Banned Words and Phrases 2025

This is a very belated posting of my 2025 list. 

It’s time for the banned words and phrases for 2025. The popular list from Lake Superior State University is out. For the first time in years, there are no overlaps between our annual lists. So here comes mine.

 

Word Salad

Word Salad is one of my favorite entries this year. We hear it in the media all the time. A true word salad makes no sense to anyone, including the speaker. We take it to mean that he has spewed out a verbal potpourri. Maybe he thinks we won’t pay attention to something simple and direct, but we’re not likely to digest a word salad either. Best to just scrape it down the garbage disposal.

 

Bingo Card

Bingo Card is my other favorite entry. I may be the only one who has it on a 2025 banned list. My entry was inspired by its use by a lot of media personalities, especially during the election. The most common usage? When contenders perform beyond expectations, the speaker says, “I didn’t have THAT on my Bingo Card!” It also works when couples like Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck announce they’re getting a divorce.

 

Pale Pastels

As in previous years, some entries have political connections. Pale Pastels is one of these.  This appears on my banned list because Ron DeSantis used it to insult Nikki Haley in the Republican primary. Haley was wearing a pale suit. Unless the intent is to insult, just say “tint.” That’s all a pale pastel really is.

 

Nasty

Staying in the political arena, I’m banning Trump’s favorite word for women who disagree with him. He should bring a thesaurus when he moves back into the Oval Office because he won’t be allowed to use “nasty” any longer. This ban will probably get me labeled nasty. I can live with that.

 

Some People Say

Another favorite Trump phrase that we’ll likely hear more of is “some people say” (or “people are saying”). This is how Trump makes outrageous claims. He simply tells us he’s quoting some unspecified other person. As with “nasty,” I’m banning this phrase. Some people will say that makes me doubly nasty.

 

Misinformation

 “Some people say” is a good lead in to the next entry: misinformation (or disinformation). It was submitted by my friend Wendy and it accurately describes a lot of what is presented as what people have said (usually without attribution). Broadcasting misinformation is a bad habit of politicians on both sides of the aisle.

 

Coconut Tree

This entry began with Kamala Harris (or more precisely, her mother). Kamala and her sister did not fall out of a coconut tree, but the graphic image had legs. It’s sprouting up all over. It was fun when it started, but enough already. I’m banning it unless it’s part of a botany course.

 

My last three entries are examples of popular aphorisms.

 

Hope Springs Eternal

I should probably consider Hope Springs Eternal to be a political entry. I found myself saying it a lot during the presidential election when nothing seemed certain about the outcomes. But I think the phrase during a lot of non-political situations, too. Maybe if I ban it this year, I can purge my brain of the notion of hope except when it relates to health, where hope always springs eternal.

 

An Idea Whose Time Has Come

This phrase makes me cringe. It reminds me of an event I attended decades ago for company executives. I’d had too much to drink and started describing my latest systems project to the CEO. I was developing the support systems for his “pet” venture. Most of us knew it was doomed, but I told him—you guessed it—it was an idea whose time had come. I’d forgotten about this until the phrase became the tag line in a commercial for The Farmer's Dog fresh dog food. It’s a long way from a Fortune 500 CEO’s “pet” venture to fresh dog food.

 

God Willing

This aphorism is the last banned phrase for 2025. God willing has so many reasons to be banned. The corollary of “God willing” is that God wasn’t willing. Let’s not lay the blame on God for everything that’s gone wrong. A substantial percentage of folks either call their guiding entity something other than “God” or don’t believe in a higher power at all. Then there’s my former roommate from Kentucky who used to say “God willing and the cricks don’t rise.” Cricks or no cricks, let’s ban “God willing” altogether.

 

This completes our 2025 banned words and phrases list. Keep in mind that it’s never too soon to start collecting ideas for 2026!

 

Copyright 2025 Business Theatre Unlimited