Comments on: MM: Overused Vocabulary

By: Punctuality Rules! » Blog Archive » Simplicity

Punctuality Rules! » Blog Archive » Simplicity — Thu, 15 May 2008 02:32:18 +0000

[…] talked about not over-using the same, tired words, which ties into other, earlier posts that stressed the importance of a good vocabulary. Having a […]

By: --Deb

--Deb — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 22:45:06 +0000

Yes, but this way you won’t feel so guilty about starting with “and.” (grin) AND it’s better to start with a prepositional phrase than end with a preposition, right?

(Answer: It depends whose rules you’re following.)

By: Rob O.

Rob O. — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 17:52:58 +0000

Yeah, I knew that starting sentences with “and,” “or,” or “but” is no longer forbidden, but I do tend to want to overuse that.

I also get a little hung up on starting sentences with prepositional phrases. I try to avoid doing so although I’m not certain whether that’s still a no-no. It’s sometimes a tough thing to avoid and not have your writing sound stiff.

By: --Deb

--Deb — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:15:19 +0000

Oh, and, here:
http://punctualityrules.com/2007/12/03/mm-conjunctivitis/

Starting sentences with conjunctions isn’t completely forbidden any more!

By: --Deb

--Deb — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:11:22 +0000

My mother tells me I use “theoretically” a lot. I think it’s my way of overcompensating for a bossiness-tendency. I don’t want to tell people that they SHOULD do something, but that, you know, theoretically, they COULD…. (grin).

By: Rob O.

Rob O. — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 11:30:33 +0000

I work with a guy who uses “basically” so often I wince. Sadly, he applies this to descriptions that’re anything but basic.

Yeat another co-worker liberally peppers his verbal conversations with “evidently,” yet he clearly has no concept of the actual meaning of the word. Were something to be “evident,” there’d be little point in mentioning, right?

Okay, okay, I’m probably just as bad in some way that I’m not even aware of. I do know that I tend to overuse the privilege of starting sentences with “And” and the use of the em dash to break up ideas. So, evidently, I’m basically going to have to work on that. Ouch!

By: --Deb

--Deb — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 14:31:44 +0000

It’s scary, isn’t it, how many examples there could be? Not even counting those four-letter words that are the favorite descriptions of far too many people who don’t seem to know any others at all . . . though not, of course, the folks who read this blog!

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 14:27:08 +0000

This post is hilarious! Another overused word I’ve noticed is “basically.” I use it all the time. It’s kind of a verbal tick. Oh, and “kind of.” There’s one too. I suppose I could go on and on.

Jennifer’s last blog post..Five Ways to Build Blogging Goodwill

By: --Deb

--Deb — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 15:17:22 +0000

That’s one of those frequently used AND misused words that drives me nuts. “I literally jumped into the air for 20 seconds, I was so surprised.” Oh, really? Such talent!

I tend to use “really” far too often. And, I’m told, “theoretically.” As in, “You know, theoretically, we could invite 20 people to the house.” I suppose I like to hedge my bets–I’m not saying we SHOULD invite that many people, but it would be possible.

By: J

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 15:12:42 +0000

I hear ‘literally’ a lot, and even when they do mean ‘literally’, as opposed to ‘figuratively’, it’s not necessary to the sentence. Also, ‘actually’ and ’so’. These are just crutches, I suspect, and I hear them a lot on cooking shows of all places.

J’s last blog post..Apple Spring Rolls