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Pedants' corner

Unpleasant modern expressions

(240 Posts)
mrsmopp Fri 23-May-14 07:44:05

Up for grabs. I hate it. Let's have your pet hate..

Gagagran Fri 23-May-14 07:53:12

Going forward.

PRINTMISS Fri 23-May-14 07:57:26

"Well I have to say" WHY?

HollyDaze Fri 23-May-14 08:01:40

'Do you know what I mean' said anywhere in a sentence and usually more than once

ninathenana Fri 23-May-14 08:03:41

'It's been such a journey' when not referring to travel arrangements.

Lona Fri 23-May-14 08:04:49

"For sure". Grrr!

Penstemmon Fri 23-May-14 08:08:20

I'm not racist/sexist etc BUT.......

Penstemmon Fri 23-May-14 08:09:47

Also 'can I GET a coffee'

Mishap Fri 23-May-14 08:16:57

"On a daily basis"- what pray is wrong with "every day"?

HollyDaze Fri 23-May-14 08:21:24

Thinking of recent politicians, I would also add: 'Let's be very clear' or 'let me be clear'.

Grannyknot Fri 23-May-14 08:22:37

In the fullness of time ...

Printmiss and Hollydaze, you have already mentioned two others on my behalf!

HollyDaze Fri 23-May-14 08:28:24

Grannyknot - after a few more posts on this thread, I can see us all trying to be a bit more careful grin

ayse Fri 23-May-14 08:33:56

'Squaring the circle' - how on earth can you make a circle square??

suebailey1 Fri 23-May-14 08:37:05

- any way, shape or form
- spot on
- I'm still processing that information
- keep me in the loop
- whatever
- can I get a latte/cappuccino
- you alright there
- hey you guys, ready to order
- enjoy your meal
- he texted me- grrrrrrr
- he gifted me - grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

chloe1984 Fri 23-May-14 08:58:45

"Back in the day"

KatyK Fri 23-May-14 09:30:56

As I have put on another similar thread -

I'm good thanks -when you ask someone if they would like a drink

I'm not being funny but...

He turned round to me and he said.....

Everything OK with your meal? (just as you have put a forkful of food in your mouth)

and many many more hmm

merlotgran Fri 23-May-14 09:37:53

TV presenters seem to make up new words as they go along. I can't remember who it was but the other day we heard someone talking about the 'historicity' when I think they meant historical significance. hmm

I and Me seems to have been completely replaced by Myself which usually appears at the beginning of a sentence. 'Myself and my wife were on holiday' sounds ridiculous.

glammanana Fri 23-May-14 10:07:46

"Thinking outside of the box" and "yeh" at the end of every sentence.

Eloethan Fri 23-May-14 10:14:58

"To be fair" instead of "to be honest" or "I think".

"I'm good" when asked "How are you".

I also hate the expression "I love him/her to bits".

"Closure".

Ana Fri 23-May-14 10:36:17

'Lessons will be learned' (when they very probably will not!)

janeainsworth Fri 23-May-14 10:42:43

'To die for' especially when applied to things like the view from a hotel window - as if one would.

Ariadne Fri 23-May-14 10:49:51

"Stateside" for the USA.

"Platforming" meaning raising an issue

"Referring back to.." we'll, you wouldn't be referring forward, would you?

And, since this is pedants' corner - squaring the circle does have an academic history:

"Squaring the circle is a problem proposed by ancient geometers. It is the challenge of constructing a square with the same area as a given circle by using only a finite number of steps with compass and straightedge. More abstractly and more precisely, it may be taken to ask whether specified axioms of Euclidean geometry concerning the existence of lines and circles entail the existence of such a square."

I am still none the wiser, though, (Bags would know!) and suspect that the expression has been hijacked.

Greenfinch Fri 23-May-14 10:57:06

"on the week-end"

moomin Fri 23-May-14 11:05:36

Commencing sentences with "so" ....

"in this country" as opposed to "here", "the UK", "Britain" - obviously acceptable but is used constantly and it's getting on my nerves!!

Yes, the nouns turned into verbs - "red carded", "he/she medalled" etc

Oh and as already said, turning me or I into "myself" or saying "me and the wife went to so and so" - wrong on two counts, "me" should be "I" (you can't say "me went to so and so" and then, of course, the "I" should come after "the wife" (which is another phrase I can't stand) oops, that makes three counts!

What makes you think I'm a pedant grin

rosesarered Fri 23-May-14 11:06:00

I don't find many of the above posts 'unpleasant' just slightly irritating, but I shouldn't be in pedants corner [as I am not one.] Sayings come into our language all the time, some stay and some sink without trace.What I do find very irritating is when politicians [it's usually a politician]seek to obscure an issue [or play for time] by saying bland meaningless things like 'let's be clear on this' or 'it has always been my policy' [when it hasn't]
'it's far too soon to speculate' etc etc.Also when they dumb down their own speech [Tony Blair started this] with 'y'know's' and 'gonna' and what is called 'Estuary' speak. When you have had the benfit of a good education you just don't speak like this, so it's blindingly obvious to most of us what is going on. David Cameron started to do this, and sometimes Nick Clegg as well as countless others.So I shall now coin a phrase to say how much it annoys me...... 'worth a slap!'