Things you really wish people wouldn't say

"I have to go somewhere bad"

"Badly" I usually whisper.

I don't like that either.

Sort of similar to SillySprite's 'myself' peeve, I hate it when people use "I" incorrectly instead of "me" thinking it makes them sound clever. No ... it makes you sound like a twat who can't speak properly.

Sports announcers in the US have started using "untracked" instead of "on track" over the last few years, as in, "The Dallas Cowboys need to get their offense untracked quickly if they're going to have any chance to win this game."

No, genius, I always think, if their offense is not playing well, like a train riding off the tracks, then it's already "untracked," and needs to get back "on track."

It makes me sad that Troy Aikman, the Super Bowl-winning quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, makes this mistake often.

I'm really tired of people who give 110%. How is that possible? It's not. I wish people would just stop saying it, and stop infecting bosses who now insist that everyone should give 110%.

I also don't like the phrase "I should be grateful if you would ...". Should you or would you?

I hate imbecilic company inspirational slogans like "Our mission is to have passion for customer service!". Do they know what passion is? I don't want to be the kind of person who thinks that passion is something you have to have a "mission" for, or who gets a hard-on (or comes over all swoony if you'd rather) from working in a call centre, and I don't particularly want to mix with the kind of people that do, or work for the kind of people who dream up such bilge.

I refuse to acknowledge the word "healthful".  It sounds like a word some dumb hick made up.

Okay, it's more of a slogan than something people actually say, but Tesco's "Every Little Helps" drives me freaking CRAZY!

Every little WHAT helps?!  WHAAAAAAAAT???

DH said he thought it was an American expression.  Hahaha!

I refuse to acknowledge the word "healthful".  It sounds like a word some dumb hick made up.

Me, too. I looked it up one day, and apparently it is a real word.

I will never acknowledge "irregardless" as a word.  It makes no sense! Regardless means "In spite of everything; anyway; Heedless; unmindful".  The prefix ir- creates a negative (eg regular, irregular) so people are actually saying the opposite of what they mean. 

Another one that I hate is "unfreeze".  The word is thaw.

Also I hate when people use "whom" indiscriminately because they think it makes them sound smart.  It's like the I/me thing, they just end up sounding like an idiot. 

Tesco's "Every Little Helps" drives me freaking CRAZY!

Every little WHAT helps?!  WHAAAAAAAAT???

DH said he thought it was an American expression.  Hahaha!

In times of shortage of money, every little bit of economy helps us reach our goal of making ends meet. It was a common enough expression in UK English when I was a kid in the 1950s. My mother used it. When I was old enough, she would sometimes add "...as the actress said to the bishop".

I must just add, that I'm not terribly crazy about people who say "freaking", and even less crazy about the abominable " frickin' " but I'll let it pass this time... 

I get so frustrated with the Gardisil commercials here in the US (HPV vaccine) that say "I want to be one less... One less.... One less." I'm oft heard shouting at the TV, "It's one FEWER!"

And before I was in the UK the word "orientate" would give me severe icks. Alas.... getting over that one slowly.

And before I was in the UK the word "orientate" would give me severe icks. Alas.... getting over that one slowly.

That one has caused me lots of confusion because it's 'orientate' in the UK, but 'orient' in the US... so I grew up thinking that the correct way to say it was 'orientate' (UK upbringing), but then I heard 'orient' from US books/TV/films and I got confused - I had no idea which one I should use .

it's 'orientate' in the UK, but 'orient' in the US

You know, I always thought it was the other way around. But you are right, as I have discovered. I see that "orientate", described as "possibly a back-formation from 'orientation'" has been around since at least 1849. It is heavily frowned upon by dictionary heads.

I hate seeing 'for free' as in 'and get one for free'.  It's just free or for nothing!

I'm really tired of people who give 110%. How is that possible? It's not. I wish people would just stop saying it, and stop infecting bosses who now insist that everyone should give 110%.

I just told a client off for this!

I get so frustrated with the Gardisil commercials here in the US (HPV vaccine) that say "I want to be one less... One less.... One less." I'm oft heard shouting at the TV, "It's one FEWER!"

Yep, that's me too.  I am slowly training my friends to use the word 'fewer'.

My current hates are those who say 'should of' when they mean 'should have', and 'prolly' instead of 'probably'.

Vicky

My current hates are those who say 'should of' when they mean 'should have',

would of, could of, might of. "Are" for "our" annoys me, as do the old favourites "loose/lose", "you're/your". My line manager does not know the difference between "their" and "they're".

What about "had of" for "had"? I have actually seen someone on £35K write "If I had of known, I would of acted on it".