Phrase guide

crutch word

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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No pronunciation record was provided for this word.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A word that becomes a filler in conversation, or is used for verbal emphasis, without adding any meaning to an utterance.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • 2012 Jen Doll, ""A Literal Epidemic of Crutch Words," The Atlantic, 13 September 2012. Of course, we didn't list all the crutch words, because it appears we're living in a crutch word epidemic.
  • 2016 O'Brian Gunn, ""Crutch Words that Hobble Your Writing," BKA Content, 29 December 2016. A crutch word is essentially a placeholder, something we say or sometimes even write when we can’t think of the right word to accurately describe what we want to convey.
  • n.d. ""Words That Can Ruin Your Sentence: Actually," Dictionary.com: Everything After Z, 13 September 2012. Actually is the perfect example of a crutch word. It is meant to signify something that exists in reality, but it is more often used as a way to add punch to a statement (as in, "I actually have no idea").

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From crutch + word.