Overused words - - -
 

I just realized that i use the word "really" a lot -

I really like - I really think - I really am -

Really?

Awesome - Amazing -

Any that have caught your attention? (That can be printed on this board!)

I find myself using the word ALWAYS too much.

"Fabulous"- I find I use it quite a bit. Think I heard it continually on some tv show. Time to change stations!

After having taken three classes where we were repeatedly told that "always, never, every, and none" (and similar words) should be used with caution - I am careful about those.

So- so I use so as a transition in my conversation, so how do I stop saying so???

"Just." I read an article that said women tend to use this word to minimize what they are asking for, i.e., "I just wondered if you had made a decision yet," or "I'm just checking in." If I say those things and leave "just" out, I feel much stronger.

For me it is "Needless to say..." There are others but I can't think of them right now.

What about when people say "to be perfectly honest..." Don't you want to say, "It doesn't have to be perfect, just honest.

I'm a "just" overuser as well, and I try to remove it from my vocabulary too, for the same reasons Willferg posted. I'm a programmer and it's mostly men that I work with and for, and sometimes I have to challenge coworkers or even an executive's decisions, so I can't be wishy-washy in what I say in those situations. (Not to say it's a real problem for me; I believe that I am treated with just as much respect as anybody else but I want to keep it that way!) I probably still use it a lot in my non-work life without realizing it, but at work I try to be very aware of how I'm presenting myself. I have to pretend to be a professional and a grown-up at work, heh.

I USED to say "like" waaaay too much too. I grew up in So Cal in the 80's so I had a terrible "valley girl" accent when I was a tween and young teen. "Like, oh my god, TOTALLY!! And then I was all like, woooah! And she was all like, whaaaat? Like, we were totally, like CRAZY!!" Ugh! Seriously, that's how I sounded - I must have been so obnoxious to talk to! It took a lot of work but I think I've finally ditched that tendency. I say "dude" sometimes still, and every once in awhile some old childhood slang like "grody" or "gnarly" will work its way into a sentence but I let those stay. I can't deny my heritage ENTIRELY! LOL

I hear a lot of people say "literally" when that's not what they mean at all, and that bothers me and I'm often tempted to say something about it.... "Your head LITERALLY exploded? Wow, you must have an amazing plastic surgeon, your head doesn't look blown up at all!" (But I don't say it...at least not out loud, LOL)

Sorry. My Dh says I apologize waaaay to often for things that I did not do, say, or have control over. I think the tendency is a carry-over from 15 years in retail and customer service. After all the customer is always right and an apology--even if it is for an imagined slight or someone else's mistake--often calmed the waters.

So I am trying to stop apologizing and gee...sorry...was I starting to ramble? :)

One that I hear and grit my teeth to, is "Addicted". I hear too many people talking about something they like say, " I am so addicted to that." My 25-30+ kids use it, and older (than my kids) coworkers have used it.
I don't mean to sound preachy, but when you have lived with someone who has an addiction of any kind, it can be annoying to have the word used all the time like my youngest does, simply because he likes a product.
The other one is "you know". "I went to, you know the movie, you know and saw Beaches, you know and I am now addicted to that movie, you know?"
Sorry... Actually I think we all use a phrase or word to excess at times, and it takes a conversation like this one to make us think about what we say too much, and ways to stop it.

Happy Day!
Susan