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How To Make Your Written Documents More Professional
Tue 24th August 2010
Cliches were once fashionable words or phrases that have lost their effectiveness through overuse. In the 1950s and 1960s favourite cliches included: burning issue; dropped a clanger; and crying need. And by the 1980s a new raciness had begun to imbue cliches: we had the sweet smell of success; fashion stakes; and pintas and cuppas were plentiful.
While it's common to use cliches in speech and informal chat, using cliches is probably one of the worst grammatical pitfalls in a formal, written document; cliches in writing are generally considered a mark of inexperience or lack of originality.
Other bad practice includes using circumlocution. Circumlocution is an ambiguous or roundabout figure of speech, or using many words to describe something simple. It is often used by people learning a new language, where in the absence of a word then the subject is simply described. Common long-winded phrases and alternative recommended uses (in brackets) are: adjacent to (near); as a result of (because); in the first instance (first); and owing to the fact (because).
While the use of cliches and circumlocution are generally best to avoid, there are other traits in language that can add dynamism to prose; for example, the use of vogue words. A good example of this is the use of the word feedback. Feedback, in its true, scientific sense, refers to the return to an input of part of its output, so as to provide self-corrective action. Feedback is a vogue word in a loose sense for which the word response would be a perfectly adequate alternative - "we got a lot of valuable feedback on our advertising campaign".
Vogue words are new words or new uses of words. Some, such as clinical, interface and syndrome give the author an air of authority and intelligence. Vogue words are best used to help clarify a meaning or communicate a point, but try not to overuse them. If there is any doubt or ambiguity about their meaning - leave them alone. Examples of vogue words include: ambience (once an encompassing circle of sphere, now aura or atmosphere); interface (a surface separating two portions of matter or space, now engaging any form of joining together); to host (meaning to preside over an invited gathering, now used in association with the Web).
Some vogue words are technical words that have been clumsily applied to other fields. These include parameter, bottom line, interface, mode and space; phrases like close the loop, and, in a sense, ballpark figure, and touch base with you.
Other howlers to look out for are misused words. Misused words are so common that it is easy to find a list of these to avoid. Popular misconceptions about the true meanings of words mean that they are commonly misused by the majority of the population. For instance the use of the word chronic means lingering and not necessarily severe; financial targets are to be hit, but not exceeded; and ceilings reached, not surpassed. The following words are consistently misused or misunderstood: all right (spell as two words, not alright); dilemma (a choice between two alternates, not for a general difficulty of choice); firstly (say first, second, third, etc); and watch out for try to (it's never try and).
Only the very clever, or the very brave, would take a chance and use a word or phrase they are not entirely sure about the meaning of. A good, old-fashioned newsroom cliche to keep in mind is: "If in doubt, shout!". So, before you save your Word document for the final time, check and check again. To quote a common cliche, "Use your loaf!" (and, of course, the professional Proofing tools available in Word 2010).
Author is a freelance copywriter. For more information on a word course, please visit https://www.stl-training.co.uk
Original article appears here:
https://www.stl-training.co.uk/article-1090-how-make-your-written-documents-more-professional.html
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