montoya 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2004/03/24/international1038EST0558.DTL "At the end of the day", it's the most irritating cliche in the English language. So says the Plain English Campaign which said the abused and overused phrase was first in a poll of most annoying cliches. Second place went to "at this moment in time," and third to the constant use of "like," as if it were a form of punctuation. "With all due respect" came fourth. "When readers or listeners come across these tired expressions, they start tuning out and completely miss the message -- assuming there is one," said Plain English Campaign spokesman John Lister. "Using these terms in daily business is about as professional as wearing a novelty tie or having a wacky ring-tone on your phone." Lister said people should follow the 1946 advice of writer George Orwell: "Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print." The Plain English Campaign, which offers annual awards for good use of the language, surveyed its 5,000 supporters in more than 70 countries for the poll. Other terms that received multiple nominations included: 24/7; absolutely; address the issue; around (in place of about); awesome; ballpark figure; basically; basis ("on a weekly basis" in place of "weekly" and so on); bear with me; between a rock and a hard place; bottom line; crack troops; glass half full (or half empty); I hear what you're saying; in terms of; it's not rocket science; literally; move the goal-posts; ongoing; prioritize; pushing the envelope; singing from the same hymn sheet; the fact of the matter is; thinking outside the box; to be honest/to be honest with you/to be perfectly honest and touch base. Formed in 1979, the Plain English Campaign is an independent group that campaigns against cliches, jargon and obfuscation, particularly in official and public documents. Link to post Share on other sites
bobby12 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 thanks, i am going to go through this with my advanced english class. Link to post Share on other sites
Siren 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Quote: Plain English Campaign is an independent pressure group fighting for public information to be written in plain English. We have more than 4500 registered supporters in 70 countries. It seems that most people do not support the use of plain English. Q.E.D. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 These have perfectly legitimate uses and are not cliches in themselves; absolutely; basically; literally; move the goal-posts; pushing the envelope There are indeed times when goals are set and arbitrarily changed, and the concept of an envelope outside of which danger lies can be useful. There's a very entertaining discussion of the 'envelope' in The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe. Orwell also noted that using language without thinking also destroys one's ability to think at all. This is absolutely true (there, I used it) and the evidence is all around us. Link to post Share on other sites
cheeseman 1 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 I don't like it when people look down on things as "cheesy". It's silly. Cheese is a positive thing. The fact of the matter is that this is surely obvious to everyone, and absolutely true. And with all due respect, to be honest, I can't see how anyone could disagree. Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Did they use the word, 'Wacky'??? Poor form for a group campaigning for the removal of crap cliches and jargon from the English language... Still, if 5000 people from 67 countries think the above words project unprofessionalism, I suppose we should all take heed...(although quite how i'm going to remove 'crack troops' from my vocabulary... ) Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 'that which'. What is wrong with 'what'? Link to post Share on other sites
Siren 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Quote: Still, if 5000 people from 67 countries think the above words project unprofessionalism, I suppose we should all take heed. 5000 out of total population of the 67 countries? I think I will ignore it. Language is fun because it is not 'plain'. Link to post Share on other sites
cheeseman 1 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 (I was hoping someone might respond to my witty post) Link to post Share on other sites
Siren 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 'Witty' it may be but, frankly it is getting a bit wearisome. In fact just looking at the avatars makes me regret the lunch I had. Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 With me, corporate slang reduces ones Credibility . My area is full of people that use phrases such as: - "broadly speaking": they don't have the guts to put their opinion down, which they excuse as being "emotionally intelligent', the new buzz word for "politically balanced' - "engage is continuous dialogue": they are running out of ways to say “my job has no substance, all I do is talk to people and try to make it look like actually doing something, getting my hands dirty. - "back to square root one": this is only said by one manager I know who is to stupid to realise that the cliché is “back to square one”. - "net net there is no change": thanks for saying "net' twice, I didn't hear it the first time. This is used by people who do not understand the actual topic so they dismiss it because "net net it produces no change'. I get tired of myself saying “to be honest”, “must admit”, “at the end of the day”. And I get so tired of listening to someone talk for 20 minutes and realising that they said nothing at all except for a string of work place phrases. eg: “look, to be honest at the end of the day we are net net unchanged so unless we engage in continuous dialogue with the stakeholders we will be back to square root one, broadly speaking”. Lets hope that the dialogue is both intellectually honest and emotionally intelligent. Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by Siren: Quote: Still, if 5000 people from 67 countries think the above words project unprofessionalism, I suppose we should all take heed. 5000 out of total population of the 67 countries? I think I will ignore it. Language is fun because it is not 'plain'. I can only assume that the irony was somewhat missed... I shall endeavour to rubber stamp all sarcasm from now on with the appropriate smileys... (not) Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by montoya: Formed in 1979, the Plain English Campaign is an independent group that campaigns against cliches, jargon and obfuscation, particularly in official and public documents. In which case, they should be lauded. I doubt that the DMCA or the Patriot Act, as two recent examples, have been written in an understandable manner. Both curtail everyone's rights. This awards thing sounds like a publicity stunt for the organization. I doubt you'd find "at the end of the day" or "constant use of 'like'" in the "official and public documents" that they are "particularly" concerned about. To be fair to them, the list that people are commenting on is a list of "nominations", which may just upset certain people as pet peeves. The winners all sound like footballer-speak-"at the end of the day, it's only three points"-but I think that's half the fun of sports interviews. If you understand Japanese, sumo wrestlers are probably the kings of cliches in their wheezy post-bout interviews on live TV. When they manage to get out more than an affirmative grunt, it's nearly always "jibun no sumo wo toritai" or "kega sezu ni ganbaritai to omoimasu". It really cracks me up. Link to post Share on other sites
Siren 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Quote: I shall endeavour to rubber stamp all sarcasm from now on with the appropriate smileys... (not) You should and I agree. Link to post Share on other sites
Siren 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 More plain English Act of Settlement, 1701 Whereas in the first year of the reign of Your Majesty, and of our late most gracious sovereign lady Queen Mary (of blessed memory), an Act of Parliament was made, entitled, "An Act for declaring the rights and liberties of the subject, and for settling the succession of the crown," wherein it was (amongst other things) enacted, established, and declared that the crown and regal government of the Kingdoms of England, France, and Ireland, and the dominions thereunto belonging, should be and continue to Your Majesty and the said late Queen, during the joint lives of Your Majesty and the said Queen, and to the survivor: and that after the decease of Your Majesty and of the said Queen, the said Crown and regal government should be and remain to the heirs of the body of the said late Queen; and for default of such issue, to Her Royal Highness the Princess Anne of Denmark, and the heirs of her body; and for default of such issue to the heirs of the body of Your Majesty. And it was thereby further enacted, that all and every person and persons that then were, or afterwards should be reconciled to, or shall hold communion with the see or Church of Rome, or should profess the popish religion, or marry a papist, should be excluded, and are by that Act made for ever incapable to inherit, possess, or enjoy the Crown and government of this realm, and Ireland, and the dominions thereunto belonging, or any part of the same, or to have, use, or exercise any regal power, authority, or jurisdiction within the same: and in all and every such case and cases the people of these realms shall be and are thereby absolved of their allegiance: and that the said Crown and government shall from time to time descend to and be enjoyed by such person or persons, being Protestants, as should have inherited and enjoyed the same, in case the said person or persons, so reconciled, holding communion, professing or marrying, as aforesaid, were naturally dead: Link to post Share on other sites
Plucky 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 At least I'm safe. My favorite expressions of 'gnarly', 'tubular' and 'rad' weren't on the list. I dropped 'awesome' last year. I get a bit sick of the office jargon myself. I can't stand it when someone says 'I'll shoot you an email'. I almost have a reflexive response to kick people in the crotch when I hear it. Link to post Share on other sites
snobee 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Oh woe the cliche. Not! Spare the unjustly drawn & quartered utterances, for they be naught but ephemeral flutterings. Instead flog glibness. Link to post Share on other sites
Siren 0 Posted March 26, 2004 Share Posted March 26, 2004 Excellent Snobee! Link to post Share on other sites
oblivion 5 Posted March 27, 2004 Share Posted March 27, 2004 What is sarcasm in Japanese? Link to post Share on other sites
rachael 0 Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 When I hear, "To tell you the truth...." etc - somehow I always feel that a lie is on its way. Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted April 10, 2004 Share Posted April 10, 2004 'silver bullet' Link to post Share on other sites
stripper on coke 0 Posted April 10, 2004 Share Posted April 10, 2004 don't knock the 'silver bullet'.... Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted April 10, 2004 Share Posted April 10, 2004 love to knock it, but, apparently, there never was one... Link to post Share on other sites
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