London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Mar 30, 2026

No disrespect but... Susie Dent shares words public want axed

No disrespect but... Susie Dent shares words public want axed

No disrespect, but - going forward - it would be advisable not to start sentences with the word "So".

That is according to responses to a tongue-in-cheek tweet from Countdown wordsmith and lexicographer Susie Dent.

The language expert asked her 1.1 million Twitter followers which words and phrases they would like to see "banished" from the dictionary.

Topping the list was "Going forward" - another way of saying "in the future", and often used in a business context.

Other common expressions the public said they most take umbrage at include: "No disrespect, but", "like" as a filler word, "I wanted to reach out", and "I'm not gonna lie".

Dent posted what she described as an "unscientific analysis" of people's "excellent" responses.

She tweeted: "Happily, English is a democracy so it's up to us.

"And many of these are old beefs: 'like' as a filler was first used in 1778."


The top 10 are:


1. Going forward

2. No disrespect, but…

3. 'Like' as a filler

4. I wanted to reach out

5. I'm not gonna lie

6. Basically

7. Let's go offline

8. 'So' at the start of a sentence

9. The 'optics' of something

10. My bad

Dent tells BBC News many words or phrases people find incredibly annoying now "have actually been around for a very long time".

For example, the first reference in the Oxford English Dictionary to the word "gonna" was in 1806.

Taking a "deep dive" and "it is what it is" are two phrases she finds irritating.

She says the more people repeat common phrases, the more they lose their substance and impact because they no longer feel original, and the speaker is "jumping into a universal shorthand".

But she says some jargon can be "incredibly uniting" as it gives a sense of belonging.

"It's when it slips into the trite and the throw-away that I think it becomes annoying, and it's when so many people pick it up that there doesn't seem to be too much thought behind it," she says.

Her post, which has been retweeted more than 1,000 times, drew the attention of the actor and presenter Les Dennis, who simply replied "for my sins".

And the actor Hugh Bonneville responded with a suggestion of his own: "At this point, at this point."

Shakespeare was criticised by some contemporaries unhappy about his choice of language


Dent will often choose and share a word of the day on Twitter. Alongside Gyles Brandreth she co-presents a podcast, Something Rhymes with Purple, where the duo explore the "hidden origins of language".

She is also touring the country with her show: The Secret Lives of Words.

She continues: "Even Shakespeare was massively criticised by his contemporaries; they accused Keats of turning nouns into verbs.

"We've always had this sort of begrudging take on how English is evolving, but actually, I think the fact that we care about it so much means that it's in pretty good hands… or mouths."

Language is "infectious", she says, and people will need to make a concerted effort to be more creative if they want to break the habit of using stock phrases they find irritating.

She adds: "Of course, we can't banish anything from the dictionary because dictionaries are famously descriptive.

"We don't prescribe how language should be used. We describe how it is used.

"So really the only people that can get rid of these phrases that we find annoying is us.

"And we have to stop using them before they will become reduced currency, but it's probably going to take a while looking at some of these."

Michael Rundell, a linguist and lexicographer - now mostly retired - has been a dictionary editor since 1980.

He says number nine in the list shared by Dent - 'No disrespect, but…' - is a signal "that you're about to give an entirely disrespectful trashing of what your interlocutor just said, so I reckon it's pretty useful".

And he says he has "never understood" the objection to the word "basically".

