Phrases/words that set your teeth on edge.

[clive heath]

forgive me if in the previous 44 pages this has been done, but,
"absolutely"
as a response to an interviewer who has just put a question and the answer to an interviewee.

p.s. no reference at all to the single word post on the page 43

[ahinton]

Every sodding pub website has a chef who's "passionate" about "sourcing" the best local produce.

I don't have a problem with this other than its overuse and, let's face it, if we slam too many words and phrases purely on the grounds of irritation arising from such overuse, we could run the risk of substantially depleting our acceptable/usable language (as I seem to recall mentioning upthread)!

[Serial_Apologist]

I don't have a problem with this other than its overuse and, let's face it, if we slam too many words and phrases purely on the grounds of irritation arising from such overuse, we could run the risk of substantially depleting our acceptable/usable language (as I seem to recall mentioning upthread)!

Absolutely!

[Nick Armstrong]

In a news broadcast: "Today, the ************ Secretary will say...."

News broadcasts read increasingly like clairvoyance.... In reality, of course, they are lazily written from press releases, anticipating events and rendering the events themselves almost superfluous.

I want to know something has happened before I hear about it on the news

[Pikaia]

Two words I find ugly are "societal" and "doable". What's wrong with "social" and "possible"?

[ahinton]

In a news broadcast: "Today, the ************ Secretary will say...."

News broadcasts read increasingly like clairvoyance.... In reality, of course, they are lazily written from press releases, anticipating events and rendering the events themselves almost superfluous.

I want to know something has happened before I hear about it on the news

And well you might, but don't forget that, in our age of not only the internet but also drones and all manner of other devices designed for the purpose of snooping upon all and sundry, we have probably already gotten to the point at which the thoughts of anyone considered broadcastable have not only been stolen, recorded and distributed to broadcasters in advance of their actual public utterance but also anticipated by spying on the brains of those whilst in the process of formulating them.

[Zauberfloete]

"You guys". I'm not a guy, thank you very much.

"Absolutely!" What's wrong with "Yes"?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

"Absolutely!" What's wrong with "Yes"?

Oh, absolute ... err ...

[MrGongGong]

"You guys". I'm not a guy, thank you very much.

"Absolutely!" What's wrong with "Yes"?

It doesn't mean the same thing

[Zauberfloete]

No, it doesn't, but people use it in the wrong context. Wish I'd not bothered now!!

[french frank]

It doesn't mean the same thing

Mmmmm? They both mean, 'Affirmative'. Except, of course, 'absolutely' may or may not indicate 'strongly affirmative' and Yes can mean a rock group. Those would be very different connotations.

(Hello Z'floete - and welcome!)

[MrGongGong]

Mmmmm? They both mean, 'Affirmative'. Except, of course, 'absolutely' may or may not indicate 'strongly affirmative' and Yes can mean a rock group. Those are very different connotations.

(Hello Z'floete - and welcome!)

I'm NOT the linguist you are FF
but surely they don't mean "Affirmative" because "Affirmative" means that

[MickyD]

The expression "Welcome back!" said by presenters at the start of part two of a programme after a commercial break. We haven't gone anywhere, they were the ones who left!

To hear that something has been "gifted" or "trialled" also makes me cringe.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

"You guys". I'm not a guy, thank you very much.

I agree with you 100%. It's become a dumbed-down way of speaking to a class of children by teachers who are trying to sound cool and matey.

[french frank]

I'm NOT the linguist you are FF
but surely they don't mean "Affirmative" because "Affirmative" means that

Sorry?

From the OED:

"Asserting that a fact is as stated or perceived; declaring what exists; expressing a positive response". I agree all those would be represented by 'affirmative'; and that 'absolutely' and 'yes' would be covered by that.

'Absolutely', of course, has other meanings (deriving from 'absolute') but I assumed that those wouldn't be the ones that set anyone's teeth on edge.