A small university way up on the Canadian border is holding up the American end in the constant war against words and phrases that really cheese us all off on a daily basis.
Back in November, researchers at the University of Oxford fired the first shot against tired language with the release of a well-debated list — The Top 10 Most Annoying Phrases.
Now, Lake Superior State (in chilly Saulte Ste. Marie, Michigan — pronounced "Soo Saint") is continuing the allied assault with its 2009 List of Banished Words.
No one in academia is likely to confuse the stately, ivy-covered halls of Oxford with the snowy, ice-covered bricks of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Likewise, the Oxford list will probably pull down more intellectual buzz than its red, white and blue counterpart (though the northern college’s Laker hockey team could kick Oxford’s arse back across a frozen Atlantic).
Conceding a lack of scientific cache, the Banished Word List is more democratic than scientific — inviting concerned citizens to suggest phrases that university officials later evaluate.
The resulting "34th Annual List of Words to Be Banished from the Queen’s English for Mis-use, Over-use and General Uselessness" offers an equal-opportunity approach, taking slap-shots at tired terms from politics, sports, economics, entertainment and even online chat code.
The list includes:
• Green
• Carbon footprint
• Carbon offsetting
• Maverick
• First Dude
• Bailout
• Wall Street/Main Street
• Monkey
• <3
• Icon or Iconic
• Game changer
• Staycation
• Desperate search
• Not so much
• Winner of five nominations
• It’s that time of year again
Anyone wishing to nominate their own culprits for the 2010 list throughout the coming year can do so here.
As with the Oxford List, Wired.com foot soldiers are invited to discuss and touch off their own ammunition below in the comments section.
Image courtesy Lake Superior State University Lakers
See also:
