Comments on: Clichés That Are Dead As A Doornail (Or Should Be)

By: Hershele Ostropoler

Hershele Ostropoler — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 03:01:45 +0000

On C/catholic: I refer to myself as an A&P Jew; I borrowed that from my entirely lapsed (not even ashes and palms) Catholic girlfriend.

Anyway, I’m pretty sure 125 years ago people were complaining that “pretend” means “lie” and “supposed to” means “believed to,” dammit.

By: Mackey

Mackey — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 02:45:57 +0000

Maybe this one is for people who have been marking social sciencey student essays, but the word “arguably” when said essays do not engage in argument or is being argued plausibly.

I tend to overuse “awesome” and “fail” – but so far I haven’t been picked up on using this.. Instead I think it’s seen as a part of me and how I communicate (albeit in less formal situations).

By: PetiteXL

PetiteXL — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 00:28:42 +0000

@BeckySharper: Thanks for the feedback/confirmation. I’ve begun to stop myself from using the word this way, because I worry that some people don’t get it when I’m simply using it hyperbolically.

Even beyond that, though, my use of the word (albeit tongue in cheek) is becoming my own, personal cliche so it’s probably wise for me to stop.

By: BeckySharper

BeckySharper — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 23:54:59 +0000

@PetiteXL: I think you’re right that it started off as people being deliberately funny and hyperbolic by misusing the word. I literally think that!

By: PetiteXL

PetiteXL — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 21:09:25 +0000

Well, here’s something I’ve been wondering: Sometimes, I will use the word literally to emphasize/acknowledge the ridiculousness of a situation or my reaction to it. I know the use of literally here is technically incorrect, but that’s what makes it kind of absurd/funny, right?

For example, in complaining about traffic on the way home, which I know is a low level complaint to begin with, I might say, “Oh man, there were 5 billion cars on the road tonight! It was horrible!” Perhaps dumb to begin with, and I certainly wouldn’t expect a newscaster to go with this usage, but… I think I understand what people mean when they use it this way. They are simply exaggerating for effect.

Probably I should just stop this, but do others see it this way, too? When I hear people use literally this way, this is what I’m hearing. Am I just completely off base in my understanding? My theory *seems* to make sense to me… :O)

By: BeckySharper

BeckySharper — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 19:08:37 +0000

@Sara: the non-literary use of “tragic” seems like a pretty standard expansion of meaning. Perhaps, but it's overused to the point of ridiculousness, IMO. You may have noticed that nearly all these comments are opinions about language and what we personally don't like. No one's trying to create or enforce normative practices, and certainly none of us are in any position of authority to do so, so calling that prescriptivism seems like an overreach (and at any rate, a certain amount of linguistic prescriptivism is positive and necessary, IMO, so if that's how you want to describe what you think I'm doing, fine.)

By: Sara

Sara — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 17:10:52 +0000

Some of this sounds like linguistic prescriptivism, which we don’t really need.

Using “literally” to mean “figuratively” is pretty silly, but the non-literary use of “tragic” seems like a pretty standard expansion of meaning.

By: rodriguez

rodriguez — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 13:23:43 +0000

Also, Endora’s comment is really insightful. We shouldn’t have to explain that a person without religion still considers big questions in life, and yet, we do.

By: rodriguez

rodriguez — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 13:19:56 +0000

@Magpie I get it, you’re looking for a concise way to capture a complex idea.

Can I be nerdy for a minute?

There’s a always a balance to strike between truth and clarity. We can’t have both, surprisingly. I suppose the reason to quit using cliches is that they already sacrifice truth. Next, all the clarity goes out of them, due to overuse.

/nerdery

By: Magpie_Seven

Magpie_Seven — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 11:45:40 +0000

@rodriguez- it is terribly overused, and I’m completely guilty of it- because I can’t really find another way to say where I am beliefs-wise. I’ve had to give up on pretty much every organised religion, but I believe there’s a spiritual aspect to the world in a bones-deep way that no amount of my beloved science has ever shaken. I’m trying to find out what that means to me. But when people ask, I always end up defaulting to “yeah, I’m spiritual but not religious.” I’m not entirely sure why.