Words We Hate

Which is exactly why said editor hated it. It's not a word anyone really uses, other than in headline-speak.

Same with nab.

 

My wife hates that one. She also hates "panties," and I've never met a woman who likes that word.

I had a friend in high school who would have a visceral reaction upon hearing the word "rip."

 

Penultimate.

 

The guy who ran the copy desk at my first job hated the word "kid." He would insist that unless there was a baby goat in the story, nobody should use it. He would change it to something else every time and insisted every editor working for him do the same.

 

I fucking hate "reach out". In politics, no one "called" anyone, they "reached out" to people.

"We reached out to the Governor's people, but we haven't gotten an answer yet."

I never understood why it became standard usage, but it always drove me nuts.

 

I had a friend who always reacted violently to the word "coagulate."

The word that's high on my shit list these days: "ideate."

 

I actually like that word, as long as it's used correctly. The same for "reach out," since so few actual calls are made nowadays. (I have no problem with saying someone didn't respond to an e-mail seeking comment, since that makes the story more precise.)

But please stop using "see," particularly after an inanimate object or when referring to something intangible. A school/team/athlete can't "see" a .500 record or a good/bad call, but it can earn one. Or be affected by one. Or challenge one.

 

Literally.

 

I don't think you need to be so rigid when dealing with a one-column hed.
It's a five- or six-word hed, not the Sistine ceiling.

 

I get that a lot in my new life in the corporate world, as in "the subprime market saw 6 percent growth last quarter." No, the subprime market didn't see a damned thing. It grew by 6 percent.

 

"The report said".
I fix this shit a few times a week.
Documents don't speak.

 

Utilize drives me nuts. Why not just "use?"

Also, my disgust for the use of "amongst" and "leapt" in this century (or even the 20th Century) is well documented.