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The "Annoying Phrase" Thread

MrNewportCustom

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Widebrim said:
What the heck does "Jumped the shark" mean? I don't think that I've ever heard it explained (and I'm no "hick").:rolleyes:

Remember the TV show Happy Days? There was an episode where The Fonz jumped a tank with a shark in it to prove something. It is considered that at that point the show entered the beginning of the end. To "jump the shark" basically means that someone or something has lost it's edge.

Doran said:
The worst. People who use any specialized knowledge in front of people who are not in their specialized knowledge group are being at least moderately rude. The acronym thing adds absurdity to the rudeness. I also hate being at a party where two "hip" people my age (!) start talking about currently popular bands in front of myself and other people, often females, who don't know who these bands are -- instead of selecting a topic for converse in which most or all of the present persons can participate. Very, very rude.
Sometimes when I throw a party, if my colleagues are present they will start to talk among themselves about arcana and obscura of ancient history in front of my older friends. Very rude and requires (cheerful) correction.

I have an even worse situation for you, Doran. Some former friends of mine, husband and wife, would speak to each other in ASL so that they could gossip or keep a private conversation while in a group. They were not deaf. Everyone they knew found it annoying and rude.
 

randooch

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Apologies

If these phrase have already been mentioned (though not in the last 10 pages), but these are starting to rankle:

1. "At the end of the day . . ."

2. "A teachable moment"

3. "Perfect storm"

4. "That said, . . ."

Without all the meaningless verbal padding, people could really communicate.
 

HadleyH

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again..... perfectly fine.... popular phrase.... loved by millions and millions all over the world...but...how obnoxious can you get ...


"Keep up the good work"



too @#%^&*() patronizing for me.
 

Dr Doran

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HadleyH said:
again..... perfectly fine.... popular phrase.... loved by millions and millions all over the world...but...how obnoxious can you get ...


"Keep up the good work"



too @#%^&*() patronizing for me.

Utterly patronizing. On that note, am I being overly sensitive to find the following expression also HORRIBLY patronizing?:

"Hope this helps."
 

Dr Doran

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"I was just going to say..." and "I just think it's interesting that..."

Here are two that I have heard while teaching undergrads a lot. Grad students have moved past these, thank the gods.

1.) Student raises hand; I call on him/her and s/he begins by saying, "Well, I was just going to say that ..."
Why tell us that you were going to say this? Why not say it? We don't need to know what you "were" doing five, sixty, or one hundred and three seconds ago. In fact, you have just wasted several seconds.

2.) Again, student raises hand, I call on h/r and s/he says "I just think it's interesting that ...."
Hold on. What on earth is that supposed to mean? "Interesting"? Yes, many things are interesting. So what? Why is it interesting? Do you favor it? Oppose it? What is interesting about it? How about making an assertion or argument?

The overuse of "just" is a bit much too, although I am guilty of it.
 

Dr Doran

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Carlisle Blues said:
The next one is :"it gives one pause".....

Egad, that's horrible. Why do people say this? Do they enjoy saying horrible things like that? That one was trite as soon as it came out of the box. Ugh. I am happy to say I have never used it (as far as I can remember).
 

Carlisle Blues

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Doran said:
Egad, that's horrible. Why do people say this? Do they enjoy saying horrible things like that? That one was trite as soon as it came out of the box. Ugh. I am happy to say I have never used it (as far as I can remember).


It appears to give them a sense of momentary authority.................[huh] [huh]
 

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