“Unprecedented”

If you could permanently ban a word from general usage, which one would it be? Why?

Here’s a glimpse into part of my daily routine: I often check the daily prompt before getting into the shower, to let my unconscious mind cogitate on the topic until I get to open my iPad and begin typing.

Not today. I read the prompt, and said (silently, to myself): “Unprecedented.”

We started hearing this word frequently during the twin terrors of Trump and Covid. Everything he did was “unprecedented,” which I maintain was not a good thing. Then we got hit with a pandemic, which we all should have expected (look at the history of pandemics; we were due), but found the world changing in unexpected ways.

“Unprecedented” became the go-to word of the era, and quickly became overused. Luckily that citizen became “unpresidented” and I hope it doesn’t happen again, because I fear for the safety of the world. And Covid is now endemic, though the ridiculous attitudes (unmasking, anti-vaxxing, rampant belief in absurd conspiracy theories) continue to infect society in large quantities.

Maybe we are experiencing growing pains as society evolves beyond all petty concerns; I hope so. In the meantime, we have to ride out the craziness and hope the Earth survives. Things may get wilder before they get better, but the more new situations arise, the more we have to grab a thesaurus and find a few alternatives to that word.