“We live in unprecedented times.” “In these difficult and challenging times.” “For an abundance of caution.” “We are in this together.”
According to a university, this has been going on for quite a while.
“It shouldn’t surprise anyone that this year’s list was dominated by words and terms related to Covid-19,” said Peter Szatmary, LSSU’s executive director of marketing and communications, in his statement.
More than 1,450 phrases from around the world have been nominated for consideration, said LSSU, and seven of the 10 phrases the university selected for the so-called “ban” this year are about the coronavirus. They include “Covid-19”, “social detachment”, “we are all in this together”, “pivot”, “unprecedented” and any variation of “in an abundance of caution” and “in these uncertain times”.
The university has compiled its “Queen’s Annual English Banned List for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness” since New Year’s Day 1976. The list seeks to “defend, protect and support excellence in language”, encouraging avoidance of words and terms that have been used too much to be “ineffective, disconcerting or irritating”.
“The LSSU Banned Word List has reflected signs of the times since it debuted in the mid-1970s, and this year’s zeitgeist is: We’re all in this together, banning expressions like ‘We’re all in this together.’ To be sure, Covid-19 is unprecedented in causing damage and destroying lives. But so is overconfidence in ‘unprecedented’ to frame things, so you have to go too, “said Szatmary.
People named Karen may like to know that the term “Karen” is on the list.
As the university says, “What started out as an anti-racist critique of white women’s behavior in response to blacks and browns has become a misogynist term for criticizing women’s overly emotional behavior.”
LSSU also called for an end to the use of “sus”, the abbreviated form of suspect that is ubiquitous in the hit video game Between Us. The term’s names thought it was too lazy not to explain it entirely and should be limited to the game online.
“In a small way, perhaps this list will help to ‘flatten the curve’, which was also being considered for banning,” said LSSU President Dr. Rodney S. Hanley. “We trust that your ‘new normal’ – another candidate among the nominations – for the next year will not have to include that anymore.”
“I know right?” completed the list. The nominators thought the sentence was absurd for asking a question for which the answer is already known and which sounds insecure.
Honestly, we are not sure about the latter. It seems kind of sus.