Guardian readers have responded to Louis de Bernières' recent column on imprecise and redundant speech, sharing their own linguistic pet peeves. The author's hatred of pointless words, or misosaskopeslexis, resonated with many, who offered examples of grating language use.
Pet Peeves on Radio 4 and Beyond
Dione Johnson from Hartley Wintney, Hampshire, agrees that 'like' is dreadful, but finds the use of 'so' at the beginning of sentences equally irritating. She notes that academics on Radio 4 often use 'so' with heavy emphasis, making ordinary answers sound portentous. She recalls mentoring a sixth-form student who used 'so' frequently, but stopped once she became comfortable.
Tony Hill from Pensilva, Cornwall, adds to the list with 'multiple' instead of 'many', 'super' instead of 'very', and 'I was sat' instead of 'I was sitting'. The 80-year-old wonders if these are just generational fads, like the 1970s words mentioned in the article.
Regional Variations
Alan Pearson from Broadbottom, Greater Manchester, points out that 'like' is used differently in north-east England, as in 'I was going to the pub, like', which makes Geordies seem constantly in search of a simile.
Steve Shearsmith from Beverley, East Yorkshire, recalls his father in Yorkshire in the 1950s overusing 'like', long before it became a modern annoyance.
A Dude's Perspective
Gareth Drake from Walthamstow, London, quotes The Dude from The Big Lebowski: 'that's just like, uh, your opinion, man.'
Readers are invited to share their own opinions on language pet peeves via email.
