#it’s maybe just my problem that I can’t stand overrepeated words

[assistant-honcho]

“Like” has three completely separate informal uses that people often talk about as if they were all the same.  “like, three people” is for an approximation == “about three people”

“and I was like ‘what the fuck’” is for a quote that is not exact or for what you were thinking at the time. I don’t know any direct analogues for this one. 

Then there’s the one people more frequently complain about but that OP didn’t mention: the stalling like. “Hey, like, this is awkward, but, like, could you come pick me up?” Analogous to um or uh. 

The first two uses are super useful and really only get attacked mistakenly when people mean to target the stall. Which often does get grating when overused? A bit of stalling like here and there never did anyone any harm. But if you’re using it every sentence, sometimes twice in a row, that gets on my damn nerves! At least shake it up a bit with an um or er. Or just pause so you can think of what you’re gonna say before you say it?

the humble "like" is oft mocked despite what it does for us. "like, three people" is a vastly different statement from "three people". "and i was like 'what the fuck'" is vastly different from "and i said 'what the fuck'". i love you "like" and anyone who says you make people sound stupid will be killed on sight