Need a word or two
I need a word to describe a term that is used in an attempt to grant the thing described more significance than it actually has. Examples include "utilize" instead of "use", "paradigm" instead of "example" or "structure", "proactive" instead of "active" or "aggressive" (or nothing). I want to say, "euphemism", but the definition is entirely in the direction of making a bad thing seem less bad:
1. the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt. 2. the expression so substituted: “To pass away” is a euphemism for “to die.”
Modern Language Association (MLA): "euphemism." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 09 Nov. 2007. See definition here .
The words I cite (utilize, paradigm, etc.) are like a euphemism in that their user is, consciously or not, seeking to obfuscate or exaggerate. However, their direction is different: they want to make a modest or ordinary thing seem more significant than it is.
One could argue that "proactive" doesn't belong in my list of puff words--that it has a specific meaning, i.e., "acting in anticipation of some event". I guess I just hear it often in sentences in which I think it conveys no information. "Event X is going to occur. Our group is [proactively] preparing for it." So perhaps my complaint is more with the improper use of the word than with the word itself.
My next new word needed is an adjective to describe these conditions:
Your new car has been making a ticking noise each time you make a hard right turn. This occurs every time. You bring the car into the dealer and take a drive. Throughout a series of hard right turns, the noise does not present itself.
You have a persistent pain on the left side of your lower back. The pain is often, but not always, associated with exertion. Finally, you make an appointment and go visit your orthopedist. As the doctor takes you through a series of positions in the examination room, your back has never felt better.
1. the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt. 2. the expression so substituted: “To pass away” is a euphemism for “to die.”
Modern Language Association (MLA): "euphemism." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 09 Nov. 2007. See definition here .
The words I cite (utilize, paradigm, etc.) are like a euphemism in that their user is, consciously or not, seeking to obfuscate or exaggerate. However, their direction is different: they want to make a modest or ordinary thing seem more significant than it is.
One could argue that "proactive" doesn't belong in my list of puff words--that it has a specific meaning, i.e., "acting in anticipation of some event". I guess I just hear it often in sentences in which I think it conveys no information. "Event X is going to occur. Our group is [proactively] preparing for it." So perhaps my complaint is more with the improper use of the word than with the word itself.
My next new word needed is an adjective to describe these conditions:
Your new car has been making a ticking noise each time you make a hard right turn. This occurs every time. You bring the car into the dealer and take a drive. Throughout a series of hard right turns, the noise does not present itself.
You have a persistent pain on the left side of your lower back. The pain is often, but not always, associated with exertion. Finally, you make an appointment and go visit your orthopedist. As the doctor takes you through a series of positions in the examination room, your back has never felt better.
Maybe "aggrandizement" for the first one. Or "puffery" if you want something a little more pejorative.
I can't think of a single word for the second part. A "vanishing symptom", or an "evasive symptom" if you want to imply that it's hiding itself deliberately. Or "transient manifestation", but that doesn't capture the notion of it always happening except on the occasions when you want it to happen.
Posted by ottomeister on November 09, 2007 at 06:59 PM PST #
Where would managers be without the puffery? We'd be completely unable to communicate!
Posted by Diane Plampin on December 13, 2007 at 01:53 PM PST #
A better parallel to paradigm is model.
And the word you are looking for is falutinism. Or, if the example is extremely egregious, high-falutinism.
Posted by Greg Kimura on December 20, 2007 at 11:29 PM PST #