Avoiding Cliches and Concise Language
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- Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
- Never use a long word where a short one will do.
- If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
- Never use the passive where you can use the active.
- Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
- Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous. (p. 170)
Avoid Clichés
A cliché is an expression or idea which has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effectiveness in expression, even to the point of being trite or irritating. Repetitive or overuse of clichés show a lack of original thought and can make a writer appear unimaginative and lazy. Many students tend to use the expressions like ‘as we all know that….,’ ‘no need to say that…….,’ ‘we are living in twenty first century that….,’. Such linguistic expressions really take research nowhere and they do not help us to generate fresh and original ideas as well. They also make the language dull and hackneyed. Therefore, writers should be ruthless to clichés because they are corpses in their living essays.
Maintain Political Correctness
Political correctness is an attempt to create an environment in which everyone feels respected and included, regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or other characteristics. It can also involve being mindful of potentially offensive topics or jokes, and using language that is inclusive and respectful.
Language of research should maintain integrity of all individuals as human beings. Note the following conditions:
- Using the term "Latinx" instead of "Latino" or "Latina" to be more inclusive of individuals who do not identify as strictly male or female within the Latin American community.
- Referring to someone with a disability as a "person with a disability" instead of a "disabled person" to emphasize their personhood rather than their disability.
- Using "holiday season" instead of "Christmas season" to be more inclusive of people who celebrate other holidays during the same time period.
- Avoiding the use of gendered pronouns (he, she) when referring to individuals whose gender identity is unknown or non-binary.
- Using "First Nations" or "Indigenous Peoples" instead of "Native American" to be more specific and respectful of the various cultures and identities of the Indigenous Peoples of North America.
- Avoiding using ableist language, such as "crazy" or "insane," to describe someone with a mental health condition.
- Using "person of color" instead of "colored person" to acknowledge the agency and individuality of someone who is part of a non-white racial group.
Be Concise
Concise writing refers to the writing that is clear and does not include unnecessary or vague/unclear words or language. Some ways to make language concise are:
- Prefer verbs to nouns:
- X was used in the calculation of Y.
Revised: X was used to calculate Y.
- X makes an analysis of a poem.
Revised: X analyses a poem.
(ii) Do not be ambitious with big words
- Big Word Sentence: The ubiquitous nature of social media platforms has given rise to a cacophony of voices, making it difficult to discern reliable information from misinformation.
- Simple Sentence: Social media is everywhere, and there's a lot of noise, which makes it hard to know what information is trustworthy.
- Be economic: Economic expression conveys maximum ideas in minimum words. Consider the following ways of starting sentences:
Wordy Concise
Using my opinion, I want to say … I believe………
X wants to say more……… X adds……….
Due to the fact that………… It is because………
- Avoid contractions and colloquial expressions: Contractions and colloquial expressions appear in the language of informal context. Since language used in academic writing is formal, it entertains only formal language i.e., without contractions and colloquial expressions.
- Prefer active voice: Unless your writing is expository and focus is on the object or recipient of the action rather than on the actor, use active voice. It makes your writing lively and vivid. See the difference:
- The interview was conducted in a controlled setting.
Active: We conducted the interview in a controlled setting.
- Avoid stereotypical language: Stereotypical language makes gross generalization about people. Stereotypes treat people as groups and characterize them as simple and predictable. Avoid the following types of stereotypes:
- Muslims are orthodox or terrorists.
- White people are racists.
- Poor people do not want to work.
(x) Avoid both euphemisms and crude expressions: Since euphemisms are unnecessarily sweet and crude expressions are unpleasantly harsh, the language of research should neither be so polite (to the level of showing lack of confidence) nor so impolite (to the level of generating point hatred to the researchers themselves). Accordingly, language of research should be objective and neutral.
- Euphemism: I'm sorry to hear that your grandfather has passed away.
Clearer language: I'm sorry to hear that your grandfather has died.
- Euphemism: She's no longer with the company.
Clearer language: She was laid off from the company and is currently unemployed.
- Crude expression: He's a fag.
More appropriate language: He identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
(xi) Remove redundancy: Language of research is to be concise. Words or phrases that are unnecessary in sentences should be removed. Consider the following expressions:
- It was big in size, white in color and heavy in weight.
Revised: It was big, white, and heavy.
- This will be done in the month of December for a period of six days.
Revised: This will be done in December for six days.
