My old man tells me that using those filler words and pauses make me sound like I don’t know what I’m talking about, and to speak “more naturally.” But that is natural speech, the people on TV and on the nightly news programs are usually reading off a script. Communication requires processing.
@wonder mike Hey Mike if you take the stick out of your ass and relax with the language skills you might be able to make a friend or two. Hope this helps xxoo
I work with a guy that clearly worked on never using filler words. His speech sounds very halted, very awkward, and very insincere. Middle ground seems to be the key (as with most things).
@@edwardgimlin9484 Or a lack of that person caring about it from my experience. There are some people who had good education, but didn't give a damn, sadly :(
@@colly6022 I'm from BC and the people I know who use it are either other British Columbians or from the praries, so could be western but also it's not hugely pervasive but still a thing for some
Fillers like "uh" and "um" are also useful, even in writing, to convey that what's about to follow might be awkward or uncomfortable for the speaker, listener, or both. Like if someone misreads a social cue, you might end up saying "That's, ah, not where I was trying to go with that." At least, I use them to that end a lot.
Michael Meissner That would be different. It's deliberately used for a known purpose. Mindlessly saying "Uhm" or "like" in just about every sentence when there is no meaning attached to it would be considered a filler word.
CrankyPants But it's not always so purposeful. Like Ludix said, they denote a thinking pause, which is also exactly what "mindless" fillers do. Really, the "uh" is just a cover for while you think up how to not burn every bridge you've built with the listener. I'd argue its purposeful use is almost entirely exclusive to writing, and even then its just used to indicate that that's how you'd have said it in person. I really like to try to write exactly how I talk, verbosity and verbal fillers and all.
At a previous job, I was on the "interview team" - the group of people who interviewed potential new hires to our department. Our manager was... "tough" during interviews. He did not suffer fools or liars. If he saw an obvious discrepancy on your resume, he would call you out on it *HARD*. He also was not kind to "verbal tics". We had one person in for an interview - his qualifications were a _little_ on the light side, but he was just out of college, so we were willing to give him a shot. This was for a customer-interacting position. But, like, he, like, said, like, "like", like a lot. That sentence may not have exaggerated much. The manager cut him off mid-sentence "I would like you to go three sentences without saying 'like'." The recruit made it two. "And then I, like......" Put his face in his hands and let out an audible groan. That was the interview. Our manager was surprisingly nice to him, though. "It's okay. You now know you need to work on your public speaking skills, but your technical skills seem good. For this role, though, you need to be able to speak confidently. Go to a public speaking improvement course and apply again in a few months." He didn't apply again.
It's tough. I've been there... A LOT. I was applying for an online ESL teaching job for Chinese kids and adults and I reached until the final interview (it's a "one-day hiring process"). Then the head interviewee (Idk what exactly he is lol) told me I look pleasant and a have good communication skills but used too much fillers. I cried at that interview because I was so close and so desperate to find a job. He told me to come back after 3 months to practice. 3 weeks later I got a call and I know its him who called and then asked me if I'm available for interview (of course back to level 1). I told him I can't bec it hasn't been a month since I applied. He didn't recall it. I never went back. I got some more calls and texts but I never answered them back. Hell no.
Honestly, if there were enough qualified applicants that this manager was able to fill the position, I'm glad that he did that. It takes effort that we shouldn't have to expend to drag through a conversation with someone with poor speaking skills and definitely makes it seem like the business is weak or the manager has bad management skills putting someone in that role who can't speak well.
Social skills: + 1 UP Thanks SciShow! 🙏 (From an insecure person suffering from mild Aspergers being reluctant towards filler words because of fear of appearing dumb. No I know I appear robotic instead. Very soon I will not have myself interrupted so often anymore. 🤓😬👍)
I always use these words, and it’s so hard to deal with. My friends sometimes have a hard time understanding because I start just going like, y’know, I think ummmmm... y’know, like, just, umm.... and I just freeze up.
If you have to say “so, um, like...” I’d rather not listen to you at all. Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt.
Brit Garner is constantly raising up expectations for what cool sweater or t-shirt is she going to wear next episode. You should put some of those for sale!
Hell, as a radio DJ sometimes you insert exaggerated filler words for effect. I've never really understood this fascination with eliminating filler words. Sure, some people use them too much, but eliminating them entirely seems quite unlikely.
I have been told I say, "like," a lot, and every time I hear that, I always try to cut back by reducing it to none, and pause myself in silence before I say another word. It's frustrating, and at this point, I've accepted it.
