Each year since 1976, Lake Superior State University has released a list in late December of words that should never be used again based on their overuse in the 12 months prior. This year’s list largely revolves around the election and the economic crisis:
Leave a comment and let us know what 2008 word you think should be banned forever.
cooties
same as last year – ‘going forward’ or ‘on a go forward basis’
One of our favourite morning shows (Q107 in Toronto) is sponsored by a hot tub company that used ‘staycation’ in its ad campaign ALL SUMMER AND FALL.
chad
suggested additions to the list:
Joe (anything)
youbetcha
gotcha-journalism
Gauldar
snowmagedon.
war on christmas.
I can’t think of anymore, luckily my memory is horrible to keep this garbaged trapped in my head.
batchild
Maverick is my actual middle name so I can’t drop it. First I had to deal with Tom Cruise ruining it and then the McCain campaign. Thanks a lot.
kevin
Staycation is really high on my personal list of words hated. It’s right under relicious which means really delicious but I have only known a four year old to use it.
roxi618
closure…
change
giving back (to the community or whomever)
All 3 are way over-used.
fiona b
Yes “credit crunch”. On this side of the Atlantic its been the most overused term to describe, not a new kind of cereal, but a recession Goddamn it why don’t they just call it that?
Patrick B
Meh
Whatever
And on a personal note the one word I would most like to not hear is one I will hear for at least four more years. Obama
jay
It’s that time of year again for green carbon offsetting staycations; not so much for Maverick monkey, winner of five nominations for his desperate search for a game-changing bailout from Wall Street to Main Street.
<3 First Dude
just a guy
I’ve always hated “bad” as a noun. as in “my bad”. but that’s not very ’2008′ specific.
Then again, a lot of these aren’t.
erick
Great, Maverick is my FIRST name. I feel that the republican campaign has soiled my name. I use to get compliments for my name, now all name discussions redirect somehow to mccain. I’m accepting name suggestions
Skull Thuggery
Using <3 to mean ‘heart’ or ‘love’ used to annoy me. Now I just turn my head the other way and read it as ‘teabag’ and it’s hilarious.
Whenever I see ‘I <3 my dog’, I read it as ‘I teabag my dog’. I hope your dog’s not a pitbull, pal.
brighteyes0309
i absolutely can’t stand “recessionista”
and adding the “right” onto the end of “I know” popped out of nowhere and is so annoying! (i.e. “I know, RIGHT?”)
Shen
guy 1: look how green it is–
guy 2: NO YOU FOOL!! ITS EMERALD! EMERALD!!!
Sigilum
“my bad” I want to shoot whoever uses this phrase in the face…thats how much I hate it.
Bruno
My votes:
“Global Warming”
“Think Global Act Local”
and finally, the most hated suffix I can think of; “Neo-(Anything)”
buddz
Please ban: Amazing. It’s used to describe everything from pastry to mothers. And way too often, actors use it to describe other people in their movies and it makes them sound so very wise to recognize the trait and know the (aforementioned adjective) person.
(However, you may allow Randi to continue to use it — and a select few others, pending discussion.)
Chic
“czar” like the suffix “gate” is way over used. When properly used it means supreme ruler. Also used as a synonym for “king”.
drug czar (drug king)
war czar (war king)
terrorism czar (terrorism king)
cybersecurity czar (cybersecurity king)
climate czar (the person in charge of climate?)
copyright czar (the person in charge of copyrights?)
Carbonfish
“Shovel-ready”
First off, how many public works projects actually require a shovel, and secondly, if all a project really needs to be implemented is money, just say so dammit!
liphttam1
I like green <3 . It distracts me from the bailout and our carbon footprints. I can’t believe its that time of the year again to ban words. And now neatoramas on a deperate search for words to ban. I hope useing all thes words dosn’t make me a maverick. I think not so much about what I say though.
artbot
Wow, my last name is “Green”. What’ll I do now?
And “wow” should be banned, if only from my own overuse.
Thebes
“Climate change” – egads, please just call it what its supposed to be, anthropogenic global warming.
Chris Johnston
Y’know, I was pretty indifferent to <3 until I saw somebody actually write out “less than three” instead!
williams
We here in England are suffering a severe outbreak of You know, particularly among formerly erudite people, strangely, you know.
And as for the effect of the olympics – we have new verbs “To medal” “To Podium”, as in “He podiumed three times” (yecch) joining other awful verb converts like “dialoguing” and “main-streaming”
rachelmmm
Like is way to used. Like it is totally… Like he’s sooo hot….. Like this is so boring. and so on!
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