# Increasing incorrect usage of "That being said" **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 1, 2023, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915 "2023-08-01T12:39:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mattgg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@mattgg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mattgg)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/1 "2023-08-01T12:39:41Z")
I’ve noticed many people using the phrase “that being said” incorrectly over the last few years. Instead of meaning “in spite of what I’ve just said” or “contradictory to what I just said” I often hear it used to mean “I said some things and now I’m going to say something else.” Here’s an example. I was in a meeting this morning where someone ran through a list of new features in our product. When he was done he said “That being said, are there any questions?” Another - someone introducing a speaker at a conference gave a short bio of the speaker and said “That being said, please welcome our next speaker Jessica Jones”. “That being said” appears to be the new “without further ado”. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/2 "2023-08-01T12:46:25Z")
You’re spitting into the wind. That misusage is much more esoteric than the misuse of “Her and her friend will…” and “of John and I”. (Substitute the appropriate verb in the first example, and the appropriate noun in the second.) ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/3 "2023-08-01T12:55:19Z")
> [@mattgg](#): > > I’ve noticed many people using the phrase “that being said” incorrectly over the last few years. Instead of meaning “in spite of what I’ve just said” or “contradictory to what I just said” I often hear it used to mean “I said some things and now I’m going to say something else.” I can think of only one person I know who uses that phrase and, in fact, uses it almost every evening, and that is ABC7’s chief meteorologist, Cheryl Scott, who actually uses it correctly. Perhaps I’m not really paying attention and am missing it and its misuse. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/4 "2023-08-01T13:11:48Z")
That being said, I’m going to say something that doesn’t add to or support the prior statement. ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/5 "2023-08-01T13:22:14Z")
> [@mattgg](#): > > “That being said” appears to be the new “without further ado”. Ugh. And I cringe whenever I hear “without further ado,” because it’s basically a lame-ass way to say, “everything up until now has been a waste of your time.” (See also: “Last but not least.”) That being said, many people find speaking to even a small crowd intimidating and grasp at whatever professional-sounding cliche they can. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/6 "2023-08-01T13:38:35Z")
I think it’s far more convenient than saying “and now for my actual point, so if you were drifting off during the prior boring comments, get ready for _new unrelated_ boring comments!” ---
**Author:** ![mattgg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@mattgg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mattgg)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/7 "2023-08-01T17:45:53Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > You’re spitting into the wind. That misusage is much more esoteric than the misuse of “Her and her friend will…” and “of John and I”. (Substitute the appropriate verb in the first example, and the appropriate noun in the second.) My daughter says “Me and Jill are” instead of “Jill and I are”. She says that she does it because that’s how kids talk (she’s 20) and that she doesn’t do it when speaking to adults or in a setting where poor grammar would make her look bad (in class, at work, etc.). She doesn’t extend that courtesy to me even though I have asked her to. Kids suck, reason #138. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/8 "2023-08-01T18:14:45Z")
> [@mattgg](#): > > She says that she does it because that’s how kids talk (she’s 20) and that she doesn’t do it when speaking to adults I find myself slipping into dialect when speaking with, well, people who talk lak iss. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/9 "2023-08-01T23:50:59Z")
Professional writer and editor here. IMHO, your perception of the “correct” meaning of the phrase is not accurate, or is at least nowhere near universally accepted. Like “however,” it can be used to indicate a transition that implies a contrary viewpoint, but I don’t feel that it must _only_ be used that way. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/10 "2023-08-02T00:23:05Z")
The usage doesn’t bother me near as much as its pleonastic “being.” That said, I use it in the way the OP dislikes, myself. ---
**Author:** ![minlokwat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minlokwat/32/2844_2.png) [@minlokwat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minlokwat)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/11 "2023-08-02T00:28:05Z")
How about the new possessive use of “I’s” as in “My husband and I’s house is at end of a cul-de-sac.” I see this usage more and more and every time it gets a mental WTF? from me. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/12 "2023-08-02T00:34:15Z")
> [@Akaj](#): > > Ugh. And I cringe whenever I hear “without further ado,” because it’s basically a lame-ass way to say, “everything up until now has been a waste of your time.” I always interpret that to mean, “Okay, I’m done stalling.” ---
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/13 "2023-08-02T02:58:28Z")
That being said, irregardless for all intensive purposes it’s a mute point. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/14 "2023-08-02T05:49:03Z")
> [@Common\_Tater](#): > > That being said, irregardless for all intensive purposes it’s a mute point That perfectly jives with my thoughts as well. Literally. ---
**Author:** ![alovem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@alovem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alovem)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/15 "2023-08-02T10:05:12Z")
Out of curiosity, I Googled “that being said” + Cambridge, Oxford, Collins and Merriam-Webster, and found no first-page hits. It seems that none of those dictionaries include it. But Cambridge, and probably others, has an entry for “Having said that,” which I think @Dr.Drake has implied upthread with “that said.” The Cambridge definition is “despite what has just been said.” So, some people are using it wrong. It doesn’t bother me. What really gets on my tits is responding to “Do you mind…?” affirmatively when the person asked _doesn’t_ mind. It’s fine to add something like, “Yeah, go ahead” or “Yes, that’s fine.” Otherwise, for a one-word answer, the response should be negative. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/16 "2023-08-02T12:15:55Z")
> [@mattgg](#): > > My daughter says “Me and Jill are” instead of “Jill and I are”. She says that she does it because that’s how kids talk (she’s 20) That’s normal dialect for me, and I’m 48. Always has been. Non-standard? Sure. Do I know it’s non-standard? Of course–I have an English degree. Do I care? No. That being said, I do use both forms, but when I’m speaking extemporaneously I’m more likely to use “Me & X” unless I’m specifically monitoring my language in a formal situation. I think most adults could care less which form is used. (And, yes, there’s a non-standard idiomatic form there, too.) ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/17 "2023-08-02T12:21:39Z")
I know a couple of people who do this and it does bother me a tiny bit, because when they start their second topic, I always in the beginning try to find how it is in opposition to the first topic. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/18 "2023-08-02T14:18:48Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > … I always in the beginning try to find how it is in opposition to the first topic. It’s the same way a white shoe proves all ravens are black. If it’s not supporting the prior statement it is counter to it. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/19 "2023-08-02T15:00:31Z")
I blame list-style video content (‘10 Things You Totally Missed in Star Wars Prequels’); the script format for those types of media is very often: [Some waffle about the topic in general] “That being said” or “With that in mind” “here are 10 things…” ---
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2023, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915/20 "2023-08-02T16:42:20Z")
It’s a kind of synergy, leveraging our core competencies, gang. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/increasing-incorrect-usage-of-that-being-said/987915.md?page=2)