Interesting episode! I have always wondered about this. I worked as a transcriber for a year and I had to leave out filler words for most transcriptions. It surprised me how often people used them. After a few months though I just got so used to leaving them out that it's very difficult for me to notice them and do verbatim transcriptions where filler words need to be included. Also, NICE SHIRT.
and it annoys me when people criticize others for using “like” as a substitute for “say” because they have different functions. like she said, “like” is when you don’t remember EXACTLY what something is. so I’m gonna say “Johnny was like” instead of “Johnny said” if I don’t remember what Johnny’s exact words were but I remember the main idea of what he said.
This was a great video, I always scratch my head a bit when I read articles online that argue for the elimination of filler words from speech. When reading those articles I always posit that the argument is not entirely justified, because filler words aren't useless, they convey somewhat valuable information about a speaker's inner thought processes during conversations. Keep up the great work, SciShow Psych! :)
I have noticed on myself that when in a conversation i sometimes use filler words before i say something, which maybe helps with others starting to pay attention to me, while not saying any important yet they could miss
Nice one! We just did a video to stop saying things like fillers (and others) when pitching an idea or delivering a presentation. Wish we had seen this vid before. Excellent point you made about not sounding like speech software reading out text. Great stuff.
I watched a short documentary about an interesting young lady going through some hardships but I could not get through it because of her constant use of “like” ugh.
I am sorry, these people who say "like" after every other word are just irritating as hell. Using filler words at the end of a thought as a place holder to inform your audience that you are trying to consolidate your next thought is different than using "like" multiple times in a single sentence.
I just did a presentation two days ago where I -again- said "like" for like thousand times and the teacher pointed it out at the end saying it was okay but it's not an "academical" enough and I should get rid of it. I was so concerned abt it and I still have no idea how to avoid saying it. but I'm feeling better knowing that others can actually relate.
>_< Trying to stop doing this but my brain thinks faster than I can speak and has to jump backwards to finish a sentence. Since left brain speaks, I'm guessing right brain is running the show in there. I can only imagine how frustrating it would be to have a corpus callosotomy.
Any other Millennials out there cringing at the overuse of "like"? There are better filler words/phrases out there that are less irritating. Also, slowing down speech a bit to allow your brain to pull up details at around the same time as you talk can keep the conversation from escalating in any capacity.
Me too I'm 28 always hated it, find it very irritating, I think there's a class element too I'm not middle class enough to use it and have a strong northern English accent
I tend to ask, "You get what i'm talking about?" when i'm having a conversation as a genuine habit that I don't necessarily pay attention to. Thinking at it now, I want to know if they get my perspective or anything to say or ask.
I always have so much in my head and I try to push it all out before I can form a proper sentence. If I don't, I forget what i was going to say in the time it takes to form a sentence, because a million new thoughts have come.
"So" drives me up a wall! I've always heard it as meaning "therefore", so it makes no sense to start a sentence with it (see what I did there?). "Like" also irritates me. There's the proper use of it like in the video, but to use it, especially a lot, when not making a comparison makes you look like you just can't think of much to say (see what I did there?). Lots of people use "well" to claim the floor, so to speak, to feel secure that they are being heard or listened to. It comes across as apologetic or weak, which is appropriate if you want to soften what you have to say, but not with every response you offer. Hillary Clinton has too many "uhs"; it's a distraction when you know she's a super smart person with important things to say. It's a habit that's unnecessary and suggests she's not confident. Of course, women have reason to not be confident culturally. That's changing, fortunately.
i went to this video because i noticed every single person on live TV like news always say uhm or when people are infront of a camera check out your latest news and look at an interview people every 3 seconds are like uhm and everytime ...
Filler words make you look dumb. I'd stop using them but than I'd have a weird pause thinking of what to say. But when that does happen I slow down mid sentence proccesing the rest of what I have to say
Another witty and admirable script as usual! What I would really like to add is the fact that the Japanese language actually has a word for the interjections mentioned around 4:04. I can guarantee Hiroka could help with that! :)
I did a game with my mom once where we would make a conversation but you're not allowed to say "uhm". The moment I tried to speak I just froze up for 10+ secondsm I couldn't think anymore so I just gave up.
I intentionally use some of these to prevent my words form running together so I can be easier to understand, particularly when talking into a microphone like when I'm ordering fast food.
