A new study of one million business emails shines a light on the email “jargon lines” that career professionals hate the most.
Listed nominees will sound familiar to most, especially those workers who tend to lean toward conventional message lingo that makes eyes roll to the co-workers on the other side of the email.
The data comes from email technology services providerZeroBounce, which set out to reveal buzzwords professionals just can’t quit. The results say a lot about how Americans engage verbally on the job, especially in the artificial intelligence age.
Here are the offenders that ranked at the top of the list by ZeroBounce.
Top email buzzwords that underwhelm co-workers
- “Reaching out”
- “Follow up”
- “Check in”
- “Aligned…
A new study of one million business emails shines a light on the email “jargon lines” that career professionals hate the most.
Listed nominees will sound familiar to most, especially those workers who tend to lean toward conventional message lingo that makes eyes roll to the co-workers on the other side of the email.
The data comes from email technology services providerZeroBounce, which set out to reveal buzzwords professionals just can’t quit. The results say a lot about how Americans engage verbally on the job, especially in the artificial intelligence age.
Here are the offenders that ranked at the top of the list by ZeroBounce.
Top email buzzwords that underwhelm co-workers
- “Reaching out”
- “Follow up”
- “Check in”
- “Aligned”
- “Please advise”
The study notes that about 25% of career professionals now use AI to write or edit their emails. That hasn’t helped the buzzword issue.
“The same buzzwords keep sneaking back into our inboxes, and even AI has picked up on our bad habits,” says Liviu Tanase, ZeroBounce’s CEO. “The bots are ‘reaching out’ and ‘circling back.’ We laugh at corporate jargon, but we keep using it, and we’ve trained machines to sound just like us. Understanding which phrases persist can help people write with more clarity and connect better.”
Here’s what American workplace professionals add to the email ‘jargon’ list
While few on-the-job veterans may argue with ZeroBounce’s list, office warriors have their own buzzword picks that they could live without — and the sooner the better. Here are a few that founders and executives called out.
“Let’s circle back”
Darian Shimy, CEO at FutureFund, a school fundraising services company, isn’t a huge fan of the term’s use in workplace messages.
“It’s overused and super vague,” he said. “Sure, ‘circling back’ to something may be necessary, but ensure a real plan is in place. I’d like to establish a firmer ‘when and why’ response when circling back is required.”
“Per my last email”
This is another phrase that needs to go.
“It’s the written version of an exasperated sigh,” said Arianny Mercedes, founder of Revamped, a communications and talent development consultancy firm.
While meant to convey professionalism, the term often reads as passive-aggressive or impatient, Mercedes said. “A clearer and more emotionally intelligent alternative is to restate the point directly and kindly,” she noted.
“Let’s take this offline.”
Mercedes believes this phrase has become code for “I don’t want to address this publicly” or “I’m not ready to commit.”
“It might diffuse tension in the moment, but often delays problem-solving,” she added.
“Just ping me.”
Richard Demeny, who runs Canary Wharfian, a career platform for young professionals working in high finance, has had enough of the term.
“Just say ‘let me know’ instead,” he said. “Meetings are boring enough already.”
“Low-hanging fruit”
This term drew the ire of Lauren Schneider, head of brand and communications at Compt, an employee benefits reimbursement platform.
“I’m guilty of this one,” she said. “It’s weird and usually vague.”
“Bandwidth”
This techno-linked term isn’t doing its recipients any favors, either.
“Just say time or capacity,” Schneider added. “You’re not a router.”
“Quick question”
There’s rarely anything quick about this term, said Jan Hendrik von Ahlen, co-founder and chief technology officer at JobLeads, an employment services company. “It usually just creates false expectations and adds pressure,“ he said.
AI could be adding to the mail jargon overload
Workplace experts say artificial intelligence is only fueling the buzzword-laden emails, texts, and Slack messages.
“AI contributes to the problem subtly,” Mercedes said. “As AI writing tools become more integrated into workplace platforms, people are beginning to sound the same as they outsource their line of thinking.”
The risk in doing so isn’t just about unoriginality; it’s also about detachment. “When we outsource too much of our tone, we start losing our ability to express empathy, nuance, or conviction,” Mercedes said. “AI can be an incredible ally for efficiency, but it should never be a replacement for thoughtfulness.”
Mercedes said she tells her clients that every email, Slack message, or internal memo has an emotional undercurrent. “People aren’t just reading your words; they are reading your intent,” she said. “The goal should not be to sound ‘professional,’ but to sound human, informed, and self-aware.”
Other workplace experts say there’s a real risk in over-relying on AI to communicate with co-workers, customers, and business partners.
“The danger is outsourcing our empathy by allowing bots to write messages that should come from a human voice with heart and soul,” said Alejandro Perez, a labor and employment attorney at Pierson Ferdinand, a Phoenix-based law firm. “You can’t automate emotional intelligence.”
Perez said he advises his clients and trainees to write like they’re talking to someone they respect.
“If you wouldn’t say it out loud, don’t send it in an email,” he noted. “The fix isn’t more polish, but more presence. The best business emails carry the writer’s voice and are direct, thoughtful, and authentic, delivered with clarity, purpose, and intention.”