To hate the word 'bubbly' as a descripton of demeanour/behaviour?

[user1466795981]

This adjective grates on me - it is ALWAYS used to describe women - usually young women - have you EVER heard it in relation to a man.

It also, in some circumstances can have slight connotations of immaturity.

When job searching for admin/secretarial positions when I was younger I was often told they are looking for someone with a bubbly personality

They weren't looking for a man were then were they? Just someone giggly and outgoing that was female.

It is a dreadful word when used to describe a person or champagne.

Some people must like it though, as they use it to describe themselves - so I'm guessing that it doesn't always have the negative associations that some of you have to it! Just giggly and friendly and outgoing.

I would mostly use it to describe women, but I could see it being used for a man. I know lots of thin people who would say they were bubbly ; not a physical thing at all (although a lot of them do have curly hair, it seems!).

Lots of people also say that the word bossy is only applied to girls, but I'd certainly use that for both (and meaning something different to being a leader), so maybe some of these are location/age/culture dependent. I would tend to use feisty as more for a girl.

YANBU to dislike the word and its connotations, but YABU to have a problem with it on the basis that "it is ALWAYS used to describe women".

Why is there something wrong with something being inherently female?

deadgood it suggests a vacuous, giggly silly woman. Is there an alternative word to describe a man, which could appear on a job advert and which is apparently positive while being obviously not?

It always makes me think of Lady "Bubbles" Rothermere who presumably was called that as she was always getting pissed on champagne, but looked like she was the life of the party while doing so - or at least thought she was.

I saw a clip of the David Brent movie last night and he was calling a big woman bubbly too . . .

I always take 'bubbly' to mean loud, a bit dim and on the chunky side.

Balloon was that the character in Little Britain? "Call me bubbles dahling, everybody does"?

No she was real. She was the wife of Lord Rothermere, who owned the Daily Mail, so she was always getting her picture in the paper.

On Wikipedia it says: As Lady Rothermere, she led a colourful social life, earning her the nickname of "Bubbles", through a love of champagne, her spherical figure, and appalling flatulence when lying in the bath. She died from a heart attack at Heinz, Pennsylvania aged 59. This was brought on by an accidental overdose of baked beans.

Not sure that's totally true though . . .

Hah, sounds like they based the character on her!

Was there a bubbles in Ab Fab?

Yes!! Silly vacuous girl with curly hair and high pitched voice.

DeadGood - what I meant is I've only heard it used to describe women, but it may have been used to describe a man - if so, the word is no less repulsive! I don't think there's anything wrong with being 'inherently female' - it's just the actual word I was objecting to.

I hate it, too - especially in job adverts where you just know it's code for 'young attractive female', because they're not allowed to say that.
In any case to me it has connotations of ditsy and probably a bit brainless.

When job searching for admin/secretarial positions when I was younger I was often told they are looking for someone with a bubbly personality

I really hate this. as if someone who isn't bubbly wouldn't be able to do the job? i think it's fine to look for characteristics such as being hard working, dedicated, responsible etc., not fine to look for a characteristic that has absolutely nothing to do with work.

I'd be unemployed forever if being 'bubbly' was required for my work. I'm a reserved serious person, I'm not boring or mean or unfriendly, just not anywhere near what anyone would think of as bubbly.

I think it means ditsy, giggly, banal and eyelash-batting, possibly also loud with a "good" rubbish sense of humour about trivial topics.

They never describe people who've died as miserable twats do they? It's always 'bubbly' and 'popular'

Likewise, male serial killers are always 'weird loners'. I'm a weird loner, but I'm not a serial killer. These stock phrases and labels give people a bad name and somehow diminish them.