The classic weasel word is “everyone knows”, after all, if “everyone knows” that the moon is made of green cheese, there isn’t any need to provide proof. Variations on this are “common knowledge”, and “common sense”. Don’t make the mistake of taking these phrases in lieu of actual proof or sources. The world’s a pretty big place. Everyone does not know.
Other weasel words take the place of real statistical information. Even some numbers are not real numbers. Look out for “95%” or “99%” or “nine out of ten”; these are entering the lexicon as simply big numbers. Other phrases to look out for are “majority” and “more likely”. Why did the claimant use that vague term rather than the exact number? Especially weasel-like are when those terms get modified in a way that’s supposed to make them look more impressive. What does “vast majority” mean?
