Breaking Views with Nora Johnson: Let’s ban worthless words

Do some overused words annoy you? Words like “iconic”? Followed by “legendary” as in the legendary Elton John who, as far as I know, is real unlike the legendary King Arthur and the knights of the round table.

People use these words without knowing what they originally meant.

And let’s not forget that most sacrosanct of words: “Epic”. I thought Ulysses’ Odyssey was “epic”, but so, too, seemingly, was Will Smith slapping Chris Rock. Yes, an epic of two minutes is equal to The Trojan War of 10 years. Time flies or, apparently, does not: it stands still and still becomes “epic”. I think a mind wipe of everyone who uses these words routinely is in order. There must be a James Bond villain capable of carrying this out. THAT would be “epic”.

Additionally, I suggest banning the menu terms “pan-fried” and “oven-roasted”. Pans and ovens are the normal way to fry and roast food. If restaurants keep this up, we’ll soon have “waitress-served” and “sommelier-poured”.

Speaking of food, reminds me of an ad I saw in the “legendary” Exchange and Mart: “Purebred Bulldog for sale. Will eat anything. Extremely fond of children.”

Nora Johnson’s critically acclaimed psychological crime thrillers (www.nora-johnson.net) all available online including eBooks (€0.99;£0.99), Apple Books, audiobooks, paperbacks at Amazon etc. Profits to Cudeca cancer charity.

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