About three years ago I started hearing people using the phrase “these kinds of things,” and, like so many phrases, this one went viral. I’m sure some people used this construction in the past, but all of a sudden everyone seemed to be doing so.
In most situations, “this kind of thing” is quite adequate. To have “these kinds of things,” you must have at least two sets of things.
Examples are obviously necessary:
“We’ve had floods in just about every state along the Missouri and Mississippi
“In the last year, people in the Midwest have had to deal with drought, then extremely cold weather, then excessive rainfall, and now flooding of record proportions. I don’t know how they cope with these kinds of things.” (You could make a case for this one, but “this kind of thing” would work just as well – the set being the various disasters enumerated.)
“Not only have Midwesterners had to deal with drought, extreme cold, excessive rainfall, and record flooding, but now several state legislatures have passed measures reducing aid to displaced persons. I don’t know how they can cope with these kinds of things.” (There are definitely two separate classes of things in this example, and the construction “these kinds of things” might be appropriate.)
It’s a minor point, perhaps, but recently it has gotten worse. Now I keep hearing people say “these kind of things.” I can only shake my head as smoke wafts from my ears. There is no conceivable excuse for putting those words together.
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