Please RSVP - seriously?

[Namechangenell]

Official correspondence asking me to 'please RSVP'. Why??? There's no need for please... Rant over

Thank you cheers

Very well explained too.

Sorry Socks. The manager of a big housing development site (not as fancy as Charles Church) once told me that their houses had no need for architects. I designed foundations, I hope they used them!

Well I really wouldn't want to live in those houses! He may have meant that they just rolled out an old blueprint and built lots of them so no need for a architect this time. The only thing that changed was the ground conditions. Boring arse job designing 200 sets of strip footings though! Especially in hilly sites where every plot is different and you have to get the steps right and get the drawings colour coded or something to show the level changes...

Americans say "oftentimes" instead of "often". Fucking idiots

God, I love you people. Here's one I read on MN today:

'Pre-booked in advance'

So, booked.

I could do this all day.

X-Factor etc.

"Next up"

(To borrow Sprink's perfect phrasing)

So, next.

(and to all the people making fatuous excuses about "the next station stop" - it doesn't matter if the train stops at other place because THE NEXT STATION would cover it. The "stop" is superfluous. Fans self Bring me the smelling salts.)

PAT testimg

"(and to all the people making fatuous excuses about "the next station stop" - it doesn't matter if the train stops at other place because THE NEXT STATION would cover it. The "stop" is superfluous. Fans self Bring me the smelling salts.)"
But what happens if the train doesn't stop at the next station? I suppose that people could fling themselves out the window as the train rolls past.

I'm with the op who said that tautological phrases amuse them. Although not nearly as much as watching people winding themselves into knots over them amuses me.

That should obviously be pp not op, of course.

Has anyone mentioned "HIV virus" yet?

Another one is "Soweto Township." Soweto is an acronym which stands for SOuth WEst TOwnship

There's a local dentist called "Oral Smile". As opposed to what?

"As opposed to what?"
An oral cavity?

Hero the beef

Maybe they mean searo the beef that would make sense.

'Pre-booked in advance'

At this moment in time .... "Now" will do ...

PAT testing

This!

I don't see the problem with plug socket. Differentiates between USB socket, telephone socket, eye socket...

I mean, it's unlikely people are going to start pushing their contact lenses into the mains electricity supply or mashing USB sticks into their eyeballs. But given the potential consequences, I think it's safer to make the distinction.

Socks thanks for explaining about the architects so I didn't have to

Continuing with the building/property ones that annoy me :
people who say MPRN number (MPRN stands for meter point reference number).

"Pre-warning" - a warning, by definition, is in advance of something that follows. There is no "pre" about it - unless you're going to say to someone "This is just a notification that I'll be warning you about something later."

"100% certain/sure" gets my goat. Or people saying "I'm about 90% certain that blah blah blah." If you're certain, then you're certain. If you think there's a 90% chance of something, then you're not certain.

Orchard

At this moment in time .... "Now" will do ...

This irritates me too but it's a different class from the other phrases on this thread. This is a time filler phrase. It's what people say subconciously when they need more time to think about what they are next going to say.

In other words it's a step up from saying "ummm" or "err".

An experienced speaker will just speak more slowly or pause.
A mediochre speaker will use filler phrases like "at this moment in time" and "at the end of the day".
A poor speaker will "ummm" and "errr".

My old boss used to say 'Hence the reason being is...' Argh! It drove me crackers!

Boring arse job designing 200 sets of strip footings though! Especially in hilly sites where every plot is different and you have to get the steps right and get the drawings colour coded or something to show the level changes...

Nah, you tell them to bulldoze the site flat and then they can use the same footing design for all 200 houses. Job done.

It gets more interesting when you have to explain why the industrial part of their masterplan should go on the brownfield land and the housing should go on the greenfield land, and not the other way around as they've got it because they think it's more "architecturally pleasing" to do it that way.