Phrases/words that set your teeth on edge.

[Beef Oven!]

This.

[ahinton]

More in the way of rain...

If only...

[alycidon]

I don't know if this has already been covered, and I am certainly not going to trawl through 85 pages to see if it has been, but if I hear another presenter say 'final destination' I shall go barmy.

Finality is implicit in the word destination, so why all these final destinations? Chris Tarrant says it, as does Alexander Armstrong, as does Julia Bradbury, as does..........................pah!

[jean]

But it's possible to have intermediate destinations.

[Beef Oven!]

I don't know if this has already been covered, and I am certainly not going to trawl through 85 pages to see if it has been, but if I hear another presenter say 'final destination' I shall go barmy.

Finality is implicit in the word destination, so why all these final destinations? Chris Tarrant says it, as does Alexander Armstrong, as does Julia Bradbury, as does..........................pah!

It may or may not have been mentioned before, but if so, no harm in returning back to it.

[Serial_Apologist]

I can't remember if I've raised this one, but "keeping options open", a phrase frequently used by politicians and corporate bosses, is surely tautological, isn't it? If options were closed, they wouldn't be options, would they?

[jean]

So what would you say instead?

[alycidon]

But it's possible to have intermediate destinations.

Well, yes. I suppose it is. And for that matter, a presenter who has a different destination each evening, could well say that on his last evening he will reach his final destination. It is a moot point, but it has become very cliched (clee-shayed) of late, and they shouldn't say it so much. IMHO.

[Serial_Apologist]

So what would you say instead?

Hmm. I'll keep my options on that one, if you don't mind, jean.

[jean]

Sounds wrong.

You don't keep options, you exercise them.

Probably best to say that you wish to continue to have the opportunuity of exercising your options available to you.

[Serial_Apologist]

Sounds wrong.

You don't keep options, you exercise them.

Probably best to say that you wish to continue to have the opportunuity of exercising your options available to you.

If options are the same as choices, (big IF), it doesn't sound somehow right to be exercising either. Exercising one's right to choose, or one's rights, yes, I can see that, because it implies an initial physical step, preconditional to choice itself, such as campaigning or demonstrating.

[Lat-Literal]

If options are the same as choices, (big IF), it doesn't sound somehow right to be exercising either. Exercising one's right to choose, or one's rights, yes, I can see that, because it implies an initial physical step, preconditional to choice itself, such as campaigning or demonstrating.

Are all the options being kept on the table?

[jean]

If options are the same as choices, (big IF), it doesn't sound somehow right to be exercising either...

People do, though.

[ahinton]

People do, though.

"You now have a menu of options"...

[Lat-Literal]

"You now have a menu of options"...

Presumably nothing is ruled in and nothing is ruled out?



Also, does anyone know the correct pronunciation of/for (?) 'emoticon'?

And what would be the word for:

(a) an excessive use of emoticons

and

(b) a liking of using emoticons in an excessive way?

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