“Help me understand. . .”
This is NEVER followed by anything that will be pleasant for you to hear, so why sugarcoat things? Nobody ever says “Help me understand why you’re doing such a great job on this project.”
Well, I wouldn’t really want to hear that either! I’d interpret that as meaning they view me as incompetent generally.
I don’t see the big problem with “no problem” as a response to “thank you”. It’s very close to French “de rien” or Spanish “de nada”.
I remember not Sipowicz, but Kelly (David Caruso) saying that often in a quiet, meaningful low voice. Blechhh.
Does anybody know what the hell “left shift” is supposed to mean? One of my managers just used it in an email that would have been good for Buzzword Bingo.
In some contexts I could see it meaning making the project deadlines earlier, since it would be to the left on an MS Project file.
Non-starter.
Holy cats, I came back here to mention this one and I can’t believe I didn’t include it in my earlier post. Somehow this abomination got stuck in a coworker’s head and he says it all the freaking time. That is when he’s not sarcastically saying “glorious”.
Another one I hope goes away soon is “nailed it”. Somehow I associate it with that ginger haired chick on the Wendy’s commercials though I’m not sure she actually says it. Either way, it and she can fuck right off.
This hadn’t been on my radar until I saw the new Rocky movie the other day. In one scene, the young boxer’s lady friend asks him “How many females have you been with?” Seems rather. . .clinical; she may as well have been asking him “how many bitches has your rottweiler copulated with?”
It’s exactly that, clinical, distancing, and objectifying. My earliest encounter with it was with police jargon. “Young, black males,” and all that. These days, “females” is very common with PUA and MRA types.
Bestie
Many things in this thread are buzzwordy/connotation has changed/people like to shorten phrases. Some are irritating or goofy. But I shrug them off. People are just peopling.
‘Revert’ instead of reply or respond? I may have to go on some sort of…my brain just shut down. I will need to go meditate or do deep breathing exercises.
“Peopling”
ok that was just plain mean. (putative thumbs up emoji)
This phrase has been around for a long time, generally considered bothersome (completely unlike this poster), but I think it’s…yes…totally amazing:
I shit you not.
This wins the thread.
Not ‘trendy’ (come to think of it, I’ve never been on close terms with ‘trendy’), but…
“Look at” in any kind of professional report. “Next, our study group looked at [some vague, incomprehensible, and probably completely irrelevant collection of words put together]. We didn’t have the courage or ability to come to any actual conclusions about it, but we do need to pad our report, so we thought that we’d spend a bunch of words saying that we looked at it.”
“Send a message” in politics speak. It just sounds so effing pretentious. Hey, anyone you’re trying to send a message to is never going to receive it.
bothersome in sports speak also.
I am always amazed at the lengths people will go to to find something supposedly offensive in a common word.
Well, I don’t know if it’s “offensive,” but it certainly has always sounded odd to my ears if I heard someone say “let’s go to the bar and check out some females” instead of using the word “women” at the end. Definitely has a clinical vibe to it.
Thank you for this one. I hate “send a message” in any context. The statement itself, whatever it is, sends its own message. Period. Piggybacking another message on that is… to get technical: ICKY.
I learned of that quote from the podcast A Way With Words which is like an Ann Landers column for language but far more interesting.