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Source: (consider it)
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Thread: Your least favourite English word
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Sioni Sais
Shipmate
# 5713
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Firenze:
'Function' - and the Room they are held in. I mean, is there any word more quelling of any suggestion of sociability or merriment?
Also 'flunkey'.
A "function room" is bad enough, but what are the other rooms?
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"He isn't Doctor Who, he's The Doctor"
(Paul Sinha, BBC)
Posts: 24276 | From: Newport, Wales | Registered: Apr 2004
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SusanDoris
Incurable Optimist
# 12618
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Penny S:
I was surprised by 'moist' since the GBBO had been enthusing about the dampness of drizzle cakes using the very word.
And I know that there's one which makes me cringe, but I can't remember what it is! Except that it's used in management speak.
But moist's designation as a hated word must have been around for quite a time, since Terry Pratchett used it for for Von Lipwig's name and I think he, Moist, pronounced it Mo - ist when he first was mentioned.
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I know that you believe that you understood what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.
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Leorning Cniht
Shipmate
# 17564
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by SusanDoris:
But moist's designation as a hated word must have been around for quite a time, since Terry Pratchett used it for for Von Lipwig's name and I think he, Moist, pronounced it Mo - ist when he first was mentioned.
Not sure that follows. Having someone introduce himself as "I'm Moist" is comical whether or not Moist is a hated word. Of the Twilight the Darkness riffs on this by calling him "Mister Slightly Damp".
ETA: Anecdotally I find much more moist-hatred amongst Americans than Brits.
[ 31. August 2016, 14:22: Message edited by: Leorning Cniht ]
Posts: 5026 | From: USA | Registered: Feb 2013
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Eirenist
Shipmate
# 13343
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Posted
L.C., it's due to our climate.
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'I think I think, therefore I think I am'
Posts: 486 | From: Darkest Metroland | Registered: Jan 2008
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jedijudy
Organist of the Jedi Temple
# 333
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Posted
I'm one of those people who get sick just saying the word vomit.
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Jasmine, little cat with a big heart.
Posts: 18017 | From: 'Twixt the 'Glades and the Gulf | Registered: Aug 2001
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Leaf
Shipmate
# 14169
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Posted
"Preggers." Oh God do I hate "preggers." Why would you take a word for a normal biological process and split it in half, such that the front half is correct and the back half is cutesy? We don't do this for other biological events:
"Look! He has an erectie!"
"Aww, poor kid, she has a nosebloopie!"
It's just so weird and inappropriate. If you mean "pregnant" say "pregnant." If you must find a cutesy euphemism - well, first of all, give your head a shake, but failing that - go all out and depart from the word with "knocked up" or "up the duff" or whatever your culture recognizes.
Posts: 2786 | From: the electrical field | Registered: Oct 2008
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Lamb Chopped
Ship's kebab
# 5528
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Posted
"Eachandevery." And yes, it is a single word, judging by the speech of the two people who drive me crazy using it in place of "each." (One sprinkles it through his sermons!)
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Er, this is what I've been up to (book).
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down!
Posts: 20059 | From: off in left field somewhere | Registered: Feb 2004
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mousethief
Ship's Thieving Rodent
# 953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Sioni Sais:
A "function room" is bad enough, but what are the other rooms?
Relation Room, Inverse Function Room, and Surjection Room
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This is the last sig I'll ever write for you...
Posts: 63536 | From: Washington | Registered: Jul 2001
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cornflower
Shipmate
# 13349
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by jedijudy:
I'm one of those people who get sick just saying the word vomit.
Hm, I think 'puke' is worse.
Posts: 111 | From: uk | Registered: Jan 2008
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cornflower
Shipmate
# 13349
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Leaf:
"Preggers." Oh God do I hate "preggers." Why would you take a word for a normal biological process and split it in half, such that the front half is correct and the back half is cutesy? We don't do this for other biological events:
"Look! He has an erectie!"
"Aww, poor kid, she has a nosebloopie!"
