Words or phrases people say that drive you insane?

[Ms.Amaranthine]

I have one more thing to add..

"That's just your opinion."

Yes, thank you. I appreciated that elucidation. I had no idea that something I said was *my* opinion.

Bad spelling gets to me too. One of my greatest pet peeves is the word 'definately'. It's 'definitely'. Some of my more intelligible friends even get it wrong. Text speak bothers me too. People who take the shorthand they use in text messages and apply it to the real world. "ur teh best srsly ILU 4evr".

/end complaining. Sorry!

 

[silentkite]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jenee.sum and it's "organiZation" and "organiZe"...NOT "organiSation" and "organiSe"!!!!! and i've noticed that in published books too!!! urgh!

That's because it is spelt 'organise' and 'organisation' in the rest of the world. The Z is just an American thing.

Things that annoy me- 'brought' instead of 'bought'.

'Yummy Mummy' for someone who is hot/sexy and a mother. It is so overused.

 

[MiCHiE]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ms.Amaranthine I have one more thing to add.. "That's just your opinion." Yes, thank you. I appreciated that elucidation. I had no idea that something I said was *my* opinion. Bad spelling gets to me too. One of my greatest pet peeves is the word 'definately'. It's 'definitely'. Some of my more intelligible friends even get it wrong. Text speak bothers me too. People who take the shorthand they use in text messages and apply it to the real world. "ur teh best srsly ILU 4evr". /end complaining. Sorry!

I've never understood 'teh'.....Everytime I see it, I think "dyslexia must be treated".

 

[captodometer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dollbabybex i dont mean to ruffle any feathers but i cringe at the way americans say certain words such as Aluminium... americans say alooominum brits say ali-min-yum and i hate how americans have changed the spelling of certain english words.

Like Pinkshell said, we pronounce it that way because it's spelled that way.

And like her, I'm an American who has moved down under; I'm living in New Zealand. And although it's part of the Commonwealth, they don't use your pronunciation of aluminium. Here, it's more like al-you-min-ee-um. I want to laugh every time I hear it!

Languages evolve over time. The English are just as guilty of changing the English language as everyone else, LOL. The Old English of the Middle Ages is definitely still English, but the spelling has definitely changed. Current British standard has either fewer vowels in words than older versions, or complete substitutions of one vowel for another. And American standard has even fewer vowels. American English tends to leave out the silent vowels like "o" and "a." So oestrogen becomes estrogen, paediatrics becomes pediatrics, etc.

Canadian use of English is interesting to me. American pronunciation with British spelling, usually. But I've met some Canadians who use American spelling also.

Doesn't really matter to me which version of English people speak or write, as long as they do it properly. I know that English is a difficult language to learn because there are so many words that sound the same but are spelled differently, and because spelling rules aren't really consistent. I'm more than happy to let speakers of English as second, third, or fourth language slide. But it just kills me when native English speakers who should know better don't.

I have two particular pet peeves; they are only obvious when written and not spoken. A large number of people don't know the difference between "too" the adverb and "to" the preposition. And "its" possessive and "it's" the contraction of pronoun and verb. I remember being taught the difference in grammar class, probably in the 3rd grade. So when I see university students making these mistakes, I just want to scream.

But I guess I shouldn't complain too much. I make a decent amount of spare change proofing term papers for university students

 

[Dizzy]

I hate when people say "um" or "like" every other word, especially in places where they should really know better.

In a political science course that requires debates I heard at least seven people fill their speech with things like "And um the um health care system is um like broken." I'm stunned- shouldn't they know better by their third year of school?

"Axe" instead of "ask" drives me nuts, too. I had a professor who had a great way of fixing that one fast.

"Professor, I need to axe you..."
Professor would then drop to the ground screaming "NO! DON'T AXE ME! I'M TOO PRETTY!"

Quote:

Originally Posted by dollbabybex but i'm sure the english way is right...with the language being ENGLISH!!

Meh, it's right in countries that still owe a form of allegiance to the Crown; not countries that declared their independence over 200 years ago, and then proceeded to change everything they could (including language) to reflect a new nation.

 

[ArsenicKiss]

So, my understanding is that these might be hardcore Midwest things seeing as how I never hear them from anyone but my boyfriend and his family, but the ones that REALLY get me are:

-"Put up" when what you mean is "Put away." When someone starts talking about putting things up, my brain ultimately snaps to thinking about your gun. If he tells me one more time that he "Put up the groceries," I may have to smack him around a little. (Because, really, I didn't know that you had a holster for the canned goods, cereal and poultry. Do you need a license to carry them concealed?)

-"Needs" when you are telling me that something "Needs to be." ex. "My laundry needs done." Lexically, I have no idea what you are trying to tell me here.

I'm sure that if I sat here and gave it some thought I would come up with a much longer list of ones that bother me. I just took a course in linguistics as part of my Anthropology major in college and little things that I had let slip started to bother me again.


Oh, and I thought of a random one that just strikes me as weird. "Zee" instead of "Zed" for the letter Z. I was raised in the US, but I'm one of the first few people in my family to be born here. "Zed" just feels natural to me.

 

[MxAxC-_ATTACK]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ♥MiCHiE♥ I've never understood 'teh'.....Everytime I see it, I think "dyslexia must be treated".

Teh is just a typo. When your fingers get moving too fast and "teh" just comes right out! I do it all the time in IM's I try and correct it when I catch it though .

 

[MxAxC-_ATTACK]

I can't stand it when people can't pronounce the word "Foyer" correctly!

