Chapter 8 page 3

THE AMERICAN ENGLISH EXPRESS Chapter 8 page 3

DO’S AND DON’TS LIST EXPLANATION

WORDS NOT TO USE IN FORMAL WRITING

(Continued)

#5 A LOT OF: this is a terrible word NEVER USE IT!

And you shouldn’t use the expression ‘plenty of’ either.

I can’t tell you how many times I mistakenly use ‘a lot’ in class and then must excuse myself. This word is used a lot of times to mean a lot of things!

· In formal language, the noun ‘lot’ can mean a ‘parcel of property’, a ‘piece of land’, or a ‘group of articles’. In an auction, several paintings sold at once are referred to as ‘a lot’.

· “A lot of” can mean 'many', 'numerous', countless, 'several', 'various', or 'scores of', as in the sentence:

Informal: “A lot of times, students do not succeed because they do not read, read, and read!”

Formal: “Many times, students do not succeed because they do not read, read, and read!”

Better: “Countless times students do not succeed because they do not read, read, and read!”

Note: a ‘score’ is a quantity, meaning 20

BONUS WORD:

Another word to avoid is ‘PUT’: alternatives include ‘place’, ‘invest’, ‘position’, ‘situate’, ‘locate’, ‘deposit’, ‘set’, ‘lay’, and ‘leave’.

This is a particularly vague word because the present tense and the past tense are the same:

For example: “I put it down.” Could mean either

· “I am putting it down right now” or

· “I put it down yesterday.”

Informal: “He asked her to put the cup down!”

Formal: “He asked her to set (or ‘place’) the cup down.”

Informal: “Her mother put money in the bank.

Formal: “Her mother deposited money in the bank.”

WORDS TO USE LESS OFTEN

The next set of words are acceptable for formal writing, but you should use these words as little as possible and certainly don’t overuse them. Do use the substitutes indicated.

#6 AND: This is a fine word that you will use constantly. For this reason, you should have a supply of alternatives ready to use so that your writing does not become boring:

· ‘And’ can mean ‘also’, ‘as well’, ‘in addition’, ‘besides’, ‘moreover’, ‘additionally’, ‘furthermore’, as in the following sentences:

Acceptable: “And the teacher explained why the word ‘and’ when written over and over again can be boring.”

Better: “Furthermore, the teacher explained why the word ‘and’ when written over and over again can be boring.”

Acceptable: “And there is a way to study better, the teacher said, by taking notes in addition to reading”.”

Better: “Moreover, there is a way to study better, the teacher said, by taking notes in addition to reading”.”

Acceptable: “And the teacher said that students should always re-read any sentences or paragraphs that are not immediately understood.”

Better: “In addition, the teacher said that students should always re-read any sentences or paragraphs that are not immediately understood.”

Please note: Do not use the slang word ‘plus’ to mean ‘and’.

Use ‘plus’ only when discussing addition, as in the sentence:

“One plus one is two.”

#7 BUT: This is another perfectly acceptable word that you will use constantly. Consequently, you should have a ready supply of alternatives ready to use to show the strength of your vocabulary.

· ‘But’ can mean ‘yet’ or ‘still’. The better alternatives are ‘however’, ‘although’, ‘though’, ‘moreover’, ‘nevertheless’, ‘on the contrary’, ‘nonetheless’, ‘conversely’, and ‘in spite of this’.

Informal: “The teacher asked the students to read, but they did not.”

Acceptable: “The teacher asked the students to read, yet they did not.”

Or “The teacher asked the students to read, still they did not.”

Formal: “The teacher asked the students to read, nevertheless they did not.”

Or “The teacher asked the students to read, however they did not.”

· ‘But’ can mean ‘other than’, ‘except’, ‘aside from’ or ‘excluding’ as in the sentence:

Informal: “They threw out everything but the kitchen sink.”

Formal: “They threw out everything except the kitchen sink.”

· ‘But’ can mean ‘only’, ‘just’, ‘merely’, ‘solely’, ‘exactly’ as in the sentence:

Informal: “It has been but one second since he left us.”

Formal: “It has been merely one second since he left us.”

Do not confuse ‘but’ with ‘butt’ (shortened for m of 'buttocks') which means ‘one’s rear end’ as in: