Phrases that annoy you the most
Discussion
droopsnoot said:
Blown2CV said:
on a related note "we are experiencing unusually high call volumes" - well if they were that f
king unusual then why did you go the trouble of creating a recorded message to play to everyone that calls in?
I'm out of touch with modern telecoms equipment, but isn't it possible that the message is always there, and the switchboard decides when it should be played? king unusual then why did you go the trouble of creating a recorded message to play to everyone that calls in?Surely not?
New one that I've started noticing creep in now, as some new people have taken up some previous dead space in our office.
But these people are referring to a Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow as a "Slide Deck" and are using it frequently on conference calls (of which I can only hear their end) - "I am just looking at the slide deck" or "Have you seen the updated slide deck" etc?
It grates on me.
But these people are referring to a Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow as a "Slide Deck" and are using it frequently on conference calls (of which I can only hear their end) - "I am just looking at the slide deck" or "Have you seen the updated slide deck" etc?
It grates on me.
'The powers that be ...' Usually produced by some thicko with a conspiracy theory about something or a chip on their shoulder.
I'm never entirely certain whether it should be hyphenated, although I suspect it ought to be, but as I'll never use it except here I can live with my ignorance.
I'm never entirely certain whether it should be hyphenated, although I suspect it ought to be, but as I'll never use it except here I can live with my ignorance.
CharlesdeGaulle said:
'The powers that be ...' Usually produced by some thicko with a conspiracy theory about something or a chip on their shoulder.
I'm never entirely certain whether it should be hyphenated, although I suspect it ought to be, but as I'll never use it except here I can live with my ignorance.
these are "health and safety / PC gone mad" peopleI'm never entirely certain whether it should be hyphenated, although I suspect it ought to be, but as I'll never use it except here I can live with my ignorance.
littleowl said:
You need to 'reach out' to some person/group of people/organisation.
Nothing against the band but it makes me think of the Four Tops. One person at work uses 'reach out' a great deal and has been given the unofficial nickname of 'One Top'.
Due to all the bad publicity associated with this, they are now the Three Tops. With their reduced hits: It's The Same.. / Berna... / Baby I Need.. / If I were... / and, 7 Rooms...Nothing against the band but it makes me think of the Four Tops. One person at work uses 'reach out' a great deal and has been given the unofficial nickname of 'One Top'.
Edited by nonsequitur on Sunday 25th November 17:52
Another new one that has been grating over the past few days, which is commonly used on Twitter and to a lesser degree Facebook.
People who say "I was today years old when I learned..." followed by them saying something immensely trivial like "toasters measure time in minutes based on the number you set" or "you can open up a McDonalds sauce pot to make dipping easier"
Seriously, whilst I get that all social media is a wonderful place to share the inane and trivial, it is possible to do so and not sound like a millenial prick, just by saying "Today I found out.." or "I didn't know this before..."
People who say "I was today years old when I learned..." followed by them saying something immensely trivial like "toasters measure time in minutes based on the number you set" or "you can open up a McDonalds sauce pot to make dipping easier"
Seriously, whilst I get that all social media is a wonderful place to share the inane and trivial, it is possible to do so and not sound like a millenial prick, just by saying "Today I found out.." or "I didn't know this before..."
littleowl said:
You need to 'reach out' to some person/group of people/organisation.
Nothing against the band but it makes me think of the Four Tops. One person at work uses 'reach out' a great deal and has been given the unofficial nickname of 'One Top'.
I know its been done to death on this thread, but this phrase has reached epidemic proportions in our office. In fact, while organising a guys stag do in our office, someone actually thanked me for 'reaching out' to them on facebook. Nothing against the band but it makes me think of the Four Tops. One person at work uses 'reach out' a great deal and has been given the unofficial nickname of 'One Top'.
Needless to say everyone who hasn't yet been brainwashed ripped the piss out of them relentlessly for it.Its annoying enough that I will make a concerted effort not to use it, or any other business type phrase that just makes the speaker look like a prick.
Shakermaker said:
New one that I've started noticing creep in now, as some new people have taken up some previous dead space in our office.
But these people are referring to a Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow as a "Slide Deck" and are using it frequently on conference calls (of which I can only hear their end) - "I am just looking at the slide deck" or "Have you seen the updated slide deck" etc?
It grates on me.
Are they looking at the deck or the show? Technically, only while they’re looking at the slides in the “slide show” mode that they’re looking at a “slideshow” (sic). Slide deck is the collection of all the individual slides in any mode so even if they’re not looking at the show, they’re using it correctly, I’m afraid. If anything, by calling all forms a show, you’re the one who’s completely incorrect!But these people are referring to a Microsoft PowerPoint slideshow as a "Slide Deck" and are using it frequently on conference calls (of which I can only hear their end) - "I am just looking at the slide deck" or "Have you seen the updated slide deck" etc?
It grates on me.
We used to have physical decks which slotted on to the top of a slide projector and contained up to 100 individual slides, which themselves were photographic positives in a special mount (in essence). The deck was a big circular container with slots for the slides all the way round. During their talk, the presenter would press a button (wired, not a wireless remote!) to move the picture forward or backward one at a time. The machines couldn’t move through slides without each one in turn being shown so if you needed go back 10-15 slides, it took bloody ages. Any more than 20 was murder.
Both the terms slide for an individual image being projected and deck for a collection of these hark back to this era. The first time I heard or used the phrase “slide deck” PowerPoint didn’t even exist, hell, even MS Office didn’t exist! In fact, many of the terms in PowerPoint originate from equivalent terms of the old slide projectors.
At the risk of sounding like an old Monty Python sketch, I head the Attorney General use this one on the radio
"I would have loved to have [done whatever)"
AAARRRGGGHHH!
"I would have loved to [do whatever]"
or
"I would love to have [done whatever]" but NOT both together.
This man is a QC and the Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales. I'm sure he is superbly eloquent in court but this got me shouting at the radio!
"I would have loved to have [done whatever)"
AAARRRGGGHHH!
"I would have loved to [do whatever]"
or
"I would love to have [done whatever]" but NOT both together.
This man is a QC and the Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales. I'm sure he is superbly eloquent in court but this got me shouting at the radio!
Pothole said:
At the risk of sounding like an old Monty Python sketch, I head the Attorney General use this one on the radio
"I would have loved to have [done whatever)"
AAARRRGGGHHH!
"I would have loved to [do whatever]"
or
"I would love to have [done whatever]" but NOT both together.
This man is a QC and the Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales. I'm sure he is superbly eloquent in court but this got me shouting at the radio!
The Attorney General’s sentence is grammatically and logically completely correct. Neither of your suggestions mean precisely the same as what he said; in fact, your two suggestions have different meanings and are not simply interchangeable themselves. Roughly translated to plain English, the meanings are:"I would have loved to have [done whatever)"
AAARRRGGGHHH!
"I would have loved to [do whatever]"
or
"I would love to have [done whatever]" but NOT both together.
This man is a QC and the Her Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales. I'm sure he is superbly eloquent in court but this got me shouting at the radio!
Attorney General: This sentence refers to the past and at the time point it refers to, I had not done X, and at the time, I wished that I had done it prior to that time point. However, I no longer wish to do it, or I no longer wish that I had done it in the past (which it is will depend on the context).
Your first suggestion: This sentence also refers to the past, and at the time point it refers to, it wasn’t possible to do X for one reason or another, but if it had been appropriate/possible to do, I would have done it and enjoyed it.
Your second suggestion: This sentence refers to the present and at this moment in time, I wish I had done X in the past.
Your rant is similar to that which followed Donald Rumsfeld’s famous “unknown unknowns” quote which was grammatically and logically correct as well as being very precise. However, he was pilloried by those who can’t decipher complex sentences or logical concepts. What do you think of the following sentence (without googling it)?
Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.
Jim the Sunderer said:
Johnnytheboy said:
Having been exposed to too much Masterchef and X-Factor recently:
"Smash it".
Those rapey looking estate agents on steroids & cocaine, the kind that would be The Apprentice contestants say they've "smashed it" it gets my goat."Smash it".
Gassing Station | The Lounge | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff