Reddit reviews Um. . .: Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean
We found 3 Reddit comments about Um. . .: Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
They're called speech disfluencies. Everyone uses them and they have always been around.
Yes! There's even a form of 'um' in American Sign Language.
Michael Erard wrote a book about this, called Um. (http://www.amazon.com/Um-Slips-Stumbles-Verbal-Blunders/dp/1400095433/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376790146&sr=1-1&keywords=Um+Michael+Erard) Very interesting read if this is something you want to look into more. He does talk about languages other than English.
From Merriam Webster:
um interjection
\ a prolonged m sound , əm\*
Definition of um
—used to indicate hesitation
well, um, I don't know
Examples of um in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
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Um, see you in theaters, because that has the makings of cinematic genius.
— Lilian Min, Cosmopolitan, "Leo Meets His Ultimate Casting Match in a Leonardo Da Vinci Biopic," 14 Aug. 2017
Gabriel averaged an obscene 11.8 yards per target last season and scored touchdowns on 17.1% of his catches, making him an obvious candidate for regress– …um, for worse numbers than last year.
— Pat Fitzmaurice, [SI.com](https://SI.com), "Atlanta Falcons Fantasy Football 2017 Preview: Jones, Freeman Are Top Picks," 2 Aug. 2017*
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Um is a rhetorical device. It is used to convey a hesitation to broach a subject. In short... to soften a blow.
Now, I have NO idea what fault you found with it. It is a time-honored portion of English, and dates back to before Columbus discovered America. Further, as every language has the equivalent of "um" in it, it is believed that the word serves a natural function of language--i.e. it is critical to convey a human thought which is both universal, and required for effective communication.
I would refer you to perhaps the best work on this interesting part of language:
Um. . .: Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean
by Michael Erand, Anchor Press, 2008
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https://www.amazon.com/Um-Slips-Stumbles-Verbal-Blunders/dp/1400095433