D&D Vocabulary: Words you love or hate to use/hear?

[The Shadowdove]

Hey forum-lurkers,

What kind of words do you like to use when playing/running games?

I love adverbs that are used to alter an existing concept. They can take a sentence worth celebrating and turn it into a nightmare. Words such as "however", "unfortunately", etc.

A DM recently used a word I've never considered because it sounds funny in my head, like it doesn't belong to it's meaning. "Gumption". But the character he used it as a descriptor for was very appropriate.

"Coalesce" I think is a good word. Whereas the word "Conglomerate" bugs me for some reason.

What kinds of words do you love to hate? Are there any that you love unconditionally, or love despite not knowing why?

Let's hear it! There are so many more experienced players here than I that I love to hear about your adventures and tricks you've picked up along the way.

-Dove

[UnwiseAlistair]

“Coffeelock”

[MarkVIIIMarc]

OP, you have a few good ones. I lack efficient adjectives most of the time. The other night I think I described a Mayor's wife as "put together, almost inappropriately young, a babe, having nice hair and when one of the half orc PC's got close I said "she even smells good".

Nothing about tall or short, thick or thin, what she was wearing, nada. We had to have a table each with their own image entirely lol.

[Kane0]

Every table has a few buzzwords.

Cautiously: If you are not the DM, using this word assures that your PC is about to have a very bad time.
Carapace: Reserved only for the best of the best.
Alluring: The character (NPC or otherwise) is a succubus or relative of. 100% of the time.
Legion: The number of creatures the PCs can deal with +1
Slumber: Do. Not. Wake. It.

Corollary to this, one time our DM jokingly suggested a one shot that started with the scene: "You see that cavern ahead contains a legion of carapaced horrors, slumbering peacefully below the bustling city above" and we *all* threw our dice at him.

When DMing I've noticed that my more grandiose descriptions tend towards 3 syllable words. Less than that leaves me feeling like I'm not selling it well enough, more feels like I'm being a showoff.

[willdaBEAST]

I really like trying to tailor my characters vocabulary to what kind of person they might be. A low INT character might lack any complicated vocabulary (or misuse them) and be horrible with metaphors, while an intelligent character will seamlessly integrate really advanced words and speak elegantly. Similarly a character who thinks he or she is really intelligent might speak like a vomiting thesaurus and overcomplicate what should be a simple statement.

As far as the OP's question, I hate the word "plethora". I think it's an ugly combination of syllables, it's used by people to sound smart and there is always a more aesthetically pleasing alternative (YMMV).

I'm not a dedicated word nerd, but I love finding words that articulate a very specific situation, like "defenestrate" v. to throw someone out of a window, generally through glass. Or truly bizarre ones like "famulus" n. an assistant or servant, especially one working for a magician or scholar. I was playing a character with 20 INT who is on his way to 22 INT through deck of many things and tried to seamlessly integrate 3-5 extremely obscure words every session.

I'll leave this here: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SesquipedalianLoquaciousness

[Kane0]

Oh, tangenially related, Qui the Promoter. Loved that guy.

[Armok]

I have a dislike of "MMO terminology" at the table. Things like Tank and DPS when it comes to describing a character.

Like, yeah, I get that certain classes are built to take more damage. But really, any frontliner is capable of dealing good damage, and 5e doesn't really have an aggro mechanic for keeping enemies attacking you. DPS just doesn't even make sense to me, since the game is turn based and most classes this is applied to have other defining features beyond their damage.

Personally, I much prefer speaking in terms of that characters role and skills. Melee, frontliners, arcane or divine casters, rougish types and ranged combatants... I feel like using these sorts of terms over the popular MMO terminology better conveys what these people can do.

[ross]

don't dislike any words, but not a fan of acronyms

[Spore]

I have a dislike of "MMO terminology" at the table. Things like Tank and DPS when it comes to describing a character.

It is inherently wrong. A table-top RPG _combat_ however works roughly like a MOBA or team shooter to me. So categories are called similarly: Be it bruiser, mage, healer, operator (the skills guy) or maybe sniper. D&D is mostly a fictional mix of warfare specialists.

My pet peeve is with the little word "justified" as in: The villain has his reasons. His actions are justified. Because no, they are usually not. I might be too much of a language nerd here (English is my second language so I might make a few mistakes in this very paragraph I rant about) but his actions might be "justifiable" as in: "He can justify them from his standpoint" but not "justified" as in universally true and an objectively better option.

