Please stop saying that:

Every year since the mid seventies, Lake Superior State University in Michigan’s UP takes nominations for overused, misused and useless words to dump.

The goal is to “uphold, protect and support excellence in language by encouraging avoidance of words and terms that are overworked, redundant, oxymoronic, cliched, illogical, nonsensical and other wise ineffective, baffling or irritating.”

So, thankfully, after a year of hearing we’re all in this together during these unprecedented times with an abundance of caution, it’s time to banish these overused phrases and words from the English language.

Words to Wipe Out, 2021

This year’s list of words/phrases is short at ten:

• COVID-19 (coronavirus, Rona)
• I know, right?
• an abundance of caution
• in these uncertain times
• Karen
• pivot
• social distancing
• sus (suspicious)
• unprecedented
• we’re all in this together.

If you go to the website and click on each word, an explanation pops up.

I was glad to see Karen, the supposed catch-all name for a perceived overemotional woman, made the list. I know many wonderful and amazing Karens.

COVID-19 is an odd choice. I wish the coronavirus itself would go away, but banishing the word won’t help. On the other hand, it would be more appropriate to banish China virus.

Your nominations?

Anyway, I really want to know what the other 1,450 plus nominations were.

Along with China Virus, I would nominate cancel culture and food insecure.

Food insecure seems intended to create distance or downplay the fact that real people are living their lives hungry on a daily basis. We don’t call the poor cash insecure.

What words do you wish weren’t used so often?

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Thank you for visiting Linda’s blog.

Linda K. Sienkiewicz is a writer, poet, and artist.
Learn more about her award winning novel, In the Context of Love.
Learn more about her picture book, Gordy and the Ghost Crab.
Learn more about her poetry chapbook, Security