The Operative Word: Like
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The ClubHouse: General Discussion Archives: Archive One: The Operative Word: Like

Verdana

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 09:53 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Hey baby. Josh was just talking and he said that it was like a Monday that something happened. Now honey, I had to stop and think for a moment. I thought to myself: Well, Josh, was it Monday or was it Sunday night? Like, exactly like what does "like a Monday" like mean like?

And precious, can someone please tell me what on earth does "I'm like" mean? None of my friends or acquaintances are "I'm like." Hmmmmmm.

Bastable

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 09:57 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Chiara is particularly bad at overusing this word. (And grinding her voice---a modern affectation of 20somethings that I HATE HATE HATE.)

I should spend an hour listening to Chiara and counting the "like"s.

Or one afternoon, each of us could pick a HG and we could have "Like" Races! First one to utter 200 of them wins!

Classycassfan

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:07 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
please no I remember Survivor and counting "OH MY HECKS" not another counting session please lol

Wcv63

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:14 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Speech patterns become ingrained with regular use. I find that I am something of a "speech chameleon" and find myself picking up on certain patterns when I am exposed to them for extended periods of time. I don't even realize that I'm doing it until it is pointed out to me by someone else.

It's really easy to allow myself to pick up bad habits like this and it's equally hard to get rid of them. Even things that drive me CRAZY, that I think I'd never be caught dead saying, have become traps for me. That rain in Spain does stray off of that plain.

Braveheart61901

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:16 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Like, you know, I thought the operative word was "clearly."

At least it is with Josh.

Goddessatlaw

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:22 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
"Like" is irritating, but has been prevelant in our speech patterns for so long that I tend to ignore it even in situations of overuse like this one. My new pet peeve is field reporters who begin every sentence with the word "Now, . . ." as if they're about to announce the appearance of the 4th Horseman of the Apocalypse. It has become endemic, and is bound to make me wild during the War on Terror, when just about every news report includes a field reporter scrambling to collect his or her thoughts.

Oregonfire

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:22 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
In my first year of teaching, a fellow teacher came up to me an said that one of his students made the comment that I said "okay" after every sentence in the classroom. I was embarrassed, but glad he told me.

When I was in Korea and got into an argument with a guy I got stuck going there with for a work visa in Japan (long story), he told me that I have a nervous giggle after everything I said. That was really awful, but again, SO glad that he told me, even though he was such a dork.

My weakness now? Using so SO much on this board!

Chiara plays with her hair too much too. I must say, Amy has escaped having all of those nervous mannerisms. Lucky girl!

Wcv63

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:32 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
One of the very first things to ever drive me to distraction was the overuse of the word "Basically", mostly by professional sports players.

I also cringe at the words "ya know" or "ya know what I mean" inserted randomly into sentences.

Basically, it drives me, ya know, like nuts.

Classycassfan

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:36 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
forsure forsure

lets not leave out the 80's Valley Girls

Emo1979

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:38 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
LOL Oregon...

There was a prof I had in college for a totally idiotic rocks for jocks geology class I took to get out of the science requirement, and every class he said the words "fundamentally" and "basic" (or some derivative of the two) many many times... I ended up counting them all (when I wasn't falling asleep) and figuring out he averaged "fundamentally" about 20 times per class and "basic" about 10 times per class!!!

So even professors do it... I think his choice of words shows that he probably wasn't too happy about having to teach this rocks for jocks class... nevertheless, he was easily the worst prof I've ever had (even discounting how many times he repeated words) - but this was at UC Berkeley where there were loads of great professors to show him up!

Oregonfire

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 10:45 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I think in my case that I was uncomfortable being authoritive, so every sentence ended with a question...okay? They say if your voice goes up at the end of a sentence, you're softening the command and almost apologizing for your words. Same with the nervous giggle in my early 20s. Where's friggin' 'enry 'iggins when you need him? I had no insight into my own mannerisms.

Goddess146

Sunday, July 21, 2002 - 11:17 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
The word "like" as used by certain people is a verbal adjunct to the words "go" and "you know" and "I am not stupid" as in:

I go, like, you know, I am not stupid.

Abbynormal

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 12:34 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Personally, I totally say the word "totally" like, totally way too much on this board! :)

Corriecat

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 03:57 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Oregon you remind me of a professor from my college days. I never took his class but other students in my department told me he said ok after every sentence and they would count them etc. One day he came to our class to do a guest lecture and sure enough he said ok after every sentence but it wasn't just a quick ok it was a slow ooo kay and I started to get the giggles. It was terrible because he was the nicest person and I didn't want to hurt his feelings.

Realtvfan

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 04:24 am EditMoveDeleteIP
One day 3 years ago, my niece and I were in a two-hour ride together as we were driving to our house to stay the weekend. After 15 minutes in the car, I could not keep my mouth shut any longer.

I decided to make an agreement with my very talkative sophomore in high school niece that I would pay her a quarter for every sentence that she could complete on the way to our house without misusing the word "like". Every time she used a sentence with a misuse of the word "like", she would owe me a nickel.

She mistakenly took the offer in a split-second. Her exact answer was "Oh yea, like, I can do that."

She would talk for quite a few sentances while I listened and then I would tell her everyplace she misused the extra word "like". After a 1/2 hour, when I was still ahead by $2.50 or so, we finally stopped and called it a tie.

My goal was not to win all her money (which it turned out I doing.) I had the advantage. I knew I was going to win big.

