DETROIT (AP) - Spoiler alert: This story contains words and phrases that some people want to ban from the English language. "Spoiler alert" is among them. So are "kick the can down the road," ''trending" and "bucket list."
A dirty dozen have landed on the 38th annual List of Words to be Banished from the Queen's English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness. The nonbinding, tongue-in-cheek decree released Monday by Michigan's Lake Superior State University is based on nominations submitted by the public.
"Fiscal cliff" garnered the most votes based on how often news media outlets use it to describe across-the-board federal tax increases and spending cuts that economists say could harm the economy in 2013 without congressional action.
Other terms up for a literary lashing are "superfood," ''guru" and "double down."
Below is the full list:
- Fiscal cliff
- Kick the can down the road
- Double down
- Job creators/creation
- Passion/passionate
- YOLO -- which stands for "You Only Live Once"
- Spoiler alert
- Bucket list
- Trending
- Superfood
- Boneless wings
- Guru
