Redact That Redundancy

 

By Martin Wiles

Choosing the correct number of words is critical, as is choosing the right words. But when my words multiply unnecessarily or say the same things repeatedly, I may have slipped down the slippery slopes of redundancy and wordiness.

Mark Twain—whose writings raved readers—may have gotten away with sliding down those slopes, but then again, he was paid by the word, as many writers still are. But he also lived in a time before screens, the internet, and widespread travel. Thus, describing things and places in detail was more tolerated and needed. Today, we might say some of his writings were not tight. And worse than Twain? Try running Grammarly on some Bible passages and note the results, especially some of the apostle Paul’s meanderings.

The words redundancy and wordiness are sometimes used interchangeably, but distinct differences drive a wedge between them. Redundancy is saying the same thing, but with different words or phrases. For example, “The alarm went off at four a.m. in the morning.” The abbreviation a.m. means in the morning, so choosing one is sufficient. Choosing both shows redundancy.

Wordiness is using more words than necessary to say what we need to say or describe what we are describing. For example, “Please take into consideration the firm’s offer.” A better rendering would be, “Please consider the firm’s offer.”

Some writers are more prone to these two slippery slopes than others, but none of us is immune. Nor are any of us editors experts at catching every instance of either.

So, what are a few steps we take to stay off these slopes?

Zoom in on the Zombies

The zombie nouns, that is. “Please take into consideration coming to the editor’s conference” can easily become “Please consider coming to the editor’s conference. “Ion” is a noun-forming suffix, and smothered verbs can often be discovered in words with that suffix, reducing words in the process.

Cut the There, Here, and It

While there and here can be adverbs, and can be pronouns, they are often used unnecessarily to get sentences started. “There were three hundred people at the editor’s conference” is better as “Three hundred people attended the editor’s conference.”

Pull out the Possessives

“The house of the doctor is on Main Street” reads better as “The doctor’s house is on Main Street.”

Redact the Redundancies

Sharla Rae has a lengthy list, but the following are a few examples:

·       Short minute – A minute is short.

·       Rise up/lift up – If something rises, it’s going up.

·       Dash quickly – To dash is to do it quickly.

·       Absolutely certain/sure – If it’s absolute, it’s certain.

·       Combined together/blended together – If we combine items, they are together.

·       Clearly apparent – If it’s clear, it’s apparent.

·       Appointed as – If appointed as one is appointed – appointed Secretary of …

·       Fall down – If something falls, it goes down, not up, so down is redundant.

·       Exact same – Exact and same mean the same thing.

I have a feeling I may have slipped a little on one or both of these slopes in this post, but I’ll let you be the judge of that.

Photo courtesy of Unsplash.com and Brett Jordan.

 

Martin Wiles is an author, pastor, English teacher, and freelance editor who resides in Greenwood, South Carolina. He is the administrator/assistant editor for VineWords: Devotions and More and the Managing Editor for Christian Devotions. He is the founder/editor of the internationally recognized devotion site, Love Lines from God (www.lovelinesfromgod.com). His most recent book, Don’t Just Live … Really Live, is available on Amazon. He has also been published in numerous publications. He is the husband of one, the father of two, and the grandfather of seven.