# Stupid phrases that must die! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 11, 2002, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011 "2002-04-11T10:17:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2002, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/61 "2002-04-15T15:52:58Z")
Woah! I swear t o Jeebus that I only hit “Submit” once! ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2002, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/62 "2002-04-15T16:01:51Z")
**"My bad."** :mad: What kind of stupid baby talk is that? ---
**Author:** ![Infectious\_Lass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e56c9b/32.png) [@Infectious\_Lass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infectious_Lass)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2002, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/63 "2002-04-15T17:54:55Z")
The foulest phrase in the English language is, without a doubt, that most vile of abominations- ‘At the end of the day’ People in England say it a lot. Listening to radio phone ins, you hear people who say it about 6 times per sentence…“at the end of the day we went home and you know its all very interesting at the end of the day and I like to eat pie at the end of the day and at the end of the day we all like pie and the Albanian economy is very Albanian at the end of the day and at the end of the day criminals should be kept in dog kennels blah blah” I hate hate hate that bloody phrase! The only time that anyone should ever utter this phrase is if they are literally talking about something that they did at the end of the bloody day! Not as some crappy interjection that means god knows what-I’m too urinated off to try and think of it even! My boyfriend even says it. :mad: Agh! I only found out he said it sometimes after we were going out! He always gets \*very \* sharply corrected needless to say. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2002, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/64 "2002-04-15T18:36:41Z")
Princhester: Obviously both phrases are used to suggest that two options are both desireable and mutually exclusive, so your comment about chocolate and mustard pudding is both disgusting and invalid. Now, what does ‘have’ mean in “You can’t have your cake and eat it too”? It seems to me that having a cake in this context means putting it on display so it can be admired. This way, the phrase at least makes some minute quantity of sense. If ‘have’ simply means ‘possess’ - you know, the way it usually does - then the phrase suggests a cake wrapped up and left on the counter, or in the fridge, or somewhere nonspecial. In this case, what’s the point of keeping the cake around until it rots? You don’t get any pleasure out of the cake this way. Furthermore, ‘have’ can also mean ‘eat’, as in, “Waiter, I’ll have a piece of cake for dessert.” So go :wally yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2002, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/65 "2002-04-15T22:55:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mersavets \* > \*\*You idiot. God I want to change my location now that I’ve read that and seen where you are from. \*\* It’s OK, surely. I mean we all know what people from Brisbane are like, don’t we? You sophisticated Melbournites disowned us all long ago, didn’t you? Sorry to be breathing the same air, I’ll try holding my breath, but I’m not making any promises that I’ll be able to keep it up for an extended length of time. And by the way, what exactly is your complaint? You idiot. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2002, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/66 "2002-04-15T23:09:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sturmhauke \* > \*\*Princhester: Obviously both phrases are used to suggest that two options are both desireable and mutually exclusive, so your comment about chocolate and mustard pudding is both disgusting and invalid. Now, what does ‘have’ mean in “You can’t have your cake and eat it too”? It seems to me that having a cake in this context means putting it on display so it can be admired. This way, the phrase at least makes some minute quantity of sense. If ‘have’ simply means ‘possess’ - you know, the way it usually does - then the phrase suggests a cake wrapped up and left on the counter, or in the fridge, or somewhere nonspecial. In this case, what’s the point of keeping the cake around until it rots? You don’t get any pleasure out of the cake this way. Furthermore, ‘have’ can also mean ‘eat’, as in, “Waiter, I’ll have a piece of cake for dessert.” > > So go :wally yourself. \*\* Yes but if “have” means “possess” as you suggest (and I don’t disagree) the point of the phrase could be that you cannot “have” the cake to eat later and at the same time eat it now. Your thing about wrapping it up or using it as a centerpiece etc is just your own peculiar take on the phrase. And besides which, my post was supposed to be silly and over the top, and this is the BBQ Pit. So are we going to swear outrageously and engage in over-the-top hyperbole, or are we going to enter into a Great Debate? We can’t have it both ways. ---
**Author:** ![Annie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/858c86/32.png) [@Annie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/67 "2002-04-16T04:54:31Z")
Ya know, once upon a time-like, back in 1987- we had people known as writers. Or students, or architects, managers, or lawyers. I must have missed it when these activities stopped being done by humans, because yesterday I flip the radio to NPR and one of the writers of _This is Spinal Tap_ is on saying "The writer function in movies is now done in the editing room. " (rough quote. I’m too pooped to look it up) The writer function, the builder function. Ack! GW Bush performs the leader function. OK, that last one makes sense 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/68 "2002-04-16T05:01:27Z")
