^When I worked for a subcontractor, I knew I was in trouble if a contractor told me, “I’m a man of my word…” Ack.
Toxic as an adjective in front of something they don’t agree with, gerunds used incorrectly and my favorite irrespective. Any bad grammar bugs me.
Pregnant people—really? I’ve never yet met a pregnant male! Why don’t we call them what they are—pregnant women?!?!
Using the word “anxious” when you really mean “eager.” Anxious means scared, nervous. Eager means excited.
People who respond with the double term “Yeah, No.” Like, what?? I think the “Yeah” refers to the fact that they understand what you’re saying, but the “No” is their real answer to what you’re saying or asking. I think.
And, this one drives me up the wall – the phrase “a whole nother thing.” There is no such word as “nother.” It should be, “a whole other thing.” Where did this total non-word come from!!! And if you’ve never noticed it, trust me – you’re now going to hear it all the time.
I love these threads, especially on a Friday afternoon when I’m not working that hard so I’m here not just for the great advice but also for the entertainment.
Some of these bother me, and a few I am guilty of. I heard a dad of one of my kid’s friends a few years ago get annoyed with his kid starting to use the phrase “Dude”. I had to laugh, because the kid had been camping with me all week, and I use it all the time, especially when I am talking to my kids and their friends. Pretty sure he picked that up hanging around me and my boy all week!
“irrespective” makes me want to slap people… Also, “based off” when you mean “based ON” – think aboutwhat it means for heaven’s sake.
And, “impactful” makes me want to cry. What a horrible non-word.
For all intensive purposes.
My bad.
You welcome.
@MomofJandL What kind of plastic bags? Supermarket kind? Those plastic bags are banned at any stores around where I live so when I see them in different town, I feel like I found a rare jewel!
“Focal point” — when I started to watch HGTV many many years ago (now we have only basic TV), everyone was talking about “focal point” and it drove me crazy! Do they still say that a lot on HGTV?
People that “axe” questions
Super
“Bubbly” and “Sissy” for brother and sister. “Maw Maw” and “Paw Paw” for grandparents. Not sure if these are used outside Appalachia but they set my teeth on edge.
This is sort of a niche thing, but “half Mary” for half-marathon. That does NOT go over well in my running circles.
I think “adulting” is used so much (and is irritating) because many of us aren’t so good at it! 
My husband thinks better than he communicates. So when he really gets going, in order to give himself time to find his words he repeats “Ya know” ad nauseam. Drives. Me. Nuts.
I swear it’s actually MORE difficult to understand him b/c you have to pick out the real information out of the landfill of "Ya know"s.
“Based off of.” It’s “based upon.”
“Adopted parents.” It’s “adoptive parents.” Parents adopt children, not the other way around.
“Pacific” instead of “specific.”
“irregardless” . . . Don’t you mean “regardless”? If it were a word, wouldn’t “irregardless” mean “not regardless,” i.e.,“regarding”? But people use “regardless” and “irregardless” as synonyms. The latter is simply unnecessary.
“begs the question” . . . as in “Many fans are injured by batted balls which begs the question, why aren’t teams doing more to reduce these risks?” Don’t you mean it “raises the question”? Perhaps the question “begs to be answered” but the question itself seems to arise pretty obviously from the facts presented—no begging required. The original (and in my book proper) use of “begs the question” is in logic and philosophy, where “begs the question” means “assumes what is to be proven.” A “question-begging” argument is a type of circular reasoning that doesn’t really address the question being asked—it “begs” that question—by assuming as a premise the very conclusion the argument is trying to reach, albeit often in a disguised way. I know I’m swimming against a tsunami on this one, but it grates on me nonetheless.
Just Sayin’
Irregardless is a word, regardless or irregardless of whether you believe it or not. And it means “regardless”–look it up in the dictionary.
Language evolves. Why do we have to keep saying this? You don’t have to like it, but it’s silly to say that it doesn’t mean what you don’t want it to mean.
I find the comments that refer to ideas and how they’re reflected in language on this thread to be so much more interesting than complaints that word usage evolves in ways you don’t like. But YMMV.
I’m guilty of using the word “adulting”. It’s good shorthand for a concept that would otherwise take many more words to get across.
On HGTV and its ilk: Paint it out instead of simply paint.