Books I Loathed discussion
Words I Loathed
Yes. And I don't know why they would disparage a place they love to be more than anywhere else - but hey, I don't pretend to understand them, anymore than they pretend to understand me! lol
Xysea, Natalie, stephanie & Lori -There is some interesting info on the "c" word in a book called "Expletive Deleted" by Ruth Wajnryb - a whole chapter on its origin , use and misuse (and how it came to be considered the worst of all swear words). What was particularly interesting to me was how, once upon a time (a long, long time go), it wasn't really considered a bad word, just a name for a body part.
I have to agree with a lot of what has just been said and I'm going to try to not be too confusing with my comments. I'm having a confusing day and am rather glad my head is firmly attached to my neck at this point.Christen: "I understand that but. . ." ~ I hate it too, especially when the person cocks their head to one side. Did your boss do that? My former boss did that all the time! She would cock her head to one side and give me this look as if she really was concerned about my feelings! Oh PleasE!@!!!!!!
Natalie & Stephanie: I am with you: preggers is annoying! And my friend, both times she was pregnant, sent out emails with 24 point font and all caps claiming "we're pregnant and we're so excited". I think her husband must be the first man on earth to be pregnant at the same time as his wife. She also uses "we" when talking about things her son accomplished, like "we took our first steps today". REally, you both did cause I could have sworn that you have been walking for the past 20 some years?
The "c" word: not a fan of it, but I do think any curse word said by a Brit sounds really cool, including "c". Take the "f" word. It sounds better somehow when Brits say it, it doesn't sound quite as dirty or something. I don't know, I can't really describe it but I like it when Brits say it. Not a fan of "p" word either. I don't even use it as a nickname for a cat.
Lori: I agree with intimation. For a long time I thought people were mispelling intimidation. I actually had to look up intimation to see if it was a real word.
Seth: "superdupercalifragelistikexpialidopey", I like the change on that! It's fun!
The whole "yoni" thing made me laugh. I have never heard that term before, am I missing out on some really great lothesome words?
Natalie: I seem to remember vaguely that "the proof is in the pudding" is shortened from some old saying: "the proof of the pudding is in the eating." So you don't know something until you try it/experience it.Great topic everyone! I am thoroughly entertained, though I haven't contributed because I don't really have any words or phrases that particularly irk me and am pretty liberal concerning what I let people get away with. It seems to me it's more often the person than the language that will grate me the wrong way.
While we're on the topic, my favorite disgusting/offensive sexual reference: "purple headed womb ferret." I can't remember where I read/heard/saw this, but I think it was a movie or TV show. If anyone has heard it before and recalls where it's from, I'd appreciate the memory jog.
That's it!! But they are wrong, it wasn't "Curb Your Enthusiasm," it was "Extras" and it was hilarious. Thank you!
Re the "c" word: I read a murder mystery (Ray Banks' Saturday Child) where men referred to men with That Word. So it's certainly considered mainstream in the UK - I can't imagine that usage here.
I think "yoni" is Hindustani for "vagina" or "female genitalia," which is fine when it's used by someone who is speaking that language, but not so cool when it's your English-speaking yoga teacher urging you to get in touch with this part of your "femaleness." I always think of Mr. Van Dreisen, that stupid English teacher from Beavis and Butthead when I hear someone say it. Sounds like a term he would use.
"Preggers" is so reprehensible, I can't even deal.
