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Does using a lot of placeholder words in a conversation mean you're really stupid or really very smart? There are three main factors that scientists take into account. The first is what you are actually talking about. For a long time, scholars believed that these "um" and "ah," often called filled pauses, were a sign of unpreparedness for a speech or ignorance of a particular topic. But one early study from the 1990s actually found that highly educated people use significantly more fillers than the average person. For example, humanities professors used an average of 4.85 filled pauses per minute, and social scientists used about 3.84 per minute, compared to just two to three per minute for the average person. But when they dug deeper into the data,
they realized that these metrics were highly industry-dependent. Chemists and biologists actually used the fewest fillers when talking about something in their field, and that's probably because the language is generally extremely precise and structured. If you want to talk about the powerful machinery of the cell, the word "mitochondria" probably comes to mind immediately, without a whole bunch of other words or competing concepts that would necessarily explain it better. This is because the natural sciences use more monosemic words, that is, words with one precise, consistent meaning. Whereas highly educated professors in the humanities, such as art history or literature, use far more filled pauses, not because they are less intelligent, but because there is a
lot of choice. Their topics are conceptual and sometimes open to interpretation, so the brain is constantly searching for the right word to best articulate a particular thought. And this is where these pauses appear. If I want to describe how something feels emotionally when I listen to music, suddenly there are a lot of different ways I can describe it with a huge selection of words. So, your brain needs a split second to decide. When talking about fractions of seconds, it turns out that "e" and "em" don't mean the same thing. Researchers found that each word was directly related to how long the next pause would be. "U" is a signal that the speaker is initiating a small, short delay, while "um " is a signal for a much longer delay.
Now, in the same study, when both types of professors were asked to speak on a more neutral or common topic, the differences in their " um"s and "ah"s almost disappeared. The indicators of natural scientists increased to the average level, while the indicators of humanities professors decreased to the average. Brain imaging studies even show that when the words "mind" and "in" are used, we see massive gamma wave activation in large-scale brain networks. This 2020 study was able to show that when a person used a placeholder word, intense mental processing occurred in the brain, including something called lexical retrieval, which is similar to trying to review your mental dictionary to find the right word. So, these
placeholder words in no way imply any lazy or foolish behavior. In fact, it is an extremely active brain process. Now the second thing to consider is what kind of placeholder words you actually use and what kind of personality you have. Because while the frequency of these words doesn't correlate at all with intelligence or IQ, it still tells us something about your personality. A 2014 study found that words like "like" and phrases like "I mean" or " you know," called discourse markers, are much more likely to be used by conscientious people. These people are not only more socially controlled and deeply aware of their listeners, but they are also usually responsible, careful, and diligent. Because of this, researchers hypothesize that conscientious people
use phrases like "you know" or "I mean" to interact with the listener and make sure they are keeping up. Additionally, because conscientious people strive to be precise and accurately convey their thoughts, they may use these discourse markers to rephrase thoughts or soften harsher statements so that they are not misunderstood and communicate effectively. But perhaps the most controversial of all discourse markers is the word "like." You know, like when someone often says "like", "like". But research has shown that the use of the word "like" is not accidental. It has very strict syntactic placement rules and actually has many different meanings and permutations that require some
proficiency in English. For example, it is not only used as a discourse marker to help structure, flow, and direct a conversation, but it can also introduce indirect speech. For example, I answered: "No way." And he replied: "Yes, maybe." It can signal an approximate estimate of something, for example, it costs about $200. It can also be outside the sentence, signaling a change of mind. For example, I see what you mean, but some research even shows that it can help focus listeners' attention on upcoming information and potentially even help listeners process language faster, depending on how often it's used, which we'll get to shortly. And like both placeholder words like " um" and "e," it can even prime the listener's brain to anticipate a less
predictable, more complex, or lower-frequency word, again helping with comprehension. Unfortunately, the truth is that the very high frequency of use of a word such as a placeholder word is not looked down upon and is often associated with young people and, in particular, young women, who use it more often. Research shows that, despite its versatility, it alters audience perceptions of credibility, authority, and intelligence, which is unfortunate considering it can have some benefits for understanding. One study showed that once you get 5 to 12 likes per minute, people start to notice you and judge you more negatively. And other studies highlight that while the common use of the word " like" can be useful as an attention flag, when
it becomes excessive, the listener must constantly filter it and actively restructure sentences and concepts in their mind, which can increase their cognitive load and ultimately reduce comprehension. But I just want to emphasize again that while this effect on the listener is very real and worth understanding and knowing, there is no correlation between the use or frequency of the word "like " and intelligence. And finally, the third thing to consider is, has your frequency or usage of these placeholder words changed recently? Because while simply using a lot of placeholder words isn't a sign of anything bad, a change in how often you use them could be a sign of cognitive decline. A 2024 study found that people experiencing cognitive decline
often use common or simple words after placeholder words. Unlike the average person, who typically uses placeholder words when searching for more specific, complex, or rare words and phrases. Similarly, people with damage to the left hemisphere of the brain, whether from a stroke or other medical problems, significantly increase the number of placeholder words. In this case, the "mind" is most likely used to overcome the sudden loss of the ability to freely select words. And finally, stress. If you are in a moment of high anxiety, you may experience a sharp increase in the number of placeholder words as your cognitive abilities temporarily decline, leaving fewer resources for speech planning. But in general, whether you use "mind," "uh," "well, you
know," or something like that, it's not really an indicator of your intelligence or anything else. And personally, I think you should speak in whatever way you feel most comfortable. Now, if you want to hear how often Reg and I use the word "like," and how often people complain about it, you should check out our SideNote podcast page here on YouTube, or on any of the audio platforms. Some of you may think we're smart, and others may not, but there's no doubt that the two of us use a lot of placeholder words in our everyday speech. So, join us for a podcast where we delve into all sorts of scientific and
controversial topics, and have a good laugh. See you there. Thank you very much for watching and see you soon to learn more about science. Peace.
