Things people say...
 

People have fillers or phrases that they use often and may not even be aware of. Some people may not notice them, but to others these verbal repetitions are annoying.

I had a student last year who constantly started his sentences with, "Actually, dontcha know,..." It took him forever to make a point. His moms were annoyed by it too and didn't know where he picked it up. When we'd talk we'd often joke about it and start our e-mails and conversations that way.

I recently started volunteering at a food pantry. The coordinator always says, "To tell the truth,..." when she is explaining how to do something.

What are phrases or words that drive you crazy?

A friend of mine uses "The thing is..." every time he makes a point.

Oh gee golly dontcha know!

http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/1356/bobmom.jpg


I get annoyed by the usually fillers, especially "like." You know, like, when someone, like, is trying to, like, explain something...

It annoys me in general, but I know that I am guilty of doing it as well. I say, "fair enough" in agreement more often than not. It annoys me, too, but I'm too lazy to put forth the effort to stop it.

What bother me the most I think is my ex saying thing, rather than the name of the actual object, feeling, or whatever it is he's referring to. Such as Im looking for that thing I attach my keys to or I like that thing your wearing (as if!) or Remember that thing...

Okay. Thats enough. Im starting to cringe.

I have a bunch of them that I use and I get annoyed when I catch myself using them.

I am trying to break the habit.

In college, I spent a lot of time in deep holes, telling backhoes where and how much to dig. Nearly everyone I worked with expressed agreement by saying "ya der ay-na-hey":

"Do you think it's gonna rain?"

"Ya dare ay-na-hey. Looks like rain."

It didn't drive me crazy, but it was odd.

Back in high school I had an English teacher who would start nearly every sentence with "Really, truly" - it drove me nuts!

Can you translate ay-na-hey into words? I'm having a hard time hearing it in my head. Or is it just a sound they make? :confused:

There's a very popular host on the Food Network that gets on my nerves with his constant "uhh"'s as he's talking. He speaks rather fast then goes "uh" and right back to his fast speaking. Maybe if he slowed down, he wouldn't be so freakin irritating!!
Me, I'm really trying to catch myself with "actually..."
The spouse can drone on and on about most anything. And he'll start out with "You know, that couple with the -insert car description and their names here-..." And then I'll say, "Nope. Don't know them", to which he starts insisting I do. ARGGH! Just get ON with it!!!

it was just a series of sounds they made. I'm not sure whether or not "ay-na-hey" represented words.

My first thought was "you're damn right is" or variants thereof.

i catch myself making a variety of different fillers and other annoying verbal sounds. it amazes me i can make my point at all, particularly professionally when i speak at meetings or conferences or the like. i've been told that i remind people of boomhauer from 'king of the hill,' so i cna only imagine what those poor sons of bitches have to endure when i'm trying to talk.

the worst i've observed is when i was helping to mentor a class of freshmen in their orientation class in college. they had to give a little personal history presentation for the rest of the class as a ice-breaker. at least half of them started every single sentence with "whenever i was..."

'and whenever i was 13, we moved to a fancy trailer with flamingos and everything. and then whenever i was 15, i started making love to my cousin in his 4x4 with the 36' swampers. and then whenever i was 17, i won the paintball championship for my church group. and then whenever i was 18, i started college.'

it drove me nuts.

I'm sorry man, that had to be extremely annoying. I don't know if I would be able to handle that!!!

"Yenum Sayun?"

No, actually I didn't catch most of that.

"To tell you the truth..." is one that I think people should do away with.

That, and "to be honest..." and "in fact...."

I see this everywhere in the writing I edit, too, so I spend a lot of time crossing them out.

Always assume people already believe you're telling the truth or that something you're saying is a fact, especially if you are indeed being truthful and it is a fact; otherwise, they might call it into question since you had pointed it out.

Seriously.

The only thing worse than the way most people speak is the way most people write.

Pfft. Trust me. I know. :expressionless:

It's mainly because most people try to write they way they speak but in a "writerly" fashion. The result is always clunky, to say the least.

ROFLCOPTER w/e bff umm like i dunno wut yer talkin bout

Internet "publishing" notwithstanding.

OMFG.... :shakehead:

A co-worker of mine frequently says "can't have nothin'". I think that it started as a "power to the black man" sort of a thing, but everyone I work with now uses the phrase - first to poke fun of him, but then it caught on. Good times.

It isn't so much a phrase as it is people who abbreviate words in conversation because they think it makes them sound "with it" or something like that. I'm talking about people who say things like, "vaycay" instead of vacation, "bro" instead of brother, "info" instead of information.

Not a phrase, but a word. I have friends that use "super" at least twice in every sentence. Example: "I was super tired today because I stayed out late last night, but it was super fun." I can't stand it!

I fucking hate that.

People who say "vaycay" should die a slow and painful death.

Love the Bobby's World reference!

.....................................

I HATE when people say, "No offense, but...."

Telling me that does not give you the ability to say something offensive to me, and not offend me. Sorry.

