Stop Saying That!
Maybe it’s the Internet. Maybe it’s Twitter or Facebook. But whatever it is, verbal clichés seem to grow and prosper more quickly than ever. For example, it’s virtually impossible to listen to any two people discuss any subject without hearing the dreaded, “At the end of the day” and/or, “Having said that.”
The latter is a verbal tic that’s an extension of “but” or replaces “uh.” Having said that? Having said what you just said? Yeah, I heard what you just said, and now you’re going to point out that you just said it? “The Republicans are in a strong position, Christiane, and the Democrats are on the defensive, but having said that...” I know you said that. I was listening.
“At the end of day...” At the end of what day? When does the day end? “There are a lot of important factors in the race, David, but at the end of the day...” What if something happens before the day ends? Then what?
Or how about, “At this point in time.” You mean, “Now.” It’s such a lawyerly phrase. It’s as if you’re trying to cover something up. “At this point in time, he doesn’t know how that got on the dress.”
My new least favorite expression is more apt to be uttered by a waiter or waitress than by a political commentator. It’s the simple, but, for some reason, aggravating phrase, “No problem.”
“May we see the menu, please?”
“No problem.”
I know it’s no problem! It’s a restaurant; you have hundreds of menus! How could it be a problem? Some advanced students of linguistics have switched to the even-more-annoying, “No worries.”
And for anyone over, say, 45 years old, please don’t use the word “props” to express giving credit to someone. It sounds like some middle-ager trying to sound hip, as when older people used to say “cool” in the 60s.
Having said that, at the end of the day, there’s not much to be done about it.
- Comment (117)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (3)
Comments:
Oct '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
I know that it wasn't your intent to 'be perfectly clear' but having said that, at the end of the day, you certainly did 'send a message'.
Re: Stop Saying That!
Pat, don't get me started. Actually, come to think of it, get me started. It's a rainy Sunday morning here in Northern California, I've slept badly three nights in a row, and now I'm feeling so groggy that even my second cup of coffee failed to get my blood moving. But your post is helping. I can feel it. Now, with your permission, may I add two expressions to the Sajak List of Annoying Phrases?
In the final analysis. Man, does that one ever make me see red. What pompous nonsense.
And?
Whatever. This one is right up there with "no problem" and "no worries." And all three are somehow especially infuriating when they issue from the mouths of teens--particularly (need I add?) from the mouths of teens who are also one's own children.
There. I feel better now. Thanks, Pat.
Edited on March 6, 2011 at 8:13pmRe: Stop Saying That!
Props to Pat for a great post. Having said that:
Sep '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Pat, these verbal tics are annoying, but none of them irritates me nearly as much as the phrase "on the ground." The newsies love to say that. "Tom, tell us what is happening on the ground in Cairo." As opposed to, say, what is happening at 10,000 feet above Cairo? Does the reporter usually hover, like Superman, high above the city and look down, so being on the ground would be a notable exception?
Dec '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Yeah man, it’s just not cool the way some cats rap these days, unlike the groovy days of our youth. (NOTE: I was born in 1958)
Aug '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Here is one of the classics: ( starts poorly and ends up stupendously)
"To this end, I must underline the phallicism endemic to the dialectics of penetration routinely deployed in descriptions of pictorial space and the operations of spectatorship."
Hey, I didn't write that, but the college professor who did knows who she is.
Sep '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
flownover: Here is one of the classics: ( starts poorly and ends up stupendously)
<truly horrible example omitted>
Hey, I didn't write that, but the college professor who did knows who she is. · Mar 6 at 11:14am
flownover, that isn't annoying; it belongs to an entirely different category. I suggest that language as debased and empty as that belongs to the category of Total Depravity.
Dec '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Which brings us around to "the arab street". Listen, I know a lot of the mideast is a third world dirt puddle, but don't they have any buildings? Any houses? I've never been there so my sense of the place is just a bunch of people milling around outside 24 hours a day waiting for the next outrage to start screaming about.
See: Islamic Rage Boy.
Dec '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
At the end of the day, having said "having said that" too many times to count, I hang my head in shame.
As a long time member of Toastmasters, I do understand the verbal tic. I've never really associated them with written phrases.
I'll try to do better.
Dec '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
I do find myself rolling my eyes with a Pat Sajak-like irritation when my "Thank you" gets a "No problem" in response.
The correct response is "You're welcome" or "You're very welcome" or even just "Welcome". But there's an operative word here, and it isn't "problem".
Dec '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
I'll concur with Peter on "whatever". My son was 10 (he's now 21) when he made the mistake of using that on his mother in my presence. My kids will tell you that I don't explode often, but this was one of those occasions. It has been a well known fact ever since that in our home the word "whatever" can be used IN a sentence but not AS a sentence.
My own personal peeve, however, is very common - I (along with several others) even caught Rich Lowry using it in a column on NRO. "I could care less". The term is "I couldN'T care less" people! To say the former means that the subject does, in fact, elicit some level of concern in you.
Thanks Pat.
Re: Stop Saying That!
I myself often say "no worries."
And I never say "I myself."
I'll try to stop it, Pat, out of deference to you. But I don't promise anything.
Jun '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
"At the end of the day" drives me nuts. It's everywhere. There are a host of words that get me, too. I see them on Ricochet and so am perplexed whether I should be critical of them. For instance, meme seems to be all the rage lately. As far as I can tell, it's seen a huge uptick in use. It sounds trendy and precocious. Same goes with poignant. I hate that word. It sounds like a word only a liberal would use, yet I see it used in conservative circles. It's just gives off a feel-good, mushy, oogie, artsy-fartsy, wannabe-cultured feeling to me. The other word I hate but don't know what to think about, is whatnot. To me, this word sounds like it should not belong in an educated speaker's speech, yet I hear it spoken amongst many people much smarter than I am. Am I wrong here?
May '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Pretty sure I've never said "props", but if I ever do I'll be sure to preface it with, "As the young people say...".
Edited on March 6, 2011 at 8:57pmRe: Stop Saying That!
James Lileks, Matthew Bartle, anyone: What does "props" mean, anyway?
Sincerely,
Clueless in Palo Alto
Edited on March 6, 2011 at 8:59pmNov '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
I say most of that stuff regularly, but that's my bad.
Nov '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Peter, it means this: "I give Pat props for writing a nice post."
Edited on March 6, 2011 at 9:00pmJun '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
This is funny since a lot of my Russian friends love this word. They find it incredibly useful since it can be used for so many things. Perhaps it is just an easy shortcut to save themselves from stretching their English skills, but I, admittedly, have a fondness for the word since the Russians gave me such a unique perspective to it.
Dec '10
Re: Stop Saying That!
Peter Robinson: James Lileks, Matthew Bartle, anyone: What does "props" mean, anyway?
Sincerely,
Clueless in Palo Alto · Mar 6 at 11:58am
Edited on Mar 06 at 11:59 am
Kudos
Jan '11
Re: Stop Saying That!
This is a HUGE out-of-the-box game-changer that will cause a paradigm shift! But it will need proactive networking because that train is leaving the station! Hey, literally, that's how I roll...
Edited on March 6, 2011 at 9:06pm