Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Some words are so misused and abused that their meanings have suffered. Other words are so overused, their expressive ability has withered. Marketing hype annoys readers daily. Writers in other industries lazily rely on stale phrases.
What is the "value proposition" in calling ordinary things "unique"? Can you "visualize" a "win-win" situation without doing some "horizon scanning"? Could you "tease out" the "takeaway" in being "thrown under the bus"? Does your favorite "thought leader" usually "target" a "total solution"?
This gobbledygook has to end! It's time to retire the sloppy writer's tools: trite phrases, annoying superlatives, and worn-out words.
Plain Language Wizardry, publisher of plain-language writing guides, has identified 500 words so exhausted that they must be retired before 2011 arrives—no matter how well-loved they are in workplaces, journalism, or academia.
Cheryl Stephens, editor of
Plain Language in Plain English, won't show much sympathy for resisters, "Some people are saying, 'But I like those words.' Too bad," says Stephens, "You are not writing for yourself but for the reader or listener. And you will lose their attention if you write for your own ear."
The collection is called the
Bathetic Word List because these words convey only bathos. Stephens says bathos is best described as "a descent from the sublime to the ridiculous." The list links words to online sources for the arguments against using the words. These commentaries come from writers in the industries that spawned or abused the words in the first place.
Thoughtful writers, those who show genuine concern for their readers, will stop using bathetic words. It takes only a moment to choose an alternative, and those who do will be seen as wise wordsmiths when speaking or writing in their company, among their peers or on their blog.
Plain Language Wizardry is asking our readers to send us more words that are ready for the retirement home. The best contributions will win free books.
Contest details are available on the
Bathetic List Page.
http://plainLanguage.com/bathetic.html email@cherylstephens.com 604-739-6884
Cell: 604-802-9606