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Lorraine in Syracuse, New York, asks for tips for breaking the habit of saying You know. These linguistic self-interruptions are called disfluencies. You’ll improve your speaking by making sure you know your topic well and are clear about what...
Um, are you, like, one of those people who, um, get, like, really annoyed, by, um, you know, like, um, lots of filler words in, you know, like, conversation? If it’s any comfort, there’s a great term for this. Can you say embololalia?
brougham
n.— «That whole busy attitude is a sham/Umm bro, umm brother, umm.. Brougham, stop shammin!» —“Stop Shammin’” by Big Daddy Kane Looks Like a Job For… , 1993. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)