True Confessions of a Word Hater

I mentioned how much I hate the word stuff.

Yesterday, I spent the day scoring state writing assessments (each paper receives two local ratings before being sent to the state office), and the process reminded me of my all-time least favorite word:

Get.

Possibly the weakest verb on the planet, but one to which my students have a rather unhealthy addiction. To make my point, I have been known to write "get" on a piece of paper, tear it into several pieces, and stomp on the remains. One student started calling me "Fuzzy Grammar" and said I should take the show on the road as performance art.

Yes, stuff ires me. Get makes me see red. When I write, I only allow "get" into the prose during dialogue. People say "get" all the time; I say "get" from time to time. But when you write, is that really the best verb you can use?