I wonder how this translates to other languages / cultures? I've been studying Japanese and "eto" is used as a filler pause quite frequently but the thing that I notice happens most often will be the speaker pausing on the particles, maybe lengthening the sound a bit, before moving forward.
I agree words like 'uh', 'um', or 'er' function as nice punctuation in speech. I think 'like' is used a couple different ways, one being as you said, a synonym for 'approximately' or 'similarly'. But it has another use too. Young people seem to use it in a way which is much like the old beatniks' usage except nowadays some people interject the word so randomly and frequently that it comes across more like a verbal tic or twitch.
6yrs pharmacy call center experience and was a supervisor before COVID got me laid off. I had to coach many of my employees on cutting back filler words because when you work in healthcare, they can really make the speaker sound unsure and incompetent more so than regular retail. I get around sounding like a robot when I cut them back significantly by relaxing my tone and smiling while I'm talking even if I am reading from a script. I totally agree it's unatural to stop using them but as a consumer myself on the other end of the phone, they stick out like a sore thumb.
I think it's important to consider how digestable the message is. It's the speakers responsibility to deliver a clear message to a listener who has their undivided attention. Using filler words, changing thought mid stream, large pauses, require more work for the listener to weed through to try and understand what the speaker is saying.
I find myself using filler words when I don't want to give people the chance to interrupt me. When I'm in a setting where I'm trying to explain something and I don't feel like they are going to cut me off, I will generally leave gaps in my speech while thinking instead of, ah, using, um, filler words.
What this taught me is that society is so far gone that you're now more likely to be negatively judged by others for speaking well, than to be perceived as well-spoken. If you've seen the movie Idiocracy, you may be reminded of what people called the main character anytime he spoke to someone.
A sa call center agent, we were dinged( called out) if we use a lot of fillers.. thats why we try to train ourselves to control the call flow and familiarize with the subject matter. What a lot of people dont know is that usually we are reading the same page online as the customers. We just try to make it sound more convincing..
Let me tell you, I recently started working at a lab to transcribe parents talking to their children and oh boy I hate when they used filler words (we call them in our lab tag words) because you have to figure out if it is at the end or the start of a new "utterance". But I do think that filler and tag words are things that actually make the person sound more natural. It's just a pain when you have to listen closely to hear if they said "want to" or "wanna" or like "walking" or "walkin'" (it's the latter ones of the examples most of the time in normal everyday speech btw)
I personally find people who "uh-huh" while listening to be annoying and distracting. When someone pipes in while I'm talking, I'll typically pause to let them speak out of courtesy. If all they were saying was "yes, I'm still listening" then it results in an awkward pause for no reason. As to filler words while talking, I personally don't mind and don't find people using them to sound "unprofessional." It does, like, get, like, irritating when, like, people use the word "like," like, every other word. While it does sound unprofessional to pause, conduct yourself and try the sentence again, it's still the better choice in if you end up having to insert that many filler words. It gets hard to follow. My personal choice is toooo... Sort of elongate theee... The last vowel of the previous word whenever I forget what I was saying. It's not necessarily better, but it helps me maintain a continuity of thought. Inserting filler words tends to make "losing my words" even worse
I am guilty of saying ‘like’ but I do say it way less often as I have become more confident but there’s a girl in my class whose every third word is ‘like’ and you really can’t understand a thing she says
I noticed that I sometimes use my native language filler words even when talking English.... it is distracting both to the listener who doesn't undertstand and to me, because I notice suddenly switching language for a brief moment
I remember one of my amazing philosophy lecturers that took filler words to new heights with his tendency to fill all pauses with drawn out vowel sounds that turned his lecturers into a kind of opera due to his grand bellowing voice :D
Scishow is always on point. Just want to give a shout out to the Host, Brit. She speaks well and is easy to understand (similar to Michael). More of her please.
I know when I first started making RUclips videos, I used a lot of filler words. If I thought a video had too many, I would mute them and speed up that bit of video to remove them. I’ve gotten better about using too many filler words, but my original unedited videos would have most likely driven viewers nuts.
It also holds the floor to retain your ongoing dialogue and prevent others from jumping in. It says, "I'm not through talking yet; I've got more to say."
