So, in response to LSSU’s List of Banished Words, we’re to come up with our own list of words that the English language could do without, if we’re to have our druthers. So, without further ado, off we go.
(I’ll mention, too, that I’ve been listening to the late, great Bill Hicks for the last hour or so, and this post is a wee bit more sardonic than usual).
Guesstimate— According to the OED, this portmanteau is defined as “an estimate which is based both on guesswork and reasoning.” This, as it is, seems logical enough, and is a perfectly valid word. What irks me about it is at the semantic level. Most of the times that I’ve heard/read this word, I’m left with the impression that the user isn’t using the word to denote both guesswork and reasoning, but rather, as a fairly trite attempt to be clever, as if he/she is trying to flex the muscles of his/her lexical prowess. In most cases, either “guess” or “estimate” is just fine, and little-to-no meaning is lost without using “guesstimate”.
Effective— As we’ve noted, one aspect of language is change. One possibility of language change is that words become overused, and for me, that’s what’s going on with “effective”. My attitude towards this word has shifted in the last year or so, and much of it has been self-inflicted. I used to use it in my comments on students’ essays/assignments: “effective transition,” “effective use of a semicolon,” etc. And what started occurring to me was that without any elaboration, what I was trying to communicate to the student was pretty vague; a more descriptive or explanatory word/phrase could convey a clearer message to the student. Because I’ve been self-conscious about the word, I’ve naturally started noticing it in other contexts, and I’m left with the same opinion in almost all of them; that “effective” is a rather ineffective word for descriptive purposes.
Need (verb)– You’ve seen links around the Internet that say something like “You need this video of yawning kittens in your life”?
Meanwhile, there are people starving to death around the world.
Want ≠ Need
Deserve— In 2009, when smartphones were surging in popularity, I was talking to a friend, and he said “I deserve Internet on my phone.”
Meanwhile, there are people starving to death around the world.
Want ≠ Deserve
Very–Again, pertaining to students’ essays, I’ve been more aware of the use of “very” as an intensifier, but more often than not, the only thing it intensifies is an essay’s word count. “Very” describes very little, and is often used as a way to skip further elaboration. I may be guesstimating here, but some people may not want to put forth the effort to try to describe something so that the reader can get a vivid picture of it and better understand what the author/speaker is talking about, and the mindset is that the use of “very” is an effective way to denote meaning.
“This painting is very good.”
Somebody tell Monet that all his hard work is paying off.
Matters about Language, Poetics, Meaning, etc. 