What’s in a word? Apparently, there are a lot of angry readers ‘arguably’ upset in the world

The building was 'completely destroyed' after firefighters arrived with 'boots on the ground' to find it 'fully engulfed in flames' that's believed to be the work of a 'bomb-throwing anarchist'.

We've all read stories in newspapers, or magazines and online that contain words and phrases that make us either seethe with anger or wonder where the art of plain, concise writing was lost.

Several of the phrases at the top of this story raised the 'ilk' of readers of The New York Times magazine, which asked readers to submit their opinions after a blog post about an old editing document titled "Words We Don't Say" surfaced in the newsroom, written by bestselling author Kurt Andersen when he was an editor.

Readers had no qualms about 'weighing in' on the issue, clearing up a lot of cliches, corporate lingo and poor grammar.

"Don't ever, ever, ever say 'utilize.' Say 'use'. Would you say software is 'utilizer-friendly?'," one reader wrote.

Another said, "Cyber, Viral, Epic. Never the first (ever) and only the last two when referring to infectious disease and long narratives, respectively."

"Repurpose - an invented word, circa 2004," says it all. Another one that can 'bite the dust' is that perfect "aha moment."

Jonathan Saltzman of Santa Barbara, Calif., said, "Input, as in seeking someone's opinion. What am I, something you plug into a computer?"

A few phrases and words gleaned from the corporate world also drew readers' scorn.

Here is a sampling: backchannel me (reply), bandwidth (staff), build out (expand), come on board (unless you're talking about a ship), craft a memo (write), due to the fact that (because), hard stop (leave), and helmed ( meaning directed: we're not on a ship).

Some annoying phrases included: maximize efficiency, low-hanging fruit, merge together, mother's worst nightmare, tree-lined street, brazen daylight attack, needless to say (why say anything then?), no pun intended, reality-based, purpose-built, nothing for nothing, paradigm shifting, perfect storm, work-life balance and putting out fires.

There are also overused words that apparently drive readers to take an 'actionable' stand: anything-gate, anything-centric, anything-based and anything-wise.

And please, please, please stop using 'impact' as a verb! AFFECT.

So that 'begs the question' er, raises the question:

Can we really write decently without expressing ourselves in the common vernacular of our culture?

Let's remain 'cautiously optimistic'.

(Reuters Photo)