We've all encountered words and phrases so frequently that we wouldn't mind if they vanished from our vocabulary forever. This certainly holds true for many pandemic-related terms, such as:
- Pivot
- Unprecedented
- In these uncertain times
- We’re all in this together
- In an abundance of caution
Even beyond the pandemic, there's a surplus of phrases we could do without, like:
- Just
- Literally
- State-of-the-art
- Innovative
- Actually
- Honestly
- Rockstar. If you have to dub yourself or your brand as a rockstar, are you genuinely one? Why use this term for things unrelated to rock?
- Guru. Similar to the above. This word has been beyond overplayed in recent years.
- Ninja. Okay, we might be a little biased on this one. We've been known to humorously refer to ourselves as social media ninjas, and we stand by that. 😂
- Adulting. Yes, being an adult isn’t always glamorous. But no, it doesn't need to become its own verb.
- Slay. We're not entirely sure how to approach this one! Let's go with the opposite of Nike’s slogan: Just don’t.
- Game-changing. Similar to "innovative" and "state-of-the-art" from our original list, this is the new, trendy version. There are better ways to express the impact of your product or service.
- Next level. As opposed to the previous level? This falls into the same category as the previous word.
- At the end of the day. This phrase is extremely common, but does it actually enhance a sentence or an email?
- Said no one ever. Perhaps one of the most overused phrases on social media. It’s in every meme we’ve seen in 2021, it seems.
- New normal. How did we forget this from our original list of pandemic-related words to retire? It's been said far too many times in the last year.
- You got this. This one is not only overused but also grammatically incorrect. That's a double whammy of phrases that need to be retired!
- Outside the box. How about we ditch the box altogether? What box are we even referring to, anyway?
- The bottom line. This is another unnecessary version of "at the end of the day." It's used quite frequently, but what value does it add?
Why Overused Words Are Irritating
Word fatigue is nothing new. Since the advent of written language, we’ve been using and reusing words until they lose their impact.
Why does this happen? Well, there are likely several reasons why overused words eventually grate on our nerves.
The primary reason is simple: we become tired of hearing those words and phrases. Think of it as "word fatigue." No matter how much you love a specific word, if you hear it repeatedly, it will eventually become tiresome.
Consider a favorite food you ate frequently for a period of time. In most cases, eating it repeatedly will eventually cause you to grow tired of it.
The same principle applies to words. When we encounter them frequently, they can become wearying.
There's another aspect to consider with word overuse. Most words and phrases start out perfectly acceptable and often quite useful for describing something.
However, over time, as language evolves and words are constantly used in everyday conversation (and especially on social media), many words lose their original meaning. This can leave us with "empty" words that we wish would fade away.
Consider these examples: genius, hero, devastated, random, and ironic.
Source
Photo: Getty