I think it also bears note that some languages have normal, commonly used structures to perform the work of what English speakers call "filler words." "You know?" in particular reminds me of the Japanese sentence ending word "ne". In fact, there are so many of these "sentence ending" words that convey a speaker's overall feeling about the conversation or subject matter in Japanese, that these word have their own grammar term: "shūjoshi." Anyway, "you know?" as a "filler" in English sounds to me much like the sentence ending word "ne" in Japanese. Stick that at the end of a sentence and it implies a request for, or a feeling of, mutual understanding about what was just said between the speaker and listener. When translating this from Japanese into English, it is near impossible to translate it directly, as in English we rely on phrases and intonation like: "you know?" or "don't you think?" or "Right??? (in a high/rising tone)". In short: when trying to convey conversation meta-like information, or a speaker's emotion/expectation about the communication, Japanese has got us beat. What takes us whole phrases or sentences, they regularly accomplish with single syllables. Honestly one of my favorite things about Japanese.
My communications teacher said during a speech not to use filler words and to pause instead so after 5 months I learned to stop using filler words instead putting in pauses in my speech instead which I admit is frustrating because I'll be mid sentence and people will think I'm done talking lol
"Like" and "y'know" irritate me. "uh" and "um" don't bother me unless there are too many of them. However, I don't mention my irritation to people, because I'm probably worse, in that I have a lot of pauses in my speech, due to not remembering the word I want to use.
I never say "like". I dislike absolutely everything! No exception,
but like, why don't you like it, ya know???
you dislike everything? even, like, doggs?
dis-LIKE
First Last You got me.
IHE?
My old man tells me that using those filler words and pauses make me sound like I don’t know what I’m talking about, and to speak “more naturally.”
But that is natural speech, the people on TV and on the nightly news programs are usually reading off a script. Communication requires processing.
@wonder mike Hey Mike if you take the stick out of your ass and relax with the language skills you might be able to make a friend or two. Hope this helps xxoo
I work with a guy that clearly worked on never using filler words. His speech sounds very halted, very awkward, and very insincere. Middle ground seems to be the key (as with most things).
rationalization
@@edwardgimlin9484 Or a lack of that person caring about it from my experience. There are some people who had good education, but didn't give a damn, sadly :(
I won’t listen to anyone using like all the time . It is so annoying.😠
In lower class Canadian English, particularly more rural, "F*ck" can be used as a filler word.
lmao dis a canadian thing? im from buttfuck nowhere, nova scotia
@@colly6022 I'm from BC and the people I know who use it are either other British Columbians or from the praries, so could be western but also it's not hugely pervasive but still a thing for some
I do it occasionally. hi from montreal
Works that way in Pittsburgh too, LOL
I think that's more a generational thing, younger people just care less about profanity
I use filler words because I stutter a lot. so in a way I break my stutter with a filler word. it doesn't always work...
Fillers like "uh" and "um" are also useful, even in writing, to convey that what's about to follow might be awkward or uncomfortable for the speaker, listener, or both. Like if someone misreads a social cue, you might end up saying "That's, ah, not where I was trying to go with that."
At least, I use them to that end a lot.
Michael Meissner They also signify a thinking pause in that context. Like "That's something (how do I say this respectfully) ~particular~"
Michael Meissner That would be different. It's deliberately used for a known purpose. Mindlessly saying "Uhm" or "like" in just about every sentence when there is no meaning attached to it would be considered a filler word.
CrankyPants But it's not always so purposeful. Like Ludix said, they denote a thinking pause, which is also exactly what "mindless" fillers do. Really, the "uh" is just a cover for while you think up how to not burn every bridge you've built with the listener.
I'd argue its purposeful use is almost entirely exclusive to writing, and even then its just used to indicate that that's how you'd have said it in person. I really like to try to write exactly how I talk, verbosity and verbal fillers and all.
i hate seeing ellipsis, asterisks, and autistic face emojis(owo) that ppl use to "look cute"
omg same
At a previous job, I was on the "interview team" - the group of people who interviewed potential new hires to our department. Our manager was... "tough" during interviews. He did not suffer fools or liars. If he saw an obvious discrepancy on your resume, he would call you out on it *HARD*. He also was not kind to "verbal tics". We had one person in for an interview - his qualifications were a _little_ on the light side, but he was just out of college, so we were willing to give him a shot. This was for a customer-interacting position.
But, like, he, like, said, like, "like", like a lot. That sentence may not have exaggerated much. The manager cut him off mid-sentence "I would like you to go three sentences without saying 'like'."
The recruit made it two. "And then I, like......" Put his face in his hands and let out an audible groan. That was the interview. Our manager was surprisingly nice to him, though. "It's okay. You now know you need to work on your public speaking skills, but your technical skills seem good. For this role, though, you need to be able to speak confidently. Go to a public speaking improvement course and apply again in a few months."
