I watched the last severance episode.
A manager (an 80’s looking, strong and tall black man so you identify him) is told during a performance review he “uses too many big words”.
To me, while this character can appear pretentious, he is simply an articulate man, like somebody who was taught at Oxford or Princeton. It’s simply how he was raised, it’s not his “fault”.
I would feel attacked is somebody told me that for trying to use an appropriate vocabulary to describe or explain something, like being posh was something to be ridiculed.
If a coworker told me that I’d use a more detailed description so he understands what I mean but otherwise keep using my regular vocabulary. If a manager told me that I’d start looking for a new job, as it’d signal he feels entitled to micromanage me and a job doesn’t have to be stressful.
Am I too thin skinned?
I tend to be a chameleon in social situations. I worked as a server and in retail, and adapting my language and behaviors helped me connect with all sorts of people. How I talked with a group of little old ladies who just came from church was COMPLETELY different than how I talked to the drunks on third shift.
If someone else is using big words, feel free to match them, but most people don’t really care about learning big words that mean the same thing as words they already know. This alone doesn’t make them stupid, as they probably know a lot about other things that you have no interest in.
When I hear someone using archaic words, I don’t assume that they are smart, I assume they WANT TO SOUND smart and that they are too good to act like a “normal” person.
My autistic ass just chooses the most precise words no matter the context, complexity be dammed. Thanks brain.