Banished Words for the New Year

Protectors of the English language at Lake Superior State University have declared 15 words and phrases to be “shovel-ready” for inclusion on its 35th annual List of Words Banished from the Queen’s English for Mis-use, Over-use and General Uselessness.

The List first appeared after a New Year’s Eve party in 1975.  Since then, LSSU has received tens of thousands of nominations for the list, which includes words and phrases from marketing, the media, education, technology, and elsewhere.

We commend LSSU for this important service.

Anyone wishing to submit a word or a phrase for consideration should first check the complete list on the website.

The 2010 list:

Shovel-ready

Transparent / transparency

Czar

Tweet

App

Sexting

Friend as a verb

Teachable moment

In these economic times . . .

Stimulus

Toxic assets

Too big to fail

Bromance

Chillaxin’

OBAMA-prefix or roots