Ok, I have to throw my two cents in on this one. There are a number of words/phrases that make me grind my teeth and make me want to punch something. Many of these words that stoke my ire are words conceived in corporate America to make things sound less abusive, more exciting, and generally distort the world into bland, easy morsels of crap to feed to the public. Words like "verbage" & "signage" make absolutely no sense. These aren't even words! These aren't even pretend words! ASAP, pronounce as one word or as individual letters drive me nuts. My boss uses it about 125 times a day. Yes, I know you want it done quickly. Oh, ASAP? Well, why didn't you say so? I'll get right on it!"Get right on it". Get right on what? Could you be a bit more specific please? "Input". As in, "can I get your input on this presentation?" or "What's your input on this situation?" I'm not saying it's not a valid word to use some of the time, but the incessant overuse of this word makes me want to beat my head against a wall. "Shoot me an email". Yes, it is irritating. And yes, sadly, I even use it on a near-daily basis. I can't help it, it just comes out. But what was ever wrong with the word "send"? Does saying "shoot" mean that it is going to make it to me faster? Or that it could harm me in some way if I am not careful? In fact, "my two cents" needs to be laid to rest as well. I don't know who thought these phrases would be helpful, but they only help to make us sound like driveling idiots.
On the topic of offensive words, including the "c" and "p" words, I only take offense to them if they are used excessively and without a good purpose. But that goes for any curse word. Overuse of strong language like that make the word lose its meaning and make the writer/speaker sound grandly unimaginative. Granted, there are not many good reasons to use "c" or "p", but they are there, and those reasons usually stem from British slang. As a guy, I understand the value of potty humor. Jokes and phrases involving genitalia will always be amusing to men. Nothing you can do about it. Get used to it.
OMG! Me too.For me the book was 'The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe'. I first read it when I was about 5-6 and was used to reading above my age and not understanding words.
Aged 7, and on about the 4-5th read, I'd had enough and consulted the dictionary - Aha moment.
About the same age I read deny as denny (like danny). I think the Aha moment came when I was being read to.
ok, i was going to stay out of this one and just enjoy it, but your rant made me laugh out loud. i agree with everything you said, and now i will ad my own absolutely most reviled use of a word here. "do" as in, oh, i don't "do" carbs anymore.
number one, if you don't you are a fool. number two, you don't "DO" food. you eat food. you consume food. you gulp, you slurp, you may ingest your calories in any number of ways. but you do not "do" food. this bothers me more than other uses, as i have been in the food buisness for 25 years. but you also do not not "do" tennis, or golf, or anything that you play.
that's my rant for the day.
These may have already been mentioned (but holy crap, this is a long thread). I hate it when people say "Nuke-U-lar" instead of "nuclear." I hate it when people, "expecially" (hee) baristas, say "expresso" instead of "espresso." What, exactly, is expresso? Is that the instant kind? And what does "expecially" mean? Something that was once special, but isn't anymore? I hate when people say "real-i-tor" instead of "realtor" (REAL-tor) or "jewel-er-y" instead of "jewelry" (JEW-el-ry). But the one that irks me like no other is "I could care less." If you COULD care less, then you must care at least a little. However, if you COULDN'T care less, then you do not care at all.
Sigh. I think this Grammar Queen has finally found a home.
I sympathize with what you say, Sarah.But you and all the others who have posted here are fighting a losing battle.
People speak and write the way they do, and nothing is going to change that. It's like the argument that people had over when the millenium actually began. Factually, it began in 2001, but everyone celebrated the start of the millenium in 2000.
Just like the millenium, these are arguments you're never going to win.
I have a boss who constantly sends out e-mails to the rest of us with words misspelled or misused. It annoys me to no end to see her use the word "there" when she really means "their" or "they're," but you'll never be able to persuade her that she's incorrect (and a DUMBASS to boot).
I hate when people say supposably instead of supposedly. And, although it is not incorrect, I also cannot stand it when persons is used instead of people.
Oh man, I Am Charlotte Simmons was disappointing on many fronts, but his sexual vocabulary was the least sexy thing I've ever read. He used the words "Mons Pubis" over and over again. MONS PUBIS? I'd never even encountered that phrase before but thankfully now it's seared into my mind. It's enough to make me never want to see a mons pubis again. On another note, my boyfriend is constantly telling people that something he's worried about is "disconcerning." I'm pretty sure he means "disconcerting" and that "disconcerning" isnt a real world, but he is always so intent upon using it that I feel bad calling him on it.
