Well, somebody had to say it! Oxford just released their list of top 10 irritating phrases. These are words and phrases that drive us crazy and many of them come from the workplace! Here’s their list, then MY list, then others I picked up from blog comments. See if YOUR favorites are among them!

Oxford’s List of Top Irritating Phrases

  1. At the end of the day
  2. Fairly unique
  3. I personally
  4. At this moment in time
  5. With all due respect
  6. Absolutely
  7. It’s a nightmare
  8. Shouldn’t of
  9. 24/7
  10. It’s not rocket science

Laura’s List of Top Irritating Phrases:

“It is what it is!” (When I ask communication class participants about their interpretation of this phrase, the majority feel the speaker is really saying they are not able or willing to do anything more about the problem or situation.)

“No one’s indispensable.” (Either: “Watch your P’s and Q’s or you’ll be the next one out the door!” OR “Don’t get too big for your britches!”)

“Don’t come to me with a problem unless you come with a solution.” (One of the fastest ways to shut down communication since most of the time, they’re coming to you because they do NOT have a solution. Better to ask for ideas, possibilities, opportunities or options rather than ’solutions’. It’ll ease the pressure they feel about needing to be right and allow them to think more freely and creatively.)

 

Comments Found on Other Blogs of Top Irritating Phrases:

“So, at the end of the day, remember that the things we think are fairly unique are absolutely not. I personally suggest, with all due respect, that we stop using these clich’s. At this moment in time, it’s a nightmare to hear these tropes 24/7. C’mon, shouldn’t of we have stopped this a long time ago? Its easy, lets do it. After all, its not rocket science.”

“I hear what you’re saying but, with all due respect, it’s not exactly rocket science. Basically, at the end of the day, the fact of the matter is you have got to be able to tick all the boxes. It’s not the end of the world, but, to be perfectly honest with you, when push comes to shove, you don’t want to be literally stuck between a rock and a hard place. Going forward we need to be singing from the same songsheet but you can’t see the wood from the trees. Naturally hindsight is 20/20 vision and you have to take the rough with the smooth before proceeding onwards and upwards. The bottom line is you wear your heart on your sleeve and, when all is said and done, this is all part and parcel of the ongoing bigger picture. C’est la vie (if you know what I mean).”

  • New paradigm (though it’s old hat now)
  • Think outside the box
  • Lean into
  • Let’s take a moment to…
  • Crucible moment
  • Tipping point
  • Low hanging fruit
  • with a view to
  • I made the fatal mistake…
  • No problem (In response to “thank you” instead of “you’re welcome”)
  • over the top
  • having said that
  • never the less
  • whatever
  • now, more than ever
  • hangin’ in there
  • aks (vs ask)
  • Touch base
  • Take it offline
  • Human capital
  • My bad
  • Spread the wealth
  • Up for grabs
  • …and…like
  • You’re a rock star
  • Without further ado
  • Actually…
  • Literally
  • At this hour…
  • On this day…
  • As I’ve made it clear…
  • By the way…
  • Good job!
  • Truth be told…
  • Between you and I…
  • …you’ll have to make the time.
  • onboarding (formerly known as new employee process)
  • in your own words
  • don’t misunderstand me
  • don’t get me wrong
  • these things happen
  • not so much
  • go for it
  • to be honest
  • to be fair
  • same difference
  • almost exactly
  • Step up to the plate
  • Gimme five
  • Listen up
  • freakin’
  • gotten
  • Right!
  • Cool
  • Dude
  • I simply said
  • top ten (of anything – even irritating phrases!)
  • thinking outside the box
  • have a nice day
  • Look… (used at the start of a sentence, usually by political commentators)
  • credit crunch
  • Main Street (vs Wall Street)
  • hearts and minds
  • win-win
  • can you reach out to them?
  • on-going situation
  • downsize
  • ten things to do before you die
  • and the oscar goes to …
  • education, education, education …
  • gestalt
  • run that by me again
  • in the fullness of time
  • not to put too fine a point on it
  • not to beat about the bush
  • open and shut case
  • independent inquiry
  • golden rule
  • sustainable growth
  • end game
  • zero sum game
  • one step at a time
  • endogenous growth
  • tinpot dictator
  • the crowd are standing on their feet
  • ya know
  • trust me
  • it’ll blow you away
  • quantum leap
  • no-brainer
  • well, yes and no
  • thought not
  • at the grass roots level
  • for all intensive purposes (vs intents and purposes)
  • I could care less
  • At this moment in time
  • hit the ground running
  • Brilliant!
  • in terms of
  • stop blowing smoke up my… (you know where)
  • can I run this by you?
  • don’t get me started
  • disrespected
  • that’s what I’M talkin’ about!
  • Elephant in the living room
  • HellOOOO?
  • Any port in the storm
  • yoyo
  • struggling to come to terms with
  • make no mistake about it
  • basically
  • cheers (typically seen at the end of an email)
  • Social Inclusion
  • Social Exclusion
  • Valuing Diversity
  • Areas of deprivation
  • Outcomes
  • Engaging with the community
  • Engaging with the process
  • Super Output Areas
  • shut your pie hole
  • let’s do lunch
  • Stakeholder (someone who assists at the killing of a vampire?)
  • whatever floats your boat
  • threw him/her under the bus
  • run it up the flagpole
  • think outside the box
  • push the envelope
  • issue (vs problem)
  • opportunity (vs problem)
  • empowering / empowerment
  • ____ on steroids
  • time is of the essence
  • gone missing
  • I regret that anything I said was misconstrued  
  • I’m sorry if you took what I said the wrong way
  • I’m sorry if something I did/said offended you
  • loose (vs lose)
  • don’t go there

So there we have it folks! Quite the list. Care to add to it?

Laura, writing from 6711 ft. above sea level under sunny skies