Recently, we asked the BuzzFeed Community which overused word or phrase they're sick of hearing. My suggestion was "let that sink in" (Twitter has effectively killed it), but BuzzFeed readers had plenty more excellent suggestions. So here are some words and phrases that were fun once, but have been run into the ground:
1. "I did a thing..."
"The 'so I did a thing...' / 'so we did a thing...' phrase to make an announcement. I don't know why this phrase makes me cringe into myself."
2. "I was today years old"
"Usually followed by some ridiculous factoid.
It's such an annoying turn of phrase and it's so overused. It's not cute, it's not funny and it doesn't make you interesting. It just makes me want to gouge my eyes out so I never have to read it again."
3. "Girl dad"
"You're just a dad, why do you need to specify which gender you're the parent of?"
4. "Fur baby"
5. "Unprecedented"
"'Unprecedented' is a word I heard nearly every day for more than four years. never again."
7. "Do you see what I'm saying?"
"NO. There is absolutely no way for me to see what you’re saying!"
8. "Read that again"
"Bitch, I can comprehend something after only reading it once! It’s not cool, it does not add emphasis; it’s just plain annoying!"
—hof
9. "It is what it is"
"Well no shit. It’s a useless and completely hollow phrase. I work in social work and I hear it all the time, it’s so annoying."
10. "About last night"
"I hate when people use 'about last night' in an Instagram caption. Just post the dang pics, we’ll figure it out!"
11. "Beyond the pale"
"I know I just did the all caps thing but I stand by it. It's egregious/insufferable/detestable/unconscionable/shameful/scandalous/totally unpalatable and BEYOND THE BLOODY PALE that this phrase is used to describe everything terrible and over the line. When I hear it, now, I feel like a toaster that's been dropped in the bathtub. SYNONYMS. Embrace them. Variety is the spice of life. Diversified expressions of distaste are not to be abhorred. I beg of you all..."
12. "Hack"
"I am so very very tired of things being described as 'hacks.' Most of the time the thing that’s being talked about isn’t anything new or mind-blowing and on the off-chance that it is, it still isn’t a 'hack.' Just call it a new method or a literally anything else please."
13. "Iconic"
"When people describe something recent as 'iconic.' I personally feel the word has lost all meaning now because of how overused and misused it is. A thing has to age years and years to become 'iconic,' it doesn't reach that status automatically. It takes time."
14. "At the end of the day"
"Unless you are literally referring to an actual point in time, stop it."
—PHM8
15. "Fair enough"
"It's said at any time even when it doesn't fit whatever was said before it. And really I truly believe 'fair enough' means one of two things: 1) 'I don't actually care about this or care to continue this conversation so this is me saying something that will hopefully end it,' or 2) 'This isn't an lol situation and I don't know what to say, so...'"
17. "Nine out of ten times"
"First of all, no it isn't, it never is. Where's the data to prove it? You're exaggerating instead of trying to understand the problem."
18. "This"
21. "Literally"
"Lord help me, where do I start? I don't know when the world general knowledge curriculum added the part where 'literally' is just a filler adverb added for emphasis. I'm going to blame Rachel Zoe — 'I literally just died.'"
