"Ummmmmmmm...."
We've all said it a billion times whilst thinking of a word and chances are good you've said it at some point in time today. Well, it turns out there's a neurological reason WHY we say the word "Um" and that reason may be fascinating to you!
This neurologist at Wayne State University named Eishi Asano maps the human brain and what drives certain brain functions. One of those areas of the brain governs speech... and this person has done some intense study on the whole speech thing. The research has found we use "nonsense" words like UH and UM... which provide a window into how we speak and why.
Sometimes, the UM or the UH is buying time to come up with 'the right word' or thing to say. Others, it's to suppress a word which may also have competing meanings, like, say, orange - which could be fruit or it could be a color. Regardless, the UM or the UH in indicative of a "difficult speech moment."
Like I said, if you dig in, it's um, well, uh, fascinating stuff. Click here to read more!