Words or phrases that annoy you (even if you can't explain why) . . .

[SalisburySam]

“Bring” vs. “take,” and the latter almost disappearing in favor of the former.

Examples:

”Bring this to your brother.”
”I’m going to school and bring my backpack with me.”

…and so on.

 

[Clix Pix]

Using "fam" rather than simply saying or typing out the proper word "family."

 

[BorderingOn]

AF

Epic

Right? Used at the end of every sentence.

Tell me x without telling me x.

 

[usagora]

Using "fam" rather than simply saying or typing out the proper word "family."

Yep, and I just remembered another major one: "convo" (for "conversation").

 

[Clix Pix]

There's another slangy shortcut that people often use which irritates the heck out of me but at the moment I can't remember what it is....every time I hear it or see it written, though, it grates on me.

Ah, finally recalled what it is: "vacay," rather than "vacation." Sheesh!!!

 

[HDFan]

"Think outside the box"

makes me think that the speaker will never leave the inside of the box

 

[Matz]

Using "theory" as a substitute for "hypothesis."

 

[usagora]

Using "theory" as a substitute for "hypothesis."

I don't know. In a casual context, using "theory" as a synonym for "guess" (an educated one) seems a lot more natural and less pretentious than saying "hypothesis" (again, in a casual/non-scientific context . . . obviously in the realm of science, "theory" has a much stricter definition, and maybe this is the only context you had in mind).

 

[eyoungren]

Finally remember the word choices that bug me as of late.

Loose and choose, when what is meant is actually 'lose' and 'chose'.

And the one that really does me in is 'costumer' instead of customer.

Case in point, a thread title in the main iPhone forum… "14 Pro camera looses to android phones."

'Looses' is not a word recognized by any English dictionary. The word is 'loosen', which isn't what they mean in the context of this thread title. Whoever wrote that title meant to mean 'loses'. They can't even get the wrong word correct.

I'm fairly certain this problem comes from those for whom English is not their primary language. On the other hand, lots of lazy English speakers out there. What I've never figured out is that is takes MORE characters to spell the words WRONG then it does to spell them right, so if people are being lazy they are shooting themselves in the foot.

 

[polyphenol]

'Looses' is not a word recognized by any English dictionary.

It is used in connection with archery. "He looses an arrow" seems to be well-established, if niche, usage.

 

[usagora]

Case in point, a thread title in the main iPhone forum… "14 Pro camera looses to android phones."

'Looses' is not a word recognized by any English dictionary.

It's easy to understand why that's a common misspelling, though. With many other words, "oos(e)" is pronounced "ooz". For example, "choose", "taboos", "zoos", "shampoos", etc. Therefore, it's easy for the brain to want to write "loose" instead of "lose" when you're pronouncing the word in your head. When you think about it, "lose" does look funny, and I can't really think of any other common words that are spelled like that with the same pronunciation except for "whose".

 

[eyoungren]

It is used in connection with archery. "He looses an arrow" seems to be well-established, if niche, usage.

Yes, good point. I'd forgotten that context, thank you.

 

[Apple fanboy]

It is used in connection with archery. "He looses an arrow" seems to be well-established, if niche, usage.

Niche? Surly its notch in archery?

 

[gecko579]

Somehow I despise the “reached out” construction and ALWAYS replace with “be in touch with”…

 

[Daimos0]

I hate when every title written now is click-bait.

“Watch what the dog does when…”

“Try not to laugh at the…”

“This grandma is the GOAT when…”

“This city is the best, but you will be surprised at number two…”

I’m a fast reader, and i hate when the thing i clicked is less interesting than i imagined.

 

[Nermal]

"You've been doing X wrong".

And it's not quite the same thing, but the amount of rubbish on news sites. The other day one of the newspapers ran an article about a "secret" in the Home Alone movie. This "secret" was one of the central plot points and was blindingly obvious to anyone who's watched the movie.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

"Are you okay?" when asked by staff in a store/shop, almost invariably with a dead-eyed expression and in a bored tone. Yes, I fully understand - comprehend - that customer care can be challenging, (not to mention exhausting and unrewarding) but this sentence - shouts, positively screams, that the speaker is both mentally lazy and exceedingly imprecise when expressing themselves.

No, I am not okay; however, I would greatly welcome some assistance from the staff should they care to extend it.

 

[usagora]

"Are you okay?" when asked by staff in a store/shop, almost invariably with a dead-eyed expression and in a bored tone. Yes, I fully understand - comprehend - that customer care can be challenging, (not to mention exhausting and unrewarding) but this sentence - shouts, positively screams, that the speaker is both mentally lazy and exceedingly imprecise when expressing themselves.

