It's that time again! Time for
Lake Superior State University to round up all the misused, over-used and useless words that have been heard too much this year.
The university's 2011 Word Banishment List is an annual tradition dating back to 1976.
The "List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use, Over-Use or General Uselessness," while originally compiled by LSSU public relations head Bill Rabe, has evolved into a public nomination process where submissions are taken throughout each year. Past notable phrases banned have included "you know," "user friendly," "at this point in time," and "my bad."
Submissions are taken up until Dec. 20 and can be submitted online. University officials say even though it's been an election year, the words on the list this year come from many categories including politics. Nominations have stood out in the fields of academia, advertising, business, the military, and sports as well.
"Ever since this list 'went viral' three decades ago, our committee has had to 'man up' and 'defriend' more than 600 overused words and phrases," says John Shibley, a co-compiler since 1998. "Well-spoken 'digerati' everywhere are demanding, 'hands off my junk!'"
Among the stars of last year's list were "shovel-ready," "tweet" in any verb form, and the "Obama-" prefix.
The annual list is picked up by media outlets all over the world, often including Fox, NPR, CNN, MSNBC, BBC, CBC, and a huge array of radio shows. It's a traditional story for the world's major press agencies, including the Associated Press, UPI, Reuters and Xinhua in China--and that's not to mention the columnists and commentators who regularly have plenty to say about the list.
The 2011 list will be released on Dec. 31, in time to welcome the New Year.
Writer: Sam EgglestonSource: John Shibley, Lake Superior State University
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