He didn't apply again.
Hah wow, thats hardcore
It's tough. I've been there... A LOT. I was applying for an online ESL teaching job for Chinese kids and adults and I reached until the final interview (it's a "one-day hiring process"). Then the head interviewee (Idk what exactly he is lol) told me I look pleasant and a have good communication skills but used too much fillers. I cried at that interview because I was so close and so desperate to find a job. He told me to come back after 3 months to practice. 3 weeks later I got a call and I know its him who called and then asked me if I'm available for interview (of course back to level 1). I told him I can't bec it hasn't been a month since I applied. He didn't recall it. I never went back. I got some more calls and texts but I never answered them back. Hell no.
Honestly, if there were enough qualified applicants that this manager was able to fill the position, I'm glad that he did that. It takes effort that we shouldn't have to expend to drag through a conversation with someone with poor speaking skills and definitely makes it seem like the business is weak or the manager has bad management skills putting someone in that role who can't speak well.
Social skills: + 1 UP
Thanks SciShow! 🙏
(From an insecure person suffering from mild Aspergers being reluctant towards filler words because of fear of appearing dumb. No I know I appear robotic instead.
Very soon I will not have myself interrupted so often anymore. 🤓😬👍)
I always use these words, and it’s so hard to deal with. My friends sometimes have a hard time understanding because I start just going like, y’know, I think ummmmm... y’know, like, just, umm....
and I just freeze up.
If you have to say “so, um, like...” I’d rather not listen to you at all.
Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and to remove all doubt.
Brit Garner is constantly raising up expectations for what cool sweater or t-shirt is she going to wear next episode. You should put some of those for sale!
i HATE PEOPLE SAY LIKE IN THEIR SENTENCE
I don't mind filler words here and there, but when someone uses "like" three or four time in almost every sentence, I tune out.
Of course, filler words are ignored in an argument. The information is more important than the ”likes” and uhms”.
Ryan Truong nice pfp
I find overuse of like annoying as well they often bury the conversation I can't tell what the person is saying sometimes because of it
That’s actually really good to know!
I literally hate girls using "like" ..... Some of my nieces can't say three words without saying like...
Hell, as a radio DJ sometimes you insert exaggerated filler words for effect. I've never really understood this fascination with eliminating filler words. Sure, some people use them too much, but eliminating them entirely seems quite unlikely.
“Um” is ok. “Like” is terrible.
Been waiting a while for this. Exceeded my expectations,thx.
I say ‘um’ as a way to mask my stutter, using ‘um’ before a starting a sentence makes the word come out easier :)
I've always worried that using them makes it sound like I'm trying to cover up a stutter.
Which I do also sometimes do.
they almost seem to make speech flow more naturally...
but maybe that's just because i'm used to them.
It's a bad habit many english speakers have developed. so to outsiders (english is not your mother tongue) this might seem normal
Don't you mean: they almost seem to, like, make speech flow more, uh, naturally...
Esther Park sure, probably not something that happens exclusively in english speaking countries
Heynamechangeisback nice "Uh" is pretty standard in French.
Like is the worst filler word. You cant make filler words %5 of your speech
I have been told I say, "like," a lot, and every time I hear that, I always try to cut back by reducing it to none, and pause myself in silence before I say another word. It's frustrating, and at this point, I've accepted it.
It really depends on how the rest of what you are saying flows with the filler words.
Interesting episode! I have always wondered about this. I worked as a transcriber for a year and I had to leave out filler words for most transcriptions. It surprised me how often people used them. After a few months though I just got so used to leaving them out that it's very difficult for me to notice them and do verbatim transcriptions where filler words need to be included.
Also, NICE SHIRT.
"be like" isn't a filler word, it's just slang for "say".
I chuckled at this.
Be like makes you sound like a complete idiot
and it annoys me when people criticize others for using “like” as a substitute for “say” because they have different functions. like she said, “like” is when you don’t remember EXACTLY what something is. so I’m gonna say “Johnny was like” instead of “Johnny said” if I don’t remember what Johnny’s exact words were but I remember the main idea of what he said.
But it's also admits that it isn't an exact quote; it's more like the tone they gave off or what they must have been thinking.
BleachTM Only if you're biased against dialects that use that phrase. It's not any dumber than saying "y'all."
I think the question is CAN you stop using them!
