What phrase really annoys you?
What phrase really annoys you?
Either online or IRL. For me it's "chefs kiss" there's nothing wrong with it but for no reason it grinds my gears
"Could care less" really irks me lol. Like, if you just stop and think about it it makes no sense? If you could potentially care less about a topic that means you must care at least somewhat in the first place?
That annoys me too. Couldn't you mean couldn't!!!
I just overheard someone describe how their friend was "demolitioning" her house.
So, yeah, that.
Pedantic as hell but when someone uses decimated wrong, folks want it to mean annihilated but it doesn't
Decimate
/dĕs′ə-māt″/- To inflict great destruction upon
What's the issue?
Not the person you replied to, but I'm guessing that they're a stickler for the original meaning, which is "to reduce by a 10th", hence the "deci" in decimate. It comes from a military discipline practice that could only have been invented by the Romans. The force to be punished is divided into groups of 10, and each group is given a bag containing 9 white pebbles and one black pebble. They each take turns reaching into the bag blindly and grabbing a pebble. The people with the white pebbles are then each given a cudgel and ordered to bludgeon the poor bastard with the black pebble to death, hence reducing their overall numbers by a tenth, or decimating them.
The issue is that this second definition is another tragic loss to ignorance that led us to literally have no way to refer to things literally any longer: prolonged misuse (@elbucho@lemmy.world ably explained the proper use) has led to another vague word that used to have a precise meaning.
fuck around and find out… people just think they sound so goddamned cool when they say it. it’s the worst.
I have recently started appreciating this, mostly as a shorter form for the scientific process - f around (perform the experiment) -> find out (record observations) does notexactly cover the 5 steps, but is short enough to conway the gist
To be fair, it's shorter and punchier than "play stupid games, win stupid prizes".
When people "speak to" a topic. Just say "about".
“Just sayn’!”
what the fuck does that even MEAN.
Would it surprise you to learn that Fox News had a segment called Just Sayin' a while back? It was basically the usual shithead pundits oversimplifying an issue and having a half-assed "hot take comment" typical of the ones one would find on fox news.
what the fuck does that even MEAN.
It's a cop-out phrase most frequently used by people want to deflect consequences for stated opinions (usually hateful or stupid) or to deliver veiled insults without accountability.
"To be honest..." / "If I'm being honest..."
So, what, you're normally lying?
"It is what it is"
A tautology is a tautology.
"Tell me how you really feel" (said after you share a harsh opinion on someone / something)
Didn't I just do that?
"I'll hold down the fort"
Why? Is it threatening to float away?
I'll admit that last one is a bit David Mitchellian.
"Burglarize."
A "burglar" is called such because they "burgle".
It's already a verb. You turned it into a noun. Then you turned that noun back into a verb. What the Hell is wrong with you!?
"all but" is the single most unnecessary phrase. It is confusing to non English speakers since it means the opposite of what the parts mean ("everything except"), it flows weird, and you can just remove that phrase and get the same meaning from the sentence. I see it all the time in journalism and it feels like it only exists to hit a word count.
"not gonna lie..." So does that mean you actually lie most of the time unless you notify people??? "you got this!" That is the most low self-esteem encouragement ever. No Bridgett, you don't got this, your going to mess it up like you always do.
All of a/the sudden. Means the same thing as 'suddenly' and doesn't flow right
It sounds contrived. That's why it irritates me anyway lol
I feel the same way about the term "dead ass"... It just sounds like someone's trying too hard for some reason
“No notes” “Adulting”
Basically everything that Redditors say.
"Toot sweet."
Learn French toot sweet or stop using what sounds French to your ignorant ears. (Replace French with every other language you don't know but think you're using.)
Based.
Fucking useless word.
No no when talking about taboos or faux pas. Talk like an adult.
Euphemisms and bowdlerisms. For example, don't say "heck" or "darn". Either have the faux-courage it takes to say "Hell" and "damn" or reformulate.
Also, stop eliding words. F__ you if you think somehow invoking a specific word while pretending you didn't type it fooled anybody.
“What I’m saying is… is that the Earth is only roundISH.
Why do so many people insert an extra IS ?
There's no way they can be called out, they said ish! They didn't say x! They said x-ish!
“Lost in the sauce” is one I can think of right away. Like are you five?