Slang and colloquialisms have their place, for special effect or to deliberately convey an informal, conversational tone. But otherwise, they can seem trite or hackneyed, and can undercut the serious and literate tone we seek.
Strangely, kicking seems to figure prominently in our recent slang lexicon. All of these instances struck a discordant note in my ear:
---
First the State Legislature roundly rejected the law, refusing to create a state insurance exchange and punting it to the federal government to run the new insurance market.
Slang or colloquial use of sports terms can be particularly off-putting to nonfans - to say nothing of some international readers, who may be completely baffled by punting, hitting a home run, etc.
---
The fact that these reforms are kicking in at the same time that Democrats enjoy ironclad control of the government makes it difficult to draw long-term conclusions about their effectiveness.
The colloquial “kicking in†adds nothing here; make it “taking effect†or something similar.
---
Or did he merely kick the can down the road three months so he and Congress will be in the same place again, repeating a pattern that will define his remaining three years in office?
This colloquial “kick the can†cliché has been rampant in Washington lately, but that doesn't mean we have to adopt it. In fact, it's a very good reason to avoid it.
---
A security officer checked areas usually off limits to students, including the roof, Mr. Beckman said. Students are warned that going on the roof can result in their being kicked out of the dorm. Nothing was found on the roof, Mr. Beckman said.
The colloquialism wasn't conveying a special effect or tone; this was simply a straight news story. Expelled, barred or some other verb would have worked.
---
BLACKSBURG, Va. - Trailing in polls and outspent on the airwaves, Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II, who has sought to capture the swing state of Virginia by building on his Tea Party base, faced his last, best chance to reboot the race for governor in a debate here Thursday.
All right, “reboot†isn't really related to kicking. And used for computers, it's straightforward and unobjectionable. But let's resist this clichéd and colloquial metaphorical use.
Â
And Still More Slang
Beyond the punting, kicking and rebooting, these other recent colloquialisms also seemed jarring:
---
Playdom has been a disappointing acquisition for Disney, in part because the once-promising social games market started to flatline shortly after the purchase.
In a medical context, it's jargon; in other contexts, it's colloquial.
---
But they looked plenty assertive Tuesday, never trailing and never taking their foot off the gas.
As a noun, “plenty†is standard. As an adverb, it's not.
---
A friend of Mr. Souza's said he got a standing-room ticket from a photographer he knew, who then invited him into the press box when another photographer did not show.
“Show†in the sense of “put in an appearance†is colloquial. “Show up†is standard.
---
Several residents said Mr. Mitchell, who also went by the monikers P.W. or P-Dubbz, went out of his way to be kind to children and the aged.
Slang used in ostentatious avoidance of a normal word - like “names†- draws even more attention to itself. Don't.
Â
In a Word
This week's grab bag of grammar, style and other missteps, compiled with help from colleagues and readers.
---
New York is one of 41 states that bans texting while driving and one of 12 that bans hand-held cellphones at the wheel.
Arrghh. Twice in one sentence. Recorded announcement, courtesy of the stylebook:
[N]ote the plural verb in a construction like She is one of the people who love the Yankees. The test is to reverse the sentence: Of the people who love the Yankees, she is one. The subject is people, not one.
---
Still, it's better to be dying on screen then sitting at home watching other actors get to do it.
A vexingly common typo. Than, not then.
---
Shortly after 7 a.m. Friday, as the sun was starting to rise in Norridge, Ill., Anna Gonzalez and Alex Molina were loading their Kmart shopping bags into the trunk of the car. After five-and-a-half hours of shopping, they were exhausted and heading home to sleep.
We're suffering an epidemic of unwanted hyphens. None are needed in an expression like this; it's just a number describing “hours.â€
---
Ms. Warren, who has emerged as a fund-raising powerhouse, collected $42.1 million for her race last year in Massachusetts, the most money a woman has ever raised in a Senate campaign. Second place goes to Mrs. Clinton, who raised $38.7 million for her 2006 Senate re-election campaign.
The most ever? Well, no, actually. As noted in the recent stylebook update, we should be careful about comparing dollar figures across time. Without adjusting for inflation, a superlative like this may be inaccurate. As a sharp-eyed reader noted, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Inflation Calculator, $38.7 million in 2006 dollars is equivalent to about $44 million in 2012 dollars.
---
Exactly who or what the N.S.A. was monitoring, however, was unclear from the CBC's description of the report. The document does indicate, however, that the N.S.A. believed that its mandate during the summit meetings included “providing support to policy makers.â€
“Whom,†not “who,†since it's the object of “was monitoring. Also, “however†in consecutive sentences has a head-snapping effect. It seems unneeded in the second.
---
A combination of the across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration and a 2011 cap on military spending - of which the environmental cleanup is technically part - do not leave them with enough money to meet their commitments, they say.
“A combination†is the subject, requiring a singular verb. Or recast the sentence.
---
In an effort to overcome those obstacles, an increasing number of school districts, including Boston, Cincinnati and Washington, have recently begun initiatives to expand Advanced Placement course offerings and enroll more black and Hispanic students, children from low-income families and those who aspire to be the first in their generation to go to college.
Presumably we meant “the first in their families�
---
[Caption] Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his daughter, Georgina.
He has two daughters. So without the name, “daughter†is not fully specific. That means there should be no comma.
---
The problem is that so-called back end systems, which are supposed to deliver consumer information to insurers, still have not been fixed.
“Back end†should be hyphenated as a modifier. Beyond that, this is a common bit of jargon, so phrasing it so gingerly made us look clueless. We could have eliminated the “so-called†and simply used the phrase. Even better, eliminate it altogether, since “systems that are supposed to deliver consumer information…†is perfectly clear.
---
He hated birthdays and holidays, and forbid his mother from putting up a Christmas tree.
The past tense is forbade, and it should be followed by “to†- “forbade his mother to put up …â€
---
The rules would also effect political activity by conservative and liberal grass-roots organizations, including Tea Party groups whose complaints of aggressive treatment and harassment by I.R.S. employees led to the resignation of several high-ranking agency officials last spring.
This is one we should not get wrong. Make it “affect.â€
---
Mr. Ferrell and Mr. McKay were at first dead set against making sequels to any of their movies, particularly when there were other original stories to tell. But as more and more people clamored for an “Anchorman†sequel, their reticence disappeared.
We meant “reluctance.â€
---
Better returns would influence pension firms and other big investors to give more money to the V.C.'s, which would in term increase the number of deals.
“In turn,†not “in term.â€
