20 Jan 2026 I don’t want to hear it

Every January 1st since 1976, Lake Superior State University releases its annual “Banished Words” list.

50 years of keeping receipts on language trends. That’s some pretty serious linguistic stamina!

I wrote an email about it last year and got more replies than I’ve received to date, which told me two things:

1. People have strong opinions about language, and

2. There are a lot of us all quietly collecting little phrases that make us roll our eyes — even though we’re really nice people.

Look, I’m not innocent here. I’ve used at least some of the words I’m about to complain about (and several on the Lake Superior list too). That’s part of why they’ve worn out their welcome.

So, with love, here are the words and phrases I’m personally retiring this year:

Journey
Specifically: “the customer journey.” This phrase makes a basic human interaction sound like a long spiritual trek through the desert, and half the time it’s being used to describe something like clicking a button on a website.

Bro / brah
My daughter says this to me sometimes, and I always respond the same way: I’m not your bro. I’m your mom.

No worries
This feels like “no problem” (which was on my list last year) in a new outfit. I never assumed there was a worry — I was just thanking you.

Literally (when it’s not literal)
I don’t even know what to do with this one anymore. We used to have a shared understanding of what it meant, and now it’s basically used as punctuation.

Fur babies
Yes, I know this may offend people I like. But here’s my issue: my dogs are not babies. They’re full-grown people. With opinions, routines, and a firmly entrenched sense of entitlement. Calling them babies feels… minimizing. They’re adults.

And for the record: low key stays.

This is a surprise to many of my friends and family members. But “low key” is easy, smooth, and useful. I don’t love it when it’s used to mean “really,” but when it’s actually used as low key? No notes. (I stole that from my daughter.)

Last year, a bunch of you sent your own nominations. Yes, I laughed out loud at some of them:

• Perfect” (called out early and passionately)
• “I know” (said before being told anything)
• “Teehee” (but “ha”/“haha” is fine)
• “Real quick”
• “Not my circus, not my monkeys”
• “Tweak”
• “Add value”
• “Whatever”
• “Obvs”
• “No big deal”
• “Woke”
• “Ummm” (with commitment)

If you have any you’d like to nominate this year, hit reply, send them to me.

And I promise not to judge you if your pick is something I say all the time.

With cheer (and a red pen),