And by the way, in my first grade arithmatic workbook, I read the word "unit" as "until." In my mind a till was a place where you put money, and so when doing math problems (at the first grade level) with things other than money, you called those things "untils". We never did math out loud together as a class so I didn't learn until second grade, when the teacher asked me to say it again, and then again, and then once everyone had heard me and laughed, asked me to explain what an until was, and why I was saying it instead of unit.
Xysea - "fish taco" has seeped its way into music lingo now. You know how rock mags refer to certain 80s hair metal as "cock rock" sometimes, referring to their swaggering stage gestures and generally cocky attitudes...I'm now hearing female singer/song writers like Tori Amos and Liz Phair being referred to as "taco rock."
Mary, your teacher was a jerk. He should have just corrected you and moved on instead of embarrassing you in front of the class.
Mary, I also think your teacher was a jerk and very wrong in his actions. What's the point in embarassing children in front of the whole class? Pull children aside and correct them privately. Geez!
Sarah, you mentioned the use of the word "jewel-er-y" instead of "jewelry" (JEW-el-ry). I have always had a pet peeve about that. There is even a commercial where they sing the words "Helzbergs fine jewel-er-y" and I cringe every time I hear it.
Xysea, thank you for bringing up "fish taco", this phrase makes me so sad because I can no longer order my favorite dish at a local deli without everyone, including myself behaving like a 14 year old boy. I wish they would just change the name. I have even tried to avoid saying it, by saying things like "umm..I will take the, uh, third thing listed up there." Then they say, "YOU WANT THE FISH TACO?" mortifying.
Ooh, ooh, I have another one! (This is fun!)In addition to "supposably" which I hear all the time, I cringe when someone asks what I am doing for "Valentime's" day.
Valentime's day? Hmm, that's funny. I haven't heard that one yet, but I'm sure it'll happen. :)I don't know if this fits the "words I loathe" discussion but it just happened, and it got my loathing all worked up, so I have to talk about it. I can't even begin to count the number of people who walk into my office (or call me on the phone) and try to tell me something about their case and say to me "well, THEY didn't tell me I needed that" or "THEY said I can come and get a copy of that from you" or "THEY said you can fill this out for me". Now, I have no idea who this infamous "they" is, but I certainly get these facial expressions from people like they expect that I know exactly who "they" is. So, when I ask for clarification: "Who told you that you could (do whatever or get whatever or file whatever)?", the response I get is: "Them ladies". Well, that's clear as mud. Okay, we have at least 100 women that work in this building (probably more than that). I then ask "What ladies in what office?". Response: "I don't know. Them ladies in that office said I could (whatever). You don't know much, are you new here?" Now, at this point we should all be thankful that I don't have a baseball bat at my desk, because I would be hauled out of this office on first degree manslaughter charges (more like murder, but maybe I can plea guilty by reason of insanity and get it pled down to manslaughter). Them ladies in that office, well that really narrows it down for me. My goodness, there are only 23 courtrooms and 5-10 offices that have several female employees in them, but I can certainly nail down who "them ladies in that office" are, so I must be an idiot, excuse me. OBVIOUSLY, I just don't know anything! That's it, what a genius I have standing in front of me! Ladies and gentleman, the winners of the Darwin Awards 2007! Round of applause please!
Yeah, that's my typical work day conversation. I spend my day trying to figure out who "they" and "them ladies" are. Not what I would call a good use of my time, but without morons I wouldn't have a job. Cie la vie!
edit sorry
"Mons Pubis" always makes me think of some giant volcano on Mars, rather than female genitalia.
How 'bout "turgid manhood"? Gawd, "manhood" in ANY context or combination is just wrong.
I had a COLLEGE instructor once who used "irregardless" in every single lecture.Can I even begin to describe how distracting THAT was???
this thread of conversation is cracking me up! I hate hearing OLDTIMERS for alzheimers and cuzent for cousin. There's no "t" on the end, people!AARRRG!
