Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Oxford University compiles a list of the ten most irritating phrases in public discourse.

I'd add "The fact that," "fairly or unfairly," and "going forward."

The top ten:

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

2 comments:

Theon said...

hopefully #8 is a stand-in for ALL the bizarre phonetic renderings of "n't've" contractions.

also ought to be present: "for no apparent reason" and "without further ado" (unless followed by "or ado from any distance").

also oxford university clearly only left out "massive" because they're afraid of riots.

M said...

the ten most irritating WHAT, Alfred?