Words and Phrases that really annoy

[AshleyC]

Folks around here (including me ) say "Where you at?"

Similar to "..and whatnot." we also have "...or whatever." Often used at the end of, well, nearly any sentence you can imagine, and I'm sure I am guilty of this one without realizing it.
It seems to be particularly common among people of Mennonite background.

I spotted Mennonites or Amish people at the Air Force Museum in Dayton today. Needless to say, I was perplexed. They had the hats and suspenders.

There's just some places you don't expect to see the Pennsylvania Dutch.

I was in a Redwing Shoes a few years back in Columbus and two very scruffy and bearded young men were speaking German to each other in the store. And my Cold War, Army veteran self was like, "These guys must be from East Germany." Saxony, maybe. Rustic.

Because there wasn't a horse and buggy out front and they weren't dressed like "Little House on the Prairie".

But they were probably in the area building a custom barn.

 

[ExtremelyDanger]

I was in a Redwing Shoes a few years back in Columbus and two very scruffy and bearded young men were speaking German to each other in the store. And my Cold War, Army veteran self was like, "These guys must be from East Germany." Saxony, maybe. Rustic.

Because there wasn't a horse and buggy out front and they weren't dressed like "Little House on the Prairie".

But they were probably in the area building a custom barn.

They definitely could have been Mennonite. Depending on which variety, the men usually don't dress much different than your average rural folk. The women though will have dresses and usually some form of headpiece.

They may not even have been "practicing" Mennonites, as the language is still spoken by many who are no longer "Mennonite" in religion. It's almost more a culture than a religion. There are actually areas up here where the most common language is still Low-German, it's kinda neat.

 

[Herrenberg]

It's not annoying one way or the other, but I find it funny that you can identify people from LA because they put "the" in front of their freeway numbers, like "the 10." What's funny is that they generally have no idea that they're the only ones who do that.

 

[Mojo88]

I spotted Mennonites or Amish people at the Air Force Museum in Dayton today. Needless to say, I was perplexed. They had the hats and suspenders.

There's just some places you don't expect to see the Pennsylvania Dutch.

I was in a Redwing Shoes a few years back in Columbus and two very scruffy and bearded young men were speaking German to each other in the store. And my Cold War, Army veteran self was like, "These guys must be from East Germany." Saxony, maybe. Rustic.

Because there wasn't a horse and buggy out front and they weren't dressed like "Little House on the Prairie".

But they were probably in the area building a custom barn.

You would be surprised how much the Amish travel and their fascination with flight borders on obsession. They use their spotting scopes to identify aircraft and create realistic, detailed models of aircraft. One of their most unusual pastimes is to get a room at O’hare and watch planes land and take off. They have specific rooms that they request and book months in advance.

One of the local Amish had a strong desire to fly. He left the church and joined the Air Force, then ultimately became a pilot and served for several years. When he was discharged he returned to the Amish. His nickname is Air Force Dan and you can see him in a buggy.

 

[JimmyJoeMeeker]

Ohio-isms. Being from Ohio, I'm permitted to comment.

"Where are you at?"

An Ohioan will usually add the unnecessary "at", thus ending the sentence with a preposition.

"...and whatnot." Ending an observation with that is a pretty good indicator of being a Buckeye.

I was chatting up a woman once and she said she was some middle-management for Kroger.

I looked at her and said, "So you're not originally from Ohio?" She was surprised and said no, she was from Michigan.

I told her that an Ohioan will typically say "Kroger's". As it denotes ownership to a proper name. We are also likely to say "Meijer's", rather than "Meijer".

I heard once that a tour guide for Paramount Studios in Los Angeles dropped a phrase on the loudspeaker during the tour. I do not recall what it was, but a woman on the tour said to him afterwards, "You are from Tiffin, Ohio." He was stunned. Probably 20-years-old, and she had not only identified his state, but his town. She said her grandfather was from Tiffin and was the only man she'd ever heard say that.

A lot of these are common throughout the Midwest. Of course, there is no state more Midwestern than Ohio.

The Kroger's and Meijer's thing is pretty common in the South too. There are many Southern locales where it's actually the exception to hear Kroger or Meijer.

 

[gigashadow02]

I hate it when people say "y'all". Some people really seem to enjoy butchering the English language and sounding like country bumpkin hillbillies. To each his own I guess but it really hurts my ears. I also hate it when people say "I could care less". It only takes a few seconds of critical thinking to realize that the correct phrase is "I could NOT care less". Anyway, these are minor quibbles and pet peeves on my part. In the larger scheme of things, it doesn't really matter but it still annoys me.

 

[PintoPlain]

I hate it when people say "y'all". Some people really seem to enjoy butchering the English language and sounding like country bumpkin hillbillies. To each his own I guess but it really hurts my ears. I also hate it when people say "I could care less". It only takes a few seconds of critical thinking to realize that the correct phrase is "I could NOT care less". Anyway, these are minor quibbles and pet peeves on my part. In the larger scheme of things, it doesn't really matter but it still annoys me.

In theory I could care less, however, I lack both the desire and the patience to do so.

Hearing I could care less is strange to me and I find it irksome.

 

[JimmyJoeMeeker]

I hate it when people say "y'all".

You wouldn't like hanging around me very much. Topical Reading

 

[gigashadow02]

You wouldn't like hanging around me very much. Topical Reading

I actually don't mind people saying y'all that much the more I think about it. I was just in a bad mood yesterday. I watched "No Country for Old Men" the other day. Everybody says y'all in that movie and I really like that movie.

 

[The Knize]

I do not know that I say "y'all" that often, but I do say and write "you all." Sometimes it is just useful to clearly state a 2d person plural and "you guys" just does not do it!

 

[luvmysuper]

I can see it in the form of "You all must make your selections by June.", though I would probably write "All of you must make your selections by June.".
I wouldn't expect to see it written in the form it is spoken "How y'all doing?" except as dialogue or a quotation.

 

[The Knize]

I tend to use it, say, in emailing someone saying "we look forward to seeing you all," just because I would normally be writing to just one member of the family, and I want to say I look forward to seeing everyone, yet do not want to emphasize that by saying "look forward to seeing all of you." I suppose I would limit it to rather informal writing.

though I would probably write "All of you must make your selections by June.".

Me, too. I do not see "You all" in "You all must make your selections by June" as the use of "you all" as a second person plural pronoun. I think it is the use of "you" as a second person plural pronoun followed by the word "all" to denote that each person covered by that pronoun must make a selection. For instance, one could say "they all must make a selection by June," and "they all" would not be considered a pronoun phrase. The pronoun there would be "they."

Fun with words!

 

[The Knize]

I thought Bryan Garner's entry on "you all" in Modern English Usage was interesting. Too much to repeat fully here. But the biggest controversy seemed to be around whether it is "y'all" or "you all."

His usage tip of the day today today May 21, 2024, seems controversial to me. He write about the usage of the word "podium." He gives as the first two definitions of the word a low wall serving as a foundation and the raised platform on which a speaker stands--a dais. but then says "(3) a stand for holding a speaker’s notes; lectern. Sense 3, once widely condemned as a misuse, has become commonplace. But careful writers tend to avoid it . . . ."

I would have said that third definition is incorrect and I would certainly avoid it. If Garner is correct, this is another example of a word that through frequent misuse has lost its specific, useful meaning and has become unnecessarily ambiguous, and thus a word to be avoided.

Fun with words.

 

[luvmysuper]

I thought Bryan Garner's entry on "you all" in Modern English Usage was interesting. Too much to repeat fully here. But the biggest controversy seemed to be around whether it is "y'all" or "you all."

His usage tip of the day today today May 21, 2024, seems controversial to me. He write about the usage of the word "podium." He gives as the first two definitions of the word a low wall serving as a foundation and the raised platform on which a speaker stands--a dais. but then says "(3) a stand for holding a speaker’s notes; lectern. Sense 3, once widely condemned as a misuse, has become commonplace. But careful writers tend to avoid it . . . ."

I would have said that third definition is incorrect and I would certainly avoid it. If Garner is correct, this is another example of a word that through frequent misuse has lost its specific, useful meaning and has become unnecessarily ambiguous, and thus a word to be avoided.

Fun with words.

I agree with your take, but even the Cambridge Dictionary states "a podium is also a lectern".
Image Google podium and 90% of the images are of a lectern.
For me, podium is exemplified by the 3 tiered box upon which 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners stand.

 

[The Knize]

I agree with your take, but even the Cambridge Dictionary states "a podium is also a lectern".
Image Google podium and 90% of the images are of a lectern.
For me, podium is exemplified by the 3 tiered box upon which 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners stand.

Wow, good research, Phil! Exactly as to where "winner, place, and show" stand! Also, the word seems to come from Greek and/or Latin where it meant low wall or foundation. I wonder what other words are out there that took on new meanings through misuse. I do not think of myself as someone who thinks dictionaries should be prescriptive rather than following the general usage, but I would make an exception here.

 

[emwolf]

Wow, good research, Phil! Exactly as to where "winner, place, and show" stand! Also, the word seems to come from Greek and/or Latin where it meant low wall or foundation. I wonder what other words are out there that took on new meanings through misuse. I do not think of myself as someone who thinks dictionaries should be prescriptive rather than following the general usage, but I would make an exception here.

Champagne used for all sparkling wines.

 

[Mojo88]

A few years ago we took our grandson to see the Titanic museum in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We talked about the trip and what he would hear and see once we arrived. One thing we told him to expect was for people to say Y,all. We said he would probably hear it first in a gas station or restaurant. We were ordering at the first restaurant and the waitress greeted us by saying, “ Hi Y,all would you like some sweet tea?” His eyes got big and he started smiling. Then as he heard Y,all during our meal it was a response that only a 7 year old could come up with. He looked at my wife and whispered, “Why do all these people talk like cowboys?” I don’t think we ever laughed as hard as we did that vacation just watching him.

 

[Tanuki]

Wow, good research, Phil! Exactly as to where "winner, place, and show" stand! Also, the word seems to come from Greek and/or Latin where it meant low wall or foundation. I wonder what other words are out there that took on new meanings through misuse. I do not think of myself as someone who thinks dictionaries should be prescriptive rather than following the general usage, but I would make an exception here.

Podium = footing = low foundation

Podium = dais for a speaker. Because the speaker stands on it? Or because speakers often leapt up onto that architectural element in order to be heard and seen? No handy soapboxes in Rome.

Lecterns can often be a bit tippy, thus the common practice of attaching the lectern to a small dais. Now "speaker's stand" = podium, sounds classier.

 

[Jay21]

I really don’t like the term, “Manifesting,” as in manifesting anything.

 

[luvmysuper]

Champagne used for all sparkling wines.

Kleenex, Xerox, Thermos, Popsicle, Taser, Zamboni, Jacuzzi, Photoshop, Velcro, Band-Aid.