It's just so weird and inappropriate. If you mean "pregnant" say "pregnant." If you must find a cutesy euphemism - well, first of all, give your head a shake, but failing that - go all out and depart from the word with "knocked up" or "up the duff" or whatever your culture recognizes.
Also the product of 'being preggers' - 'sprog'
Posts: 111 | From: uk | Registered: Jan 2008
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Teekeey Misha
Shipmate
# 18604
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by cornflower:
Also the product of 'being preggers' - 'sprog'
When I were a lad... "Sprog" was the schoolboy slang of choice at my school for "new boys" coming into the Senior School (in the Upper Fourth).
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Misha
Don't assume I don't care; sometimes I just can't be bothered to put you right.
Posts: 296 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2016
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Sioni Sais:
A "function room" is bad enough, but what are the other rooms?
Mostly not in use. They're non-functioning. ![[Snigger]](graemlins/snigger.gif)
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Eirenist
Shipmate
# 13343
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Posted
Presumably a lavatorry, toilet, bathroom, W.C.,, or whatever euphemism is customary in your culture would be a bodily function room?
Other unfavourite words; 'Kid', or 'Kids' for child or children.
'Student' used of any school-attender under 18; they are pupils or schoolchildren.
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'I think I think, therefore I think I am'
Posts: 486 | From: Darkest Metroland | Registered: Jan 2008
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Sioni Sais:
A "function room" is bad enough, but what are the other rooms?
Well, when I had "the runs" last week (yes, I know that's a euphemism in itself), I could have done with a Malfunction Room. Or several, closely spaced.
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Eirenist:
Presumably a lavatorry, toilet, bathroom, W.C., or whatever euphemism is customary in your culture would be a bodily function room?
No, a function room is used for social/business functions.
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Amorya
Ship's tame galoot
# 2652
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Teekeey Misha:
quote:
Originally posted by cornflower:
Also the product of 'being preggers' - 'sprog'
When I were a lad... "Sprog" was the schoolboy slang of choice at my school for "new boys" coming into the Senior School (in the Upper Fourth).
… leading to "Sprog-Bashing Day" every Friday 13th.
Posts: 2383 | From: Coventry | Registered: Apr 2002
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
quote:
Originally posted by Eirenist:
Presumably a lavatorry, toilet, bathroom, W.C., or whatever euphemism is customary in your culture would be a bodily function room?
No, a function room is used for social/business functions.
Especially upstairs in pubs.
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Teekeey Misha
Shipmate
# 18604
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Amorya:
… leading to "Sprog-Bashing Day" every Friday 13th.
![[Ultra confused]](graemlins/confused2.gif) I dread even to think...
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Misha
Don't assume I don't care; sometimes I just can't be bothered to put you right.
Posts: 296 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2016
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Leorning Cniht
Shipmate
# 17564
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Stetson:
Yes, I think we both come from green dots.
That's totes adorbs!
Except that when I listen to the "merged" vowels of "cot" and "caught" on that wikipedia page, I hear different vowels. They are similar (much more similar than they would be in my accent) but they're not the same - the vowel in "caught" is rounder than the one in "cot". They're close enough that they're probably the same IPA letter, but one of them must have a diacritic, surely?
When you and mousethief say that these words sound the same to you, is the wiki page a fair representation of how they sound, or are they even closer than that in your accents>
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mousethief
Ship's Thieving Rodent
# 953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Leorning Cniht:
When you and mousethief say that these words sound the same to you, is the wiki page a fair representation of how they sound, or are they even closer than that in your accents
The sound in the wiki page that they say goes with cot, nod, and stalk, is also what caught, gnawed, and stalk sounds like. The second little speaker sound doesn't sound like any vowel I use. I can tell they're different, but the second sound sounds like the first sound with a floofy accent. I don't differentiate in my speech between the two, using the first exclusively, and I have never noticed (until I entered into this cot/caught discussion, some years ago) that other people used the one sound for some words and the other for others. I figured it was just the way they sounded because of where they were from, and didn't cotton on to the fact that they were using 2 sounds where I just had 1. I hope that makes some sense.
