Neal Augenstein, wtop.com
WASHINGTON – It’s time for “fiscal cliff” to take a leap, according to the annual “List of Words Banished from the Queen’s English for Misuse, Overuse, and General Uselessness.”
Each year since 1971, Lake Superior State University in Michigan has compiled its list of words people don’t want to hear again.
Here are the banished words for 2013:
- “Fiscal Cliff” – The phrase referring to the country’s financial crisis got the most votes. Listmakers note it becomes even more annoying when prefaced by “the so-called.”
- Kick The Can Down The Road – The phrase formerly known as “choose not to deal with now.”
- Double Down – The blackjack term is being (over)used instead of “repeat.”
- Job Creators/Creation – Made popular during the 2012 presidential campaign, contributors to the list hypothesize the buzzword could be replaced with “lowering unemployment.”
- Passion/Passionate – Apparently users think describing their “likes” as passion is sexier than saying they’re enthusiastic.
- YOLO – On Twitter, it stands for You Only Live Once. Listmakers say YOLO is used as an excuse to do stupid things.
- Spoiler Alert – What used to be a polite warning is now a declaration that someone is about to share trivial information, whether the listener wants to hear it or not.
- Bucket List – A few years ago, it was hip enough to be included in a movie title. Now, listmakers believe it is time for the “to-do list” alternative to kick the bucket.
- Trending – Originally used on Twitter to describe a story getting traction in social media, list contributors think “trending” is trite.
- Superfood – Marketing over substance – is the food healthful or not?
- Boneless Wings – Not really meat from a chicken wing, it sounds tastier than “chicken pieces with sauce.”
- Guru – In almost all cases, the person being described is not teaching transcendental meditation, Hinduism or Buddhism. And nobody wants to be described as “the person we could find who knows the most about the topic we’re talking about right now.”
Other words people came to know – and tire of – in 2012 could also have made it onto the list: Gangnam Style. Mommy Porn. Anything-geddon. Meh.
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(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)
