36th Annual List of Banished Words Goes "Viral"

It may have been word of the year in some wheelhouses, but "refudiate" wasn't looked upon favorably by many who sent in nominations for Lake Superior State University's 36th annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-use, Over-use and General Uselessness, which was released on New Year's Eve.

In a busy U.S. election year, "the American People" told LSSU they were tired of not only "refudiate," but also "mama grizzlies" who wanted their opponents to "man up."

But words and phrases related to technology and the way we communicate dominated the list for 2011, including "viral," "epic," "fail," and the use of websites "Facebook" and "Google" as verbs. "Viral" received the most nominations.

The "back story" on LSSU's popular list began on Jan. 1, 1976, when former LSSU Public Relations Director Bill Rabe and a group of friends each contributed a few expressions that they disliked to form the first list. After that, the nominations stacked up for future lists and Rabe's group, known then as The Unicorn Hunters, didn't have to make up its own list again. LSSU receives well over 1,000 nominations annually through its website.

And now, here's a look at the 2011 list. Get ready for the "wow factor!" It's full of "epic" "a-ha moments" that are sure to go "viral." It's a no-"fail" list that you'll be "facebooking" and "googling" with your "BFFs." "Just sayin'."


The complete announcement contains comments from a few of the people who nominated each term.

The 2011 List
+ Viral
+ Epic
+ Fail
+ Wow Factor
+ A-Ha Moment
+ Back Story
+ BFF
+ Man Up
+ Refudiate
+ Mama Grizzlies
+ The American People
+ Google and Facebook (as Verbs)
+ Live Life To The Fullest

Archive of Previous Lists

Alphabetical Compilation of Words From All Lists (1976-2010)

Here's http://www.lssu.edu/banished/archive/2010.phpthe 2010 List
+ Shovel-Ready
+ Transparent/Transparency
+ Czar
+ Tweet
+ App
+ Sexting
+ Teachable Moment
+ In These Economic Times….
+ Stimulus
+ Toxic Assets
+ Too Big To Fail
+ Bromance
+ Chillaxin'
+ Obama-prefix or roots?