"If you were to ask me for a word to ban it would be 'woke', originally a very positive concept… but now completely appropriated by the hard right, and used repeatedly as a general-purpose insult by people who don't really know what they mean."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Russia Expels British Diplomat as UK Pushes Back Against Pressure
White House App Faces Scrutiny After Claims of Continuous User Location Tracking
BBC Faces Scrutiny Over Allegations of Paid Content Linked to Saudi Arabia
UK-France Coastal Patrol Agreement Nears Breakdown Amid Migration Pressures
UK Police Detain Pro-Palestine Activist Again Weeks After Bail Release
FTSE 100 Advances as Energy and Mining Shares Gain Amid Middle East Tensions
Eli Lilly Seeks UK Pricing Deal to Unlock Renewed Pharmaceutical Investment
Three Arrested in UK After Massive Cocaine Haul Discovered Hidden in Banana Shipment
UK Fuel Prices Poised for Further Surge Amid Global Energy Pressures
Apple Subsidiary Penalized by UK Authorities for Breach of Moscow Sanctions
Western Allies Intensify Coordinated Sanctions Strategy Against Russia
UK Lawmakers Face Criticism Over Renewed Push for Social Media Restrictions
Starmer Signals UK Crackdown on Addictive Social Media Features
Rising Costs Push One in Five UK Hospitality Businesses to the Brink of Closure
Man Arrested on Suspicion of Attempted Murder After Car Strikes Pedestrians in UK, Injuring Seven
Escalating Conflict Involving Iran Tightens Fiscal Pressures and Highlights UK Economic Vulnerabilities
UK Moves to Confront Russian ‘Shadow Fleet’ Operating in Its Waters
UK Housing Divide Deepens as Older Owners Hold Wealth While Under-30s Face Mounting Barriers
London Demonstration Calls on UK to Recognize Iranian Opposition’s Provisional Government
UK Green Party Vote on ‘Zionism is Racism’ Motion Collapses Amid Internal Disputes and Technical Failures
SNL UK Ignites Debate with Sharp Royal Satire Targeting Prince Andrew and Prince William
EU Proposes ‘Emergency Brake’ to Resolve Deadlock in UK Youth Mobility Talks
Thousands Rally in London to Oppose Rise of Far-Right Movements
Hong Kong Official Rejects Allegations of Surveillance Orders Targeting UK-Based Dissidents
PayPal Expands Cryptocurrency Services to Allow UK Users to Buy and Sell Bitcoin
UK Minister Challenges Reform Party’s ‘Pro-Family’ Agenda as Debate Intensifies
Concerns Grow Over Meningitis Risk Among UK Students Amid Warning Signs of New Outbreaks
Japanese Grand Prix 2026: Schedule, UK Start Times and Full Broadcast Details
Electric Vehicles Seen as Strategic Solution to UK Fuel Reserve Concerns
Rise of Lone-Actor Threats and Online Radicalisation Drives New Wave of Antisemitic Attacks in the UK
Canada Advances Plan to Ban Cryptocurrency Donations in Election Campaigns
UK Faces Looming Medicine Shortages as Iran Conflict Threatens Supply Chains
Deadly Meningitis Outbreak in the U.K. Highlights Urgent Need for Vaccination
Fresh Claims Emerge Over Harry and Meghan’s Australia Visit as Insider Speaks Out
NATO Assessment Indicates UK Defence Spending Has Fallen Below Alliance Average
FTSE 100 Slips as Middle East Tensions Weigh on Investor Sentiment
UK Economy Begins to Feel Early Impact of Iran Conflict as Policy Challenges Intensify
Russian National Jailed in UK After Assault Case Linked to Barron Trump’s Alert
Energy Price Surge Accelerates Shift Away from Fossil Fuels in UK Homes
UK Museums House More Than 260,000 Human Remains, New Report Reveals
Surging UK Gilt Yields Reflect Inflation Pressures and Fiscal Uncertainty
UK Issues Updated Guidance on Children’s Screen Time with Focus on Balance and Wellbeing
UK Migration Figures Show Shifting Trends Across Asylum, Visas and Channel Crossings
UK Watchdog Launches Probe into Five Firms Over Alleged Fake Reviews and Ratings
Jaguar Land Rover Halts Production at UK Plant Amid Supplier Disruption
UK Police Reverse Position, Confirm Arrests Will Resume for Palestine Action Protests
UK Small Businesses Face Europe’s Steepest Cost Pressures, New Survey Reveals
US Envoy Urges UK to Proceed with King’s Visit Amid Diplomatic Sensitivities
FTSE 100 Drops Over One Percent as Middle East Tensions Weigh on Markets
UK CO2 Plant Set to Reopen as Authorities Move to Safeguard Supplies Amid Middle East Tensions
×