Finally, literally, frankly, honestly, basically,

[ashling]

and other crutch words and phrases,

I was considering suggesting to the DU powers that be that a new forum be created designated for

Primal Screams.



Comments?

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

1. Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! (that's a yes)

[WinkyDink]

2. Comments? Okay, then: I completely disagree with your entire premise. To wit:

Your listed words are not verbal "crutches" or even Band-Aids.

"Basically" hopes to condense a complex matter. Is this a bad thing? E = mc^2.

"Literally" is to clarify for those who think one is speaking only metaphorically (e.g., "Anne Boleyn lost her head over Henry VIII. No, seriously, dude; she LITERALLY lost her head over him.&quot .

"Frankly" is a warning that bluntness, even harshness, is to follow. Popularized by Rhett Butler.

"Honestly" I might, just barely though, give you, as the word is often said to imply that everything prior was less than honest. But honestly? That's a stretch.

Finally, "finally" is not a "crutch" anything; it is the appropriate word to begin---wait for it---a FINAL thought, sentence, point, or paragraph. See: The above sentence.

[Hoyt]

3. +1. Those words don't bother me, it's what comes after that make one scream.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. "'Frankly' is a warning that bluntness, even harshness, is to follow. Popularized by Rhett Butler."

And Newt Gingrich. I wish he would stop.

[frogmarch]

11. YES!

[WePurrsevere]

4. Frankly my dear I don't give a...

So, is it that you don't like the use of "crutch words" in general or, sans coffee and just rousing from my sleep, am I misinterpreting your words?

[lapfog_1]

5. Ant the most irritating "crutch" on pundit TV

"Look"

[ashling]

15. I can't stand

"take a listen"

[snpsmom]

6. Overuse may be what you object to

rather than the words themselves. YMMV, IDK

[ashling]

14. Actually, I don't object to anything here

object of my post was simply to suggest a forum dedicated to primal screams

I just started it that way because I had just seen a slideshow on Dictionary.com referring to those as "crutch" words.Frankly I have basically no opinion on that particular point.



I will say, however that when I was in college I broke my leg ... about 10 years later I had a seriously sprained ankle (tore all 3 ligaments) ... on each occasion I was literally on crutches and found them quite useful for getting around.

[cwydro]

7. "BREAKING"

Can we get rid of this and any all cap OPs?

[Orrex]

8. My dear, I don't give a damn.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

9. Stephen King: "The adverb is not your friend."

He literally said that.

Uh-oh.

Stephen King on Writing, Fear, and the Atrocity of Adverbs

But I can't imagine life without Swifties:

Tom Swifty

A Tom Swifty (or Tom Swiftie) is a phrase in which a quoted sentence is linked by a pun to the manner in which it is attributed. Tom Swifties may be considered a type of wellerism.
....

Examples

"Make America great again", Donald trumpeted.

"I'll have a martini, easy on the vermouth" said Tom, drily (dryly).

"This limestone has metamorphosed!," the geologist marbled.

"Who left the toilet seat down?" Tom asked peevishly.

"Pass me the shellfish," said Tom crabbily.

"That's the last time I'll stick my arm into a lion's mouth," the lion-tamer said off-handedly.

"Can I go looking for the Grail again?" Tom requested.

"I unclogged the drain with a vacuum cleaner," said Tom succinctly.

"I might as well be dead," Tom croaked.

"We just struck oil!" Tom gushed.

"It's freezing," Tom muttered icily.

"They had to amputate them both at the ankles," said Tom defeatedly.

"I wonder if this radium is radioactive?" asked Marie curiously.

"The Battle of the Nile? A lot of fun!" said Lord Nelson disarmingly.

"Hurry up and get to the back of the ship!" Tom said sternly.

"What do y'all do 'round here for sex?" Tom asked sheepishly.

That last one should get a special prize.

[panader0]

12. The one that's misused the most is "literally".

The rest are tame compared to the way people misuse literally.
It literally drives me out of my mind.'

[nolabear]

13. Actually

it's, like, virtually impossible to talk without them, unfortunately.

[True Dough]

16. I hear a lot of

"clearly" out of the mouths of politicians. What follows is often murky.