A LAYMAN'S WORD CHEAT SHEET
Here is an evolving cheat sheet to help us write more succinctly and with clarity...
Use fewer words
From To Kill a Mockingbird: “Atticus told me to delete the adjectives and I’d have the facts.” (The same holds for adverbs)
Also…
a few of = several (or many)
actively move = move
another possible reason for this might be = possibly
based off of = based on
by using = see this link
by virtue of = “by” or “through” or “via”
continue to improve = improve
correlated with each other = correlated
due to the fact that = because
first of all = first
growth performance = growth
holistic overview = overview
in close proximity to = “close” or “near”
in order to = to
in view of = given
Introduction section = Introduction
is able to = can
is helpful in = helps
located in = in
mainly includes = includes
might possibly = “may” or “can”
new discovery = discovery
on a daily basis = daily
on the basis of = based on
on top of that = “furthermore”
penetrate into = penetrate
periods of time = either “periods” or “time”
prior to = before
probably can = can
source of water = water source
supply of nitrogen = nitrogen supply
take place = occur
use “use” in most cases–reserve “utilize” when making particularly good use of something (the QB utilized his scrambling skills to score a touchdown)
very unique = unique (there is no degree of uniqueness)
viewed to be = is
And fewer letters, e.g., firstly and secondly is first and second.
Superfluous words
Almost always omit…it may seem hard at first, but once one gets accustomed to it, the strength of the more succinct writing becomes apparent…
apparently
as we know
at present
basically
besides
clearly
effectively
even
generally speaking
great
greatly
in recent years
indeed
interestingly
is known to
it can be seen that
it has been reported
it is obvious that
it is quite clear that
it is worth noting
it should be pointed out
meanwhile
not only that
notably
noteworthy
noticeably
obviously
of late
surprisingly
to a certain extent
very
worthy of note
Likely omit…
above or below (when referring to text above or below in the same document)
at the same time
greatly
…not only…but also
on the one hand/on the other hand
overall
process (when used after the process name itself, e.g., photosynthesis process)
significantly (when used not in the statistical sense)
that vs. which– See here
Unnecessary Hedging
appears to
looked like (unless really describing something’s looks)
normally
seem to
slightly (say exactly how much something decreased or increased)
tended
An Example from a Lawyer Friend
When adjectives and adverbs do not add meaning (and usually add ambiguity), omit them. An example from my lawyer friend. Starting from the verbose version, it is at first tough to remove words–it seems like meaning is lost. But once some threshold is crossed in removing words, there is often a revelation of how much clearer the final version is. Now every sentence matters, not just the ones you use to qualify with adverbs or adjectives. Ambiguity is eliminated. Once you hack, you won’t go back.
Orginal: Regrettably, we’ve had a massive leak of significant customer data, which, if we do not contain rapidly, could cause serious harm. We have made substantial progress in our assessment of material issues to address, and will provide a comprehensive update very soon. Likely, there may be a major risk of legitimate claims in shareholder lawsuits.
Regrettably, We’ve had a massive leak of significant customer data, which, if we do not contain rapidly, could cause serious harm. We have made substantial progress in our assessment of material issues to address, and will provide a comprehensive update very soon. Likely, there may be a major risk of legitimate claims in shareholder lawsuits.
Final: We’ve had a leak of customer data, which, if we do not contain, could cause harm. We have made progress in our assessment of issues to address, and will provide an update. There may be a risk of claims in shareholder lawsuits..
American vs. British English
acknowledgment vs. acknowledgement
afterward vs. afterwords
amid vs. amidst
analyze vs. analyse
backward vs. backwards
burned vs. burnt
canceled vs. cancelled
color vs. colour
different than vs. different to
encyclopedia vs. encyclopaedia
forward vs. forwards
gray vs. grey
habor vs. harbour
honor vs. honour
inquire vs. enquire
labor vs. labour
learned vs. learnt
licenses vs. licences
practice vs. practise
pry vs. prise
spolied vs. spoilt
toward vs. towards
traveled vs. travelled
while vs. whilst
Words with -er vs. re: center, fiber, etc.
Double Verbs
accumulation occurred = accumulated
aimed at describing = described
aimed to evaluate = evaluated
continued to increase = increase
have been shown to be = are
has been considered = is
has an impact = impacts
helps provide = provides
is reported to start = starts
it is considered a feasible avenue = is feasible
led to the contribution = contributed
provides the opportunity to examine = examine
showed an increasing trend = increased
will not only provide…but also = provides x and y
Words used often used incorrectly
proved — Studies rarely “prove” a fact. They “provide evidence of,” “indicate,” “support,” or “show” certain information.
while — used for time specifically; “and” or “whereas” is often the correct substitute.
“gradually” is a word that is best used for time series data.
“including” vs. “such as”–including refers to a specific list and such to an indefinite list. For example, “I bought fruit at the grocery stote today, including apples, pears, and peaches.” In comparison, “there are many fruits in the world, including apples, pears, and peaches.”
Increase (decrease) are more appropriate to describe changes in quantitative variables. Rise (fall) refers specifically to physically
going up (down). For example, temperature increases, whereas as a balloon rises.
“Use” refers to simply using something for a given purpose, whereas “utilize” implies making the effective use of something, often in a
manner not initially intended.
Centered is not logical–use “centered on” or “revolves around”
the alphabet “comprises” 26 letters NOT the alphabet “is comprised of”–comprise means “is made up of”
To hyphenate, or not to hyphenate
Words are hyphenated when used in an adjectival sense but not when used as independent nouns. The hyphen qualifies that the
preceding words are describing the focal noun (think: man eating shark vs. man-eating shark).
Hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes
man-eating shark (hyphen)
1–2 man-eating sharks (number ranges use an en dash)
The man-eating shark–killer whale debate rages on (en dashes are used to combine equal words/phrases in a comparison or other linked terms)
Man-eating sharks—one of the scariest animals—are often featured in movies (em dashes used to set apart unrestrictive or
elaborative phrases in sentences)
Tenses
Use the past tense to describe the work carried out in the study you are writing about (especially for Methods and Results).
Use the present tense to describe facts that are essentially general knowledge, true in the present time, or well-accepted based on
a published study. But the past tense is also used when you refer to a specific finding of a study, e.g., when you say “Author X
found Y…” (instead of making a more general factual statement that stemmed from a paper). This is a subtle line that is often
blurry in practice.
When a statement remains currently true, use the present tense. Use the present tense to describe figures, tables, or data that are in
your proposal or paper.
Other
Write with a purpose; otherwise, why write?
If a phrase or word can be removed without changing the meaning, why is it needed?
The preposition “in” is used when describing a change, such as an increase or decrease, whereas “of” is used for the magnitude of
the change.
Define abbreviations on first use in the Abstract and the main manuscript. Only include abbreviations for words/phrases used
three times or more, unless they are accepted abbreviations (as defined in the journal requirements). It is also preferred to define
all abbreviations in Table and Figure captions.
Likewise, write out the genus and species in the Abstract and main text on first use. After, the genus name can be abbreviated.
The word “respectively” is used when a list (that contains two or more items) links to a second list (with two or more items) to
denote their correspondence. When a single list is provided, “respectively” is not needed.
Avoid possessive nouns and contractions, when possible, in scientific writing—especially with acronyms or initialisms.
Nouns that modify other nouns are called attributive nouns. Usually, attributive nouns, which function like adjectives, are
singular (e.g., carbon emission policies—emission is singular).
In American English, the series comma is used. That is, in a list, a comma is used before the “and” after the penultimate item
in the list. Sam, Lara, Pam, and Ed live here.
“Compared to” relates to different categories of items, whereas “compared with” relates to items in the same category.
The article “the” is used when the noun refers to a specific object or one that is clear from the context.
Typically, use “by” if the action was carried out by a person or an institution, but “using” to report the method or procedure.
Avoid acronyms and initialisms in titles; minimize their use overall.
An abbreviation is a truncated word; an acronym is made up of parts of the phrase it stands for and is pronounced (AIDS, SCUBA, NASA); an initialism is pronounced as individual letters (DNA, FBI).
1 white space between numerical values and units (1 km; 90 ml).
“Flat” adverbs can be used in two forms. For example, either of these phrases is acceptable. Either drive safe or drive safely; go slow or go slowly.
That vs. which–more complicated than it may seem: Learn more
Coming full circle--less is more
When a simpler word can be used to convey the same meaning, use the simpler word. When adjectives and adverbs do not add meaning (and actually add ambiguity), omit them. Always strive for optimal clarity in word choice, not trying to impress a reader with fancy terms. Succinctness is preferred in almost all cases.