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WHAT EUPHEMISMS MAKE YOU CRINGE?
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ManintheMiddle



Joined: 20 Oct 2008

PostPosted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 8:21 pm    Post subject: WHAT EUPHEMISMS MAKE YOU CRINGE? Reply with quote

George Orwell once wrote a marvelous essay on ideological cliches that had worked their way into the English language, mostly from Marxists. Someone ought to do the same with contemporary lingo.

What words (or phrases are so euphemistic that they make you cringe?

My top 3 are as follows:

1. collateral damage (re: civilian loss; re: deaths of innocents)
2. issue (re: problem)
3. readjustment allowance (re: moving expenses)
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Young FRANKenstein



Joined: 02 Oct 2006
Location: Castle Frankenstein (that's FRONKensteen)

PostPosted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 8:37 pm    Post subject: Re: WHAT EUPHEMISMS MAKE YOU CRINGE? Reply with quote

ManintheMiddle wrote:
1. collateral damage (re: civilian loss; re: deaths of innocents)
2. issue (re: problem)
3. readjustment allowance (re: moving expenses)

- rendition (extra-legal kidnapping and secret extradition to another country)
- enhanced interrogation techniques (torture)
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aboxofchocolates



Joined: 21 Mar 2008
Location: on your mind

PostPosted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 9:44 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Link to that essay, please?!!
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blurgalurgalurga



Joined: 18 Oct 2007

PostPosted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 10:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Is it this one, 'politics and the english language?'
Here's a good summary of it...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_and_the_English_Language
...and there's links to it at the bottom of the wiki page.
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SHANE02



Joined: 04 Jun 2003

PostPosted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 10:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"Anywho"

"I guess"

Don't guess, if you have to guess I'll ask someone else.
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Arthur Dent



Joined: 28 Mar 2007
Location: Kochu whirld

PostPosted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 10:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ethnic Cleansing. Are we talking about the hired help cleaning the sink? I mean really...so sad.
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samcheokguy



Joined: 02 Nov 2008
Location: Samcheok G-do

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 1:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

making the beast with two backs.
Shocked -who ever thought that up needs serious help
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samd



Joined: 03 Jan 2007

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

THREAD TITLES IN CAPS MAKE ME CRINGE, STEVE
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jajdude



Joined: 18 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

senior citizen
golden years
disadvantaged
challenged
visually or hearing impaired
downsizing
alternate lifestyle
person with illness
African American
comfort women
friendly fire
detention center
casualties of war
The American people
sanitation engineer (surely a joke)
waste removal officer
domestic assistant
administrative professional
president (say, of a hagwon)
chairperson
educator
heavyset
between jobs


Last edited by jajdude on Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:30 am; edited 1 time in total
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Rusty Shackleford



Joined: 08 May 2008

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

samcheokguy wrote:
making the beast with two backs.
Shocked -who ever thought that up needs serious help


Haha, are you being ironic? It was Shakespeare. He invented many future cliches.
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blackjack



Joined: 04 Jan 2006
Location: anyang

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You're doing a good job but ...
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frankhenry



Joined: 13 Mar 2007

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's Korean culture = we are f***ing you over
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RACETRAITOR



Joined: 24 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul, South Korea

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The only one I can think of right now is going Dutch/Dutch pay. It's funny when Koreans say it to mean a way of paying that North Americans introduced them to, but rather than update it to "Going American," they choose to pick on the Dutch.
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IMF crisis



Joined: 27 Mar 2008

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 8:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Not sure if this qualifies as a euphemism, but I got tired of "jumped the shark" after hearing it just once. I've never heard a lamer attempt to sound hip. For the while there, it seemed like people were saying every TV show had "jumped the shark" just because they wanted so badly to use that ridiculous phrase.
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RACETRAITOR



Joined: 24 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul, South Korea

PostPosted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:15 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

IMF crisis wrote:
Not sure if this qualifies as a euphemism, but I got tired of "jumped the shark" after hearing it just once. I've never heard a lamer attempt to sound hip. For the while there, it seemed like people were saying every TV show had "jumped the shark" just because they wanted so badly to use that ridiculous phrase.


You do know the origin of the phrase, don't you?
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