Words Everyone Seems to Hate

Words Everyone Seems to Hate No, were not talking about homework, responsibility or anything else that implies youll have to make an enormous effort when youd rather be doing something else. Instead, were talking about words that give you a feeling of real disgust. Theyre perfectly ordinary, otherwise-innocuous-seeming words, but researchers have found when study participants are asked to rate words based on their gut-reaction, these words are consistently rated as being the most hated ones. A Lot of People Hate the Word Moist Paul Thibodeau, a psychology professor, authored a study based on the way 2,500 people reacted to words, and moist was generally considered to be downright nasty. Its possible the reaction would have been different if he included it in a phrase like moist chocolate cake, but when viewed on its own, it was seen as being absolutely disgusting by 25 percent of the group. Words using similar sounds didnt get the thumbs down. People felt relatively neutral about hoist, for example. So, whats the problem with moist? Professor Thibodeau thinks it may be the association between moist and bodily functions. Vomit and phlegm were also rated as being among the most-hated, so he joined the dots and decided that words related to bodily fluids were the pits. A Linguistics Professor and a Neurologist Blame Sounds Professor Jason Riggle and Dr. David Eagleman, a neuroscientist, think that word aversion comes from the sounds themselves. Just as we feel odd after hearing a jarring sound in music, certain word-sounds are unpleasant to us. Dr. Eagleman has done his own experiments using made-up words and found that people didnt like unusual sound combinations. So, if we think a word sounds funny, were more likely to associate it with something unpleasant. Associations or Sounds: Who Is Right? Im going to sit on the fence with this one. Associations really can make a word disgusting. Take vomit for example. The very thought of vomiting is stomach-churning. The word itself is probably innocent enough, but the association is utterly gross! At the same time, I can believe that sounds that dont fit our ideas of harmony would also be jarring. Unlike Dr. Eagleman, Ive never invented a truly disgusting word, and I wouldnt know where to begin, but it makes sense in a way. Id say both reasons for being disgusted by words are valid. What do you think? Is This Useful Knowledge? Oddly enough, I think this knowledge could be useful, particularly in the marketing world. When we send out marketing messages, we need to be very careful in our word choices. We might even want to disgust our audience before offering them a calming, soothing message that explains how to solve a problem. Alternatively, we might want to avoid any negative associations whatsoever. Still, just because of chocolate cake, Im not altogether convinced about the gut-churning effects of the word moist. Couple it with cake, and suddenly, it sounds very, very yummy. Is it just me who thinks so? Of course, being covered with moist sweat sounds a whole lot less delicious, so I think we need to add context before we can talk about word aversion. Made-up words are two-a-penny. Just look at company names and brand names, and youre sure to find at least a few invented words. If we could know what sounds or combinations of sounds give people that Eeeyew! feeling of disgust, and which ones make them feel great, it could surely help companies with their branding strategies. Is It OK to Hate Words? Ive read commentary about how silly it is to hate words, but whether its silly or not, it seems to be a real enough phenomenon. But to play devils advocate, we need negative words as much as we need positive ones. After all, if you want to describe something gross, having some unpleasant-sounding words or ones with less-than-charming associations, is mighty handy! I use vomit quite often, I went into the exam room, vomited out a whole lot of information, and scored an A! The word regurgitated is interchangeable here, or you could use it to indicate your disgust, He just regurgitated the same old information we always hear on that subject! Of course, some people react more strongly to word aversion than others do, and I put it down to sensitivity or possibly a very active imagination. Neither of these things is bad to have, although they might make your life a little more interesting than it needs to be. What Words Do You Hate and Why? First, a few ground-rules. Well just assume that anything obscene or scatological is gross, so those words are out of bounds. Some words are annoying, but thats because of the way people use them and abuse them, so well overlook them too. What we want, is a list of words that make you feel slightly queasy just looking at them. Heres my two cents worth: Blog. I dont know why I hate it so much. I think its the sound of the word. And looking around the web, I see that others agree with me. Mucus. This seems to confirm the theory that bodily fluids disgust us. But somehow, even snot is better than mucus, so maybe its a combination of sound and association. Pustule. Yuk! I cant think of a good thing to say about this word. Nothing about it is nice! Maggot. The word itself may not be to blame, but the associations are there! To be honest, I dont think there are any words that I hate in the truest sense of the word, but these would certainly top my list of the words I dont like all that much. Top Words People Hate For those looking for a top list of words people hate, here are some words to consider: Blog Bulbous Chunky Clogged Curd Dripping Fester Fetus Gurgle Jowls Lugubrious Maggots Moist Mucus Munch Orifice Panties Phlegm Pustule Queasy Roaches Secrete Slacks Slurp Smear Squirt Viscous Vomit Yolk Are there words that you simply hate? Let us know in the comments.