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Off topic: "Meaningless" phrases in English people use every day Thread poster: RominaZ
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An interesting thread!
I must say that I get annoyed by most of these, especially the use of "obviously" preceding something decidedly unobvious, or in answer to a question (can there BE something more offensive) and the word "like" littering every phrase (which often I'm guilty of too and have to kick myself for) but there's one other that really grates which is:
"not being funny but" (usually followed by a statement that the speaker finds funny)
"I don't mean to... See more An interesting thread!
I must say that I get annoyed by most of these, especially the use of "obviously" preceding something decidedly unobvious, or in answer to a question (can there BE something more offensive) and the word "like" littering every phrase (which often I'm guilty of too and have to kick myself for) but there's one other that really grates which is:
"not being funny but" (usually followed by a statement that the speaker finds funny)
"I don't mean to be rude but" (usually followed by a statement that could easily be construed as rude)
which is pretty much the same as "with all due respect" (usually followed by a somewhat disrespectful comment).
I also used to get really annoyed with double negatives: "nooo. I didn't say nothing" (usually pronounced "nuffin") and I would invariably correct people (to blank looks all round) on this point. Then I moved to Spain and started correcting Spanish people when they would say "no. no he dicho nada" (literally: No. I have not said nothing) thinking that people were really dense because they wouldn't understand that "no he dicho nada" is the same in essence as "he dicho algo" only to find out that I was the dense one after all because in Spanish, this is perfectly grammatically correct! ▲ Collapse
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XXXphxxx (X) 
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:09
Portuguese to English
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| or even ending sentences with so | May 24, 2013 |
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
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Giles Watson
Italy
Local time: 17:09
Italian to English
In memoriam | Back in the day | May 24, 2013 |
Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
or even ending sentences with so
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
What's wrong with "so" at the end of a sentence?
I used to quite like Randy Travis, back in the day 
[Edited at 2013-05-24 14:46 GMT]
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Giles Watson
Italy
Local time: 17:09
Italian to English
In memoriam | Back in the day | May 24, 2013 |
Re: or even ending sentences with so
Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
What's wrong with "so" at the end of a sentence?
I used to quite like Randy Travis, back in the day
[Edited at 2013-05-24 14:48 GMT]
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:09
Member (2008)
Italian to English
| So I think I'll go for that | May 24, 2013 |
Giles Watson wrote:
Re: or even ending sentences with so
Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
What's wrong with "so" at the end of a sentence?
I used to quite like Randy Travis, back in the day [Edited at 2013-05-24 14:48 GMT]
I think I'll hoist that idea up the flagpole and see if anyone salutes it.
[Edited at 2013-05-24 16:23 GMT]
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Trisha F
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:09
English to Spanish
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| So, I've done it! | May 25, 2013 |
I've started and ended sentences with "so" in the past. It is not a habit of mine but I've certainly done it at some point, usually to describe the outcome of something. I think it would be highly irritating to do it or hear it frequently but I hadn't thought of it at all until now. I must live in a cave as I haven't come across this situation that often.
[Edited at 2013-05-25 18:55 GMT]
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Trisha F
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:09
English to Spanish
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Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
"not being funny but" (usually followed by a statement that the speaker finds funny)
"I don't mean to be rude but" (usually followed by a statement that could easily be construed as rude)
which is pretty much the same as "with all due respect" (usually followed by a somewhat disrespectful comment).
I also used to get really annoyed with double negatives: "nooo. I didn't say nothing" (usually pronounced "nuffin") and I would invariably correct people (to blank looks all round) on this point. Then I moved to Spain and started correcting Spanish people when they would say "no. no he dicho nada" (literally: No. I have not said nothing) thinking that people were really dense because they wouldn't understand that "no he dicho nada" is the same in essence as "he dicho algo" only to find out that I was the dense one after all because in Spanish, this is perfectly grammatically correct!
It annoys the hell out of me when people are about to say something rude, racist, homophobic, sexist, bigoted and utterly nasty but try to soften it by saying "with all due respect", "I don't mean to be rude but", "I am not racist, homophobic, sexist but..." (expect something racist et caetera coming out of their mouths/keyboards).
As for the double negatives in Spanish, they are not only grammatically correct but apparently they are the norm. They are almost unavoidable when you say "no he dicho nada", for example but on many occasions you may skip them and use some nicer wording.
I am a native Spanish speaker but I've never been that fond of using double negatives when you can say something that sounds less obvious. I particularly avoid them in writing (I love writing stories as a hobby). People have corrected me, however, and told me that one MUST use double negatives at all times, otherwise Spanish sounds like a calque of English. I still don't agree because in literature you may find things like "él es nadie" (he is nobody). It may sound awkward in normal conversation but it is perfectly understandable, powerful in certain contexts (especially in writing) and even nice to the ear. I would have thought that it was also grammatically sound but Spanish grammar nazis have told me otherwise. I thought Spanish was a lot more flexible than that!
[Edited at 2013-05-25 19:29 GMT]
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| Popped his clogs | May 26, 2013 |
Not a lot of people know about that -- but they'll learn in time.
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:09
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Giles Watson wrote:
Re: or even ending sentences with so
Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
What's wrong with "so" at the end of a sentence?
I used to quite like Randy Travis, back in the day [Edited at 2013-05-24 14:48 GMT]
Isn't "back in the day" a meaningless and superfluous phrase? Isn't it enough just to say "I used to quite like Randy Travis" ?
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| It depends on the context | May 27, 2013 |
Giles Watson wrote:
Re: or even ending sentences with so
Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
What's wrong with "so" at the end of a sentence?
I used to quite like Randy Travis, back in the day [Edited at 2013-05-24 14:48 GMT]
Of course you can say "I am going to end all my sentences with 'so' and you can't stop me from doing so" but you can't say "I end my sentences with so, sooo..." and then not go on to say anything after that.
If you do, expect me to scream "so WHAT?"
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Heinrich Pesch
Finland
Local time: 18:09
Member (2003)
Finnish to German
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| What's left? | May 27, 2013 |
If you take out all these "meaningless" phrases what will be left of daily conversion? In oral communication they are almost inevitable, but in written text they should be filtered out automatically, which professional translators will do when translating. That's why the target text is often so much shorter than the source.
Human speech has evolved from signing and grunting to the current level. But communication still has the same function, make us feel to be part of the crowed. Th... See more If you take out all these "meaningless" phrases what will be left of daily conversion? In oral communication they are almost inevitable, but in written text they should be filtered out automatically, which professional translators will do when translating. That's why the target text is often so much shorter than the source.
Human speech has evolved from signing and grunting to the current level. But communication still has the same function, make us feel to be part of the crowed. That's why every sub-culture will develop it's own subset of meaningless phrases. They have a meaning after all. ▲ Collapse
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Giles Watson
Italy
Local time: 17:09
Italian to English
In memoriam
Tom in London wrote:
Giles Watson wrote:
Re: or even ending sentences with so
Marie-Helene Dubois wrote:
I used to know someone who did that. Highly irritating.
What's wrong with "so" at the end of a sentence?
I used to quite like Randy Travis, back in the day [Edited at 2013-05-24 14:48 GMT]
Isn't "back in the day" a meaningless and superfluous phrase? Isn't it enough just to say "I used to quite like Randy Travis" ?
Erm, yes Tom.
That was of course the point of the message (hence the smiley and the title of the post!).
Sorry if this was less than crystal clear. I have to admit I don't always read post titles myself 
[Edited at 2013-05-27 15:27 GMT]
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