# Verbal filler that are just the worst. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 30, 2017, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121 "2017-08-30T18:53:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/81 "2017-09-03T03:11:34Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > Dickens was making fun of its misuse as a verbal tic 170 years ago: The character seems prone to throw in “in fact” everywhere as a verbal tic. This is not the same as beginning an observation with "The fact of the matter is … " when that actually has a meaningful purpose, although like everything else, it’s subject to abuse. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/82 "2017-09-03T03:57:45Z")
Has “nome sane” run its course? I don’t hear it much anymore. ---
**Author:** ![movingfinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@movingfinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/movingfinger)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/83 "2017-09-03T06:01:00Z")
I guess “I know…right?” is sort of clear; but "Yeah…no."Is irritating. (I hear you, but you are wrong.) ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/84 "2017-09-03T06:39:16Z")
When someone is leading a group in prayer and they say “just” 7,000 times per minute. " . . . and Lord we just, we just thank You, and we just praise your name, and we just thank you for sending us your son Jesus and for all our many blessings . . ." I have a little list. These are not gatherings for which I have a hefty tolerance to begin with. Do not test me further. And that goes double for whatever nimnoll thinks it’s a good idea to keep asking these twits to lead the prayer. Becky Clearly Has Nothing to Say ! ! ! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2017, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/85 "2017-09-03T12:08:24Z")
Quoting myself for context … > [@LSLGuy](#): > > … > … > I sometimes use “I was going to say …”. > > What I’m indicating is that I’d already assembled my little presentation before you called on me. So I’m not so much responding to whatever you just said moments ago as I am offering my more complete, thoughtful comments that I’ve lovingly assembled since the last time I said something. > > IOW, it means: “I see your silly intro and raise you a well thought-out detailed response.” Which of course \*really \*means: “I’m a tiresome windbag paying no attention to anything but the sound of my own voice in my head. Which I’ll now subject you to out loud.” > Hmm. Maybe I should stop saying that. 🙂 > … Last night while lying awake in bed I was having an imaginary convo in my head with an imaginary generic boss over some imaginary screw-up when I found my “me” character starting a response with “I was going to say …” or “I would say …” I suddenly realized that what I was actually trying to signify was something close to a third person perspective. IOW “I am the person about to say these words, but you should consider them the unbiased comments of a disinterested third party observer, not the (probably self-serving biased) statements of myself about myself as a principal in this event we’re discussing.” It now occurs to me that that’s probably not a very effective debating strategy either. I’ve got some retraining to do. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/86 "2017-09-04T00:25:20Z")
I have a friend who starts many of his sentences with, “At any rate…” It kinda bugs me but not enough to be annoyed. I just notice it because he does it so often. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/87 "2017-09-04T00:43:04Z")
I’m waiting for you guys to bring up the word that really irritates me: guys, as in “you guys”. You hear it all the time and it’s so unnecessary. When I hear someone say “you guys” I mentally back up and take “guys” out of the sentence and it still makes sense: “Do you guys want to get some beer?” ==\> “Do you want to get some beer?” “This is something you guys will like” ==\> “This is something you will like” “You guys should come to the party!” ==\> “You should come to the party” So, are you guys with me on this? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/88 "2017-09-04T00:52:51Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > I’m waiting for you guys to bring up the word that really irritates me: guys, as in “you guys”. You hear it all the time and it’s so unnecessary. When I hear someone say “you guys” I mentally back up and take “guys” out of the sentence and it still makes sense: > > “Do you guys want to get some beer?” ==\> “Do you want to get some beer?” > “This is something you guys will like” ==\> “This is something you will like” > “You guys should come to the party!” ==\> “You should come to the party” > > So, are you guys with me on this? Not really, but no biggie; “guys” includes an entire group without having to make eye contact with each one to confirm they all got the message. Or something. The bigger pain is using “guys” to include the women. I try to use “folks” instead, but I sound like a hick; it comes out “fokes.” ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/89 "2017-09-04T03:27:39Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > I’m waiting for you guys to bring up the word that really irritates me: guys, as in “you guys”. You hear it all the time and it’s so unnecessary. When I hear someone say “you guys” I mentally back up and take “guys” out of the sentence and it still makes sense: > > “Do you guys want to get some beer?” ==\> “Do you want to get some beer?” > “This is something you guys will like” ==\> “This is something you will like” > “You guys should come to the party!” ==\> “You should come to the party” > > So, are you guys with me on this? What annoys me is some guy on the tube hawking little gizmos, and calling them guys. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/90 "2017-09-04T14:44:57Z")
