# Most overused word these days? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 9, 2007, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233 "2007-01-09T00:54:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Controvert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@The\_Controvert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Controvert)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/1 "2007-01-09T00:54:01Z")
For a while, it was “paradigm”. Now, I hear “challenge” way too much. People use it to put a positive spin on loathesome chores and gruntwork. But it’s obvious and grates on my ears. ---
**Author:** ![According\_to\_Pliny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e7dd6/32.png) [@According\_to\_Pliny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/According_to_Pliny)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/2 "2007-01-09T01:02:42Z")
If you watch the home improvement shows on any of five channels, they use the word “pop” twice in each episode. “Those colorful accents make the room pop.” ---
**Author:** ![brendon\_small](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brendon_small/32/17101_2.png) [@brendon\_small](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brendon_small)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/3 "2007-01-09T01:03:41Z")
I think another overused word is “random” - mostly because it is used wrong. I hate to hear people describe things as random that are actually not the least bit a random occurance. I think it is worse when people pick that as a word to describe themselves. There are so many more descriptive words…choose a better one… Brendon ---
**Author:** ![noblebaron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e274bd/32.png) [@noblebaron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/noblebaron)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/4 "2007-01-09T01:06:53Z")
Like, definitely. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/5 "2007-01-09T01:08:28Z")
Proactive is still running strongly in this neck of the woods. ---
**Author:** ![Squeaker\_Snow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Squeaker\_Snow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squeaker_Snow)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/6 "2007-01-09T02:05:13Z")
[QUOTE=The Controvert] For a while, it was “paradigm”. Now, I hear “challenge” way too much. People use it to put a positive spin on loathesome chores and gruntwork. But it’s obvious and grates on my ears. [/QUOTE] “Basically.” Jeez, Louise…if I had the power to take that word out of circulation, I don’t think most of the people I work with would know what to do. ---
**Author:** ![Llama\_Llogophile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@Llama\_Llogophile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Llama_Llogophile)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/7 "2007-01-09T02:05:47Z")
Surge ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/8 "2007-01-09T02:14:33Z")
you can’t really shift your paradigm without leveraging your synergies. Just be proactive about creating win-win scenarios with a top-down approach. ---
**Author:** ![Caridwen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c89c15/32.png) [@Caridwen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caridwen)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/9 "2007-01-09T02:15:29Z")
Awesome ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/10 "2007-01-09T02:23:07Z")
The. ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/11 "2007-01-09T02:29:01Z")
“Ultimate.” It’s _everywhere._ Absolutely everything is the “ultimate” something. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/12 "2007-01-09T02:37:39Z")
[QUOTE=Squeaker Snow] “Basically.” Jeez, Louise…if I had the power to take that word out of circulation, I don’t think most of the people I work with would know what to do. [/QUOTE] In the trashy fun novel [The Coyote Kings in the Space-Age Bachelor Pad](http://www.amazon.com/Coyote-Kings-Space-Age-Bachelor-Pad/dp/0345466357), there’s a villain who uses “basically” in basically every sentence. He basically thinks it makes him sound smarter, and I thought it was basically hilarious. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/13 "2007-01-09T02:40:30Z")
Whatever. ---
**Author:** ![pokey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ebca7d/32.png) [@pokey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pokey)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/14 "2007-01-09T02:51:23Z")
I would like people to stop saying “sweet.” ---
**Author:** ![blinkingblinking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@blinkingblinking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blinkingblinking)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/15 "2007-01-09T02:53:18Z")
‘yourself’ ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/16 "2007-01-09T02:55:32Z")
Amazing ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/17 "2007-01-09T03:24:33Z")
Like, seconded. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/18 "2007-01-09T03:44:16Z")
[QUOTE=Caridwen] Awesome [/QUOTE] That is _so_ yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/19 "2007-01-09T03:44:32Z")
Extreme. ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2007, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233/20 "2007-01-09T04:01:22Z")
[QUOTE=brendon\_small] I think another overused word is “random” - mostly because it is used wrong. I hate to hear people describe things as random that are actually not the least bit a random occurance. I think it is worse when people pick that as a word to describe themselves. There are so many more descriptive words…choose a better one… Brendon [/QUOTE] People still say this? In my youth, it was synonymous with “bizarre” or unusual." Which made absolutely no sense. As in, “Then he started singing a Britney Spears song on the table. He’s so random!” Ugh. Reminds me of the 90s version of the Valley Girl. (In the interests of full disclosure, I was called “random” a few times. First time it was cute. Third time, I had the urge to smash a dictionary in the randomee’s grill.) If you want to OD on cliches and hackneyed words, watch an episode of _The Apprentice._ I heard “think outside the box,” “synergy,” “step up,” and countless other scrapings of corporate-speak umpteen times in the first several minutes. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/most-overused-word-these-days/387233.md?page=2)