Administrative Assistant / Secretary: A Simple Guide To Language Usage and Style

Subject and Verb
The subject of a sentence is the person, place, or thing that is the main focus of the sentence. To find the subject of a sentence, first locate the verb. Then answer the question: “What or who is being ‘verbed’?” For instance, in the sentence “The monkeys in the treetops must be observed,” the verb is must be observed. So, what must be observed? The answer is monkeys. A simple subject is the subject without any modifiers. For example, the simple subject of the following sentence is event: “The upcoming event, stripped of all the hype, is nothing but a fund-raiser.”
Sometimes a simple subject can be more than one word or even an entire clause. Consider the following: “What he had forgotten about the law was amazing considering how many years he spent in law school.” The simple subject is the entire clause printed in italics.
Usually, when the subject of a sentence is you and the sentence is a suggestion, order, or command, the you is left out. For example, in the sentence “Get out of the way!” you is understood to be the subject.
For sentence analysis, the person who initiates an action is called the agent of a sentence. When the active voice is used, the subject is the agent; for example, “The class failed the test.” When the passive voice is used, the agent is not the subject. In fact, some passive sentences don’t contain an agent.

Subject-Verb Inversion
Normally, a sentence contains a subject and then a verb, in that order. This pattern is disturbed in only a few instances. Here are a few examples:
- In questions—“Have you read that book?”
- In expletive constructions—“Here is your book.”
- To put focus on a particular word—“What’s more important is his reluctance to find a job.”
- When a sentence begins with an adverb, adverbial phrase, or clause—“Rarely have so many been eaten in just one meal.”
- After the word “so”—“I believe him; so do the people.”

Subject-Verb Agreement
The basic rule of subject-verb agreement is that a singular subject needs a singular verb. Likewise, plural subjects need plural verbs. For example: “My brother is a psychologist. My brothers are psychologists.”
Indefinite pronouns like anyone, everyone, someone, no one, and nobody are singular subjects and, thus, require singular verbs. For example: “Everyone is studying hard.”
Some indefinite pronouns, such as all and some, can be singular or plural depending on whether the thing they’re referring to is countable or not. For example: “Some of the candy is missing. Some of the dogs are barking.”
There is one indefinite pronoun, none, that can be either singular or plural, and it doesn’t matter whether you use a singular or plural verb—that is, unless something in the sentence specifies its number. For example: “None of you write poetry.” “None of the cars are speeding.”
Some indefinite pronouns like everyone and everybody sound like they are talking about more than one person; however, they are both singular. For example: “Everyone is working hard.” The pronoun each is often followed by a prepositional phrase ending in a plural word: “Each of the monkeys . . .” Each, however, is also singular. For example: “Each of the monkeys is eating a banana.”
Don’t confuse the word and with the phrases together with, as well as, and along with. They do not mean the same and do not create compound subjects the same way and does. For example: “The boy, as well as his brother, is going to school.” “The boy and his brother are going to school.”
The pronouns neither and either are singular even though they appear to be referring to two things; for example, “Neither of the two computers is obsolete. Either is a good choice for a student.” Sometimes neither and either take a plural verb when they are followed by a prepositional phrase that begins with of; for example, “Have either of you two kids seen my dog?” “Are either of you listening to me?”
When the conjunctions or and nor are used, the subject closest to the verb determines whether the verb is singular or plural; for example, “Neither the bear nor the monkeys were awake when we visited the zoo.” It’s also a good idea to put the plural subject closest to the verb since the following version of the same sentence would be incorrect: “Neither the monkeys nor the bear were awake when we visited the zoo.”
The words there and here can never be subjects in a sentence. For example: “Here are my two books. There better be a good reason you have them.” These are called expletive constructions, and the subject follows the verb and determines whether the verb is singular or plural.
Verbs for third-person singular subjects like he, she, and it have -s endings; for example, “He loves to eat.”
Sometimes modifiers will slip between a subject and a verb. When this happens, don’t let them confuse the subject-verb agreement. For example: “The workers, who always seem to be standing around taking a break, gathered around in a circle like a football huddle, are being fired.”
Sometimes nouns take peculiar forms that make it confusing to tell whether they are singular or plural. Words such as glasses, gloves, pliers, and scissors are thought of as plural unless they’re preceded by the phrase pair of—in which case pair becomes the subject. For example: “My glasses are on the desk.” “The pair of glasses is on the desk.”
Some words that end in -s seem to be plural but are really singular and thus require singular verbs. For example: “The evening news is full of disasters.” There are other words that end in –s that refer to a single thing but are actually plural and require a plural verb. For example: “His assets were totally wiped out by the bankruptcy.”
Fractional expressions such as half of and a percentage of can be either singular or plural. The same is true when words like some, all, and any serve as subjects. For example: “One-half of the population is over sixty-five.” “One-quarter of the students were absent.” “Some of the houses are painted white.” “Some of the money is missing.”
Finally, when you have a sentence that combines a positive and a negative subject and one is plural and the other singular, the verb should agree with the positive subject. For example: “It’s the teacher not the students who decides what to teach.”

Predicates
Predicates are used to complete a sentence. While the subject names the person, place, or thing that is doing something, a simple predicate consists of a verb, verb string, or a compound verb. For example: “The flower bloomed.” “The flowers have been blooming.” “The bulbs opened, blossomed, and then closed for the night.”
A compound predicate consists of two or more predicates connected; for example, “The mountain biker began to ride down the trail and eventually entered one of the most beautiful valleys in the area.”
A complete predicate consists of a transitive verb and all modifiers and other words that complete its meaning; for example, “The slowly moving thunderstorm flashed lightning across the dark foreboding sky.”
A predicate adjective follows a linking verb and describes the subject of the sentence; for example, “The minerals in the water taste bad.”
A predicate nominative follows a linking verb and describes what the subject is; for example, “Dylan Wilson is president of the firm.”

Objects
Objects are the part of a sentence that receives actions. In the sentence “He threw the ball,” “the ball” is a direct object.
An object complement renames or describes a direct object. Take the sentence “He took his monkey, Meep, to the beach.” In this example, “his monkey” is the direct object; “Meep” is the object complement.
An indirect object identifies to what or to whom the action of a verb is directed. Take the sentence “He sold me his car.” In this example, “me” is the indirect object; “his car” is the direct object. The word me—along with other pronouns such as him, us, and them—is not always an indirect object; it can also serve as a direct object, for example: “Save me!”

Complements
A complement is any word (or phrase) that completes a subject, object, or verb. A subject complement follows a linking verb and is used to rename or define the subject; for example, “A tarn is a small glacial lake.”
An object complement follows or modifies a direct object and can be a noun or adjective. In the sentence “The players named Logan captain to keep him happy,” the noun “captain” complements the direct object “Logan”; the adjective “happy” complements the object “him.”
A verb complement is either a direct or an indirect object of a verb; for example, “Mark gave Terry [indirect object] all his old albums [direct object].”

Modifiers
Modifiers are words that limit certain aspects of a sentence. Some modifiers—such as only, just, nearly, and barely—can easily end up in the wrong place in a sentence. Compare these two sentences: “He only threw the ball ten feet.” “He threw the ball only ten feet.” The best rule is to place these modifiers immediately before the word they modify. When a modifier improperly modifies something, it is called a dangling modifier. One common example is starting a sentence with a prepositional phrase; for example, “Cleaning the windows every six months, the building seemed to look better.” Buildings can’t clean their own windows. This example could be rewritten as: “Cleaning the windows every six months, the maintenance staff made the building look better.”
If you have a sentence where a participial phrase is followed by an expletive construction, you will often have a dangling participle. For example: “Cleaning the windows every six months, there is a simple way to keep a building looking better.” This example could be rewritten as: “If you clean the windows every six months, you can keep a building looking better.”
Another situation where dangling participles can occur is when you have a participial phrase followed by a passive verb. This happens because the real subject of the sentence is disguised. For example: “Cleaning the windows ever six months, the building was kept in beautiful condition.” This example could be rewritten as: “Cleaning the windows every six months, the workmen kept the building in beautiful condition.”
Infinitive phrases can also end up as dangling modifiers; for example, “To keep the employees interested in their health, a fitness center was set up in the basement.” In this example, the infinitive phrase To keep the employees interested in their health should probably modify the person who set up the fitness center. Thus, this example could be rewritten as: “To keep the employees interested in their heath, the manager set up a fitness center in the basement.”
Finally, one additional misplaced modifier problem involves adverbs. Adverbs can be placed almost anywhere in a sentence, but their placement can sometimes obscure their meaning; for example, “The people who listen to public radio often like classical music.” Does this mean that anyone who listens to public radio even for a few minutes likes classical music? By moving the placement of the adverb often, this example could be rewritten as: “The people who often listen to public radio like classical music.”

Phrases
A phrase is a group of related words that does not include a subject and verb. If a subject and verb are present, it is considered to be a clause.

Noun Phrases
A noun phrase includes a noun and its modifiers, for example: “The tall dark man.” The modifiers that are included in the noun phrase can be any of the following:
- Adjectives—“tall dark man”
- Participial phrase—“the bushes following the edge of the sidewalk”
- Infinitive phrase—“the first woman to fly around the world”
- Modifying clause—“the mistakes he had made the day before”
- Prepositional phrase—“the trail next to the lake, over by the dam”
Usually, all the words in a noun phrase are together; however, occasionally they can be broken up into what is called a discontinuous noun phrase. For example: “Several burglaries have been reported involving people who were gone for the weekend.” There is nothing wrong with a discontinuous noun phrase. They are sometimes useful for balancing a subject and predicate. Otherwise, we end up with a ten-word subject and a three-word verb.
One common problem to avoid involves a long string of compound noun phrases. This often happens when the string also involves a group of compound nouns, such as student body, book cover, or meeting place. If you put together a long string of these phrases, the result can be a very difficult sentence.
An addressed person’s name or substitute name is called a vocative. These sometimes take the form of a noun phrase. A vocative is treated as a parenthetical element and is set apart from the rest of the sentence by a pair of commas if it appears within the flow of a sentence; for example, “Mike, stop the car.” You do not need to add commas every time someone’s name is mentioned in a sentence. Commas are used only when the name refers to someone who is being addressed in the sentence.

Overall, there are four types of vocatives:
- Single names, with or without a title
- The personal pronoun you
- Appellatives of endearment, such as darling, my dear, sweetheart, and sir
- Nominal clauses, such as in the sentence “Whoever is singing, stop it now.”

Prepositional Phrases
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition, a noun or pronoun that serves as the object of the preposition, and an adjective or two that modifies the object. Prepositional phrases usually tell us when or where something is happening; for example, “in a half hour.”
A prepositional phrase used at the beginning of a sentence is called an introductory modifier. You can set apart an introductory modifier with a comma; however, it is optional unless the introductory modifier is long.
You have probably heard the rule regarding not ending a sentence with a preposition. Although you can easily revise sentences that do this, sometimes the revision results in a very clumsy sentence.

Appositive Phrases
An appositive phrase involves renaming or amplifying a word that immediately precedes it; for example, “My favorite professor, a world famous author, just won a prestigious literary award.”

Absolute Phrases
An absolute phrase is a group of words consisting of a noun or pronoun, a participle, and any modifiers. Absolute phrases do not connect to or modify any other word in a sentence; instead, they modify the entire sentence. Absolute phrases are often treated as parenthetical elements set off from the rest of the sentence with a comma or pair of commas; for example, “National champions three out of four years, the university’s football team were treated as gods.”

Infinitive Phrases
An infinitive phrase consists of a infinitive—the root verb preceded by to—along with modifiers or complements. Infinitive phrases can act as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns. Consider the following examples:
- His plan to eliminate smoking was widely popular. (To eliminate smoking serves as an adjective that modifies plan.)
- To watch him eat ribs is something you have to see. (To watch him eat ribs serves as the noun-subject of the sentence.)
- Eric went to college to study to be an engineer. (To study to be an engineer tells us why he went, so it’s an adverb.)

Gerund Phrases
Gerund phrases consist of verbals that end in -ing but act as nouns, along with modifiers and complements. These phrases can do anything a noun can do; for example, “Walking after dark is not very safe.”

Participial Phrases
Present participles (verbals ending in -ing) and past participles (verbals ending in -ed) or other irregular verbs can be combined with complements and modifiers to create a participial phrase. They always act as adjectives. When they begin a sentence, they are set apart by a comma just like an introductory modifier. If they appear within the middle of a sentence, they are set apart with a pair of commas. For example: “Working around the clock, the workers repaired the airport runway in less than a week. The concrete, having been damaged by the crash landing of the airliner, needed to be replaced.”

Clauses
A clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb. As discussed earlier, a clause is different from a phrase because a phrase does not include a subject and a verb.

Independent Clauses
An independent clause could stand by itself as a sentence. However, if it did, it would be a sentence and not a clause. When an independent clause is included in a sentence, it is usually separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma. Being able to recognize when a clause is acting as an independent clause is essential to knowing when to use commas in avoiding sentence fragments and run-on sentences.
Two independent clauses can be combined into a single thought; for example, “Charlie didn’t mean to run away, but he did it because he was angry.” In this example, two independent clauses are separated by a comma and the coordinating conjunction but. If the word but was missing, this example would be a comma splice.

Clauses can be combined three different ways:
1. With coordination
2. With subordination
3. By using a semicolon

Coordination involves using coordinating conjunctions such as and, but, or, nor, for, yet, and sometimes so. By using a coordinating conjunction, you avoid monotony and what is often called “primer language”—simple sentence constructions. Your sentences are also balanced.
Subordination involves turning one of the independent clauses into a subordinate element using a subordinating conjunction or a relative pronoun. When the clause begins with a subordinating word, it transforms into a dependent clause; for example, “Linda never liked to fly in airplanes, because she was afraid of heights.”
Semicolons can be used to connect two independent clauses with or without the help of a conjunctive adverb. However, semicolons should be used only when the two independent clauses are very closely related and nicely balanced in length and content; for example, “Sheena is a very pretty girl; she looks like an angel.”

Dependent Clauses
A dependent clause cannot stand by itself like an independent clause. It must be combined with an independent clause in order to become a sentence.
Dependent clauses can perform a variety of different functions within a sentence. They can be noun clauses, adverb clauses, or adjective clauses. Noun clauses can do anything a noun can do in a sentence; for example, “What he knows about boxing is not important to me.” Adverb clauses tell us about what is going on in the independent clause: where, when, or why. For example: “When the game is over, we’ll go get some burgers.” Adjective clauses function just like multiword adjectives to modify a noun; for example, “My wife, who is a video producer, has just completed an award-winning documentary about music.”

Sentence Fragments
A sentence fragment fails to be a sentence because it cannot stand by itself. It does not contain at least one independent clause. There are several reasons a group of words may appear to be a sentence but turn out instead to be a sentence fragment. The sentence fragment may contain a series of prepositional phrases without a proper subject-verb relationship; for example, “In Texas, sometime in early April, just before the bluebonnets appear.” The sentence fragment may be a verbal phrase that wants to modify something, but that something is missing; for example, “Working deep into the night in an effort to get his taxes completed.” Finally, the sentence fragment may have a subject-verb relationship, but it has been subordinated to another idea or word so it cannot stand by itself; for example, “Although he was taller than his older brother.”

Sentence Variety
A sentence is a group of words containing a subject and a predicate. There are many different types of sentences, and the way they are used in your writing, the order they are used in, and the way they are combined and punctuated determines your writing style.
It is relatively easy to write short sentences. However, if you use only short sentences, your writing will appear to be primer style and give your reader a poor impression of your level of professionalism.
To write more complicated sentences, you have to create constructions of clauses and phrases. Long sentences and run-on sentences are not the same thing. Combing too long a series of clauses may cause the reader to get confused. However, many writers are afraid they’ll create run-on sentences and tend to lean toward the shorter variety.
By coordinating the use of clauses and punctuation, you can allow the complexity of a sentence to develop after the verb, not before it. The key is to make the subject-verb connection and then allow the sentence to paint a picture of the world surrounding that subject and verb. As you allow a sentence to develop, be careful to keep your structures in the predicate in parallel form.
One issue that is difficult for many business writers is the need to repeat key terms in long sentences. It feels awkward. When properly handled, though, repeated phrases can create a rhythm that helps to emphasize the meaning of the sentence.
Another way to enhance sentence variety and complexity is to avoid clumsy “which clauses” and replace them with dependent clauses. Take the following sentence: “Atlanta continues to grow in every direction, which means that homes are rapidly replacing the fields and forests in outlying areas.” An alternative would be: “Atlanta continues to grow in every direction, as homes are rapidly replacing the fields and forests in outlying areas.”
When used sparingly, you can create an interesting twist to a sentence by ending it with a set of prepositional phrases, each beginning with a present or past participle. For example: “You’ll find working with Videologies to be an excellent experience, one that will develop into a lasting relationship, into a partnership, winning future business for us all.”

Resumptive and Summative Modifiers
By adding modifying phrases to the end of a sentence, you take a sentence in an unexpected direction. A resumptive modifier takes a word from a sentence that appears to be ending and adds additional information. For example: “You’ll find working with Videologies to be both enlightening and rewarding—enlightening due to the many innovations we’ll introduce to your company, rewarding because of the enhancements to productivity your company will experience.”
A summative modifier renames or summarizes what has been going on earlier in the sentence and adds new information. For example: “The email etiquette seminar promises to show employees how to write effective emails, emails that get results, and emails that result in a positive image for your business—three benefits that can enhance the productivity of any business.”

Modifier Placement
You can add variety to your sentences by the way you place modifiers. This section gives four different strategies for modifier placement.
Using Initial Modifiers
- Dependent clause: “Although he was tired, Bob wrote the report.”
- Infinitive phrase: “To please his boss, Bob wrote the report.”
- Adverb: “Slowly and laboriously, Bob wrote the report.”
- Participial phrase: “Hoping to be promoted, Bob wrote the report.”
Using Mid-Sentence Modifiers
- Appositive: “Bob, an expert on regulations, wrote the report.”
- Participial phrase: “Bob, hoping to catch up on his work, worked late.”
Using Terminal Modifiers
- Present participial phrase: “Bob worked on the report, hoping to please his boss.”
- Past participial phrase/adjectival phrase: “Bob worked on the report, pushed by ambition.”
Combining Modifiers
- “Slowly and laboriously, Bob, an expert on regulations, worked on the report, hoping to please his boss.”

Other Ideas on Sentence Variety
Remember to throw an occasional question, exclamation, or command into your writing. Questions can be useful at the beginning of a paragraph to summarize the content that follows. Commands provide direction and energy by telling your readers what to do.
Occasionally, try to begin sentences with something other than the normal subject-verb combo. Try starting with a modifying clause or participial phrase. Consider beginning a sentence with a coordinating conjunction (and, but, nor, for, yet, or so). Many people think they should never begin a sentence with but. Instead, it should be linked to the previous sentence into a compound structure. But a sentence like this calls attention to itself and can be a useful device.

Sentence Types
There are a variety of basic sentence structures:
- Simple—one independent clause
- Compound—more than one independent clause
- Complex—one independent clause and at least one dependent clause
- Compound complex—more than one independent clause and at least one dependent clause
- Periodic—begin with modifying phrases and clauses and end with an independent clause
- Cumulative—begin with an independent clause and end with a series of modifying constructions

Compound Sentences
A compound sentence consists of two or more independent clauses. Thus, there are two thoughts within the sentence and either can stand alone. The clauses of a compound sentence are separated either by a semicolon or by a comma and a coordinating conjunction. The most common coordinating conjunction is and; it simply links the two ideas. Other coordinating conjunctions, such as but, or, for, yet, and so, establish a relationship between the two clauses.
Compounding Sentence Elements   You can combine various sentence elements to create compound sentences:
- Subjects—Two or more subjects doing parallel things can be combined as a compound subject; for example, “Working together, IBM and Apple Computer developed the Power PC processor.”
- Objects—When the subjects are acting on two or more things in parallel, the objects can be combined; for example, “The company president believed that the partnership between the two companies might help them increase sales and that he could eventually force a merger.”
- Verbs and verbals—When the subjects are doing two things simultaneously, the elements can be combined by compounding verbs and verbals; for example, “He studied sentence structure and grammar and learned how to speak and write effectively.”
- Modifiers—When appropriate, modifiers and prepositional phrases can be compounded; for example, “The company recruited its programmers from universities across the country and various competing companies.”

Transitions
As you compound sentences and vary your sentence structures to add variety to your writing, you will want to consider using transitions between ideas. Transitions help guide a reader from one idea to the next.
There are four general ways to add transitions between ideas:
1. Using transitional expressions
2. Repeating key words and phrases
3. Using pronoun reference
4. Using parallel forms

Transitional Expressions
In addition to coordinating conjunctions—and, but, nor, for, yet, or, and so—you can use conjunctive adverbs and transitional expressions such as however, moreover, and nevertheless to transition your sentences from one thought to the next. The key is to avoid using the same transitional elements, as it becomes boring. The following is a list of some conjunctive adverbs that can add spice to your transitions.
- Addition—again, also, and, and then, besides, equally important, finally, first, further, furthermore, in addition, in the first place, last, moreover, next, second, still, too
- Comparison—also, in the same way, likewise, similarly
- Concession—granted, naturally, of course
- Contrast—although, and yet, at the same time, but at the same time, despite that, even so, even though, for all that, however, in contrast, in spite of, instead, nevertheless, on the contrary, on the other hand, otherwise, regardless, still, though, yet
- Emphasis—certainly, indeed, in fact
- Example—after all, as an illustration, even, for example, for instance, in conclusion, in short, it is true, namely, specifically, that is, to illustrate, thus
- Summary—all in all, altogether, as has been said, finally, in brief, in conclusion, in other words, in particular, in short, in simpler terms, in summary, on the whole, that is, therefore, to put it differently, to summarize
- Time sequence—after a while, afterward, again, also, and then, as long as, at last, at length, at that time, before, besides, earlier, eventually, finally, formerly, further, furthermore, in addition, in the first place, in the past, last, lately, meanwhile, moreover, next, now, presently, second, shortly, simultaneously, since, so far, soon, still, subsequently, then, thereafter, too, until, until now, when

Repeating Key Words
By repeating a key word or phrase, you can establish its importance in the mind of the reader.

Pronoun Reference
Pronouns can be used to refer the reader to something earlier in the text. A pronoun such as this causes the reader to summarize what has been said so for. For example: “There has been increase in the number of earthquakes in California in the past ten years. This is true because we have geological records that go back almost 150 years and they show a clear trend.”

Parallelism
Parallel constructions are expressions with similar content and function. Their similarity enables the reader to more easily recognize the content and understand the message.
An article such as the, a, and an must either be used only before the first term in a group, or it must be repeated before each term. For example: “At the World’s Fair, we saw all the latest model automobiles, including the new Hondas, Toyotas, and Nissans.” “We left on Sunday for vacation with the Wilsons, the Wausons, and the Bruecks.”
Correlative expressions (both, and; not, but; not only, but also; either, or; first, second) should be followed by the same grammatical construction. For example: “It was not only the blowing wind, but also the freezing temperatures that made travel so treacherous.”
When making comparisons, the things compared should be in parallel form.

Paragraph Construction
Paragraphs are groups of sentences that focus on a single topic. If that single topic gets too long or the focus shifts to another topic, it is time to start a new paragraph. The elements of a paragraph include the use of topic sentences, transitions between sentences and paragraphs, and signposts that signal the reader where the rest of the document is going.
Within every paragraph there should be a topic sentence that indicates what the paragraph is about. For most business writing, you should introduce the topic using a topic sentence. That makes it easier for your reader to get the point quickly.
After writing that first topic sentence, the rest of the paragraph is used to develop and defend that initial statement. You can do that by doing any of the following:
- Use examples and illustrations.
- Provide details, statistics, and evidence.
- Provide quotes and paraphrases from other people.
- Tell a story.
- Define terms.
- Compare and contrast ideas.
- Evaluate causes and effects.
- Offer a chronological summary.

Avoiding Redundancies
While a well-rounded writing style includes compound and complex sentences, it is important to avoid redundancies. Avoid saying the same thing twice.

The following is a list of some of the most common redundant phrases:
- 12 midnight
- 12 noon
- 1 a.m. in the morning
- Circle around
- Close proximity
- Completely unanimous
- Cooperate together
- Each and every
- Enclosed herewith
- End result
- Exactly the same
- Final completion
- Free gift
- In spite of the fact that
- In the field of
- In the event of
- New innovations
- One and the same
- Particular interest
- Period of X days
- Personally, I think
- Personal opinion
- Refer back
- Repeat again
- Return again
- Revert back
- Shorter in length
- Small in size
- Summarize briefly
- Surrounded on all sides
- The future to come
- There is no doubt but
- We are in receipt of

Phrases and Words to Omit
The following is a list of words that are usually not necessary in a sentence. They don’t add anything and can be omitted without changing the meaning.
- Really
- Very
- Quite
- Extremely
- Severely
- All things considered
- As a matter of fact
- As far as I’m concerned
- At the present time
- Because of the fact that
- By means of
- By virtue of the fact
- Due to the fact
- For all intents and purposes
- For the most part
- For the purpose of
- Have a tendency to
- In a manner of speaking
- In a very real sense
- In my opinion
- In the case of
- In the final analysis
- In the event that
- In the nature of
- In the process of
- It seems that
- The point I am trying to make
- Type of
- What I mean to say is

Clichés
Clichés are overused expressions that have become trite and even annoying. The following is a list of clichés that should be avoided:
- Acid test
- At loose ends
- Babe in the woods
- Better that than never
- Black as night
- Blind as a bat
- Bolt from the blue
- Brought back to reality
- Busy as a bee (or beaver)
- Cat’s meow
- Cool as a cucumber
- Cool, calm, and collected
- Crack of dawn
- Crushing blow
- Cry over split milk
- Dead as a doornail
- Dog-eat-dog world
- Don’t count your chickens
- Dyed in the wool
- Easier said than done
- Easy as pie
- Face the music
- Feathered friends
- Flash in the pan
- Flat as a pancake
- Gentle as a lamb
- Go at it tooth and nail
- Good time was had by all
- Greased lightning
- Happy as a lark
- Head over heels
- Heavy as lead
- Horns of a dilemma
- Hour of need
- Keep a stiff upper lip
- Ladder of success
- Last but not least
- Looking a gift horse in the mouth
- Meaningful dialogue
- Moving experience
- Needle in a haystack
- Open-and-shut case
- Pain in the ass
- Point with pride
- Pretty as a picture
- Put it in a nutshell
- Quick as a flash (or wink)
- Rat race
- Ripe old age
- Ruled the roost
- Sad but true
- Sadder but wiser
- Set the world on fire
- Sick as a dog
- Sigh of relief
- Slow as molasses
- Smart as a whip
- Sneaking suspicion
- Spread like wildfire
- Straight as an arrow
- Straw that broke the camel’s back
- Strong as an ox
- Take the bull by the horns
- Thin as a rail
- Through thick and thin
- Tired but happy
- To coin a phrase
- To make a long story short
- Trial and error
- Tried and true
- Under the weather
- White as a sheet
- Wise as an owl
- Work like a dog
- Worth its weight in gold

Unbiased Language
Most gender problems can be avoided without the use of he/she, he or she, him or her, or him/her constructions. Plural pronouns such as they can be very helpful in this regard. An occasional he or she is okay, but after a while it becomes distracting. When a singular pronoun is necessary, use either he or she consistently to avoid confusion.

Sexist Language
There are a variety of words and phrases that make demeaning assumptions about gender role. However, in some cases people go out of their way to be politically correct and try awkward alternatives. Substitutes should be reasonable and appropriate. Try not to highlight the fact you are trying to avoid sexist language.
The following is a list of words to avoid and their alternatives:
- Actress—use actor
- Anchorman—use anchor
- Businessman—use businessperson
- Chairman—use chairperson or chair
- Coed—use student
- Forefathers—use ancestors
- Foreman—use supervisor
- Freshman—use first-year student
- Mailman—use mail carrier
- Male nurse—use nurse
- Man (meaning human being)—use person, people
- Managers and their wives—use managers and their spouses
- Mankind—use humanity, people
- Poetess—use poet
- Policeman—use police officer
- Salesman—use sales representative
- Stewardess—use flight attendant
- Waiter/waitress—use server

Colloquialisms
Colloquialisms are words or phrases that are often used in informal conversation; however, they should be avoided in your written communications. The following is a list of colloquialisms you should edit out of every first draft:
- A lot
- A whole lot
- Ahold
- All about
- And while we’re at it
- Back in the day
- Being that
- Being there for
- Came time
- Come to find out
- Come up missing
- Could of, should of, would of
- Get/got
- Gone bad
- Hassle
- Keep on
- Mess up
- Might could
- More so
- Nice and easy
- Out there
- Somewhat
- Stuff
- Things
- Thru
- Where . . . at
- Without a hitch

Jargon and Buzzwords
Buzzwords are popular overused words that are common to business environments. Buzzwords are often pretentious and difficult to understand. Avoid them in your business writing. Common buzzwords to avoid include:
- Accountability
- Action items
- Architect
- Ballpark
- Benchmarking
- Best of breed
- Best practice
- Big picture
- Bleeding edge
- Bottom line
- Business case
- Buy-in
- Champion
- Cross-platform
- Customer-focused
- Deliverables
- Downsize
- Drill down
- Empowerment
- Enterprise-wide
- Fast track
- Front-end
- Game plan
- Globalize
- Goal-oriented
- Going forward
- Heads up
- Heavy lifting
- Herding cats
- Ideation
- In the loop
- In-market for
- Info superhighway
- Intellectual capital
- Key player
- Knowledge base
- Leading-edge
- Lean and mean
- Level-set
- Leverage
- Long-term
- Low-risk high-yield
- Matrix
- Methodology
- Mindset
- Mission-critical
- Mission statement
- Monetize
- Multitasking
- Networking
- On the same page
- Out-of-the-loop
- Out-of-the-box
- Outside the box
- Oxymoron
- Paradigm shift
- Partner
- Peel the onion
- Performance-based
- Play hardball
- Power shift
- Push the envelope
- Ramp up
- Reality check
- Re-engineer
- Resource constrained
- Results-drive
- Right-size
- Risk management
- ROI (short for “return on investment”)
- Rubber stamp
- Scalable
- Service organization
- Stand-alone
- Synergize
- Take that off-line
- Talking points
- Task force
- Think outside the box
- Tip of the iceberg
- Total quality
- Touch base
- Touch points
- Train wreck
- Turn-key
- 24/7
- User-centric
- Value-added
- Whiteboard
- Win-win
- World class

Global Communications
When writing for an international audience, it is easy to run into problems with clarity and miscommunication. To overcome this problem, you need to avoid using slang or words with double meanings that can be misunderstood by nonnative English speakers. To revise your writing for an international audience, consider the following:
- Use both the active and passive voice, since some cultures—such as in Japan and China—consider the active voice to be condescending and prefer the passive voice instead.
- Use a more direct rather than indirect style, since the indirect style can be confusing.
- Avoid using abbreviations and brand names, unless you are writing about a specific brand name.
- Use short sentences and simple sentence constructions.
- Avoid phrasal verbs like call up, put up, drop down, and so forth that can easily be said as a single word and mean the same thing.
- Be extremely clear when using pronouns.
- Avoid clichés and slang.
- Be careful with humor, since it may not be understood by a non–English-speaking person.
- Don’t use contractions, since they make translation more difficult.
- Avoid cultural metaphors that are recognized in the U.S. but would be meaningless to an international audience, for example: Big Apple, pigskin, brown-bagging.
- When using graphics in your document, avoid using human hands, animals, or religious symbols.
- Use androgynous figures for humans.
- Make sure you use “which” and “that” correctly.
- Write out dates by spelling the month (September 22, 2012), rather than writing 09/22/2012.
- If you must refer to gender, use the terms man and woman rather than male and female.
- Do not use the word domestic to refer to the U.S.
- Avoid using symbols and special characters such as # for pound, $ for currency, “for ditto, “for inches, ‘for feet, or ? for help.
- When your document will be translated, keep in mind that the same content may expand by 15% or more in the new language.