I care a lot about both the “dictionary definition” of words and their implications. I believe the implied meanings of words, or what we mean when we “read between the lines” is the more important of these, because consciously or unconsciously, that’s where meaning is transmitted between the writer and the reader. That’s where the intention behind my words hopefully matches up with your understanding of what you read.
Good fiction writing usually avoids cliche, while good copywriting is often full of it (you see what I did there).
Because cliches are shortcuts or “cheat codes” for delivering meaning too quickly for our critical thinking faculties to intercept it and unpack it, they have enormous power when used correctly and deliberately. Cliches can be like snipers, one-shotting objections in sales copy with deadly accuracy.
But most of the time, we’re not using them that carefully. Instead, we use cliches as “filler words” to gain speed so we can launch our point off the ramp of writing. And in doing so, we’re working against ourselves because we’re creating a subtext that’s the opposite of what we intended.
Here are two admittedly personal pet peeves of mine: In fact and to be honest (and its little brother, honestly).
In Fact, My Ass
If you say in fact, then what follows had better be a fact. Newsflash: your opinion is not fact.
My feeling is that people use the phrase in fact as a way of saying, “The next thing I’m going to tell you is even more important than the last thing.” They’re using in fact because “we all know what it means” and they’re simply not taking the time to find a better way to segue from one idea to the next.
If you avoid saying in fact, your writing will become more persuasive and powerful, because cliches have lost much of their power through overuse.
What to say instead of in fact:
- Even more importantly…
- Also…
- What this means for you is…
- What’s important about this is…
- In other words…
- What I’m really trying to say is…
To be Honest…
Are you saying you weren’t being honest with me before, but you’ve had a change of heart and now you’re going to start? Nothing says “liar” more than self-proclaimed honesty. This is a prime example of unintended meaning.
What to say instead of to be honest:
- Nothing
- And no, I don’t mean the word, “nothing”, I mean you can just drop it from your writing altogether as a filler phrase
- Seriously, just don’t say it
Not all Cliche is Equal
I’m picking on these two because their “hidden” meanings or subtexts are a problem. There are an absurd number of cliches in the English language that don’t create this kind of meaning problem, and are your more mundane sort of cliche.
Can you think of any other cliches which also might imply an unfavorable or contradictory meaning underneath the surface of its words?
Image attribution: tibchris
Love this post. In fact, I honestly really love it. Just kidding, thought I'd throw that in there. It is so important to avoid words and phrases like this, because it can diminish your credibility in your writing. I had never thought about “to be honest” in the way you presented it above. And you're absolutely right. Are you really being honest now? Or were you not honest in your past. Very good content.
Erin, that's a great point: a consequence of this can be lower credibility.
Thanks for that insight!
The hidden element here is that this language shows diminished confidence, and is weak compared to simply removing those words. Nice piece man.
And the funny thing is, you may not feel a lack of confidence at all, it's
just that these have become a lazy, common habit.
I like both of those. Let me add another one-”let me be clear”……it implies that in previous times you have not been clear, but usually those assertions were also sprinkled with “let me be clear”, so when I hear that phrase I just assume they are trying to push a lie down my throat.
Cheers, Kevin
I know, right? “Let me be clear” often seems to be just a shortcode for “I
want you to understand this the way I want you to, not the way you might
want to.” Which is really just another way of saying, “because I said so.”
Michael, right on the money. When I hear that phrase it puts me on guard right of way for the clever distortion that is coming my way.
My peeve would be “in a manner of speaking” or “so to speak.” Just say it for chrissake. Now I'm off to scour my copy for any of these phrases…I'm sure I'm guilty of some…
These don't carry a hidden meaning that can undermine your own credibility,
which is why I felt I needed to write an entire blog post about “in fact”
and “to be honest.” However, I empathize with you deeply when it comes to
pet peeve phrases. Here are some that are just torture for me:
At this time… (you mean NOW).