Ummm, but I think the person you quote’s point is that there is precisely that there is now no writer, the story is now effectively written in the editing room. Which is precisely why they refer to “the writer function” not to a writer. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/69 "2002-04-16T05:07:32Z")
Hmmm, perhaps precisely one too many “is”, “that” and “there” in my last post. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/70 "2002-04-16T05:20:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Annie \* > \*\*The writer function, the builder function. Ack! GW Bush performs the leader function. > > OK, that last one makes sense > \*\* Since when? ---
**Author:** ![Largo62](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/45deac/32.png) [@Largo62](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Largo62)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/71 "2002-04-16T06:24:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Podkayne \* > \*\*Woah! I swear t o Jeebus that I only hit “Submit” once! \*\* Like you only meant to say WRONG once…instead of **SEVEN FREAKING TIMES!!!?** 😉 Back to the OP: When someone wants to try something out to see whether it works or not, let him say so. But if I hear someone say, “Let’s run it up the flagpole and see who salutes” one more time I’ll seriously consider running that flagpole up his ass! And, as to whether anyone salutes, I COULDN’T CARE LESS. Because if I _could_ care less it would mean I do care some…AND I DON’T so why would I indicate by English words that I do in any freaking degree whatsoever? So there! Have I put THAT idiocy to rest? Gawd! I’m out of breath! Maybe I _should_ lose a hundred pounds. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/72 "2002-04-16T07:12:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Princhester \* > \*\*So are we going to swear outrageously and engage in over-the-top hyperbole, or are we going to enter into a Great Debate? > > We can’t have it both ways. \*\* Oh, well in that case… I could care less about your flying rat’s ass function. So let’s run your :wally up the flagpole and see if it salutes then. Bwonggggggggg! ---
**Author:** ![iconoplast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3d9bf3/32.png) [@iconoplast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iconoplast)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/73 "2002-04-16T07:32:28Z")
> [@](#): > > “Going forward…” Well, THAT"S refreshing. For a moment there I thought Mr. Peabody was in the closet with the WayBack machine. And, you know, we’d be going backward. Ahem. \"…forwards, not backwards, upwards, not downwards, and slowly twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom…"\ As for running things up the flagpole to see who salutes, I’ve always liked that one, but only because it sounds **incredibly** dirty to me. ---
**Author:** ![SkorpKing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@SkorpKing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkorpKing)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/74 "2002-04-16T07:48:23Z")
How about, WAASSSUUUP!!..Excuse me for being a little peeved about his one, but it got old really fast. As a matter of fact I didn’t particularly like it when it started. It pretty much encompases the entire outlook of goofy ass kids. Believe it or not I’m 21 and I do not profess to be higher in status or personality than anyone else, but come on, how juvenille can one be? Everytime I hear one of my friends say that mind numbing rediculous word or whatever the hell it is, I tell them how retarded they sound… this usually preceeds many minutes if not hours of more nerve racking LOUDER "WAAASSSUUPP"s. Directly followed by roaring laughter…maybe it is just me.😕 :mad: ---
**Author:** ![iconoplast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3d9bf3/32.png) [@iconoplast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iconoplast)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/75 "2002-04-16T08:00:32Z")
I’ll second what **SkorpKing** said. My fucking DAD does that. Beyond annoying. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/76 "2002-04-16T10:02:44Z")
Or even better, there’s **WAAASSSAAAA** [sub]bi[/sub]. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/77 "2002-04-16T10:15:39Z")
> [@](#): > > We all know what these sayings are supposed to mean, but their actual meaning leaves much to be desired: “Leaves much to be desired” must die. ---
**Author:** ![ninevah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/46a35a/32.png) [@ninevah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ninevah)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2002, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/78 "2002-04-16T10:17:51Z")
I’ve always wondered about these Americanisms: 1. Anywho 2. Alright Already. I mean, what’s the story there?! ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2002, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/79 "2002-04-17T13:57:25Z")
I’ve found that the cure for old, tired, over-used phrases is to mangle them and use them with a straight face, without letting on that you’re mangling them on purpose. Some of my favourites; “Well, we’ll jump off that bridge when we get to it.” and “That’s the way the cookie bounces.” Sometimes, when I get inspired, I might mash three sayings into one. “No use crying over spilled bouncing cookies.” ---
**Author:** ![super\_head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@super\_head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/super_head)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2002, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011/80 "2002-04-17T15:15:56Z")
Not so much a stupid phrase, as the way a phrase is spoken. I hate it when people, oh, like **Ogre** , say the phrase “Yeah, it is” with the intonation with which one would say “No, it isn’t” - beyond annoying when the words don’t match the conventional intonation. But other than that, **Ogre** ’s pretty cool. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-phrases-that-must-die/103011.md?page=5)