No, I am not okay; however, I would greatly welcome some assistance from the staff should they care to extend it.

I don't think I've ever been asked that in any store. It's normally, "Can I help you (find anything), sir?"

"Are you okay?" doesn't make much sense to ask unless you appear to be having a medical issue or something, lol.

By the way, I'm pleasantly surprised no one replied to this thread trying to be funny by purposely using the words/phrases that I said I found irritating. I've noticed that seems to always happen on threads like this, and it gets old.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I don't think I've ever been asked that in any store. It's normally, "Can I help you (find anything), sir?"

"Are you okay?" doesn't make much sense to ask unless you appear to be having a medical issue or something, lol.

By the way, I'm pleasantly surprised no one replied to this thread trying to be funny by purposely using the words/phrases that I said I found irritating. I've noticed that seems to always happen on threads like this, and it gets old.

Different cultures; you will find (that is, you will hear) the abomination "Are you okay?" in (shops/stores) in the UK and Ireland, and not the US, where the service imperative, is, I submit, somewhat better, for a variety of reasons.

 

[koelsh]

1. "You've got a problem and you need to fix it"
Overused by my 6th grade teacher and quite often the problem was "the class doesn't understand the assignment" and the fix was for her to actually teach the class instead of spouting off her latest business development buzzword bingo card.

2. do this or that "real quick"
The last two words of most sentences when my boss is asking us to do something. Even when everyone knows it's going to take an hour or a day he still says to do it "real quick"

3. How so much software with roots in the 90's will still have pamphlets and magazines and multiple whole websites describing what the software can do in flowery language but then when you dare to ask "how do I do any of that" there's at best a single sheet with programmer's notes.

 

[FreakinEurekan]

I don't know. In a casual context, using "theory" as a synonym for "guess" (an educated one) seems a lot more natural and less pretentious than saying "hypothesis" (again, in a casual/non-scientific context . . . obviously in the realm of science, "theory" has a much stricter definition, and maybe this is the only context you had in mind).

Natural, maybe. Wrong, certainly 😉

 

[FreakinEurekan]

Using "theory" as a substitute for "hypothesis."

Particularly in the context, “ONLY a theory” 😖

 

[polyphenol]

"Are you okay?" when asked by staff in a store/shop, almost invariably with a dead-eyed expression and in a bored tone.

Where I used to live, you could identify when the staff at a shop had been on a "customer care" course. They asked vacuous things like that and used the same phrases to everyone. Always, even when they tried to cover it up, totally bored.

Where I now live, it could be none of them has ever been trained in customer care. But they open their mouths and speak as ordinary humans - treating us as other ordinary humans - all trying to make the best of doing boring shopping in boring shops! Makes every visit an unpredictable ride - sometimes genuinely entertaining and involving.

Attitude counts for a lot. People treat each other much more even-handedly in general.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Where I used to live, you could identify when the staff at a shop had been on a "customer care" course. They asked vacuous things like that and used the same phrases to everyone. Always, even when they tried to cover it up, totally bored.

Where I now live, it could be none of them has ever been trained in customer care. But they open their mouths and speak as ordinary humans - treating us as other ordinary humans - all trying to make the best of doing boring shopping in boring shops! Makes every visit an unpredictable ride - sometimes genuinely entertaining and involving.

Attitude counts for a lot. People treat each other much more even-handedly in general.

My father - who also detested that expression - used to reply (when asked, in that terminally bored tone, by staff in a shop/store :"are you okay?") with "No, I'm not; I forgot to take my medicine today."

That reply invariably led to a startled response, and proper eye-contact (with a wary expression, for they weren't sure what this well-dressed, elderly, gentleman might say or do next); then, when he had their full, undivided attention, my father would proceed to ask - politely - for whatever had brought him into that enterprise in the first place.

 

[Matz]

I don't know. In a casual context, using "theory" as a synonym for "guess" (an educated one) seems a lot more natural and less pretentious than saying "hypothesis" (again, in a casual/non-scientific context . . . obviously in the realm of science, "theory" has a much stricter definition, and maybe this is the only context you had in mind).

It could be bias on my part, from having an undergrad degree in bio/chem coupled with way more English courses than the average science graduate takes, but I believe it's incorrect even in a nonscientific context. My hypothesis is that "theory" is used frequently in coversation because it rolls off the tongue more easily, and has fewer syllables than "hypothesis." It saddens me that using the correct word would seem pretentious, but here we are.