I guess many of us love words since we love reading. But what about words that you do not enjoy? There is one word that I only see in books but seldom (if ever?) hear in real life that for some weird reason irrationally irritates me—clamber! I can’t even say why I hate seeing it so much, but it always takes me out of the immersion of reading when any form of it pops up. Everyone seems to be clambering all over the place in books for some reason! Any other weird word aversions?
by Torrential_Rainbow
4 Comments
Most people seem to dislike “moist” for some reason.
I personally can’t stand “ubiquitous.” I hear it, read it, even typing it is like nails to a chalkboard for me.
I see the word palimpsest in books way more often than I would ever expect. It’s such an ugly word and it always feels so forced or unnecessary to use.
clamber is such a book-only word lmao, no one’s ever said that out loud in real life. for me, it’s “moist”—not even because of the typical reason, it just feels unnecessary most of the time. like, just say damp and move on.
I really hate the word “ponder.” It’s really most useful when it’s used in reference to deep reflection or weighing decision points, but people use it—maybe semironically?—to mean “wonder idly,” or “consider,” and it’s just kind of lost all meaning.
Some words, like objectively, or literally, end up taking on new meanings, and that’s fine. Ponder is sort of losing a meaning without picking up a new one. That’s happening with technically, but unlike all of those, no one is defending “ponder.”