Words that need to die soon

[hirez]

'Boasts' or 'sports' when used to signify that an object has or contains another object.

As in 'This PC boasts a gigabit ethernet interface'

Comments

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

One only "sports" a tweed cap, and even then only in 1950s British comedies, and if you're Terry-Thomas.

And something only boasts something if said thing is outside of the normal specification and furthermore is worth boasting about (but it still sounds naff).

[hirez.livejournal.com]

Exactly so.

In the thankfully dim and distant past, the PC comics used to be full of tedious computer reviews 'written' by people who'd never heard of 'red-headed detective syndrome'. Their pieces used to clunk along using first one of those words and then the other.

When I say 'written', I'm sure that the things could equally well have been emitted by a perl script. Had perl been any use in 1992.

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

'red-headed detective syndrome'

Huh?

[hirez.livejournal.com]

http://www.sfwa.org/writing/turkeycity.html

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

Thanks for that - greatly amusing (and of course so, so right).

I believe that the lexicon would, however, be even better were it to include swisstone's "Total Bollocks Overdrive".

[quercus.livejournal.com]

Better that than the E.E. "Doc" Lensman use of "red headed"

[hirez.livejournal.com]

I bow to your superior wisdom in that regard.

[quercus.livejournal.com]

I just read them the once, and just the one series.

I don't re-read them for "pleasure"

[jarkman.livejournal.com]

And that's where you go wrong. Without enough exposure to the Lensmen, none of the rest of SF really makes sense.

[quercus.livejournal.com]

or seems so much better in comparison

[quercus.livejournal.com]

"Lensmen"

You make them sound like some sort of inter-galactic Tetleys Bittermen.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

'Godzilla vs. the Tetley Lensmen'

"You may be fifty feet of fire-breathing reptilian space-monster
But any one of us lads
Could beat you into bloody lard
With one hand tied behind us back
And us head in a Morrison's carrier.
Godzilla paused (Well, you would wouldn't you?)
A Lensmen lurched forward
And passed out on the cobbles
Not out of fear, but after twenty pints of bitter
Which all goes to show that you never miss with the Tetley Lensman
Because a Lensman never loses."

(Or something like that. I'll have another go when I'm nearer the book in question)

[poggs.livejournal.com]

Yes!

You can make anything sound better-than-the-rest if you use a meaningless superlative.

HIGH SPEED BROADBAND. Yeah, you said that six years ago to refer to 512k.

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

I propose replacing "sports" with "spurts".

[chiller.livejournal.com]

Doesn't that just make "sports" into "water sports"?

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

I, for one, welcome our new water polo-playing overlords.

[easterbunny.livejournal.com]

How about "boasts" with "roasts"?

[uniquefergus.livejournal.com]

From the blurb for the 'Old Faithful Inn' in Yellowstone, MT.

'The hotel proudly boasts 325 nicely-decorated rooms.'

Possibly three misdemeanours here:

1) use of 'boasts' in the prohibited manner.

2) re-enforcement of the word 'boasts' by use of 'proudly'

3) superlative/bland clash. It is not good practice to 'proudly boast' about something which is merely 'nice' (e.g. 'that was the most magnificently adequate meal I have ever eaten')

No further questions, your honour.

[reddragdiva]

"flaunts"
"suffers"

[outerego.livejournal.com]

"innovation" - a word now largely connected with cosmetics.

"quantum" - typically used in connection with "innovation" q.v.

And this just in: "oxygen" - as in "a quantum innovation in skin cream that contains 15% oxygen!"

The future now is the same as it has always been - poorly reported, and understood less.