Cliches: Which ones are you SICK of?

[wattage]

Having watched some TV in my time, and some reality shows lately [The Apprentice especially] I have become really annoyed with hearing one cliche in particular:

"Stepping up to the Plate!! "

Everyone in TV land is talking about stepping up to the friggin plate. Ironically baseball is at an 'All time low' (widespread panic) in terms of popularity.

Anyone else wish the American public would find something else to say....be original....if I hear ".....Marcus needs to step up to the plate, and he hasn't" one more time, I might..."step up to the plank!"

 

[Lacero]

"I gave it 110%"

Homer Simpson parodied this phrase in one of the classic Simpsons episode. Funny stuff.

 

[TheMonarch]

I second, "Stepping up to the Plate!! "

 

[wattage]

"Go for the gold"

 

[doumbek]

"It's just another tool in the toolbox"

And the pervasive use of calling everything a effing "product".

It's product this and product that, if you make only one thing, call it by it's name and not some generic widget like you just got out of business school!

 

[wwooden]

This is used a lot in sports and also in the music industry when artist debut a new album......it's along the lines of "I brought it to the next level".

 

[yellow]

"Location, Location, Location"

OK, I get it after the first one..

 

[Blue Velvet]

• Mac users are snobs
• At the end of the day
• Here's my final copy, there won't be any amends

 

[wattage]

This is used a lot in sports and also in the music industry when artist debut a new album......it's along the lines of "I brought it to the next level".

nice

'I think with this album we reinvented ourselves, took a step OUTSIDE THE BOX!'

As well as all spinoffs: Thinking outside the box. etc..

 

[Jaffa Cake]

• Here's my final copy, there won't be any amends

Ah, but that's not a cliche – that's an out and out lie...

 

[Blue Velvet]

Ah, but that's not a cliche – that's an out and out lie...

I know. But I thought I'd run it up the flagpole anyway.

 

[mad jew]

Hello.

Yes.

No.

 

[rt_brained]

"I gave it 110%"

Ditto. That and every variation thereof.

 

[rt_brained]

Not a cliché, but I'm sick and tired of, "Y'know what I'm sayin'?"

Y'know what I'm sayin'?

 

[Seasought]

Glass houses?

"People who live in glass houses..."

For some reason I only hear people say the first part now (as opposed to adding the 'shouldn't throw stones') so I enjoy appending:

"Shouldn't have pet ants?"

"Shouldn't sleep naked?"

"Should buy plants?"

 

[Seasought]

Not a cliché, but I'm sick and tired of, "Y'know what I'm sayin'?"

Y'know what I'm sayin'?

lol

I almost posted this one and yes, it annoys me to death, sometimes I'll respond:

"Yes, you just said 'do you know what I'm sayin.'"

or simply

"No."

 

[quigleybc]

not really a cliche

But I'm sick of seeing the word "woot"

Does anyone even actually say the word "woot" like that??

no one pronounces the T.....They just holler "wooooo!"

so where did the T come from?? Woot = WTF....

 

[xsedrinam]

"Money isn't everything."
"When she's mad, she humps up like a wet rat on a rafter."

 

[mad jew]

"When she's mad, she humps up like a wet rat on a rafter."

Yeah, that one's massively overused.

 

[xsedrinam]

Yeah, that one's massively overused.

Must be a Southern thang......

 

[EJBasile]

"the cream of the crop"
"Been there, done that"
"stop on a dime"
"hold your horses"
"pick up the pace"

Not too bad
"another day another dollar"
"kill two birds with one stone" (that one is not too bad)
"A penny saved is a penny earned"

 

[PlaceofDis]

all of them, as a writer they are such a pain in the but

 

[Loge]

Any statement of the form

X is the new Y.

like -

black is the new white
thursday is the new tuesday
chairs are the new fridges.

 

[xsedrinam]

all of them, as a writer they are such a pain in the but

"You can say that, again."

 

[PlaceofDis]

"You can say that, again."

its actually quite amazing how much cliches influence our everyday word and phrase choice, and how easily we slip into using them, and accepting them from those who we are talking to.

hopefully someday i will be able to take a class just on cliches, very interesting aspect of language.