I even told her my goal was to raise her self-awareness of how she spoke to others. I told her that I understood that everyone in high school spoke that way, so for her, right now, it did not matter. I was impressing upon her that after high school it was going to matter, A LOT.

I only asked her that from now on, when she was with her friends, to listen more closely to how her friends spoke to each other.

I told her to never say anything about her friends speaking habits to any of her other friends, just pay a little more attention for herself to how she spoke and use this little game as a reminder to herself that she can speak better.

It turns out she was shocked to be losing money to me that day. She said: "I, like, had no idea."

Later, my significant other was very angry with me for that little stunt I pulled.

By a year later, my niece's speaking skills were very much improved (at least in front of me) as she mentioned that she did pay more attention to how her friends spoke and she was so surprised that she had not seen it in the past.

Marysafan

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 04:45 am EditMoveDeleteIP
When my girls were in young, my husband noticed a distressing habit of them starting sentences with "Ummm....". He surprised us all one day of saying "Ummmm...." is no way to start a sentence. You cannot speak for 5 minutes. Think about what you are going to say first.

Eventually, it broke them of this habit. They both became very good speakers and appear to be on all accounts confident young women now. Getting rid of that bad habit at any early age was a good idea. They both are grateful whenever they hear their friends begin a sentence that way.

Bernie

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 05:07 am EditMoveDeleteIP
From a correctee's point of view, unless done in a kindly and understanding way, being corrected can cause problems. Many years ago it was pointed out to me, not very politely, that I constantly used the phrase, 'you know?' It took me ages to be able to join in conversations afterwards, because I became so self-conscious and tried to self-censor every time I spoke, that I became the 'spectre at the feast.' A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down ;)

Realtvfan

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 05:19 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Bernie,

I completely agree that it has to be done gently. For me, it was done in the car with just the two of us and I had made it into a game in which my niece had her own choice to either play or opt out. Thankful for me, she wanted to play. I would never have offered the "potential prize money" (I knew who was going to win) to my niece in a public or semi-public fashion with the potential feelings of public ridicule.

I didn't tell my significant other or anyone else ever about the game (until now). My niece did. What a shocker.

Crossfire

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 05:36 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I like how you handled that Realtv, I especially like the bit about not mentioning this to friends. That was good advice.

Bernie

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 05:36 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Real, your method was perfect-my correcter was a meanie! Glad it worked out for your niece :-)

Djgirl5235

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 06:15 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I just spent a three hour car trip with my well-educated younger brother, and by the end of the first half hour I was ready to throw him out of the car. Before I even explain, I would like to tell everyone that I'm Canadian from Toronto, and my brother is from a small town north-east of Toronto, and I studied for an English-Lit degree, so these things compound the situation. Where was I??? Oh, yes, within the first half an hour driving, I had counted 24 "and what-not" at the end of my brother's sentences. I'm guessing that it's another phrase for whatever, or you know, but IT'S SO ANNOYING!!!! We spent an entire weekend together, and I was very thankful that he wanted to sleep on the way home - I don't think that I could have heard another "what-not" and not lost it!!!! I think I'll have to try Real's method to break him of the habit because he sounds very uneducated - when in fact he graduated top of his class in a specialized field (don't ask me what - I've never understood his field choice - some sort of forestry/water specialist...)I would just like to break him of his habit.

Bigbrotherbelle

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 06:30 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Jason does the "you know" think very often. Listen when he says more than one sentence and you'll hear it.

Thank you, Big Brother.

Mssilhouette

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 06:58 am EditMoveDeleteIP
OOo I know I have to watch my habit of using the words "then I/he/she was like" in subsitution for "then I SAID"

That's one of my more crappy habits that I strive to break and I don't even know where I got it from. Like Wcv63 I can be a "speech chameleon" which is a blessing and a curse. :)

I went to TN for 4 days and came back to LA with that infamous twang. On the other hand I was in NJ for 10 days and didn't pick up that accent (thank goodness).

Now my boyfriend has the bad habit of saying "you know what I mean" in his NY accent (which only turns ON on certain words and phrases) of his so much that I HAVE to tell him to stop by saying "Yes I know what you mean, I would have said so if I didn't."

Verdana

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 07:13 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Honey, I heard Josh also say last night that he went into some store and bought "ah like a heater." Precious, can someone help me with this?I'm really trying to get a grasp on this new vulva talk. What exactly is: ah like a heater?

When I go shopping and ask to see the "ah like a heater" what is it they will show me? Something I can carry? Is it something portable, this "ah like a heater" thing?

Bastable

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 07:53 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Braveheart, durn you for turning me on to Josh's horrible habit of saying "clearly" all the time! Now it's all I hear!

Clearly you're to blame!

Pirate

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 08:00 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I think Brit from BB1 has the "like" usage award. I have a tendency not hear what the other person is trying to say when they overuse an adjective such as "like", or "you know?". I think "you know?" gets to me more than the others. I just want to yell at the person, no I don't know!!! Just shut up!

Thank you for letting me get this off my chest.

Babyruth

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 08:05 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Ummm yeah but, like, at the end of the day, clearly, it's like, ya know, sort of a habit and what not, ya know what I mean?

Bernie

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 10:36 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Like, I wish I'd never opened my mouth, you know? Basically, like, you know, all that happens is, that you get to be like, the butt of the joke, isn't that right?
Gee, thanks guys, like, I really needed that, you know, because, clearly, every one here has the most elegant speech patterns and absolutely NEVER sounds like, a dork, you just KNOW!

Abbynormal

Monday, July 22, 2002 - 10:50 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Like, I TOTALLY agree! :)