This was a great video, I always scratch my head a bit when I read articles online that argue for the elimination of filler words from speech. When reading those articles I always posit that the argument is not entirely justified, because filler words aren't useless, they convey somewhat valuable information about a speaker's inner thought processes during conversations. Keep up the great work, SciShow Psych! :)
When I'm explaining how to make a pie I use words like apple, key-lime, Lemon-meringue, cherry etc. Are those Filler Words?
Stop it you're killing me 😂
I almost wanted to ask where this comment is.
I have noticed on myself that when in a conversation i sometimes use filler words before i say something, which maybe helps with others starting to pay attention to me, while not saying any important yet they could miss
Nice one! We just did a video to stop saying things like fillers (and others) when pitching an idea or delivering a presentation. Wish we had seen this vid before. Excellent point you made about not sounding like speech software reading out text. Great stuff.
I had a teacher who had a verbal tic where she would use "sort of" as a filler and it got really irritating
I watched a short documentary about an interesting young lady going through some hardships but I could not get through it because of her constant use of “like” ugh.
THIS IS SO TRUE EVERYBODY SAYS "LIKE" EVERYTIME I TALK WITH THEM
I am sorry, these people who say "like" after every other word are just irritating as hell. Using filler words at the end of a thought as a place holder to inform your audience that you are trying to consolidate your next thought is different than using "like" multiple times in a single sentence.
I mean like that's just like your opinion okayy
Okay then, tell me other filler words I can use cause I don't like using uh,um or you know.
Rasha Loves Murder what about "as if" or "similar to"
Emmmm is best
@John Johnson No, instead, learn to speak in a efficient manner, using uh/um.
I've replaced my filler words with silence while I stare into space
The intro was awesomely performed. Thanks Brit, great as always!
I just did a presentation two days ago where I -again- said "like" for like thousand times and the teacher pointed it out at the end saying it was okay but it's not an "academical" enough and I should get rid of it. I was so concerned abt it and I still have no idea how to avoid saying it. but I'm feeling better knowing that others can actually relate.
When I don’t use filler words people just think I got switched off for some time before I find what to say
>_< Trying to stop doing this but my brain thinks faster than I can speak and has to jump backwards to finish a sentence.
Since left brain speaks, I'm guessing right brain is running the show in there. I can only imagine how frustrating it would be to have a corpus callosotomy.
Overuse of filler words is highly annoying.
like, I know right, like you, really uh... don't like what i am saying? so the uh so
Yudi Kurina ahhhhhhh😡😡😡
like, um, uh, and, a, are overused...
Any other Millennials out there cringing at the overuse of "like"? There are better filler words/phrases out there that are less irritating. Also, slowing down speech a bit to allow your brain to pull up details at around the same time as you talk can keep the conversation from escalating in any capacity.
Me too I'm 28 always hated it, find it very irritating, I think there's a class element too I'm not middle class enough to use it and have a strong northern English accent
I tend to ask, "You get what i'm talking about?" when i'm having a conversation as a genuine habit that I don't necessarily pay attention to. Thinking at it now, I want to know if they get my perspective or anything to say or ask.
The "like" used before quantities is semantically distinct from the filled pause "like".
I always have so much in my head and I try to push it all out before I can form a proper sentence. If I don't, I forget what i was going to say in the time it takes to form a sentence, because a million new thoughts have come.
I often thought filler words were for people who were a bit slow, or for essays to meet wordcount
I think if you hear people talking in a way you mimic it.
"So" drives me up a wall! I've always heard it as meaning "therefore", so it makes no sense to start a sentence with it (see what I did there?). "Like" also irritates me. There's the proper use of it like in the video, but to use it, especially a lot, when not making a comparison makes you look like you just can't think of much to say (see what I did there?). Lots of people use "well" to claim the floor, so to speak, to feel secure that they are being heard or listened to. It comes across as apologetic or weak, which is appropriate if you want to soften what you have to say, but not with every response you offer. Hillary Clinton has too many "uhs"; it's a distraction when you know she's a super smart person with important things to say. It's a habit that's unnecessary and suggests she's not confident. Of course, women have reason to not be confident culturally. That's changing, fortunately.
i went to this video because i noticed every single person on live TV like news always say uhm or when people are infront of a camera check out your latest news and look at an interview people every 3 seconds are like uhm and everytime ...
It's hard to avoid using them when we socialise often, which is where we mostly pick them up in the first place.
