List of "banished" words and phrases

Every year, Lake Superior State University, the BBC, the New York Times, Time magazine, and other institutions publish lists of overused words and phrases that they (or in the case of Time, their readers according to an online poll) would like to see banned, retired, and avoided. Listed below are some of their selections.

The lists

2016 so conversation problematic stakeholder price point secret sauce break the internet walk it back vape physicality manspreading presser giving me life Source [1] 2015 bae basic bossy cra-cra curate/curated disrupt enhanced interrogation feminist[2] foodie friend-raising hack I can't even influencer kale literally -nation obvi polar vortex said no one ever skill set sorry not sorry takeaway turnt yaaasssss Source [3][4] 2014 absolutely adversity anyway (adv. conj.) -ageddon fan base #hashtag hipster iconic intellectually bankrupt look... mister mom morally bankrupt Obamacare on steroids passion -pocalypse selfie so... (conj.) t-bone twittersphere Source [5][6] 2013 24/7 artisan best practices boneless wings brand bucket list double down end of the day fiscal cliff gluten-free guru job creators/creation kick the can down the road passion/passionate spoiler alert superfood trending whatever world-class Source [7][8]

2012 amazing baby bump blowback boss bro- epic ginormous #hashtag LOL/OMG/WTF man cave netizen occupy pet parent sexting shared sacrifice thank you in advance trickeration win the future Source [9][10] 2011 aha-moment the American people back story bff creative effective epic extensive experience facebook as verb fail google as verb I'm just sayin' live life to the fullest mama grizzlies man up motivated organizational refudiate track record viral wow factor Source [11][12] 2010 aporkalypse app birther bromance chillaxin' conflict minerals czar friend as a verb Great Recession I'mma let you finish in these economic times meep Obama- sexting shovel-ready stimulus teachable moment too big to fail toxic assets transparent/transparency tweet Source [13][14]

2009 bailout carbon footprint carbon offset desperate search exit strategy First Dude game changer green green shoots historic opportunity icon/iconic it's that time of the year again maverick -monkey new normal not so much staycation unprecedented Wall/Main Street winner of x nominations Source [15][16] 2008 <3 authored back in the day Black Friday decimate emotional x give back it is what it is makes x pop organic perfect storm post-9/11 random surge sweet truthiness under the bus waterboarding webinar wordsmith/ing x is the new y Source [17]

Banned more than once, still at large

ask for it by name (1999, 2000), awesome (1984, 2007), basically (1984, 1986, 1993), the bottom line (1979, 1992), classic (1982, 1989), enclosed please find (1985, 1989), exact same (1981, 1990), first time ever (1982, 1983), if you will (1984, 1991), incidences (1988, 1993), irregardless (1979, 1988), live audience (1983, 1987, 1990), myself (1990, 1991), on a roll (1984, 1988), ongoing (1984, 1986, 1993), parenting (1978, 1991), passion/passionate (2013, 2014), proactive (1991, 1993), very unique (1983, 2002), viable alternative (1979, 1992), world class (1982, 1993), yuh know (1978, 1979)^[18]

See also

• Word of the year - The most notable words of the year, when overused, tend to appear on lists of words and phrases to avoid.
• List of English idioms on Wiktionary
• Politics and the English Language - an essay by George Orwell, in which Orwell discusses obfuscation and deception in political language by using clichés and hackneyed phrases.

Notes & references

1. "‘Manspreading,’ ‘Price Point,’ ‘Stakeholder’ on University’s List of ‘Banished’ Words for 2016 - ABC News". ABC News. 31 December 2015. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
2. "TIME apologizes for including 'feminist' in poll of words to ban". PBS. 2014-11-17. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
3. "Lake Superior State University's 40th Annual List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
4. "Which Word Should Be Banned in 2015?". Time Magazine. Retrieved 2015-02-05.
5. "2014 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
6. "20 of 2013's most overused words". BBC. 2014-01-01. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
7. "2013 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
8. "Words for the Dumpster". New York Times. 2013-12-28. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
9. "2012 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
10. "Poll: What word should be banished in 2012?". Time. 2012-01-11. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
11. "2011 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
12. "The Most Over-used Business Buzzwords of 2011". Forbes. 2011-12-13. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
13. "2010 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
14. "The Buzzwords of 2009". New York Times. 2009-12-19. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
15. "2009 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
16. "'New Normal' Tops 2009 List of Overused Phrases". Bloomberg. 2009-12-22. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
17. "2008 List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-18.
18. "Complete List of Banished Words". Lake Superior State University. Retrieved 2014-01-18.