If ‘lockdown’, ‘furlough’,  ‘key worker’,  ‘self isolate’ and ‘social distancing’ along with ‘coronavirus’ have been declared as some of the most used words of 2020 then ‘It is what it is’! has to be up there in the most used phrase category.

If I hear it once more I will do something you will be reading about on the front pages. It seems that in the last few months everyone from doctors, politicians epidemiologists …and my sister …has been using it as a response to everything from Covid to curdled custard. I know what it means. It means it’s a frustrating or challenging situation that cannot be changed and must be accepted. But it drives me mad because it stops all further discussion. You might as well tell me to shut up ..and in all probability some of you may be doing that right now.

Its funny isn’t it how a simple collection of vowels and consonants can make our blood boil? Now it may surprise you to learn that I am someone who shouts at the television and radio …and more and more nowadays. It seems that grammar vocabulary or just proper English is no longer a prerequisite for someone who broadcasts and more frighteningly not fashionable. I know I’m not alone.

From time to time when I was doing a radio show I would ask,

‘What word or phrase annoys you as soon as you hear it?’ I knew within minutes the phones and email would go into meltdown.

So when I saw that same question pop up on Facebook the other day I just had to click on the comments and see what was causing, in some cases, blind rage!

Here is a sample:

‘Those Ones’

Ooh yes! ‘This’ is singular ‘those’ plural. So ‘this one’ or ‘those’

BUT NOT THOSE ONES!!!!!

People who start a conversation with the phrase ‘to be honest’.

I have a friend who says this all the time but when he doesn’t am I meant to wonder if he is lying?

‘Here is all the sport’ often used on television when it’s probably covering football …..and a BIT of something else.

‘Literally’ as in I ‘literally’ died! No you didn’t you’re still here.

‘Hacker’ as used nowadays in conjunction with the word ‘life’ as in ‘lifehacker’ meaning someone who tells you you need never buy Cif again as bicarb of soda will clean everything! Unless you are writing code to gain unauthorized access to the White House’s database you are not a ‘hacker’. Or of course unless you happen to be related or married to someone whose surname is Hacker ..like me… you are not a hacker.

‘Awesome.’

Which means extremely impressive or daunting; inspiring awe. But the Americans have hijacked it and it’s now used by Dumber and Dumber teens to refer to anything from a good burger to the colour of a thong.

They’ve also given us ‘Bud’

Now this got quite a few ‘likes’ on Facebook, which confusingly means lots people hated it.  A shortened form of ‘Buddy’ it has roots in the American Deep South and when spoken by someone from that area is quite acceptable. But when said in a rich Devon burr by a YODEL delivery driver ….well it just sounds daft!

What was it the Queen said?

“There is no such thing as American English. There is English. And there are mistakes.”

To close from South Korea we have ‘Mukbang’ – a host who broadcasts videos of themselves eating large quantities of food!

What has the world come to? I know …it is what it is!

Read all about it in Western Morning News