Impact used as a verb (you mean AFFECT).
Literally (just stop saying it, you're probably doing it wrong and you don't
even know it).
When my son was an infant, the doctors told us he would always be a “moron.” At that time, it was the AMA medical term used to describe a person with an IQ below 50. Needless to say, everytime someone uses the word “idiot” “moron” “imbecile”–the other medical categories of the AMA–it hurts.
I also love it when people say, 'Can I be honest with you?' NO! Flattery & Lies will get you EVERYWHERE!
Like you, I shake my head when I hear people say use these sentence openers and it's really cool to see you calling it out without sounding like the Grammar Gestapo. What you say makes common sense and I trust it's gonna make small parts of the world a better place to communicate with.
For better or worse, I'm the guy who often responds to that question by
saying, “No, lie to me” in the most deadpan voice I can manage. Then finally
I smile and let them off the hook.
One of my personal pet peeves is the phrase “with all due respect”. Have you ever noticed people that use that phrase usually mean just the opposite? It's often the precursor to insulting someone, but without the courage to just do it blatantly.
YES! I don't think I've heard anyone say this and mean it respectfully.
Respect shows in your actions not your declarations. Good one!
There are a couple more that I think need to be added here….
1) “I could care less.”
a poorly misused bi-product of the correct usage, “I couldn't care less.”
I absolutely hate it!
2) “Have your cake and eat it, too.”
How is this possible? Isn't it supposed to be, “Eat your cake, and have it, too?”
another thing I hate is the incorrect use of the word “oriented.” When I hear someone, even upper management saying, “orientated,” it's like fingernails on a chalk board.
Yup, I'm with you on caring less (or not, LOL). I've NEVER heard anyone say
“Eat your cake” first, it's always been “Have your cake,” but what you're
saying makes a lot of sense.
And yeah, “orientated.” Ugh.
Have you ever noticed that when somebody begins a sentence with, “I'm a very honest person, so . . . ” what follows is most likely an insult, derogatory remark, or something offensive? Same thing goes for non-apologetic apologies like, “I'm sorry if I . . . ” followed by something the person speaking is not really sorry about.
“To be honest . . . ” falls into a similar category as “To tell you the truth, . . .”
rogerscime.com
“I'm sorry if I…” is a great one that I hadn't even thought of, so thanks
for bringing that one up!
That's right up there with, “I'm no racist, but… {insert racist remark
here}” or “I'm not against gays or nothing, but {insert homophobic remark
here}.”
And so on.
Or how about every bill put through Congress in the last 10 years? The
effect of the bill tends to be the opposite of its name. But that's not
carelessness in speech. That's practically a form of psychological warfare,
and I utterly despise it.
Make it “Three Phrases You Should In Fact, Honestly Avoid Saying” – and add the phrase “believe it or not!”
*Slaps forehead* How did I miss that one? Thanks for bringing that one to
the table. Yeah, if you're daring someone to believe you, chances are they
won't.
I once wrote speeches for an executive who loved, “Frankly. . . ” — another version of “honestly.” I almost got her over it.
Others I hate:
Don't take this personally but . . . (I'm a person, how else could I take it?)
At the end of the day . . . .
I'm sorry if you took offense . . .
Jean, these are all fantastic examples of an undermining hidden meaning.
Except for the first one you mentioned, “frankly”! I think for some folks,
“frankly” is what they say after they've thought themselves into finally
figuring out what they wanted to say in the first place. We do this
naturally all the time when speaking face to face, but since writing can be
rewritten, why would we not want to NOT be frank at all times?
There is a very good reason to not be frank at the beginning of an article:
you want to slowly gain concessions (little “yesses”) from your reader and
build them up to a more dramatic revelation. You want them to feel
comfortable at first but then turn up the heat. So at first you will NOT be
speaking frankly with them. But when you drop the bomb, speaking frankly
(and using that phrase) is acceptable. Can you accomplish this without using
that exact phrase? Of course! But this may be where the “shortcode” effect
of cliche can be strategically used.