My mother in law often starts sentences with "You know what?", and I cringe when she does this, because it seems to be her way of saying "You don't know this. You should. I will tell you what you need to know".

i use the phrase..'thats alright' a lot in agreeance with someone at the end of a sentance.

it annoys the crap out of me and im trying to stop

Mine are: "So, let's see, look, anyways."

It has been brought to my attention that I often begin a question with, Can I ask you a question?

It now not only annoys others, but annoys me too. I am now on double duty, looking for it before it leaves me mouth.

I find myself saying 'very well' and 'very good' a lot when people ask me to do things.

And I say 'right' when agreeing with things. Particularly when I'm in a conversation that I find dull.

What I dislike more than anything else in other people's conversations, and it's already been mentioned before, is the use of the word 'like' interjected every other word in a sentence. I see this almost invariably every time I happen to catch a few minutes of one of those MTV reality shows. It makes my skin crawl.

I never realized how much I said "I understand" to people until I saw an episode of Two and a Half Men wherein Charlie explains to Jake that if you want to sound sympathetic to a woman, all you need to say is "I understand." Now every time I say it I do it with a tiny inner giggle.

I've always worked on trying to avoid certain repetitive phrases as my major in university required a lot of public speaking--plus, I'm just the kind of person that can't be quiet in class. :p The one that drives me crazy is "like." If I ever taught a class that required kids to speak on a subject, and one of them got up there and started saying "like" every other sentence, I would stop the speech. Of course, I would warn them of this beforehand. It was the policy of a couple of my high school teachers--"like" and too many "um"s were not to be tolerated.

Using "good" as an adverb grates me at times.

"Vacay," "preggers," etc. absolutely drive me NUTS. Is it really that hard to pronounce vacation and pregnant?

I know I use the phrase "yeah" a lot in email/IM. I need to stop. I also start sentences with "Oh," quite a bit in emails. Need to quit that, too.

Crompsin, when writing essays, tends to use the phrase "in that" more times than necessary. I find myself crossing it out every single time so that it won't appear in his papers at all. He also uses the phrase "hooda buddha" as a general noun. "I've got to go get the hooda buddha ready.." and it drives me crazy because I can't always figure out what noun he is actually referring to. :)

So I was walkin down the street, you know what I'm sayin'.... and I saw this lady down the block you know what I'm sayin'.. and she's like heyyyy honey.. and I'm like .. fuck no, lady.. you know what I'm sayin'?

I hate "you know what I'm sayin' or more commonly "yunowhaimsayin"

Adding to NGDAWG's Food Network annoyance, there's another host who when she finishes the meal and serves it to her friends, always says, "ok guys..." when she tells them what she's serving them. Despite the fact that they are more often than not, all women.

I think the reason why this bugs me so much is that she uses overly arched Italian pronounciations for her items. "OK guys, first we have (guttural) r-r-r-r COTE-ah on proe SHUTE oh, with a sauce of buy yan AIZ".

Last night, I was going down to the basement to get the swimsuits and towels out of the wash, hang up the swimsuits, and put the towels in the dryer. I start to tell this to my wife, and my verbal skills flee.

"I'm going to the basement to... um... to... ... ... verb the nouns."

I do this, too. ....well, yeah, oh....

Listening to this annoying woman almost gives me seizure like Kramer had when he heard Mary Hart. I HATE her voice.

It's glad to know that I'm not the only person who gets annoyed by certain words and phrases that are uttered.

merleniau, I used to begin my journals, e-mails, and posts with the word 'so'. I had to make an effort not to do it, but sometimes it still happens.

I'm not sure if it's annoying, but I'll say 'oh, yea, yea, yea' quickly. I think that it may come across rude as if I'm rushing the person.

I know that I used to say 'Good lands' and 'I'm just saying' a lot and it would drive JJ crazy. I'm happy to say that 'Good lands' is gone because I hate that phrase.

well .. as a person with a bunch of brits in the family.. "right" seems to follow everything

"So I'm walking in the yard right? Then I saw this car drive by.. right?"

:rolleyes:

That reminds of the Harry Potter books. I love them, but some of the slang just bugs the hell out of me. I'm sure 20 years after Potter kills Voldemort, kids won't still refer to making out as "snogging". And for some reason, Rowling added the phrase, "oi!" in the last book.

Actually , I do know what you are saying. Check post #14 :thumbsup:

the one that gets to me from Brits very often is the 'cheers'
always with the 'cheers'

hmm.. nobody around me says Cheers.. maybe it's region specific?

I say 'Homeboy' or 'Homegirl'


And not in that wanna be hip-hop way. "What's up homeboy?"


It's hard to explain.

I think most of us know you well enough that you don't need to explain why you use such words.


dork

perhaps.
the owner's of my daughter's daycare center are Brits as were the owners of the deli in the building I used to work in.
They all say 'cheers' frequently, as a way of saying thank you or goodbye...and it comes out so habitually, I thought maybe it was very common

I also say 'fuck all' instead of 'nothing' or 'none'


Most Americans don't understand.

Where are you getting your dialect from exactly? Or are you that pretentious? :orly:

Last I checked Denver was in America.