More than a decade of morally grey storytelling has resulted in mixing believable villains with stories that explain their deeds and evil nutjobs that just confuse the audience with their devolved sense of morality. Example:

Morally grey: The [Dragon Age] templars are wrong to pacify dangerous mages by lobotomizing them. I have to destroy their organization even if it means killing a few of them.

Blatant evil: I have suffered in prison because Batman put me into there. This makes him the reason I am so broken today. He has to pay, he is the evil guy here.

[Blacky the Blackball]

"Build", "Dip", "Trap" (when referring to character options rather than dungeon features), "Guide", "DPS"...

If I hear someone using those terms I just know that they'll be a poor fit for our table and I'll be a poor fit for theirs - probably to the point of us not enjoying each others' games and quitting in frustration.

[jojo]

"Optimization" or any permutation thereof. "Statistically" or any permutation thereof.

[Kane0]

Another two I love are ‘Gestalt’ and ‘Homebrew’
Not all at my table share that love though. We do however agree in our hatred of ‘RAW’

[CircleOfTheRock]

I keep on saying 'nearly' or 'almost' when describing combat, and things like 'shrouded' or 'darkened' when describing scenery... I overuse them to the point of comedy... :roy:

[DarthPenance]

Natural 20, when my GM says it
I do love when he says ''How do you want to do this?" After we kill the last enemy of the encounter

[NecessaryWeevil]

"Metagaming" combined with "Real life" because it means someone's about to police someone else's roleplaying.

[Demonslayer666]

Misuse of the word "literally" really grinds my gears. That's always though, and not specific to our table. :smallsmile:

Our current DM overuses the term "fairly". Everything is fairly large or fairly small. The word has lost all meaning.

"Sanity check!" is loved and hated at our table. Loved by the GM and loathed by the players.

I really like hearing "roll initiative", and I dislike hearing "roll perception" (it's called for way too often).

I'm sure I abuse words too often, but I haven't gotten any guff for them to know about them. I tend to write out my descriptions before hand because my written language is much more articulate than my spoken. I can put a lot more time into it beforehand. I probably use the word "suddenly" way too often. :smallsmile:

[Camman1984]

I find it hard to greet the players without saying 'well met' it bugs me.

also when I fall into overly verbose bad guy mode.

one of my players says OK before literally every sentence (and I assure you I am not misusing the word literally in this case)

[Cespenar]

We use "I keep an eye on X" a lot in our table, because it lets the DM roll a secret Perception check in cases where he would otherwise just let stuff sneak by.

I quite dislike the variants of "He's almost dead, but still pushes forward with his attack..."

I find verification phrases like "Is it a Constitution check or save, though?" funny, for some reason. It feels like in a courtroom or something. :smalltongue:

[Mjolnirbear]

"Roll to care"

An Eldritch knight in an old game failed à sanity save and stopped caring about things until she was cured.

It became an inside joke.

[Pex]

Words I don't like:

"Are you sure?"

I can admit sometimes what a player wants to do is stupid, yet other times it's neutral at worst but the DM doesn't like it. He'll say those words first as justification to screw over the player if he does the thing anyway. A DM saying that means whatever it is the player wants to do will automatically fail.

"Training"

Old school, I hate needing to train to gain a level. It's a treasure tax, a waste of time looking for an NPC, and a means for tyrannical DMs to lord over their authority.

"I didn't find anything." "Nothing."

Used by Jerk players who did find something but wants to keep party treasure to himself. Sometimes used when the character notices a dangerous situation or learns important need to know information but won't tell the rest of the party because the player is so superior. If others were as good as he is they would find out on their own safely.

[KorvinStarmast]

"Roll to care" Heh, love it, but I recall using that in a far more sarcastic mode back in the day if someone was being all whiny about something ... any number of the other players might announce a roll to care attempt (2d6, low means no, high means yes, but actually no). :smallcool:

Words I don't care for at the table:
1. Kender.
2. ...

I think I'll stop there.

[Demonslayer666]

We use "I keep an eye on X" a lot in our table, because it lets the DM roll a secret Perception check in cases where he would otherwise just let stuff sneak by.

I quite dislike the variants of "He's almost dead, but still pushes forward with his attack..."

I find verification phrases like "Is it a Constitution check or save, though?" funny, for some reason. It feels like in a courtroom or something. :smalltongue:

Your post made me smile.

Or is the DM adding something on the fly because you are suspicious?

The variant we use is "he's within dart range", because the monk was finishing off almost every creature encountered with a dart attack.

