Annoying Words: Let's Get Over "Awesome," "Amazing," And "Ridiculous"

GOOD:

The other day, I decided to go 24 hours without using the words “awesome” and “amazing.” A few hours later, I upped the ante and added “ridiculous” after initially giving it a pass.

Read the whole story: GOOD

Comments

[deepintheheartoftejas]

08:40 PM on 06/21/2011

Does "awesome sauce!" count of "awesome"? If that's the case, then no, I can't make it.

[ESerafina42]

08:33 PM on 06/21/2011

I don't tend to use those words. Maybe "ridiculous," occasionally. You won't find me saying anything is awesome unless it is in the original sense of the word, "inspiring awe."

[nkb89]

09:16 AM on 06/21/2011

awesome....amazing....ridiculous....damn!

[Danny de Gracia II]

09:47 PM on 06/20/2011

As a former legislative staffer, I can say for sure that if you don't work for a politician you'll find that those three words - but especially "awesome" and "amazing" - quickly fall out of use.

[GraceNotes]

05:11 PM on 06/20/2011

Well, I know I can, but can the headline writers resist those words?

[FPhoebe]

05:05 PM on 06/20/2011

Wow, all the commenters on this thread are really harsh. Why is it such a big deal to you that she wants to retire words that are overused not just by the author, but by many many other people as well? When you use a word too much, it's meaning becomes watered down and it doesn't quite have the same ring to it. She wants to better her vocabulary and include words that will convey their meaning as accurately as possible; I see no harm in that. I myself am guilty of using ridiculous far too much. And for the people that are mocking this article as "hard hitting journalism"...you're in the books section of the Huffington Post. If you want serious news, go to another site.

[Indigo1941]

02:47 PM on 06/20/2011

Totally!

[apoyo]

01:34 PM on 06/20/2011

I can go for weeks without saying or writing those words.

I don't see the challenge. As a writer, I like variety, learning and using new words.

[toxicshock]

11:06 AM on 06/20/2011

Of course she failed miserably. It's a completely psychological thing when one is trying to be extra careful about NOT doing something! For example, telling yourself to be really quiet when coming home late at night so as to not wake others. Then you find yourself dropping your keys, or closing the door a bit too loud, or shuffling your feet in the kitchen. It's an interesting (is that word OK?) phenomenon, but not at all surprising.

I don't understand what's annoying about any of those words. What's REALLY annoying is people using words like "gay" and "retarded" to insult something that they dislike. That's even less creative than using "ridiculous"!

[PaddyMc68]

10:58 AM on 06/20/2011

Yes, yes I can.

[The Drip]

09:39 AM on 06/20/2011

The moderator screening on huffpo is ridiculous.

[triplettam]

04:20 AM on 06/20/2011

Sheesh. I hardly ever use those words. She failed "miserably?" The word in the English language that has the most meanings and would thus be hard to not use has only three letters. "Run." Anywhere from 24 to 36 definitions, depending on your dictionary. That one might be hard to not use. Those three? Quack.

[ESerafina42]

08:34 PM on 06/21/2011

I thought it was "set," but I'm sure they're both up there. :)

[sugarcreekchile]

06:33 AM on 06/19/2011

This writer must come from the generation known for having a limited vocabulary or is a victim of arrested development who never progressed intellectually beyond high school.

[JJaycee]

12:04 AM on 06/19/2011

The most annoying word used these days isn't really a word: physicality. What these idiot announcers of sports mean to say is "the physical nature" but it's apparently too hard for them to figure this out.

[toxicshock]

11:07 AM on 06/20/2011

Don't forget "irregardless!"

[ESerafina42]

08:35 PM on 06/21/2011

"Fail" as a noun bugs me. Also, "dude" is way overused, though I didn't freak out when Jon Stewart used it when addressing President Obama as I guess some people did.

[Skyhawk]

05:07 PM on 06/18/2011

Huffpo is awesome when it comes to posting dumb articles. Some of the ads are just amazingly ridiculous.

[thinkingwomanmillstone]

09:52 AM on 06/20/2011

you know, like I mean like totally agree. Oh man!