going on break now (instead of "I’m going to take my lunch break now")
- I’m just saying
- I’m not gonna go down that road
- I’m not gonna lie
- impacted (instead of “affected,” as in "The delay impacted our project")
- incent (an example of corporate-speak)
- infer (instead of "imply" when the meaning is "to suggest")
- In my opinion I believe
- irregardless
- irrespective
- I seen
- issues
- iteration (used in ways that have nothing to do with math)
- It is what it is.
- It’s heavenly.
- I’ve came
- just as soon
- keep everyone in the loop
- keepin’ it real
- lab-ul (for "liable")
- Leave it be.
- like (as abused by the young)
- likely (as in "The senate will likely spend tax dollars on . . .)
- literally (as in "I was literally at the end of my rope!” when there is no rope)
- load shedding (instead of "blackout")
- LOL
- make no mistake
- market basket of goods and services (when used to calculate the consumer price index)
- me and him (as in "Me and him are going to the movies")
- mitigate (instead of "militate")
- momentarily (instead of "in a moment," as in "The plane will land momentarily")
- move forward
- must have
- my bad
- near miss
- next steps and best practices (examples of corporate mindshare speak)
- no problem (instead of "you're welcome")
- nucular (for "nuclear")
- Nuff said.
- of (for "have," as in "I should of . . .")
- oh (instead of "zero"--especially in telephone numbers)
- okay
- on accident (instead of "by accident")
- one less (instead of "one fewer")
- OMG
- on the same page
- over-achiever
- paradigm shift
- parent (as a verb)
- PIN number
- preggers
- prioritise/prioritize
- proactive
- Punxatawney Phil (a phailed attempt at alliteration)
- pushing the envelope
- raising the bar
- reach out
- reiterate
- repeat again
- return back
- sackerfice fly (sportscaster-speak for "sacrifice fly")
- shoulda
- situation
- so . . . (instead of a period at the end of a sentence)
- spend the night
- stand on line (instead of "stand in line")
- stood in bed (“I shoulda stood in bed,” instead of "stayed in bed")
- Sup? (instead of "What’s up?")
- supposibly
- team player
- temper (as in "He has a temper")
- temperature (instead of "fever," as in "I have a temperature")
- there, their, and they’re (commonly confused)
- That’s what she said.
- thing (when used instead of something more specific)
- think outside the box
- think the unthinkable
- This tastes refreshing.
- those that (instead of "those who" when speaking of people)
- to be honest with you
- tolerance
- tons (as in "tons of stocks")
- troops (when referring to individual soldiers)
- 24/7
- uhhh
- umm
- Understand what I'm saying?
- undocumented workers (instead of "illegal aliens")
- unique
- unsweet tea
- up or down vote
- upmost (instead of "utmost," as in “I have the upmost confidence in your abilities")
- utilize (instead of "use")
- veggies
- very (as in "very overwhelming")
- very unique
- vision (political talk)
- vow (instead of "say")
- wait on (instead of "wait for")
- whatever
- whatever it is
- What were you thinking?
- whenever (instead of "when")
- Where are you at? (instead of "Where are you?")
- Where is it at?
- without further ado
- would of (instead of “would have”)
- yell-o (instead of "hello")
- You feel me?
- You follow me?
- You got gas?
- you know
- You know what I’m saying?
- your and you're (commonly confused)
Since posting this article in 2009, we've continued to collect your verbal peeves. Here are the results:
