Wordiness in academic writing pdf

Wordiness in writing is like tossing chalk dust into the cookie batter because you have no flour, a filler that will be easily detectible at first bite. A literary analysis essay examines, evaluates, and makes an argument about a literary work. The lessons in this book are designed to be completed in about 20 minutes each. The most common purposes in academic writing are to persuade, analyzesynthesize, and inform. Develop your academic language, improve your academic skills, and get a cocurricular record notation. Below, we suggest several ways to help you reduce wordiness and increase quality.

Although bradley hall is regularly populated by students, close study of the building as a structure. The book, which is about hemingway, is fascinating. At the college or graduate level, authors use a more refined version of this structure. As a general rule, more specific words lead to more concise writing. In most cases, concisely worded, valuable material will be rewarded even if it comes up a little short. Jun 27, 2017 good writing requires fewer words, not more. Wordiness not only increases the length of your work without adding meaning, but also makes your writing harder to understand. Improve the clarity and conciseness of your writing. Those areas include the basic distinctions of meaning in the verb. Some writers think long sentencesor long wordssound more scholarly than short ones. Wordiness can sneak into your paper without you even realizing it.

Wordiness inhibits clarity by distracting the reader from your main ideas. Concise writing, by contrast, generally improves clarity and can be achieved through rewriting. In academic and business writing, being aware of how many words you use to say something is especially important. Words and phrases to avoid pennsylvania state university. Most instructors see straight through phony wordiness. Grammar for academic writing provides a selective overview of the key areas of english grammar that you need to master, in order to express yourself correctly and appropriately in academic writing. Seven rules for avoiding wordiness1 although length specifications in academic assignments seem to encourage wordiness, advanced writing should be concise.

When reducing wordiness, first look for repetition, which occurs when words or ideas are repeated. For many of you reading our posts, english is a second language, and we can imagine how much you. In fact, authors seeking publication and students completing assignments increase their chances of success when they write concisely american. How to avoid wordiness in writing tips and tricks with.

Concise writing expresses ideas without unnecessary wordiness. The paper is obviously yours, so you dont need to use phrases such as i think, i believe, or it seems to me. At the end of the section, students will be able to. Revise these sentences to state their meaning in fewer words. Words and phrases to avoid there are certain types of words phrases to avoid that muddle the clarity and conciseness of scholarly writing. Oftentimes, forms of the verb to be result in wordiness. Limit or avoid phrases describing your attitudes and writing strategies. Avoid overusing it is, there is, and there are weak expletives at the beginning. In academic writing or in writing in general, wordiness is hardly next to godliness. Recognize your own wordy sentences and know how to edit them to be. Taking out extra words frees up space to include more ideas and more evidence. X give consideration to the possibility of changing jobs. Attend the professional english language skills pels workshops. You may have been struggling to think ideas through as you wroteand piled up alternative wordings.

There is no rule that academic writing cannot use short, clear sentences. As strunk and white tell us in the elements of style 4th ed. Techniques for reducing wordinessnew macalester college. M any students have a problem with wordiness because they have a hard. Avoid wordiness by using the four strategies for eliminating wordiness below. Wordiness can have several causes, and long, complex sentences can sometimes be difficult for readers to understand. Wordiness, says robert hartwell fiske, is arguably the biggest obstacle to clear writing and speaking 101 wordy phrases, 2005. Or you may have fallen into the habit of using more words than necessary just to use up space. Nevertheless, we usually offer full refund on all paid orders which might not meet your specifications or poorly written academic work as well. While academic writing comes in many forms, the following are some of the most common. Creative writing allows for much more looseness in terms of wordiness because there is a different purpose creative writing is used to submerge the writer in the details of a story, often while using lenthier and more artistic wording, while academicbusiness writing is.

This section provides detailed information on the academic writing process. When we draft, we often write how we think or speak. Contrast with conciseness, directness, and clarity. By using active verbs, you will enliven your writing and generate interest in your reader.

More and more jobs these days require at least some writing, so the skills you learn in this book will be put to good use. You may have been struggling to think ideas through as. One of the most efficient ways to improve your writing is to edit it for conciseness. Basic structure of academic writing academic writing is usually expository or argumentative and is structured similarly to the fiveparagraph theme learned in high school.

Avoid overusing it is, there is, and there are weak expletives at the beginning of sentences. When were revising a draft for an academic, scientific, or technical audience, however, we are expected to cut out every extra word and phrase. Wordiness can seriously detract from the coherency and quality of your writing and frustrate your readers. Pdf academic writing challenges at universities in zimbabwe. Many local farmers plan to attend next fridays meeting.

Writing concisely is one way to capture and retain readers interest. A lawyer can often improve his or her writing considerably just by paring unnecessary words. Grammar for academic writing university of edinburgh. Danger signals and ways to react written by margaret procter, writing support. Many of us have learned to pad our writing with all sorts of empty phrases to reach length requirements for academic writing. The use of more words than necessary to effectively convey meaning in speech or writing. Writers who overload their sentences with nominalizaons tend to sound pompous and. As we continue our series on reducing wordiness and improving your writing, we will shift our focus to the dreadful prepositions that plague everyone. Writing academic reports at some point in your academic or professional career, you may be asked to write a report on a specific topic. Wordiness university of toronto advice on academic writing. Wordiness wordy sentences use too many useless words that clutter writing. The table below shows some commonlyused elaborate words and their simple alternatives. Unless your instructor specifies that you should use the passive voice, you should always aim to use the active voice.

Why eliminating wordiness is so important for your essay. This is often referred to as wordiness or verbosity. These extra words, however, need to be eliminated in academic writing in order to improve clarity. Academic writing is, of course, any formal written work produced in an academic setting.

Although length specifications in academic assignments seem to encourage wordiness, advanced writing should be concise. Danger signals and ways to react one of the most efficient ways to improve your writing is to edit it for conciseness. Eliminating wordiness exercise 1 purdue writing lab. To get a higher score on the ielts or toefl, you need to say as much as possible within a limited number of words. Conciseness and eliminating wordiness ku writing center. In an effective sentence, every word serves a purpose and occupies the right spot.

Writing concise sentences to write clear and concise sentences, avoid nonessential phrases and clauses in the following ways. Pdf academic writing challenges at universities in. Whether youre writing a dissertation, a fiveparagraph essay, or an academic article, its important to remember the purpose of academic writing, and. Grammar for academic writing iv introduction grammar for academic writing provides a selective overview of the key areas of english grammar that you need to master, in order to express yourself correctly and appropriately in academic writing. Eliminating wordiness the individuals grounding in an academic program specializing in the teaching of the major theories of robotics and the aspirational tenets of the ethical development of artificial intelligences caused that person to be regarded by potential employers as. Wordiness also tends to occur when were struggling to clarify our ideas or when were tired and not thinking clearly. A major problem with much writing is wordinessusing several words when one will do. Exercise 21 edit the following sentences for wordiness. Here are some strategies to help you identify wordiness and decide whether, and how, to revise it. Sometimes wordiness results from a desire to cheaply meet the minimum word requirement of a writing assignment. Learning strategies and the writing centre eliminating wordiness 1. Eliminating wordiness student academic success services.

In fact, youll be able to move forward and master more complex writing concerns after you get the basics down. Replace several vague words with more powerful and specific words. Avoid passive voice, needless repetition, and wordy phrases and clauses. Weak verbs and needless prepositions often accompany nominalizations. By writing clearly and concisely, you will get straight to your point, so your audience can easily comprehend it. Busy readers appreciate getting the information they need quickly and easily. Nouns manufactured from verbs nominalizations make your sentences weak and wordy.

This requires not that the writer make all sentences short, or avoid all detail and treat subjects only in outline, but that every word tell. The full volume and individual chapter downloads are available for free from the following sites. Academic writing challenges at universities in zimbabwe. Other writers neglect to revise, allowing a rambling sentence to remain instead of examining it for wordiness. Writers often tend to express themselves in a convoluted manner using weak words that fail to have much of an impact. Wordiness most often occurs when a writer wants to sound more professional, academic, or complex. Often, writers use several small and ambiguous words to express a concept, wasting energy expressing ideas better relayed through fewer specific words. When were revising a draft for an academic, scientific, or technical audience. Omit unnecessary words by using a who does what construction. We all want to communicate clearly, but wordy sentence constructions can mask the best of ideas. Creative writing allows for much more looseness in terms of wordiness because there is a different purpose creative writing is used to submerge the writer in the details of a story, often while using lenthier and more artistic wording, while academic business writing is meant to get to the point quickly and directly. Lennie irvin this essay is a chapter in writing spaces. Writing resources eliminating wordiness hamilton college.

Outside of school, writing concisely can help you create more effective business letters, email messages, memos, and other documents. American university, academic support center, writing lab, updated 2009. You may have been struggling to think ideas through as you wrote, and piled up alternative wordings. This requires not that the writer make all sentences short, or avoid all detail and treat. One easy way to avoid wordiness is to limit or eliminate the use of filler words.

Techniques for reducing wordiness try not to use i and we in a formal paper. There are several techniques that can help you learn to write clearly and concisely. Because of the variety of nouns, verbs, and adjectives. Many students unconsciously form the habit of repetition, especially when writing long papers. These extra words, however, need to be eliminated in. Seven rules sum up the bestknown advice george orwells in his classic politics and the english language for avoiding wordiness.