Sorry for the serial postings...I'm new (and ever so dimwitted). Has anyone mentioned "flustrated"? I've never seen it written that way, but I hear it all the time. It's so...uneducated sounding. Like my in-laws' insistence on saying "warsh" instead of "wash", and using a long-i in "Italian" (and NO, Southern California doesn't count as "regional"); it just makes my skin crawl. On Oprah a couple-a months back, there was a panel of African-American leaders discussing racism in America (it was on the heels of the Don Imus debacle) and one of the men actually said "skate-goat" instead of "scapegoat". And more than once. And yes, I'm sure; I had it TiVO'd and re-played it about 37 times.
Good grief.
I've heard and read the use of Physical Year for Fiscal Year. This is a true story! This is one of the reasons I am going bald... How about the use of "nucleate" for bringing anything, and I mean anything, together? It hurts my brain.
What about "parsing", as in, "Let's parse this down..."? I LOVE "conversate", though, but not as much as I love "conversating".
Hey Mark, your comment makes a lot of sense to me. But I say, take off the hat and show your proud bald head (see my pic in my profile). Guys like us must grow beards to compensate for losses elsewhere, huh?
(Be generous and gentle with me; I've only just found this thread)...but I just can't resist!The same folks who "conversate" also seem to do a lot of their communicating through some verbal technique they call "confronting".
As an example:
"You know, So-N-So only has time for her stupid new boyfriend (who isn't even really that hot), and now she like never has time for ME. I mean, sometimes she takes like 45 minutes (or more!) to call me back; I mean, WTF? I was trying on this really cute sweater, and I could have used her opinion...but NOOOO! She was probably with LoverBoy. Whatever.
"Well, I'm sorry, but this behavior is just going to have to stop. I mean, (Warning: pet gripe, dead ahead), I just love So-N-So to death, but how much does she expect me to take? I'm putting my foot down and am just going to have to confront her, and..."
And I've never managed to stay awake beyond this point...does anyone know how these interven... no, wait, I mean "confrontations" (how embarrassing) end up? Are they ever successful (by "successful", I mean that, at the end, everyone feels like they've been heard by the other person, that everyone's feelings have been, if not wholly validated, at least acknowledged and respected. "Unsuccessful" [the outcome I'd lay MY money on] would probably a sight less dignified, and maybe even requiring a Temporary Restraining Order and a stitch or two.) That's how I envision MYSELF handling being "confronted" by a casual acquaintance who has misinterpreted friendly/neighborly waves at the supermarket for an appeal to take over exactly where her verybestgirlfriendfromthe tenthgrade left off when she ran off with Mr. Sears, the math teacher.
Has anyone else noticed this recent explosion of settling hurt feelings through "confrontation"? I smell something fishy in Denmark: could it be that the whole concept of "confrontation" was developed as a technique for forcing Participant Number One ("Pay attention to ME! Listen to Me! Memememe!!!") back onto Center Stage??? I think I might be onto something...
Holy Moses! I really didn't set out to trudge so far out of bounds with this post. Maybe I'll try posting it on another thread, or maybe starting a new one of my own... Oh, truly, forgive me and my rant about the scourge of the self-absorbed (touche, eh?)! Still, am I the only one made nervous by this change in the rules of social comport? Yeesh, I'm rusty as it IS, let alone trying to navigate this crap.
My ex-husband used to say "orientate." No wonder I divorced him!
Tara - my boss would TOTALLY tilt her head to the side when she would say "I understand that..."!! I think it might be obligatory to coordinate the head tilt with the phrase. But she also slathered all this attitude all over it...like she just couldn't believe how stupid I was. But then, she was a "c" word. :D Speaking of which, here's my contribution on the "c" word. I try not to even let the person who said it notice that I heard them because I think, like Xysea said, they are usually using it to get power in some way. Of course, I have also been socialized to be shocked by it...so it's a struggle.
