Video-based learning is a core part of not only post-secondary education, but all sectors of schooling. The past few years have also made online learning options for students paramount in accessibility initiatives across campuses. You probably have an array of tools in your professional toolkits for making videos more engaging: scheduled breaks, separating content into chapters, or even practicing voice modulation. Even so, one aspect of speech that is difficult to control are filler words and awkward silences. It may be a verbal habit, but filler words can cost you your audience’s engagement and viewer retention.
How filler words impact your credibility
Peer-reviewed studies show that filler words can significantly reduce the perceived authority and credibility of the speaker (Seals and Coppock, 2022). While “ums” and “uhs” are an unconscious part of speech, your audience may think you are uncertain or confused about what you are teaching. Your perceived uncertainty from filler words can result in students tuning out important information, and may limit viewer understanding, interest, and retention as the lecture progresses (Seals and Coppock, 2022). Oftentimes, the effort to tune out filler words conflicts with the need to comprehend and retain information (Seals and Coppock, 2022).
When filler words and awkward pauses happen most
Ill-timed pauses and filler words tend to cause gaps in flow during presentations (Rhetoriq Coaching Team, 2026). For instance, switching topics during a lecture or discussing a particularly complicated slide can cause you to pause or say filler words unconsciously. This is an issue that tends to snowball, as the overuse of filler words during difficult topics can worsen student comprehension of lecture materials. While video lectures leave some room for error, editing and scouring your recorded audio for filler words and silences is a time consuming task. And thus, producing effective lecture videos becomes tedious without a tool that catches natural faults in speech.
How YuJa Lumina fills in the gaps
YuJa Lumina is a video management platform with built-in AI tools that can locate and remove filler words and silences in audio clips within the in-browser Video Editor. The platform has identified common filler words such as “um,” “uh,” and “like” that you can automatically remove so that your audience can absorb clear, uninterrupted, and professional lectures without any fumbling speech. YuJa Lumina also enables video lecturers to remove multiple filler words and silences in bulk, so you can do less tedious editing and more teaching. Filler & Silence Removal in YuJa Lumina is also available in over 20 languages, allowing your videos to remain engaging and accessible in any language that you may lecture in.
With YuJa Lumina, instructors can make lectures more credible, accessible, and engaging for their students.
References:
Rhetoriq Coaching Team. (2026, August 16). Filler Words in Presentations: What Audiences Actually Hear. Rhetoriq. https://rhetoriq.io/blog/filler-words-in-presentations
Seals D.R., Coppock M.E. We, um, have, like, a problem: excessive use of fillers in scientific speech. Adv Physiol Educ 46: 615-620, 2022. doi: 10.1152/advan.00110.2022.
