LSSU Releases Its Annual List of Words to Banish

Over 30 years ago, the Public Relations Director of Lake Superior State University, Bill Rabe, was joking around with some colleagues and they cooked up a silly notion to banish from the English language a list of words and phrases that were overused. The list was released to the public on January 1, 1976.

The annual List of Words Banished from the Queen’s English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness has been released by LSSU every year since its inception. Over the decades, the university has received thousands of nominations from people proposing certain words and phrases to be included in the list. As of this year’s list, there have been almost 1000 banishments suggested.

People proposing to axe bothersome words and phrases cull their pet peeves from all manner of verbiage—everyday speech, regularly used media terms, advertising jargon, educational missives, and more. In late December, a committee reviews all of the submissions and makes the final cut. The list for each year is released on New Year’s Day.

There were more than 4,500 nominations for the committee to consider, most of which were transmitted through the university’s website. The final decisions of the committee are sure to be familiar to anyone reading this article. Here are a few of the most notorious:

Combined celebrity names. Since celebrity duos began, there have always been catchy, trendy combos of certain names. But the recent rash of cutesy contractions—"Brangelina," "TomKat," and "Bennifer" for example—have gotten to be too much for most people. According to a man in Centreville, Virginia, "It’s so annoying, idiotic and so lame and pathetic that it’s ‘lamethetic.’"

Ask your doctor. Peter Liveright of Lutherville, Maryland, said it best: "I don’t think my doctor would appreciate my calling him after seeing a TV ad."

Now playing in theaters. The ubiquitous ending to just about every movie advertisement nowadays is completely meaningless. "How often to movies premiere in Laundromats or other places besides theaters?" asks Andrea May of Shreveport, Louisiana. "I know that when I want to see a movie I think about going to a shoe store."

News reports that say "armed robbery/drug deal gone bad." "What degree of ‘bad’ don’t we understand?" asks Larry Lillehammer of Bonney Lake, Washington. "After it stopped going well and good?

Awesome. A perennial favorite on any recent list of overused words, "awesome" was first listed in 1984 by the Unicorn Hunters, who wanted to banish it for a year, "during which it is to be rehabilitated until it means ‘fear mingled with admiration or reverence; a feeling produced by something majestic.’" However, it appears that there is no chance for the word ever to be rehabilitated, so LSSU proposes it be fully banned. Tom Brinkmoeller of Orlando, Florida says, "That a mop, a deodorant, or a dating service can be called ‘awesome’ demonstrates the limited vocabularies of the country’s copywriters."

Lake Superior University is known for its quality academic programs, but it is just as well known for its annual list of words that should be banned. Nominations for the list are accepted year-round. To submit a nomination for the 2008 list, visit the "Submit a Word to Banish" form on the LSSU website here.