On the British note, I do find myself less offended when it's said by a Brit...Lord knows why! My boyfriend thinks it's really sexy to hear a British woman say "cock and balls"...again, Lord knows why, but I have developed an excellent British accent just for that one phrase. ^_^
Not to be the downer in what is a fun thread, but when the
"Words I Loathe" posts first began, the words were literary in nature, (the lists of genitalia names alone brought me hours of joy). Now it seems to be a place where people puff themselves up by putting down regional accents and load a lot of judgement on the less educated.
Sorry to complain, but I work with a woman who was born in Europe - she speaks 3 languages fluently, speaks English with out an accent, and is incredibly bright and successful. Every now and then she will say a homily incorrectly or use a unique pronunciation and I've watched, (sometimes not so bright) people snicker.
Again, sorry, but as we say locally, it was starting to bumming me out.
"Words I Loathe" posts first began, the words were literary in nature, (the lists of genitalia names alone brought me hours of joy). Now it seems to be a place where people puff themselves up by putting down regional accents and load a lot of judgement on the less educated.
Sorry to complain, but I work with a woman who was born in Europe - she speaks 3 languages fluently, speaks English with out an accent, and is incredibly bright and successful. Every now and then she will say a homily incorrectly or use a unique pronunciation and I've watched, (sometimes not so bright) people snicker.
Again, sorry, but as we say locally, it was starting to bumming me out.
Recynd -- you are cracking my booty up! *pause* Okay, reading that just made me realize I should never ever say that again! My apologies. But I do have to say that I am glad that it is my lunch hour because it would not be good for me to be laughing in court.I have also noticed a lot of "confronting" happening between people. I think it is a "me" thing, getting in touch with numero uno and therefore ensuring that those who have hurt us realize just how much.
Skategoat for scapegoat, that's funny. Another one that drives me nuts is "which" for "with". The Pussycat Dolls, among other musicians, say it in a song and people say it in normal conversations. "Hey, I'm gonna go which you". When did "with" get a "ch" sound added to it? So, I've been saying it wrong all this time? Oh man!
I live in Missouri (pronounced mis-ur-ree). I don't know why some people who were even born and raised in my state insist on calling itMis-ur-uh.
About 25 years ago I was at church and the pastor actually called us "brethren and cistern." lol
I have gotten a laugh out of many of these. There are a couple words I cant stand for different reasons:moist - hate the way it feels when I say it (have no idea why)
spatula - seems a ridiculous word for something that scrapes the sides of a bowl. how did this word come about?
and the phrase - "it goes without saying" - THEN DONT SAY IT. LOL
Ditto again on "irregardless." How about "disorienTATED." I hear people say this all the time. Not a word!
I'm going to have to pitch in here with a little support for Cheri's comment, as everyone else seems to have ignored it. Disorientated and orientate and other extraneous "tate" words are common in British English. They don't spell them like that, but I've often heard them pronounced that way. Ditto with the midwestern "warsh" instead of "wash"--we're talking dialects/accents here, people.Seeing as this is "goodreads" and not "goodconversations" why don't we stick with the written word? If we're going to list all the bloody quirks of spoken language--a fluid, indefinable beast in every culture--let me just say most people get on my nerves whenever they open their mouths, whether or not they speak "well."
Angela, I was just coming here to post about "disorientated."I once had a girl tell me that when she gets home from a long day at work, she needs time to decompose. I'm pretty sure she meant "decompress."
Aw, Jason, you're spoiling all my fun!
I can relate to so many of these posts concerning conversational speech, but pertaining to literature, I always seem to stare and shake my head in disgust when I see ": A Novel" concatenated to the end of a book's title.
The comments from Cheri and Jason stood out to me. They cause me to pause and think about what I have posted in this thread. I appreciate and respect what Cheri and Jason have both said. I certainly did not mean, by any of the words or phrases I posted as "words that I loathe" to offend anyone and apologize if I have.This posting did indeed start as words in literary works that people loathed and I think it has grown and developed, which has created a lot of really interesting conversation. I think that's what is enjoyable about this particular topic. A lot of people from various parts of the country have posted comments which probably apply more to where they live (like the Mis-ur-ree vs. Mis-ur-uh for example). People born and raised in the same city can say and spell the same word differently (root vs. rout for example). I have known and met more non-Americans (Europeans, Japanese, South Americans) who speak English better and clearer than many citizens of this country!