I hear “y’all” used as filler in the South a lot. While I find it amusing, I know people who are really, really unhappy about this. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/91 "2017-09-05T15:46:26Z")
A very entertaining excerpt [here](https://books.google.com/books?id=VpzPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA9&lpg=PA9&dq=penrod+and+sam+for+the+main+and+simple+reason&source=bl&ots=4-fuy8c3x0&sig=BVOZu7uCEKaP6wJJStjDfzTEOQQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjU7ejIsI7WAhUC22MKHeEDBdEQ6AEIKzAB#v=onepage&q=penrod%20and%20sam%20for%20the%20main%20and%20simple%20reason&f=false) from Booth Tarkington’s _Penrod and Sam_, in which a bad thing befalls Penrod for the main and simple reason that he overdoes it with the verbal filler. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/92 "2017-09-05T21:52:40Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I usually ignore them, but way back in high school I had a Spanish teacher whose tic was unusual enough that I couldn’t help noticing it. Again. > > “So again,” she’d say, “If you’re conjugating a verb in the subjunctive, then again you’ll want to use these endings. Again there are a lot more times you use the subjunctive than in English.” > > I once counted over 60 filler agains in a 50-minute lesson. This is the one that gets me. I ride a commuter train. The conductor comes on and makes an announcement. Then repeats it: “Again, the next stop is…” And then repeats it once more: “Again, the next stop is…” I’m in the quiet car ferchrissake. Say what you need to say and then shut your trap! ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/93 "2017-09-05T22:00:44Z")
> [@divemaster](#): > > This is the one that gets me. I ride a commuter train. The conductor comes on and makes an announcement. Then repeats it: “Again, the next stop is…” And then repeats it once more: “Again, the next stop is…” > > I’m in the quiet car ferchrissake. Say what you need to say and then shut your trap! Imagine having every stop announced in two languages with the only difference in the VAST majority of cases being “and” versus “et.”. “Carling and March.” "Carling et “March.” Hey, I get it but… Sent from my XT1635-02 using Tapatalk ---
**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:** [September 5, 2017, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/94 "2017-09-05T22:17:35Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > I’m waiting for you guys to bring up the word that really irritates me: guys, as in “you guys”. You hear it all the time and it’s so unnecessary. When I hear someone say “you guys” I mentally back up and take “guys” out of the sentence and it still makes sense: > > “Do you guys want to get some beer?” ==\> “Do you want to get some beer?” > “This is something you guys will like” ==\> “This is something you will like” > “You guys should come to the party!” ==\> “You should come to the party” > > So, are you guys with me on this? No. Besides, it’s “youse guys.” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/95 "2017-09-05T22:37:37Z")
^ Did you say, “Yutes”? ---
**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:** [September 5, 2017, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/96 "2017-09-05T22:46:19Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > ^ Did you say, “Yutes”? Only with tongue firmly implanted in cheek and making movie references. I have a “neutralized” Chicago accent, but people can still sometimes place me, so it’s there. I’ll sometimes play it up a bit, but it’s never that down & dirty Chicago accent that I love (which is not quite the Superfans accent–it’s a bit different than that, but there are various Chicago accents.) At any rate, yes, in rapid speech, I actually would lop the word to something like “yutes” (were I to use the word “youths,” which is unlikely), but not quite as over-the-top as in “My Cousin Vinnie.” ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/97 "2017-09-06T00:06:38Z")
Agree with starting a sentence with "Soooo… Frequently heard on NPR when the expert being interviewed starts their answer. Also, as far as the F-bomb being used as filler, here’s _that_ scene from The Wire. NSFW language and nudity. [- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lElf7D-An8) Fuuuckk… ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/98 "2017-09-06T01:45:12Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > So basically, a lot of Dopers are like, you know, in favor of straightforward communication, you know what I mean? Fuckin’ yeah, right? ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/99 "2017-09-06T01:57:21Z")
People from southern California who say riiiiiiiight as a response to everything. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2017, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121/100 "2017-09-06T02:16:08Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > People from southern California who say riiiiiiiight as a response to everything. Do they still say, “rilly”? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/verbal-filler-that-are-just-the-worst/795121.md?page=6)