Tag archive for ‘Jargon’
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Jargon watch: Year-end edition
As 2011 winds down and we prepare to ring in the new, a year-end installment of Jargon Watch is in order. During the past year, we’ve heard a number of words and phrases from clients and colleagues that have caught our ear—either because they resonated like a chorus of angels, or grated like nails on… Continue reading
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Jargon we love, jargon we hate
As 2011 approaches the halfway mark, we thought it would be a good time for Jargon Watch, Tendo’s periodic column featuring words and phrases we’re hearing from clients, colleagues and friends.
The following list includes a few early favorites, along with some words we could do without.
1| Kicking dead whales down the beach
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Tech jargon: 6 words to make you say “aargh!”
If there’s one thing I’ve learned as a technology writer, it’s never to assume knowledge with readers. That’s not to say readers are dumb; it means that you should avoid using technical jargon, even if your audience is technical. Always explain technical terms that are new or have yet to make it into the popular… Continue reading
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Our 5 favorite jargon words for 2010
We’re pretty optimistic about the opportunity 2010 brings for new jargon words. It’s early days yet, but we’re seeing—and creating—some good ones. The following list includes our early favorites. Continue reading
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Top 5 jargon for slackers
With the U.S. unemployment rate at a 26-year high of 9.7 percent, an estimated 14.7 million people are currently out of work. Those are unhappy statistics. Let’s hark back to a simpler time, before the economy was lamented as much as the weather, when slackers could hide out in forgotten cubicles and devise ever more ways of dodging work, ducking responsibility, and wasting company time. The following is our jargon tribute to a dying breed: the slackers. Continue reading
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Jargon Watch: “The ocean that touches many shores”
“The ocean that touches many shores”
Definition: Used as a metaphor for a concept, solution—or even a person—that affects multiple things. “Our CRM solution has many applications for your business; it’s the ocean that touches many shores.” Continue reading
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26 killer jargon words for writing sassier copy
Jargon is an inescapable part of business culture. And while some words and phrases make us cringe and plug our ears from the buzzword-overload–as we’ve previously noted– there are nevertheless times when the right bit of jargon is the perfect cure for a business’ communicative efforts.
There’s no hard-and-fast rule for qualifying a piece… Continue reading
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26 jargon words to avoid (like the plague)
Buzzwords. Corporate cliches. Jargon. It’s difficult to resist peppering these little turns-of-the-tongue into your documents, speeches, and everyday life. And that’s fine. Everyone enjoys a little spice on the main course. But not all spice is created equally, nor should you add a liberal dash of jargon into everything you do. You can ruin the… Continue reading
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Britain bans jargon
The concept of jargon reached new levels of importance last week when it was elevated from boardroom to courtroom. Fed up with inaccessible language within its system, Britain’s local government association (LGA) put its foot down. No longer tolerated are the terms taxonomy, re-baselining, mainstreaming, holistic governance, contestability, predictors of beaconicity—and 194 more.
Martin… Continue reading
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You’re not your customer
If only all business transactions were as simple as Halloween.
It’s a straightforward value proposition: The kids deliver the entertainment (a parade of little fairies, superheroes and bumblebees). The adults pay for the favor (preferably with a gooey candy bar and not a box of organic raisins—yuck).
Business can be more complicated, but… Continue reading
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