I just yelled THREE CAT MOON at the screen. Thanks, SciShow!
Filler words make you look dumb. I'd stop using them but than I'd have a weird pause thinking of what to say. But when that does happen I slow down mid sentence proccesing the rest of what I have to say
Another witty and admirable script as usual! What I would really like to add is the fact that the Japanese language actually has a word for the interjections mentioned around 4:04. I can guarantee Hiroka could help with that! :)
I did a game with my mom once where we would make a conversation but you're not allowed to say "uhm".
The moment I tried to speak I just froze up for 10+ secondsm I couldn't think anymore so I just gave up.
I intentionally use some of these to prevent my words form running together so I can be easier to understand, particularly when talking into a microphone like when I'm ordering fast food.
Well, you know, I don't think so.
That's just, like, your opinion man.
Ummm... are you sure about that?
Uh, yeah.
Uh, yeah, I think, you know, that um, opinions, you know, I mean, its just what it is, just sayin'.
Nah mean? Feel me? Know what I'm saying? Know what I mean?
I find people interrupt if I don't use fillers when I'm thinking of what I'm saying next. But I tend to get talked over a lot.
Love that sweater!
getting rid of filler words is basically just an attempt to make it harder to tell if a person's lying
Whenever i heard filler-especially "like", it always reminds me of Mark. Thanks, this explains a lot :)
I wonder how this translates to other languages / cultures? I've been studying Japanese and "eto" is used as a filler pause quite frequently but the thing that I notice happens most often will be the speaker pausing on the particles, maybe lengthening the sound a bit, before moving forward.
I agree words like 'uh', 'um', or 'er' function as nice punctuation in speech. I think 'like' is used a couple different ways, one being as you said, a synonym for 'approximately' or 'similarly'. But it has another use too. Young people seem to use it in a way which is much like the old beatniks' usage except nowadays some people interject the word so randomly and frequently that it comes across more like a verbal tic or twitch.
6yrs pharmacy call center experience and was a supervisor before COVID got me laid off. I had to coach many of my employees on cutting back filler words because when you work in healthcare, they can really make the speaker sound unsure and incompetent more so than regular retail. I get around sounding like a robot when I cut them back significantly by relaxing my tone and smiling while I'm talking even if I am reading from a script. I totally agree it's unatural to stop using them but as a consumer myself on the other end of the phone, they stick out like a sore thumb.
I think it's important to consider how digestable the message is. It's the speakers responsibility to deliver a clear message to a listener who has their undivided attention. Using filler words, changing thought mid stream, large pauses, require more work for the listener to weed through to try and understand what the speaker is saying.
I find myself using filler words when I don't want to give people the chance to interrupt me. When I'm in a setting where I'm trying to explain something and I don't feel like they are going to cut me off, I will generally leave gaps in my speech while thinking instead of, ah, using, um, filler words.
What this taught me is that society is so far gone that you're now more likely to be negatively judged by others for speaking well, than to be perceived as well-spoken. If you've seen the movie Idiocracy, you may be reminded of what people called the main character anytime he spoke to someone.
I never really said “like” when I was younger but now I’m 35 and it’s starting to enter my vocabulary. Not sure why.
A sa call center agent, we were dinged( called out) if we use a lot of fillers.. thats why we try to train ourselves to control the call flow and familiarize with the subject matter. What a lot of people dont know is that usually we are reading the same page online as the customers. We just try to make it sound more convincing..
Let me tell you, I recently started working at a lab to transcribe parents talking to their children and oh boy I hate when they used filler words (we call them in our lab tag words) because you have to figure out if it is at the end or the start of a new "utterance". But I do think that filler and tag words are things that actually make the person sound more natural. It's just a pain when you have to listen closely to hear if they said "want to" or "wanna" or like "walking" or "walkin'" (it's the latter ones of the examples most of the time in normal everyday speech btw)
I personally find people who "uh-huh" while listening to be annoying and distracting. When someone pipes in while I'm talking, I'll typically pause to let them speak out of courtesy. If all they were saying was "yes, I'm still listening" then it results in an awkward pause for no reason.
