Summary: A list of 57 overused buzzwords about user experience and user interface design, together with both their official definitions and what they often mean in real life.
I unabashedly stole this idea from Allie K. Miller: ask ChatGPT to explain overused buzzwords as if we lived on “Planet Honest.” Here’s what it gave me, in terms of overused buzzwords about UX and UI. (I realize that “UX/UI” is an overused term in its own right, but I asked for buzzwords about both acronyms to get broader coverage.)
“Ladies and Gentlemen: we are approaching Planet Honest. Hope you enjoy your vacation in this place where everything is exactly as it seems.” (Midjourney)
The table shows the 57 top overused buzzwords in the first column, as chosen by ChatGPT.
The second column is ChatGPT’s ultra-short explanation of each buzzword, aiming to summarize the standard, or intended, meaning of each term.
The third column contains the revealing “Planet Honest” descriptions that explain what each term means in practice, if we have to be honest.
Buzzword | Standard Definition | Planet Honest Description |
Accessibility | Usable by all, including disabled | More about compliance than genuine usability |
Actionable Insights | Useful findings from data | Rarely as clear or as useful as promised |
Aesthetic | Pertaining to visual beauty | Overused to justify pretty over practical |
Agile | Methodology for rapid development | Excuse for chaotic work processes |
Bandwidth | Capacity to handle work | Overused to excuse delays or lack of responsiveness |
Best Practices | Highly recommended methods | Often outdated or not universally applicable |
Big Data | Large datasets reveal patterns | Often just a lot of data, little insight |
Bootstrap | Start something with minimal resources | Often a glorified term for underfunded |
Call to Action | Prompts user to take action | Overwhelmingly everywhere, often pushy |
Color Palette | Scheme of colors used | Often too rigidly adhered to |
Conversion Rate | Percentage of user desired actions | Obsessively tracked but often manipulated |
Dark Mode | Dark-themed user interface | Trendy but sometimes just a battery saver |
Deep Dive | Thorough examination | Usually just a longer meeting than necessary |
Empathy | Understanding users' feelings, needs | Often feigned to impress stakeholders |
End-to-End | Covering all process stages | Seldom truly covers every step |
Engaging | Captures and holds attention | Usually means just visually appealing |
Figma | UI design and prototyping tool | The new must-use, trendy software |
Flat Design | No shadows, textures, gradients | Often too simplistic, lacks depth |
Gamification | Applying game elements to apps | Makes boring tasks superficially interesting |
Grid System | Structure for layout precision | Rigorously used until it's suffocating creativity |
Hamburger Menu | Three-line menu icon | Ubiquitous to the point of user annoyance |
Hero Image | Large banner image | Overused to the point of cliché |
High Fidelity | Detailed, close to final design | Often a premature commitment to a design |
Holistic | Considering the whole system | Used to describe vague, all-encompassing strategies |
Infinite Scroll | Never-ending page content | Leads to endless distractions |
Innovation | Something new and effective | Often just old wine in new bottles |
Intuitive | Easy to understand and use | Usually means missing user manual |
Iterative | Process improving in cycles | Often an excuse for releasing unfinished products |
Journey Mapping | Visualizing user's experience | Rarely actionable, often just a pretty picture |
Leverage | Use something to maximum advantage | Mostly means exploiting whatever's available |
Low-Hanging Fruit | Easy tasks to accomplish first | Often underestimates the complexity of "easy" tasks |
Material Design | Visual language from Google | Becoming the generic face of apps |
Microinteractions | Small, interactive design elements | Overemphasized for minor delights |
Minimalist | Simple, clean design focus | Sometimes just an excuse for lack of features |
Mockup | Model of final design | Confused with prototype, misleads expectations |
Mood Board | Collection of style inspiration | Often a procrastination tool rather than useful |
Onboarding | Introduction for new users | Overly long, tests user patience |
Pain Points | User problems needing solutions | Overdramatized to push solutions |
Parallax Scrolling | Background moves at slow rate | Gimmicky and often irrelevant to user experience |
Persona | Fictional users guide design | Often overly stereotyped, not representative |
Pixel Perfect | Extremely precise design alignment | Obsessive detail that users never notice |
Responsive | Adapts to user's screen size | Expected standard, nothing special anymore |
Responsive Design | Works on any device smoothly | Expected standard, not a perk |
Scalability | Ability to grow without limits | Seldom as seamless as claimed |
Seamless | Transition without interruption | Rarely as smooth as advertised |
Skeuomorphism | Digital objects mimic real life | Outdated, though sometimes nostalgic |
Splash Screen | Initial screen of app | Annoying barrier to app content |
Storytelling | Using narrative for engagement | Sometimes just a way to sugarcoat data |
SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) | Scale without quality loss | Overused without considering performance |
Synergy | Combined efforts create value | Overused in meetings to sound smart |
Touchpoint | User interaction moments | Used to make mundane interactions sound strategic |
Typography | Art of arranging type | Obsessed over but often illegibly small |
User Flow | Path taken by user on site/app | Simplified to the point of unrealistic |
User-Centered Design | Design focusing on user needs | Overpromised, underdelivers on actual needs |
White Space | Empty, unmarked design space | Sometimes there's just too much emptiness |
Wireframe | Low-detail outline of interface | Often too rigid, limits early creativity |
I did not edit a single one of these descriptions, whether the “standard” (supposed) meaning of each buzzword or the “Planet Honest” description. Honest: everything is reproduced here exactly as it was generated by ChatGPT from my prompt.
Everything that AI knows, it learned by reading the Internet. Thus, the “honest” descriptions are derived from the collective complaints of thousands of UX practitioners writing blog articles, X posts, and so forth about how these buzzwords worked for them in their projects.
I have to say that the Planet Honest versions ring true. I have never liked trendy buzzwords, partly because they are often just so much vocabulary inflation and don’t add much compared to older terminology.
You can hide a lot under a thick layer of fancy words, but clarity wins the day.
Welcome to Planet Honest. You should visit more often. (Ideogram)