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Oldsters accuse youngsters of being everything from sloppy and lazy to ignorant and incoherent.
In other words, it’s much more than filler.
‘Like’ is a surprisingly versatile word
Alexandra D’Arcy wrote the book on “like” literally.
She gave an example: “I was like, ‘Where do you find these people?'”
Malcolm Gladwell seems particularly delighted by this way of using the word.
He wrote, “It could be what someone was thinking.
It could be a paraphrase.
Or it could be what they actually said.
Like my first experience with death was this Italian family.”
This way of using the word can lead to “a sense of sharing or intimacy.”
Friendlier, sure, but how about smarter?
There’s a long history of criticizing and trying to change young women’s speech patterns (perNPR).
In reality, people of all ages and genders are saying “like” more and more often.
So this judgy thing, it’s natural, but it’s really not helpful."
