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Make Your Writing More ‘Impactful’: Banish Trendy Words

By Laura Graham

Recently, as I was scrolling through Facebook, I saw a link to a list that piqued my interest: “Lake Superior State University’s 43rd Annual List of Banished Words.”[1] It turns out that Lake Superior State University has been publishing this list every year since 1975, and over 900 words are now on the master list. The 2017 List of Banished Words (and a few phrases) includes unpack (a “misused word for analyze, consider, assess”); impactful (“a frivolous word groping for something ‘effective’ or influential’”); and drill down (“instead of expanding on a statement”). These were among hundreds of words submitted by “word-watchers” who “target pet peeves from everyday speech, as well as from the news, fields of education, technology, advertising, politics, and more.”[2]

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