 

[newlymaclover]

My boss will send me a text message asking me to do a shift, I'll reply with an affirmative, and she will invariably write "gr8" in response, and it is like fingers down a chalk board for me :S

 

[Willa]

I'm starting to dislike A LOT the words preggo, preggers...

Brrrr

 

[Urbana]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ms. Z I agree with both of you on "aks" OK, here goes... He/she loveded it. I will throw you w/this (they mean: I will throw this at you) I dated someone who said, "Yes thats better, but this is betterer" I almost pulled my hair out trying to get him to understand that if something is better than the other, it's the best (did I make sense?). For example: This is good, this is better and this is the best. He still insisted he was right.....dumped him. it no matter (ex co-worker) "I have my friend". How old are you? It's 2007, no one says that anymore. And besides, its never been my friend, I get horrible PMS! people who say, my baby/child is 3 going on 4. Why do people feel they have to explain that? Is their some strange condition where people just skip a few years?

hahaha thats so true!! i hate it too, someday im gonna say 'im 26 going 23' xD
and about betterer: he should go back to school

 

[Hilly]

"Finna" instead of "going to"

and "fixin"...this is a Texas thing (sorry fellow texans) but when I moved here I was so confused...lol.
For example: I'm fixin to be 25 in June = I'm going to be 25 in June

 

[tara_hearts]

I agree with the person who said people who use "literally" incorrectly.

There was a doctor that was being made fun of on The Soup, and he proclaimed "Britney Spears is LITERALLY on a roller coaster ride to hell."

I was like wtf. Are you serious. Do you have any idea what you just said. You mean to tell me she is strapped on to a raging metal contraption that is catapulting her into the depths of hell? What a jackass.

 

[kokometro]

Coupon is COU-PON
Qwatah=quarter
For all intensive purposes = For all intents and purposes
Hispanish=Hispanic

If you get some time, check out freerice.com and see how your vocabulary ranks. I'm trying to up my score.
By playing, you'll earn rice for people who are in need.

I hope I didn't spam by mentioning that. It's a cool game and on topic.

 

[ductapemyheartt]

it drives me insane when someone pronounces "nail" as "nell".
i work in a nail salon and our other receptionist does it. every time i hear her answer the phone and say "tina's NELL spa", it makes me want to vomit.

 

[mrsgray]

this thread is hilarious. Let me see..I have a few..

1) what it do ( excuse me..what does what do?)
2) going down yonder or up yonder ( and where exactly is that? my family is very country Louisiana and my grandmother was very big on this saying..drove me insane..but I'll give anything to hear her say it again

)
3) bwah or boi = boy
4) whaddup Shawty or say lil mama (who are you talking to?)
5) I'm coming down there (usually from my friends on the east or west coast telling me they are coming to visit us in Texas..why do we have to be down here..like we're in hell or something ROFLOL)
6) ignant = ignorant (this is so funny to me because I had a friend who use to say "girl you is ignant" and I would say "repeat that and let's figure out whose really ignorant" ROFLOL
7) cerea-o instead of cereal (my husband drives me insane with this..THERE IS NO O IN CEREAL!!!!!!!!)
8) not really a saying or pronounciation of a word but I absolutely cannot stand when someone is trying to make fun of, go off on or belittle someone online (whether email or message board) and that person cannot spell worth a damn! I can't even begin to understand where you are coming from or how you're feeling when I have to fill in the blanks or guess which word you are really trying to say or spell.


ROFLOL I'm not perfect but if I don't know how to say something or how to pronounce something or even how to spell something, I just won't say it. lol I'm known for telling someone to "spell it" if they are trying to use a word they know they don't know the meaning of or especially if they pronounce it wrong..lol

And I am guilty of saying finna or fixin' to (hey, it happens when you're raised in Texas)

 

[mrsgray]

I'm back with another one...

The next person that ask me my name and I reply Katrina to which they respond "like the hurricane".... I'm going to karate chop them in their throat!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[dollbabybex]

i hate it when british people think there really cool for saying things in an american style... like mom or sidewalk etc...

do you get that the other way round?american people trying so say things the british way?

 

[FullWroth]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dollbabybex do you get that the other way round?american people trying so say things the british way?

Yes! Oh god yes!

And it's always the people who either (a) couldn't do a British accent if their life depended on it, but they're the only person who doesn't realize that, (b) don't understand that there's more than one kind of British accent and think any old accenty-sounding pronunciation will do, or both.

I have an acquaintance who thinks that badly repeating quotes from Doctor Who (and other British TV shows that have become popular in the states) makes her super-witty and cool, but I just cringe every time, because she doesn't do it right and her British accent is SO HORRIBLE. Sadly, she's not the only one who does this, and since I myself am not British and I learned English in the US so I don't have a British accent of any sort, I don't really have any authority to tell her to STFU. Alas.

I also know some people will spell words the British way when there's a US/UK difference (i.e. colour/color, organization/organisation) because they think it makes them look more intelligent.

Sooo yeah, we definitely get a lot of people over here who think that emulating British stuff, no matter how badly and no matter how stupid it makes them look in reality, will make them look smart and sophisticated and cool. I guess it goes both ways across the pond!

 

[PinkShell21]

ugh and btw, I don't speak Mexican, I speak Spanish! f-tards! I've gone off on so many people who say this!

I have noticed this recently and it pisses me off...when people use commas and periods and the words to follow are so close together! Example:

Hi,my name is Jessica.I go to the school of jerks!

When it should be:

Hi, my name is Jessica. I go to the school of jerks!

There are a few people on LJ who have done this recently and I just want to blast them! omg!