Over half of New Jerseyans do this to look cool and totally fail

We can all admit it, sometimes we bend over backward (for better or worse) to impress others.

Maybe we pretend to have read a classic novel, fake our way through a conversation about The Sopranos (even though you only know that the last scene cut to black), or claim to have seen The Godfather when all you can say is that they left the gun and took the cannoli.

According to a new study put out by Preply, a language classes provider, over half of us are doing something that others find to be super obnoxious.

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Over half of Americans find this annoying

Preply found that 53% of us admit to try sounding smarter by using complex words and others are NOT impressed.

Excuse me, I meant to articulate that Preply conceived the notion that simpletons expressed momentous turns of phrase when diminutive words would suffice much to others’ chagrin.

(Full disclosure, that sentence was exhausting to write. I could never be in the 53%. I had to Google most of it)

The top words Americans use to sound smarter are:

ambiguous

articulate

exacerbate

The most pretentious words people use:

capricious

equanimity

sycophant

Some other notable findings of Preply’s research:

⚫ 53% have used a complex word to sound smarter.
⚫ 58% have used complex vocabulary during an interview or networking event to appear smarter.
⚫ 35% have used a complex word during an argument to intimidate the other person.
⚫ Half of Americans are bothered or annoyed by the use of a complex word in everyday conversation.

So next time you try to impress someone with a big word, fuhgedaboudit.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5's Kylie Moore. Any opinions expressed are Kylie's own. You can follow Kylie on Instagram.
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