"Make a wil save" "wil save?" "wisdom!" /sigh Too much pathfinder. :smallsmile:

[Luccan]

Words I don't like:

"Are you sure?"


I find this question is better when paired with actual description, like "Are you sure you want to try to jump to the bottom of this dry well?". Because sometimes you are trying to give legitimate warning, but whether through your own fault or not, your player isn't aware of exactly how stupid what they're about to do is. Basically, don't just say "are you sure", make sure you communicate the danger of what they're about to do.

[smcmike]

In writing, an improperly used “it’s” draws my attention every time, even though a computer is often to blame.

In the game, I like game terms to come from the game, and everything else to be descriptive. “Character” is a game term, as is “Rogue,” or “Attack.” “Metagame” or “tank” or “DPS” are not game terms, and do not describe anything that is going on within the game, so I can do without them.

“Conglomerate” is a perfectlfy fine word for a nebulous enemy organization in a corporate dystopia. It doesn’t fit with the theme of D&D very well.

[Mjolnirbear]

"Sell me on...". I hate it.

Every other thread in the forum is people wanting to be convinced that this class is great or that one is awesome. Make up your own damn mind. Like how hard is it to read the features and figure it out? Don't be lazy do your own homework.

[Dudewithknives]

As a player:

Hate -


"let's do this cinematic style"

In other words the DM is either to lazy to roll things out or is too stupid to balance a fight, or conversely is not creative enough to make sure their npc wins.

Surprise Round - there isn't one, stop saying that

DMs who just call for a Fort Will or Reflex save and you have to remind them it is stat specific in 5e.

Love -

Role for blame

Something we started using 15 years or so ago when the bard of the group had a plan that blew up in our faces but he made a good enough diplomacy check to make it look like it was not his fault.

Now when something goes unexpectedly wrong we Roll for Blame.

As a dm:

Hate -

"It worked in that movie." Or "I want it to look like that anime."

I hate that crap.

Love -

"My character would _______ because he/she _______."

Thank you for RP'ING with justification.

[Pex]

I find this question is better when paired with actual description, like "Are you sure you want to try to jump to the bottom of this dry well?". Because sometimes you are trying to give legitimate warning, but whether through your own fault or not, your player isn't aware of exactly how stupid what they're about to do is. Basically, don't just say "are you sure", make sure you communicate the danger of what they're about to do.

That's fair. Clearing up miscommunication or confusion of the situation accepted.


In writing, an improperly used “it’s” draws my attention every time, even though a computer is often to blame.

In the game, I like game terms to come from the game, and everything else to be descriptive. “Character” is a game term, as is “Rogue,” or “Attack.” “Metagame” or “tank” or “DPS” are not game terms, and do not describe anything that is going on within the game, so I can do without them.

“Conglomerate” is a perfectlfy fine word for a nebulous enemy organization in a corporate dystopia. It doesn’t fit with the theme of D&D very well.

If we're going for grammar, it's would have, could have, should have, or would've, could've, should've. Never would of, could of, should of.
Also, the word you are looking for is "since" or "because". Never "being that".

:smallfurious:
:smallbiggrin:

[smcmike]

If we're going for grammar, it's would have, could have, should have, or would've, could've, should've. Never would of, could of, should of.
Also, the word you are looking for is "since" or "because". Never "being that".


I was mostly picking on the original poster about his “it’s” usage.

I don’t know if I’ve ever come across “being that” other than in “being that as it may,” which is a pretty bizarre phrase. I usually don’t mind colloquialisms, though. I have actually seen some sticklers who frown upon using “since” for “because” in some contexts, to avoid ambiguity.

[NRSASD]

Not 100% what the OP is looking for, but:

Things I love to hear:
"It's dead. No need to roll". is very satisfying but very rare

Things I love and/or hate to hear:

"Oooo 20 on the die!" The crit could be a lot deadlier than expected
"Roll that again please" Only happens on natural 1's, which means a crit miss could become a lot worse

Things I hate to hear:

"Roll a spot check" -need I explain why?
"... interesting" -it might be interesting, but it's never good
"You hear/spot/smell/feel a faint ..." -this is never a good thing

I should mention I enjoy hearing all these things, but there's a good reason for the different reactions.

[Tectorman]

“Decimate” used as a stand-in for “devastate”. They’re almost opposite ends of the spectrum and only sound the same. To “devastate” something is to wreck it almost completely, and to “decimate” something is to leave 90% of it pristine and untouched. Or more literally, “to kill every tenth person”.

[Lawful Good]

"I cast the help action"

...

