filler words
Speech without substance
Filler words are sounds or phrases that pad speech without adding meaning: um, uh, like, you know, I mean, basically.
They buy time while thinking, soften statements, or signal that the speaker isn't finished.
In writing, filler words are usually cut, but in speech they're nearly universal—their absence can make someone sound rehearsed or robotic.
- umSpoken hesitation marker
- uhVocalized hesitation marker
- likeComparable to, or enjoy
- basicallyAt the most essential level
- actuallyIn truth, not supposedly
literally · you know · you know what I mean · I mean · so · well · at the end of the day · anyway · right · just · sort of · kind of · to be honest · hesitation · pause · brain freeze · dead air · stutter
- expressionexpress, convey, communicate, verbal, nonverbal
- everyday speechsmall talk, chitchat, chit-chat, chat, banter
- Informal Languageslang, idioms, colloquialisms, contractions, expressions
- presentation mistakesstage fright, nervousness, forgetting lines, rushing, mumbling
- speech habitsmumbling, stuttering, stammering, rambling, interrupting
- character voiceaccent, dialect, pitch, tone, cadence
filler wordskeywords
Important identifying words
precise language · technical terms · loaded language · technical terminology · spare prose
filler wordspersuasive language
Words crafted to convince
power words · thesis statements · key points · rhetorical devices · supporting evidence
filler, fill, filled, filling, fills, refill, refillable, fulfil, fulfill