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This is the last sig I'll ever write for you...
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
We seem to have migrated some way from "your least favourite word" to discussion of accents and beyond. Perhaps we could migrate back again.
Fank yew
Ariel
Heaven Host
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Kelly Alves
Bunny with an axe
# 2522
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Leorning Cniht:
That's totes adorbs!
Oh, sweet Jesus.
The first time I ever heard these two words, I knew that I would be squelching the urge to murder whenever I heard them, seperate or jointly.
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I cannot expect people to believe “
Jesus loves me, this I know” of they don’t believe “Kelly loves me, this I know.”
Kelly Alves, somewhere around 2003.
Posts: 35076 | From: Pura Californiana | Registered: Mar 2002
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North East Quine
Curious beastie
# 13049
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Posted
I'm baffled by the use of floor to mean something other than the floor of a building. "He fell to the floor" now seems to include pavements, roads, lawns etc.
Is this a new usage? Or an import?
Posts: 6414 | From: North East Scotland | Registered: Oct 2007
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
My wife talks about her "pelvic floor". Now that's a phrase I hadn't heard until about 5 years ago. But I'm a mere male.
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Sparrow
Shipmate
# 2458
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Leorning Cniht:
That's totes adorbs!
Don't you mean amazeballs?
(Code fix)
[ 02. September 2016, 09:51: Message edited by: Firenze ]
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For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life,nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Posts: 3149 | From: Bottom right hand corner of the UK | Registered: Mar 2002
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Firenze
Ordinary decent pagan
# 619
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Posted
They throw your fedora
Wherever the floor is
And start doing horas and taps
People have been being floored for a long time.
Actually, I could do with a return to that: I'm getting tired of 'gobsmacked', still more 'totally gobsmacked'.
Posts: 17302 | From: Edinburgh | Registered: Jun 2001
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The5thMary
Shipmate
# 12953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by jedijudy:
I'm one of those people who get sick just saying the word vomit.
It IS gross! I much prefer "tossed my cookies" or "barfed". And lately, with my medical problems, I seem to be doing that quite a lot. ![[Waterworks]](graemlins/bawling.gif)
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God gave me my face but She let me pick my nose.
Posts: 3451 | From: Tacoma, WA USA | Registered: Aug 2007
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Teekeey Misha
Shipmate
# 18604
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Firenze:
People have been being floored for a long time.
Indeed. My friend the etymological dictionary suggests that floor meaning "floor, pavement, ground, bottom (of a lake etc)" is Old English and so has been in use longer than floor meaning "level of a house" which arrived only in the 1580s. Can't say I've ever used floor to mean the bottom of a lake though.
Since you ask (!?), "to be floored" in the sense of being physically knocked down is from the 1640s and in the metaphorical sense from 1830.
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Misha
Don't assume I don't care; sometimes I just can't be bothered to put you right.
Posts: 296 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2016
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Nick Tamen
Ship's Wayfaring Fool
# 15164
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Teekeey Misha:
Can't say I've ever used floor to mean the bottom of a lake though.
But we do talk about the ocean floor.
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The first thing God says to Moses is, "Take off your shoes." We are on holy ground. Hard to believe, but the truest thing I know. — Anne Lamott
Posts: 2833 | From: On heaven-crammed earth | Registered: Sep 2009
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Teekeey Misha
Shipmate
# 18604
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Nick Tamen:
But we do talk about the ocean floor.
Hmm, perhaps everyone else does; I'm not sure I do! I would tend to talk about the sea bed (or a lake bed or a river bed.) You're quite right, though... ocean floor. Hadn't thought of that. I'm sure I'd never say "ocean bed".
[ 02. September 2016, 13:39: Message edited by: Teekeey Misha ]
Posts: 296 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2016
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Nick Tamen
Ship's Wayfaring Fool
# 15164
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Teekeey Misha:
quote:
Originally posted by Nick Tamen:
But we do talk about the ocean floor.
Hmm, perhaps everyone else does; I'm not sure I do! I would tend to talk about the sea bed (or a lake bed or a river bed.) You're quite right, though... ocean floor. Hadn't thought of that. I'm sure I'd never say "ocean bed".
Well, to be honest, I rarely talk about it at all. But what I usually hear, particularly in news reports, is ocean floor (and river bed).
FWIW, the Wiki article on "Seabed" begins "The seabed (also known as the seafloor, sea floor, or ocean floor) is the bottom of the ocean."
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The first thing God says to Moses is, "Take off your shoes." We are on holy ground. Hard to believe, but the truest thing I know. — Anne Lamott
Posts: 2833 | From: On heaven-crammed earth | Registered: Sep 2009
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Baptist Trainfan
Shipmate
# 15128
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Posted
Gosh, and I thought it floated on the surface!
Posts: 9750 | From: The other side of the Severn | Registered: Sep 2009
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Anselmina
Ship's barmaid
# 3032
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by North East Quine:
Indeed. I hate "no problem" when clearly there was no possible problem.
"Would you like a carrier bag?"
"No, thank you, I've brought my own."
"No problem."
Seriously, did I look as though I thought there might be a problem in not requiring a carrier bag? Do I seem in need of reassurance that there is no problem with using my own bag?
Sheesh! Chillax, bro!
![[Biased]](wink.gif)
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Irish dogs needing homes! http://www.dogactionwelfaregroup.ie/ Greyhounds and Lurchers are shipped over to England for rehoming too!
Posts: 10002 | From: Scotland the Brave | Registered: Jul 2002
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Anselmina
Ship's barmaid
# 3032
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Posted
Ref: floor.
If I fall outside, I fell down on the ground. If I fall inside, I fell on the floor.
If someone makes me speechless, amazed or whatever, I'm floored. If I'm naughty and restricted to my home after school, I'm grounded.
Simples! <squeak>
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Irish dogs needing homes! http://www.dogactionwelfaregroup.ie/ Greyhounds and Lurchers are shipped over to England for rehoming too!
Posts: 10002 | From: Scotland the Brave | Registered: Jul 2002
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mousethief
Ship's Thieving Rodent
# 953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by North East Quine:
Indeed. I hate "no problem" when clearly there was no possible problem.
"Would you like a carrier bag?"
"No, thank you, I've brought my own."
"No problem."
Seriously, did I look as though I thought there might be a problem in not requiring a carrier bag? Do I seem in need of reassurance that there is no problem with using my own bag?
Do you have a similar problem with "de nada" or "de rien"?
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This is the last sig I'll ever write for you...
Posts: 63536 | From: Washington | Registered: Jul 2001
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North East Quine
Curious beastie
# 13049
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Posted
I don't think anybody has ever said "de nada" or "de rien" to me. They're not expressions I'm familiar with.
Posts: 6414 | From: North East Scotland | Registered: Oct 2007
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no prophet's flag is set so...
Proceed to see sea
# 15560
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Posted
The French and Spanish are idiomatic aren't they? Though I get the translation influence. I believe Germans use "bitte" for both please and you're welcome.
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Out of this nettle, danger, we pluck this flower, safety.
\_(ツ)_/
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mousethief
Ship's Thieving Rodent
# 953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by North East Quine:
I don't think anybody has ever said "de nada" or "de rien" to me. They're not expressions I'm familiar with.
They are Spanish and French, respectively, and are the normal ways of saying "you're welcome" in those two languages. Literally they mean "of nothing" or slightly less literally "it's nothing."
Quite similar to "[it's] no problem."
It seems to be a pretty international way of saying "you're welcome."
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This is the last sig I'll ever write for you...
Posts: 63536 | From: Washington | Registered: Jul 2001
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Teekeey Misha
Shipmate
# 18604
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by no prophet's flag is set so...:
I believe Germans use "bitte" for both please and you're welcome.