[Mjolnirbear]

“Decimate” used as a stand-in for “devastate”. They’re almost opposite ends of the spectrum and only sound the same. To “devastate” something is to wreck it almost completely, and to “decimate” something is to leave 90% of it pristine and untouched. Or more literally, “to kill every tenth person”.

While technically correct, words evolve over time.

Gay used to mean happy
Awesome used to mean induces awe
Entrée means first dish, not main course
And to the vast majority of English speakers, decimate is a synonym of devastate.

Sometimes people use words incorrectly. Vomitorium has nothing to to with puking. People get it wrong all the time. And it continues to be wrong because English hasn't evolved the meaning to something new. One never uses it in a sentence anymore; one only refers to a roman urban myth. Whereas decimate has been changed. It's no longer the word it was. It was changed through misuse, but change it did. So now it means devastate.

[MxKit]

While technically correct, words evolve over time... decimate has been changed. It's no longer the word it was. It was changed through misuse, but change it did. So now it means devastate.

Yep. For better or worse, using it that way is absolutely correct now. (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decimate)

[Laserlight]

Hate "literally" used to mean "figuratively".
The same player also insists on typing "gunna" rather than "gonna" or "going to".

Profanity or scatology, breaks immersion for me.

One DM used to precede every description with "it appears that", "as far as you can tell", "it seems to be", or similar. It was especially obtrusive in writing. Yes, yes, maybe it's a doppelganger disguised as a werewolf in human form, but if it looks like a peasant and we don't have any reason to think otherwise, just say "it's a peasant" rather than weaseling around it.

[Cespenar]

Your post made me smile.

Or is the DM adding something on the fly because you are suspicious?

We often play published campaigns, so I don't hope so.


Words I don't like:

"Are you sure?"

I can admit sometimes what a player wants to do is stupid, yet other times it's neutral at worst but the DM doesn't like it. He'll say those words first as justification to screw over the player if he does the thing anyway. A DM saying that means whatever it is the player wants to do will automatically fail.

Eh, I like the "are you sure?". Sometimes the player's logic and the published campaign's/DM's logic may not coincide. Since things are going to get screwed anyway, it's at least nice to get a confirmation message rather than just being blindsided.



"You hear/spot/smell/feel a faint ..." -this is never a good thing

It may not be a good thing, but it at least won't ambush you. But I agree, the keyword "faint" is in almost all of those descriptions.

[LeonBH]

"Optimization" or any permutation thereof. "Statistically" or any permutation thereof.

If you hate "statistically", I find it entertaining that you misused "permutation" instead of saying "variation".

[Kurald Galain]

"Magic user". Thankfully pretty rare these days. But unless you want to call other classes the "sword user", "prayer user", and "stealth user", there are perfectly good words for this in English. Such as, you know, sorcerer and wizard.

[Pex]

"Tier System"

:smallwink:

[Demonslayer666]

"Magic user". Thankfully pretty rare these days. But unless you want to call other classes the "sword user", "prayer user", and "stealth user", there are perfectly good words for this in English. Such as, you know, sorcerer and wizard.

Curious. Magic-user is the official class name in the original PHB.

[Kurald Galain]

Curious. Magic-user is the official class name in the original PHB.

Yes, and I've always found that a really stupid term. Imagine if Tolkien started with "Gandalf was a Magic-User" or if Hagrid pointed out that "Ye're a Magick-Useh, Harry"... :smallyuk:

[Laurefindel]

Yes, and I've always found that a really stupid term. Imagine if Tolkien started with "Gandalf was a Magic-User" or if Hagrid pointed out that "Ye're a Magick-Useh, Harry"... :smallyuk:

Mind you, magic-user is not that far from spellcaster, or Tolkien's Beorn being a skin-changer. What I dislike about "magic-user" is its association with arcane magic specifically; your cleric/druid/paladin/ranger can cast magic spells but aren't magic-users!?!

Which reminds me, I very much dislike when people use the word "hate" to signify "dislike". Such a strong word, almost imposing shame on those who actually like the "hated" subject.

I'm also not fond of the term "murderhobo", or more precisely, that D&D is a game of muderhobo-ing.

[samcifer]

DM: "Did you roll a botch?"

Player *sighs*: "Yes."

[GlenSmash!]

"Metagaming" combined with "Real life" because it means someone's about to police someone else's roleplaying.

This is mine too.

[GlenSmash!]

"I cast the help action"

...

Bwahahaha!

I've never encountered this, but would love to.