As you may have seen from my profile ‘About Me’ I am in my later years of life and will be regarded no doubt by those much younger than me as being old fashioned and not with it, however what I write here today are expressions/words that I find very irritating which seem to be used increasingly these days especially when people are interviewed on the radio or TV.
‘going forward’……….These two words are being used more and more especially by politicians and in business. In my experience I have always used the words ‘in the future’ or ‘for the future’ For example, I am asked a question: ‘What are your plans for your company going forward?’ rather than: ‘What are your plans for the future?’ I have seen explanations that says where people in business use going forward it is an unintended commitment whereas ‘in the future’ is more of a commitment for the future so if it is an unintended commitment going forward why make it in the first place?
‘broad church‘……….. This is supposed to mean a group, organization or doctrine that allows for and caters for a wide range of opinions and people: “this is about whether the meeting will be a shareholder broad church or selected share holders” What is the relevance of the word ‘church’ in this context? I am sorry it just does not make sense to me.
‘to be honest’ ………. Somebody being interviewed is asked the question: ‘Where will you be doing your shopping?’ Reply: ‘To be honest I think I will shop at the new Mall down the road’ rather than ‘I think I will be shopping at the new Mall down the road’ Why does one have to say that you are being honest in your answer?
‘per se’………..This expression really drives me up the wall, sorry. What it actually means apparently is ‘by itself’ whatever that means. More common words that could be used instead could be: in essence, essentially, by definition, as such. Do the people that use per se really understand what it means? I wonder!! Perhaps the thought is that it is trendy. Sorry perhaps I am being cynical but I am afraid it is beyond my understanding why this expression is being used. However having said this, what I have noticed is that in the last year or so per se has not been used so much when it was used so often in previous years. Incidentally it is sometimes incorrectly written as ‘per say’. It is per se from the Latin meaning ‘by itself’
‘you know’………this is referred to as a filler word meaning that whoever uses it whilst speaking doesn’t for a second or two know what to say next. This is so often seen on TV when people are interviewed, used by some people every other sentence. Yet another pair of words that is so irritating to hear if used in the wrong context.
There are several others but for me these are the five most irritating ones. I would be very interested to hear your thoughts and which expressions are the ones you dislike.