Russian is much the same with "пожалуйста".
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Misha
Don't assume I don't care; sometimes I just can't be bothered to put you right.
Posts: 296 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2016
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mousethief
Ship's Thieving Rodent
# 953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by no prophet's flag is set so...:
The French and Spanish are idiomatic aren't they? Though I get the translation influence. I believe Germans use "bitte" for both please and you're welcome.
Of course they're idiomatic, yes. But they clearly arose from the idea that it was not a problem to do that for you. It was nothing.
"Bitte" literally means "[I] ask/beg/request." I've never figured out the logic of using it for "you're welcome."
Of course "you're welcome" to mean "de nada" is also idiomatic, since "you're welcome" literally means something along the lines of "we're happy to let you enter this place."
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This is the last sig I'll ever write for you...
Posts: 63536 | From: Washington | Registered: Jul 2001
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
Just a gentle reminder, this thread is about your least favourite English word. Please let's not get into the comparative merits of phrases in foreign languages. Especially untranslated ones.
Thank you
Ariel
Heaven Host
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Tree Bee
Ship's tiller girl
# 4033
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Posted
A current buzzword that crops up far too regularly is 'robust'. I raise my eyes to the heavens each time I hear it.
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"Any fool can make something complicated. It takes a genius to make it simple."
— Woody Guthrie
http://saysaysay54.wordpress.com
Posts: 5257 | From: me to you. | Registered: Feb 2003
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Leorning Cniht
Shipmate
# 17564
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by mousethief:
Of course they're idiomatic, yes. But they clearly arose from the idea that it was not a problem to do that for you. It was nothing.
In a conversation that goes '"Here's this thing." "Thanks for doing that". "No problem."' the "no problem" makes sense. It was no problem to do this thing for you.
In the conversation '"Would you like a bag?" "No thank you, I have my own." "No problem."', it doesn't make sense. The cashier hasn't done anything for you, so it makes no sense for him to claim that it wasn't a problem.
Posts: 5026 | From: USA | Registered: Feb 2013
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mousethief
Ship's Thieving Rodent
# 953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Leorning Cniht:
In the conversation '"Would you like a bag?" "No thank you, I have my own." "No problem."', it doesn't make sense. The cashier hasn't done anything for you, so it makes no sense for him to claim that it wasn't a problem.
Perhaps: they turned down your offer, and you're saying you're not offended.
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This is the last sig I'll ever write for you...
Posts: 63536 | From: Washington | Registered: Jul 2001
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Leorning Cniht
Shipmate
# 17564
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by mousethief:
Perhaps: they turned down your offer, and you're saying you're not offended.
Perhaps. It seems just a little precious to imply even the possibility of offense in this case, though.
"Would you like a cup of tea?" "No thank you." "I'm not offended." ?
Posts: 5026 | From: USA | Registered: Feb 2013
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Teekeey Misha
Shipmate
# 18604
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Leorning Cniht:
In the conversation '"Would you like a bag?" "No thank you, I have my own." "No problem."', it doesn't make sense. The cashier hasn't done anything for you, so it makes no sense for him to claim that it wasn't a problem.
Surely the "No problem" is attached not to the deed that he hasn't done but to your thanks. His claiming that it wasn't a problem makes as much sense as your thanking him for not doing anything!
It makes more sense if you consider the conversation without any ellipses:
He: Would you like a bag?
You: No; thank you [for offering me a bag but] I have my own.
He: [It was] no problem [offering you a bag].
That said, I don't like it either!
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Misha
Don't assume I don't care; sometimes I just can't be bothered to put you right.
Posts: 296 | From: UK | Registered: Jun 2016
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
This seems to have run its course for single, unlovely words, and is morphing incorrigibly into Grammatical Infelicities, so me (and the hosts) has thunk about it, and yourselves might like to take discussion there going forwards, innit.
Cheers
Ariel
Heaven Host
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