You may not agree with my take on this, but, I hope you understand my point
and I welcome your further thoughts on it.
Man you guys are coming up with such good ones I'm going to have to write a
new post and credit all of you.
As far as irritating cliches go, the phrase “the fact of the matter is” must top the list. The fact of the matter is, that it rarely is the actual fact of the matter. It is usually just the speaker's own opinion.
Yeah, at first glance it would seem to be a brother to “in fact” but I think
the subtext is entirely different than “in fact”. When people say “the fact
of the matter…” what they're really saying is, “I'm right”. And we all
know how well that goes over.
Flashback time for me. I used to be a tech geek that went on sales calls to answer questions and do part of the presentation. I did both the “in fact” and “to be honest” all the time and the sales manager would hit me up side the head for exactly what you are talking about. In fact, it hurt
Good post and “thanks” for the memories
Phantom headache now? Sorry!
As a matter of fact, Michael, a great post! (You asked for suggestions, you got one!)
Seriously Michael (another one?), blah, blah blah.
Okay. I'll stop. Thanks for reminding us of the importance of using precision when we write. It's too easy to stray into the underworld of cliches and meaningless filler words. The English language is under threat. The first place to start is with so-called professional reporters and journalists who should know better.
Great points Jim! Somebody had to teach those people how to speak and write
and I wish we could start there, except “fixing” that would be like trying
to reverse the orbit of the Earth. At some point we have to take
responsibility for ourselves regardless of what educational factory tried to
grind our brains into sausage.
“I'm not gonna lie” seems to show up on my team a lot. “Were you gonna?”
Oh man! That's an amazing one. That one is so bad it deserves a facepalm.
Thanks for adding that to the list!
That's true,the avoid saying in fact, your writing will become more persuasive and powerful, because cliches have lost much of their power through overuse..
So has using keywords as your commenting name.
I like this! I have pet peeves in writing too. I did a blog post at http://www.wordsbybob.com about literally. I hate it when people say the literally laughed their head off, etc.
I would like to repost this blog post of your on honestly and in fact to my blog.
I would of course give you full credit and list your blog. Honestly!
Hey Bob, thanks for your comment. I agree with the “literally” thing. I'm
always thrilled when others want to link to my work, but I'm cautious about
the word “repost,” because to me that means duplicating the entire contents
of another's work. And that isn't a good idea. It's better to only quote a
portion and then link back to the original content. If you agree with that,
then I'm all for it!
I really loved reading your article, it makes me drown lil smile on my face. Know I am more conscious using my words toward others.
Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it! The more conscious we are with our words,
the more powerful and effective our writing will be.
The most common worthless phrase is “you know”. I’m not saying this is A common waste of breath, it is THE MOST common. I have counted up to twenty “you know” add-ins in a single minute. I estimate that ninety percent of the population uses this absolutely stupid phrase. I won’t waste time going into the many ways this is an idiotic waste of time and letters. If you don’t understand, then you are probably saying it. And don’t care. You know?
Yup, and I’m just as guilty as anyone else (and trying to not say it,
anymore).
it is often useful to gauge an audience by intentionally misleading them. if it is clear that they will believe nonsense, and you are compelled to get a point across anyway, then it could be useful to preface the next thought with, “in all honesty”. this is a friendly way of saying, despite the fact that you would believe anything, i will be a good sport.
There have been many articles written that don’t reveal a crucial fact to the reader at the beginning. This is done on purpose, only to reveal the truth later on as a way deliver especially powerful information and make an impact. Years ago there was an article (in Wired magazine, I think) that began with an intelligent and rational argument against letting machines take over our lives.
This was presented with no preamble or fanfare. Then you find out you just read the opening paragraphs to the Unabomber Ted Kaczynski’s manifesto.
Point made! And made very powerfully. It was great writing.