Moving forward, some people in Michigan would absolutely like you to quietly quit using some less-than-amazing words and phrases, including “GOAT” and “gaslighting,” among others. Irregardless of how you feel about it, it is what is is. Does that make sense?
Lake Superior State University has released its annual list of “banished words,” drawn from submissions from around the world, which highlights phrases and words people dislike, overuse or misuse.
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The tongue-in-cheek list, which has been released annually since 1976, serves to “to uphold, protect, and support excellence in language by encouraging avoidance of words and terms that are overworked, redundant, oxymoronic, clichéd, illogical, nonsensical—and otherwise ineffective, baffling, or irritating,” according to the university.
Previous lists have included cringeworthy words and phrases such as “as if” (1997), “da bomb” (1998), “factoid” (2001), “frig” (2002), “wordsmith” (2008), “chillaxin’”(2010), “YOLO” (2013), “bae” (2015), “yeet” (2019) and “vibe check” (2020). Last year’s list deemed “asking for a friend,” “no worries,” and “deep dive” worthy of banishment.
During 2022, the university received over 1,500 nominations of words and terms to abandon in the new year.
Here are the 10 winners/losers that made this year’s list, along with the university’s reason for their banishment.
GOAT
“The acronym for Greatest of All Time gets the goat of petitioners and judges for overuse, misuse, and uselessness. ‘Applied to everyone and everything from athletes to chicken wings,’ an objector declared. ‘How can anyone or anything be the GOAT, anyway?’ Records fall; time continues. Some sprinkle GOAT like table salt on ‘anyone who’s really good.’ Another wordsmith: ironically, ‘goat’ once suggested something unsuccessful; now, GOAT is an indiscriminate flaunt.”
Inflection point
“Mathematical term that entered everyday parlance and lost its original meaning. This year’s version of ‘pivot,’ banished in 2021. ‘Chronic throat-clearing from historians, journalists, scientists, or politicians. Its ubiquity has driven me to an inflection point of throwing soft objects about whenever I hear it,’ a quipster recounted. ‘Inflection point has reached its saturation point and point of departure,’ proclaimed another. ‘Pretentious way to say turning point.’ Overuse and misuse.”
“Trendy but inaccurate. Not an employee who inconspicuously resigns. Instead, an employee who completes the minimum requirements for a position. Some nominator reasons: ‘normal job performance,’ ‘fancy way of saying ‘work to rule,’' ‘nothing more than companies complaining about workers refusing to be exploited,’ ‘it’s not a new phenomenon; it’s burnout, ennui, boredom, disengagement.’ On the precipice for next year’s Banished Words List as well for ongoing misuse and overuse.”
Gaslighting
“Nominators are not crazy by arguing that overuse disconnects the term from the real concern it has identified in the past: dangerous psychological manipulation that causes victims to distrust their thoughts, feelings, memories, or perception of reality. Others cited misuse: an incorrect catchall to refer generally to conflict or disagreement. It’s too obscure of a reference to begin with, avowed sundry critics, alluding to the 1938 play and 1940/44 movies.”
Moving forward
“Misuse, overuse, and uselessness. ‘Where else would we go?’ wondered a sage—since we can’t, in fact, travel backward in time. ‘May also refer to ‘get my way,’ as in, ‘How can we move forward?’ Well, guess what? Sometimes you can’t,’ another wit stated. Politicians and bosses often wield it for ‘semantic legitimacy’ of self-interest, evasion, or disingenuousness. Its next of kin, ‘going forward,’ banished in 2001, also received votes.”
Amazing
“‘Not everything is amazing; and when you think about it, very little is,’ a dissenter explained. ‘This glorious word should be reserved for that which is dazzling, moving, or awe-inspiring,’ to paraphrase another, ‘like the divine face of a newborn.’ Initially banished for misuse, overuse, and uselessness in 2012. Its cyclical return mandates further nixing of the ‘generic,’ ‘banal and hollow’ modifier—a ‘worn-out adjective from people short on vocabulary.’”
Does that make sense?
“Submitters rejected the desire, perhaps demand, for clarification or affirmation as filler, insecurity, and passive aggression. ‘Why say it, if you must ask? It just doesn’t make sense!’ tsk-tsked one. In this call for reassurance or act of false modesty, enquirers warp respondents into ‘co-conspirators,’ deduced another. Needy, scheming, and/or cynical. Let me be clear, judges opined: Always make sense; don’t think aloud or play games! Misuse, overuse, and uselessness.”
Irregardless
“Sleuth confession: ‘It makes my hair hurt.’ As well it should—because it’s not a word. At most, it’s a nonstandard word, per some dictionaries. ‘Regardless’ suffices. Opponents disqualified it as a double negative. One conveyed that the prefix ‘ir’ + ‘regardless’ = redundancy. ‘Take regardless and dress it up for emphasis, showcasing your command of nonexistent words,’ excoriated an exasperated correspondent, adding, ‘Why isn’t this on your list?’ Misuse.”
Absolutely
“Banished in 1996, but deserves a repeat nope given its overuse. Usurped the simple ‘yes,’ laments a contributor. Another condemned it as ‘the current default to express agreement, endemically present on TV in one-on-one interviews.’ Frequently ‘said too loudly by annoying people who think they’re better than you,’ bemoaned an aggrieved observer. ‘Sounds like it comes with a guarantee when that may not be the case’” cautioned a wary watchdog.”
It is what it is
“Banished in 2008 for overuse, misuse, and uselessness: ‘pointless,’ ‘cop-out,’ ‘Only Yogi Berra should be allowed to utter such a circumlocution.’ Its resurgence prompted these insights: ‘Well, duh.’ ‘No kidding.’ ‘Of course it is what it is! What else would it be? It would be weird if it wasn’t what it wasn’t.’ ‘Tautology.’ ‘Adds no value.’ ‘Verbal crutch.’ ‘Excuse not to deal with reality or accept responsibility.’ ‘Dismissive, borderline rude.’”
For more about the Banished Words List and to nominate a word or term for banishment for 2024, go to lssu.edu/banishedwords.