# Words imposed on us which we do not need **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 3, 2024, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707 "2024-09-03T23:25:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2024, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/21 "2024-09-04T19:47:01Z")
I’m a long-time looker-upper of “this” vs “that,” “gift vs present,” “shame vs guilt,” etc. “Obligated” is compulsory, “Obliged” is moral. Though they are often used interchangeably. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2024, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/22 "2024-09-04T20:41:54Z")
> [@penultima\_thule](#): > > Disenfranchise removes the right to vote from somebody who was enfranchised > People who have never been allowed to vote are disfranchised. Disfranchised still implies removing something. They are afranchised or non-franchised. ---
**Author:** ![phs3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phs3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phs3)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2024, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/23 "2024-09-04T21:11:22Z")
“Favorite” as a verb has been around for quite a while in the app space. Language evolves; if “favorited” freaks you out, wait until you work with a team from India. There’s a whole sub-dialect of Indian English, with things like “I will revert tomorrow” meaning “respond tomorrow” and the like. Quite interesting. And who’s to say? I tend to be a prescriptivist (a word my browser spellcheck doesn’t like, though it’s well established in linguistics) but do recognize that usage changes over time. The overly jargonized versions are irritating and not particularly useful. Last year I was whingeing about something at work to my wife and she asked me what I was going to do about it. “I will proactively socialize it with leadership”, I replied. She gave me The Look and I translated: “I’m’a tell my boss”. (Yes, I was trying to be funny–I’m not that far gone! Yet.) ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2024, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/24 "2024-09-04T21:18:41Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > I know, right? There’s an extra “u” in there! No lie, I had to read the OP twice before I figured out that wasn’t his complaint. Absolutely nothin’ wrong with verbing nouns. We do it all the time in English. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2024, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/25 "2024-09-04T23:52:18Z")
> [@phs3](#): > > I tend to be a prescriptivist (a word my browser spellcheck doesn’t like, though it’s well established in linguistics) And of course that means descriptivist likewise wasn’t recognized by my spellchecker until I beat it into my dictionary. Far less common words are known so the lack of the pair is odd. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2024, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/26 "2024-09-05T00:54:45Z")
There’s a commercial for some kind of “spend management software” that airs on MSNBC on my way to work, and they keep saying “spend” when “spending” will do just fine. No need to reinvent the wheel. ---
**Author:** ![phs3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phs3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phs3)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2024, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/27 "2024-09-05T01:16:20Z")
Also common: “ad spend”, for example. This one feels like a perfect/imperfect thing, though I can’t prove that. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2024, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/28 "2024-09-05T01:39:24Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > So allegedly the term “unalived” has entered the vernacular amongst the youth. The term originating among content creators on YouTube, tiktok, etc. where the algorithm will penalize your content if you use words like “die” or “kill”. I’m willing to acknowledge that there are valid reasons for using it on social media. It’s when I see it in meatspace that I get annoyed, as MoPop in Seattle recently did in their Kurt Cobain exhibit; [![](https://i.redd.it/9z32ivr0aphd1.jpeg) ](https://i.redd.it/9z32ivr0aphd1.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Apodder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apodder/32/17727_2.png) [@Apodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apodder)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2024, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/29 "2024-09-05T23:45:34Z")
Omg. I cannot unsee that and my eyeballs are upset. ---
**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 6, 2024, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/30 "2024-09-06T00:21:08Z")
Yes. The framing is bad, the lighting is terrible, it’s nowhere close to level, _and_ there’s keystoning in _both_ dimensions. The photographer should be shunned. 😉 ETA: I now see you aren’t replying to the post just above yours. My point stands nevertheless. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2024, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/31 "2024-09-06T05:35:26Z")
Sportscasters have been using it for years, but “Physicality” just sounds wrong (spellcheck don’t like it either). When did this become a word? ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2024, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/32 "2024-09-06T07:03:20Z")
The OED says in either 1827 (for “the fact, state, or condition of being physical”) or 1844 (for “a bodily function or experience, or the quality of being physically demanding; physical intensity; strong physical presence or appeal”). ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/33 "2024-09-07T01:42:07Z")
I’m routinely annoyed when people tell me that will “notate” a file, when you can “note” the file just as easily. ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/34 "2024-09-07T01:47:23Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > So allegedly the term “unalived” has entered the vernacular amongst the youth. The term originating among content creators on YouTube, tiktok, etc. where the algorithm will penalize your content if you use words like “die” or “kill”. > > Though it has to be said I’ve only encountered it in the context of posts saying stuff like “look at this dumb term the idiot kids are using” not actually being used unironically Unfortunately I have encountered “unalived” in formal case notes written by younger staff where I work. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/35 "2024-09-07T01:48:53Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > I’m routinely annoyed when people tell me that will “notate” a file, when you can “note” the file just as easily Maybe once they’re done conversating or commentating. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/36 "2024-09-07T01:58:54Z")
I’m still irritated by the old Kinko’s/FedEx merger and the slogan “A new way to office”. ---
**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 7, 2024, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/37 "2024-09-07T02:39:46Z")
Or annotate it. Notate? Totally illiterate. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/38 "2024-09-07T02:48:47Z")
> [@saje](#): > > I’m still irritated by the old Kinko’s/FedEx merger and the slogan “A new way to office”. Thankfully, “I can’t adult today” seems to be dying/dead. ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/39 "2024-09-07T02:51:30Z")
I still get riled up when someone wants to “unpack” something at work. Unpack meaning,“Let’s pull apart this situation/concept and see what we come up with.” I had a training once that was titled _ **Unpacking the No** _. Not as common as it was a couple years ago but it still surfaces occasionally. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2024, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707/40 "2024-09-07T12:51:54Z")
“Grok.” Nine times out of ten, you could have just said “understand.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-imposed-on-us-which-we-do-not-need/1006707.md?page=3)