Redundancy
Many of these are now firmly in our vocabulary and there is nothing we can do about it. Several of these are active signs of idiocy or innocence. A few of these are so high-frequency that they have achieved pet-peeve status among language nerds. Unfortunately the creation of these lists is, in a way, teaching my students and the rest of the world how to annoy me.
Definition of Redundant
- Exceeding what is necessary or normal.
- Characterized by similarity or repetition.
Phrases and Names with Redundancy
- Chai Tea (Tea Tea) - A flavored tea beverage brewing black tea with spices and herbs. Chai is derived from chá (茶) in Mandarin and also means tea is several other languages. Just say "Chai" instead.
- Hula Dance (Polynesian Dance Dance) - A form of chant and dance popularized in Hawaii. Hula means "dance" in Hawaiian. Just say "hula" instead.
- La Brea Tar Pits (The Tar Tar Pits) - The La Brea Tar pits are in Hancock Park, California. La Brea means "the tar" or "the tar pits" in Spanish.
- Lake Chad (Lake Lake) - A major lake connected to Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria. Chad means "large expanse of water" i.e. "lake" in a language local to that part of Africa (would love to know the name of the language).
- Lake Tahoe (Lake Lake) - A major lake between California and Nevada. Tahoe is derived from the word "dá’aw" meaning "The Lake" in Washo.
- Los Angeles Angels (The Angels Angels) - A Major League Baseball team in Anaheim, California. Los Angeles means "the angels" in Spanish.
- Master Roshi (Master Master) - A major character in Dragonball. Roshi means "old teacher" or "old master" in Japanese
- Master Shifu (Master Master) - A major character in Kung Fu Panda. Shifu means "a skillful person" or "master" in Mandarin.
- Medieval Times (The Middle Ages Times) - The Middle Ages were a historical time period from the 5th to the 15th century. Medieval derived from "medium aevum" means "middle age" in Latin. Either say "Middle Ages" or "Medieval" instead.
- Mississippi River (Great River River) - A major river in the United States. Mississippi comes from "Messipi" in French derived from "Misi-ziibi" meaning "Great River" in American Anishinaabe (Ojibwe or Algonquin)
- Reiterate (To Say Repeatedly Again) - Both iterate and reiterate mean "to do repeatedly". Re- as a root means to do again.
- Sahara Desert (The Greatest Desert Desert) - The Sahara is a large desert in Africa. Sahara means "the Greatest Desert" in Arabic. Just say "The Sahara" instead.
- Sharia Law (Islamic Law Law) - Religious law based on Islam. Sharia means "law", "justice", or "religion" in Arabic. Just say "sharia" instead.
- Simba (Lion the Lion) - The protagonist of Disney's The Lion King. Simba means "lion" in Swahili. What if he were asked his name and what he was in the same conversation? I wonder what Scar's name was before he got a scar.
- Soviet Union (Council Union) - A major country from 1922 to 1991. Soviet means "council", "assembly", "advice", and "harmony" in Russian. Sovietnik means "councillor" in Russian. It is a group group.
- Three Ring Circus (Three Ring Ring) - Acrobats, clowns, jugglers, and animal acts performing as a troupe. While circus is a word meaning the group of performers, originally a circus is literally a "circle" or "ring" in Latin from Greek.
RAS Syndrome (Redundant Acronym Syndrome Syndrome) - Redundancy with Acronyms and Initialisms
- ATM Machine (Automated/Automatic Teller Machine Machine)
- DC Comics (Detective Comics Comics)
- ER Room (Emergency Room Room)
- FedEx Express (Federal Express Express) - Started out as Federal Express. Changed the company name in 2000 to FedEx Express making no sense at all.
- GOP Party (Grand Old Party Party)
- GPS System (Global Positioning System System)
- HIV Virus (Human Immunodeficiency Virus Virus)
- IRA Account (Individual Retirement Account Account)
- ISBN Number (International Standard Book Number Number)
- LCD Display (Liquid Crystal Display Display)
- MSDS Sheet (Material Safety Data Sheet Sheet)
- PDF Format (Portable Document Format Format)
- PIN Number (Personal Identification Number Number)
- Please RSVP (Please Respond Please) - RSVP translates to "Répondez s'il vous plaît" in French meaning "please respond" or "reply if you please."
- RPG Game (Role Playing Game Game)
- SAT Test (Scholastic Aptitude Test Test/Scholastic Assessment Test Test) - This is a special case! In 1997 the College Board announced that SAT no longer stood for anything. SAT is now a pseudo-acronym and there is no longer a problem saying "SAT Test."
- VIN Number (Vehicle Identification Number Number)
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Close Proximity
Battle Tactics