Wordsmiths: Banish "Maverick," "Bailout"

University Issues Annual Compendium Of Words And Phrases That Definitely Need A Rest

(CBS)  It's that time of year again when the mavericks at Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan issue their iconic listing of words that must be banished for being mis-used, over-used or generally useless during the past year.

Their desperate search to protect the Queen's English promises to be a game changer for speechwriters and journalists from Wall Street to Main Street who might be green with envy for not being the first dude to come up with more original wordsmithing,

The list is not so much aimed at making a monkey out of the media but to ask that phrases which are too, too familiar be given a staycation in the coming year.

And Lake Superior has no <3 for text message emoticons, either.

This bailout of words suffering from literary abuse has been released every New Year's Day since 1976. And while not the winner of five nominations, their Web site invites the public to submit their own nominations for next year's list.

(Oh yes, and carbon footprint.)


This Year's List:

Bailout

Carbon footprint or carbon offsetting

Desperate search

First dude

Game changer

Green

Icon or iconic

It's that time of year again

Maverick

Monkey

Not so much

Staycation

Wall Street / Main Street

Winner of five nominations

<3 (Emoticon)


For a history of word banishment and past years' lists visit the LSSU Web site.

© MMIX, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Add a Comment See all 12 Comments

by jaykay3141 January 2, 2009 10:51 PM EST

Uh, I was trying to distinguish between the rather humorous opinions of the LSSU people (and I didn''t say I agreed with their choices, LOL!) and those people who simply can''t keep basic grammar straight - - - as well as tweaking CBS for some of the boneheaded goofs that regularly permeate their web design.

One of the great strengths of English is that it''s so adaptable and flexible. It HAS to evolve or we''d all be talking like Bill Shakespeare, right? There''s no French Academy saying that you can''t create new words like "underwhelm" or "gigundo" so more power to anyone who can and does!

My only grumble is dumbo mistakes like "sneak PEAK" that aren''t new words or extended uses, but simply lack of knowledge. Would you want a doctor or accountant whose philosophy was "close enough, and besides, everyone knows what I mean anyway" ?

For what it''s worth, age 50 has been in my rear-view mirror for quite a while. Plus I can discuss this topic in at least two other languages besides English...

Reply to this comment

by sincity_q January 2, 2009 6:55 PM EST

@JayKay3141

You may pick as much fly poop from the pepper grinder as suites you however, we here in the over-50 quarter will continue to flaunt, flout, spout, spurt, spurn and otherwise verbally ejaculate as we choose.

Now, please don''t feel obliged to pout. You too may speak without fear of tripping over some stiff-necked, politically correct college professor and his all-geek word orchestra. Just put down the bottled water and walk away a free man (or woman).

It''s just that simple.

Just declare your freedom from the pinheaded simpletons... or not.

-sincity_q
Forever free from language tyranny.

Cheers :)

Reply to this comment

by lilly1232 January 2, 2009 4:46 PM EST

Global warming is mainly caused by the methane gasses emitted out the mouths of politicians.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by tincup356 at 06:14 PM : Jan 01, 2009

couldnt agree more, lol right on

Reply to this comment

by hennighg January 2, 2009 11:04 AM EST

I/we wish/desire that people/persons would/could learn/be educated on how to use/to utilize /////.

Reply to this comment

by jaykay3141 January 2, 2009 12:45 AM EST

/* "I will use whatever words I care to." */

So said the Queen from Alice in Wonderland.

The LSSU professors are simply pointing out overuse and misuse of hackneyed phrases that the media grab onto in an orgy of me-too writing that''s both boring and unoriginal.

Now when it comes to bad spelling and grammar, that IS something to control. If you can''t tell the difference between YOUR and YOU''RE, FLAUNT and FLOUT, HE and HIM, IT''S and ITS (or TRY TO vs. TRY AND, btw) you have a lot (NOT "alot") more wrong than overusing trite cliches.

Reply to this comment

by sincity_q January 2, 2009 12:30 AM EST

Excuse me but... I will use whatever words I care to.

Geez. How arrogant is it to try and control what the public says?

Reply to this comment

by jaykay3141 January 1, 2009 11:28 PM EST

A few more to banish FOREVER and EVER!

"I could care less". Well, if you could, why don''t you? It''s COULDN''T care less!

The word "everyday". It''s an adjective meaning ordinary, commonplace, boring; NOT an adverb meaning "7 days a week".

Hyphenated numbers. It''s "2 dozen eggs", not "2-dozen".

Hyphenated verbs. It''s "log in", not "log-in" or "login" (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, CBS WEBMASTER!!) What''s the gerund supposed to be - loginning????

Nominative, indicative, who cares? If I hear someone say "Talk to they and I" one more time I''ll insert a grammar book somewhere very painful ...

"seperate", "alot", "definate", "your" (meaning ''you are'') and a laundry list of other orthographic atrocities.

BANISH THEM ALL!

Reply to this comment

by auscross1277 January 1, 2009 11:02 PM EST

Some words stay, because they are appropos--we can get rid of Maverick though. Since so far, the people who used that word were anything BUT Mavericks.
Posted by harbinger09 at 05:43 PM : Jan 01, 2009
*** you are preaching to the choir about that! I couldn''t stand amnesty mccain... the fact that he voted with bush 95 percent of the time, and supports amnesty just like bush, should have made everyone vote for anyone but amnesty mccain! I hate amnesty mccain! maverick, yeah right!

Reply to this comment

by auscross1277 January 1, 2009 10:59 PM EST

http://www.funny-base.com/cartoons/13-maxwellssilverhammer.html
*** here is a disturbing / funny cartoon that the wordsmiths would hate!... enjoy! Beatles humor!

Reply to this comment

by tincup356 January 1, 2009 9:14 PM EST

Global warming is mainly caused by the methane gasses emitted out the mouths of politicians.

Reply to this comment

by harbinger09 January 1, 2009 8:43 PM EST

Banishing words won''t make anything go away. This is a stupid annual game. As long as we pollute --we need to "go green" as long as it applies, we need to speak about the ''carbon footprint'' and as long as we keep giving welfare money to companies who fvck over consumers and their employees--we have to use the word "bailout" because the sad fact is--we can use a word that everyone knows what we mean and are talking about or we can use a slew of words to say the say tired cr@p. Some words stay, because they are appropos--we can get rid of Maverick though. Since so far, the people who used that word were anything BUT Mavericks.

Reply to this comment

by wl7bzh January 1, 2009 6:28 PM EST

Can we shoot all drug reps that uses the term "paradigm shift"?

Reply to this comment

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[jaykay3141]

Uh, I was trying to distinguish between the rather humorous opinions of the LSSU people (and I didn''t say I agreed with their choices, LOL!) and those people who simply can''t keep basic grammar straight - - - as well as tweaking CBS for some of the boneheaded goofs that regularly permeate their web design.

One of the great strengths of English is that it''s so adaptable and flexible. It HAS to evolve or we''d all be talking like Bill Shakespeare, right? There''s no French Academy saying that you can''t create new words like "underwhelm" or "gigundo" so more power to anyone who can and does!

My only grumble is dumbo mistakes like "sneak PEAK" that aren''t new words or extended uses, but simply lack of knowledge. Would you want a doctor or accountant whose philosophy was "close enough, and besides, everyone knows what I mean anyway" ?

For what it''s worth, age 50 has been in my rear-view mirror for quite a while. Plus I can discuss this topic in at least two other languages besides English...

[sincity_q]

@JayKay3141

You may pick as much fly poop from the pepper grinder as suites you however, we here in the over-50 quarter will continue to flaunt, flout, spout, spurt, spurn and otherwise verbally ejaculate as we choose.

Now, please don''t feel obliged to pout. You too may speak without fear of tripping over some stiff-necked, politically correct college professor and his all-geek word orchestra. Just put down the bottled water and walk away a free man (or woman).

It''s just that simple.

Just declare your freedom from the pinheaded simpletons... or not.

-sincity_q
Forever free from language tyranny.

Cheers :)

[lilly1232]

Global warming is mainly caused by the methane gasses emitted out the mouths of politicians.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by tincup356 at 06:14 PM : Jan 01, 2009

couldnt agree more, lol right on

[hennighg]

I/we wish/desire that people/persons would/could learn/be educated on how to use/to utilize /////.

[jaykay3141]

/* "I will use whatever words I care to." */

So said the Queen from Alice in Wonderland.

The LSSU professors are simply pointing out overuse and misuse of hackneyed phrases that the media grab onto in an orgy of me-too writing that''s both boring and unoriginal.

Now when it comes to bad spelling and grammar, that IS something to control. If you can''t tell the difference between YOUR and YOU''RE, FLAUNT and FLOUT, HE and HIM, IT''S and ITS (or TRY TO vs. TRY AND, btw) you have a lot (NOT "alot") more wrong than overusing trite cliches.

[sincity_q]

Excuse me but... I will use whatever words I care to.

Geez. How arrogant is it to try and control what the public says?

[jaykay3141]

A few more to banish FOREVER and EVER!

"I could care less". Well, if you could, why don''t you? It''s COULDN''T care less!

The word "everyday". It''s an adjective meaning ordinary, commonplace, boring; NOT an adverb meaning "7 days a week".

Hyphenated numbers. It''s "2 dozen eggs", not "2-dozen".

Hyphenated verbs. It''s "log in", not "log-in" or "login" (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, CBS WEBMASTER!!) What''s the gerund supposed to be - loginning????

Nominative, indicative, who cares? If I hear someone say "Talk to they and I" one more time I''ll insert a grammar book somewhere very painful ...

"seperate", "alot", "definate", "your" (meaning ''you are'') and a laundry list of other orthographic atrocities.

BANISH THEM ALL!

[auscross1277]

Some words stay, because they are appropos--we can get rid of Maverick though. Since so far, the people who used that word were anything BUT Mavericks.
Posted by harbinger09 at 05:43 PM : Jan 01, 2009
*** you are preaching to the choir about that! I couldn''t stand amnesty mccain... the fact that he voted with bush 95 percent of the time, and supports amnesty just like bush, should have made everyone vote for anyone but amnesty mccain! I hate amnesty mccain! maverick, yeah right!

[auscross1277]

http://www.funny-base.com/cartoons/13-maxwellssilverhammer.html
*** here is a disturbing / funny cartoon that the wordsmiths would hate!... enjoy! Beatles humor!

[tincup356]

Global warming is mainly caused by the methane gasses emitted out the mouths of politicians.

[harbinger09]

Banishing words won''t make anything go away. This is a stupid annual game. As long as we pollute --we need to "go green" as long as it applies, we need to speak about the ''carbon footprint'' and as long as we keep giving welfare money to companies who fvck over consumers and their employees--we have to use the word "bailout" because the sad fact is--we can use a word that everyone knows what we mean and are talking about or we can use a slew of words to say the say tired cr@p. Some words stay, because they are appropos--we can get rid of Maverick though. Since so far, the people who used that word were anything BUT Mavericks.

[wl7bzh]

Can we shoot all drug reps that uses the term "paradigm shift"?