My wife is always faking you out with lists. Like she will be explaining something and say:

"A. She did such and such"

and then go on without there being a B, or C, or D point.

Some times she also mixes em up, like having a point A, followed by point 2.

Drives me nuts.

sometimes I say 'fuck' or 'motherfucker' instead of 'shit'

as an aussie, my british friends pointed out that i say "mate" all the time.

how you going mate?

what you been up to mate?

are you staying around for long mate?

maybe its an aussie thing.. but i refuse to drop this repetition just in case i lose my australian-ness.

at least ill never drop the "G'day mate"

At work, people will end their sentence with the word "so"

Example: "I need you to look at this printer because it is not working and I need to print off this document.soooo..."

"I had a pretty good weekend, but I had a few things to do and didn't have much time to relax..soooo."

"fuck all" is an awesome expression. I'm going to start using it more often.

I think "fuck all" has effectively replaced "jack shit."

That usage is common, I couldn't quite imagine it being used to end sentences though.

Speaking of annoying words added to the end of sentences, most Brits will recognise the completely unnecessary use of "innit" as a punctuation mark.

E.g: "So at the weekend, yeah, I went to see my brother, innit. He was in a crap mood, so we went to McDonalds, innit. Because whenever you're in a crap mood, you need a Happy Meal, innit."

Drives me absolutely spare, especially as a schoolteacher. I actually tell my students that use of "innit" at the end of their sentences causes me to take them approximately 90% less seriously.

This person at work does the complete opposite - they start each sentence with "so." It's really annoying. Some examples are:

Jane, why does IT need to be involved in this request?
"So, the reason why IT needs to be involved is because..."

and

Jane, how do you get to Raleigh from here?
"So, you take exit 419 to..."

I feel your pain!

I cannot stand:

1. Ebonics
2. Any type of internet or IM speak
3. Profanity

How many moms does this kid have?

I've read some absolutely gorgeous poetry in Jamaican patois.

Two.

and how many heads do they have? :oogle:

One head each. One gave birth and the other one is the partner. Geesh, I have to spell everything out. :p

i was being a smartass...imagine that :shy:

:surprised: You...

That's nice. Not really Ebonics is it?

If by Ebonics you mean the vernacular of various Black cultures, then yes.

Examples of Jamaican patois:
"Mi a-go lef today." --> "I am leaving today."
"Him is badda than dem." --> "He is worse than they are."

The thing with patois was it arose largely as an intentional simplification and undoing of the "proper" English of colonials. It's a dialect of subversion, which I'm assuming is the case for other varieties of Ebonics. But in the particular case of Jamaica, it's quite fascinating.

Maybe there is something more specific or a kind of Ebonics that you don't like?

"at the end of the day"

I don't know why this reminded me but my old boss used to always say 'in your heart of heart'. It grated my nerves.

As a media type, there are a few phrases that have always annoyed me.

Reporters love to say, "brandishing a gun" when someone points a gun a somebody, "the charred remains" of somebody who got burnt up, "suffice to say" when they're wrapping a point.

Speaking of the media, one phrase I HATE is "ripped through." As in, a bomb or explosion ripped through a bus, building, etc (ktspktsp and I read it a lot, given the whole Lebanon connection)... it's as if there's no other sentence in the English language for describing the activity of a bomb, it gets used so often.

For my part, I am guilty of the introductory phrase, "I mean..." for WAYYY too many sentences. I suppose it's my way of softening what I'm about to say, but I don't think it's really necessary. Really bad habit.

Hmmm....

Growing up in Minnesota, I used to hate the two most common idioms there: "oh yah?" and "yah sure." As in:

"I hear the Olesons just had a lutefisk party."
"Oh yah?"

or,

"Cold enough for you?"
"Yah sure!"

When I moved to California, I started hanging with surfers 24/7, partly because I liked surf culture, and partly to help me lose my Minnesota accent. Mission accomplished, but I now have permanent surferisms in my speech that I know irritate some people.... I call all guys "dude," and I know I shouldn't....

Suburban white kids who use ghetto slang irritate the crap out of me....

I work sometimes with a guy who deliberately uses 1940s slang, and that also irritates the crap out of me....

Interesting point Baraka. I suppose I think of Patois as dialect rather than as Ebonics, although one could argue that Ebonics is dialect. I do not like Ebonics for a couple of reasons:

1. I find it aurally displeasing (it grates on the ear)
2. It is associated with a particular culture I find abhorrent ("gangsta")
3. It really is bad English and intellectually lazy

But, since you mentioned poetry, for some reason, when it is used in this form, I rather like it. Spoken word for example. I also like Gwendolyn Brooks, though I'm not sure if those would be considered Ebonics.

Do you like Pidgin?

"The charred remains of tourists were found after a terrorist's bomb ripped through the bus. Several Disney World guards were spotted afterwards, brandishing a gun. Suffice to say, Goofy is dead."

hahaha, awesome. Now you just need a flashy graphic and tag line.

Today I was in a meeting and the presenter said "literally" 19 times in 20 minutes.

I'm guessing that he or she truly meant "literally" once, or maybe not at all?

"needless to say"

then don't say it.

Basically....