As to filler words while talking, I personally don't mind and don't find people using them to sound "unprofessional." It does, like, get, like, irritating when, like, people use the word "like," like, every other word. While it does sound unprofessional to pause, conduct yourself and try the sentence again, it's still the better choice in if you end up having to insert that many filler words. It gets hard to follow. My personal choice is toooo... Sort of elongate theee... The last vowel of the previous word whenever I forget what I was saying. It's not necessarily better, but it helps me maintain a continuity of thought. Inserting filler words tends to make "losing my words" even worse
I am guilty of saying ‘like’ but I do say it way less often as I have become more confident but there’s a girl in my class whose every third word is ‘like’ and you really can’t understand a thing she says
I find people often say "You know" when they're lying. Checking to see if the person is following the story still.
Very helpful. I will bring this up at my next speaking class
Everyone should use their own filler words. I'm going to use "yabba dabba doo".
Turkey Bowlwinkle. Everyone is free to talk however they want and. be willing to taje the consequences for it.
I noticed that I sometimes use my native language filler words even when talking English.... it is distracting both to the listener who doesn't undertstand and to me, because I notice suddenly switching language for a brief moment
That shirt is great.
This is great to know. I have been trying to cut down on my filler words but now I don't have to!
Michael K I think if you can process your words and plan your sentence quickly enough you shouldn't need fillers.
Now hold on, the advise is to cut down on filler words as much as you can, but never eliminate them completely. Just, use them sparingly I'd say.
I love language-related content in this channel :)
I remember one of my amazing philosophy lecturers that took filler words to new heights with his tendency to fill all pauses with drawn out vowel sounds that turned his lecturers into a kind of opera due to his grand bellowing voice :D
Scishow is always on point. Just want to give a shout out to the Host, Brit. She speaks well and is easy to understand (similar to Michael). More of her please.
Context makes the filler word. Um as a listener, or like meaning for example or approximately, are not filler words.
Going back to uni has ruined my diction. Everyone's about 10 years younger than me and so their use of slang has really affected me.
Nice sweater and haircut!
my friend kept track of how many people said 'like' in class (in five-ish ten minutes). long story short it was between 80 and 110.
i was confused why "you know" was included at first. i never considered it a filler word, simply a confirmation of understanding.
Brit, you rock! Well done!!!
I know when I first started making RUclips videos, I used a lot of filler words. If I thought a video had too many, I would mute them and speed up that bit of video to remove them. I’ve gotten better about using too many filler words, but my original unedited videos would have most likely driven viewers nuts.
tbh filler words such as um and uh is better than awkward silence.
even better, just say "im thinking" or "i lost my train of thought"
I appreciate the silence, it helps other people think and reduces useless babble.
It also holds the floor to retain your ongoing dialogue and prevent others from jumping in. It says, "I'm not through talking yet; I've got more to say."
People who use filler words are the reason kids get cancer!
personally i always tried to stop myself from accidentally saying things like 'um' and 'like'
except i sometimes do it on purpose when its appropriate
I have a teacher that says uh in 10 word intervals, and he never stops😂
i get told often I'm too direct in a job interview....
I've always used "like" as a way to easily convey hyperbole rather than as a filler word.
Worked at a call center a while, can confirm people like filler word interjections.
no uhm s - are you there ? after 10 sec - are you there ? after 10 sec - are you there ?
I think it also bears note that some languages have normal, commonly used structures to perform the work of what English speakers call "filler words."
"You know?" in particular reminds me of the Japanese sentence ending word "ne". In fact, there are so many of these "sentence ending" words that convey a speaker's overall feeling about the conversation or subject matter in Japanese, that these word have their own grammar term: "shūjoshi." Anyway, "you know?" as a "filler" in English sounds to me much like the sentence ending word "ne" in Japanese. Stick that at the end of a sentence and it implies a request for, or a feeling of, mutual understanding about what was just said between the speaker and listener. When translating this from Japanese into English, it is near impossible to translate it directly, as in English we rely on phrases and intonation like: "you know?" or "don't you think?" or "Right??? (in a high/rising tone)".
In short: when trying to convey conversation meta-like information, or a speaker's emotion/expectation about the communication, Japanese has got us beat. What takes us whole phrases or sentences, they regularly accomplish with single syllables. Honestly one of my favorite things about Japanese.
My communications teacher said during a speech not to use filler words and to pause instead so after 5 months I learned to stop using filler words instead putting in pauses in my speech instead which I admit is frustrating because I'll be mid sentence and people will think I'm done talking lol
"Like" and "y'know" irritate me. "uh" and "um" don't bother me unless there are too many of them. However, I don't mention my irritation to people, because I'm probably worse, in that I have a lot of pauses in my speech, due to not remembering the word I want to use.
I really uh, love your sweater.