Ooh, thank you WordPress Gods!

I’ve wanted to write a few lines about banning this particular word for a long time now, but feared I’d be considered some kind of nutcase. I mean, who in their right mind would expend even a modicum of energy on something so inconsequential?

I bet though, I’m not the only person in the blogosphere who would wish to see this word permanently banned.

It crashed into our lexicon in 2020, a parasite riding bareback on the Covid pandemic; like an invasive species, it continues to this day, destroying established words previously used by seemingly reasonably intelligent people.

At that time, there was justification for the word to be used. It now appears so frequently, it’s nothing more than a lazy, ‘throw-away’ word. If the English-speaking* world is not careful, over a short period, in evolutionary terms, our language will be in danger of retrograding to a series of grunts and hand gestures. (And I can think of a couple of them for persistent users of this word.)

Used prolifically by politicians, the word has now become popular with anyone trying to justify their inadequacies, and loosely translated means:

“I haven’t an effing clue what I’m doing, or what to do next.”
(or)
“Sorry, guv. It’s not my fault. This has never happened before.”

The word?

UNPRECEDENTED.

I honestly can’t think of another word that’s been adopted and integrated into our language quite as aggressively.

It really is quite unpr … unusual.

*Is there an equivalent word in other languages, and has it’s (mis)use been a cause of your ire also? 😉

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