I work with a lot of well educated, well travelled people who use "which" instead of "with" or abuse the use of et cetera in their comments (several attorneys use "them ladies" when they call us and I still have no idea who "them ladies" are). I certainly didn't get from anyone's posting that they were pointing fingers at less educated people, but I may have missed it as well. I think the best and brightest can say or use a word/phrase poorly and that mispronunciation is at all levels and all walks of life, so I don't see that the postings here are by people who are trying to puff themselves up and make the less educated look stupid.
But a very valid point has been made! Maybe we should keep this posting solely literary and not continue with local colloquialisms?
I notice that most of the complaints about certain words in heavy use today are really complaints about sloppy english, and equally sloppy enunciation. You can chalk most of those words up to either ignorance, or lazyness. My loathed word is "totally" and in this thread, I've seen it too often to count and usually misused.
Red Evans author On Ice
Red, I am "totally" guilty of saying "totally" too much. I think it's the California girl in me.I am not trying to make fun of the uneducated or non-English speaking people, either. It bothers me, though, when intelligent, educated people speak like first graders.
thank you to cheri and jason for your comments. i have been feeling frustrated with this post for a while but thinking about whether or not i really need to say anything. i keep noticing how MAD people get about other people's mistakes or colloquialisms, especially ones that make people sound "uneducated" (read poor, or black)... i don't understand why people feel so attached to there being a "right" way to speak, that they actually feel enraged when people conflagrate their pronuncements. you know what i mean. :) i had access to a pretty good education but many of the things i really needed were not provided. and i have learned a lot in my life from people who didn't know grammatic rules and were very creative spellers. i respect people's right to talk how they talk, and if i feel judgments inside myself then recognize it as my shit. on the other hand, there is some language that does make me upset, i guess it just has to do with my values. my pet peeves, in writing or conversation, is language that reinforces oppressive power structures - like 'ghetto,' 'gypsy,' 'retard,' even words like 'attractive' or 'refined'... of course it depends who it's coming from and what their intention is in using it... i prefer honest observations and opinions without needing to reinforce other people's invisibility or powerlessness...
thanks for reading.
Red -- I am also guilty of overusing/abusing "totally" too! I need to take it out of my vocabulary, period. I say "like" too much also, but more in speaking rather than when I write unless I'm using it for comparisons (I think). I also abuse the use of parentheses, which just irritates me about me.
This talk of dialects and colloquialisms reminds of a subject that's a little different, but it's related to the subject at hand.There have been observations in recent years about how important it is for political candidates to make a good impression on TV. That leads me to believe that some of our greatest presidents -- FDR and Lincoln, for example -- might never have become president if they had to succeed on television.
FDR was handicapped and was rarely shown in newsreels in a wheelchair or with those cumbersome braces on his legs. It wouldn't have been so easy to hide those signs of a handicap with the ever-present TV cameras.
Lincoln may have been our homeliest president and accounts have it that he spoke in a high-pitched voice with a distinct frontier accent -- pronouncing words like get, there and chair as git, thar and cheer.
Mod
To follow up on that... "bust a nut". Yuck yuck double yuck-o. Men and their penises...what will they think of next?
Books I Loathed
Books mentioned in this topic
The Blonde Identity (other topics)Medusa's Sisters (other topics)
Who We Are Now (other topics)
Under the Influence (other topics)
North of Nowhere (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Stacey Ballis (other topics)Emily Giffin (other topics)
As for the 'p' word, when used to refer to a male who isn't sufficiently macho - well that annoys me, too.
And men who use those words aren't likely to visit my 'p' or my 'c' anytime soon.
:P lol