Word choice & usage · Topic 11 of 17

Clear, Concise & Appropriate Language

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Grammar · style and clarity

Prefer the active voice, keep listed items in the same form, cut empty words, use one negative per idea, and write formally and fairly.

01 · VoiceActive = the subject does the action

02 · ParallelismParallel = the same form for every item

03 · Double negativesOne negative per idea

Active: the subject acts; passive: the subject is acted on: Lee wrote it / It was written must know

Prefer the active voice: The committee approved the plan must know

Keep paired and listed items in the same form: walking, cycling and rowing must know

Cut words that add no meaning: “because” instead of “due to the fact that” must know

Use one negative per idea: I don’t have any time must know

Passive is fine when the doer is unknown or unimportant: The clinic was built in 1990

Write formally, without slang or textspeak: The results were excellent

Replace clichés with plain, specific words: “finally,” not “at the end of the day”

Use gender-neutral terms: firefighter, police officer, mail carrier, humanity

Prefer the direct term to a euphemism: fired, not “let go”

✗ The forms were signed by the patient → ✓ The patient signed the forms

✗ We cooked, cleaned and the bills were paid → ✓ We cooked, cleaned and paid the bills

✗ A nurse must wear his badge → ✓ Nurses must wear their badges

Passive = a form of be + past participle (+ by …): was signed by the patient

Commonly confused

	Active voice	Passive voice
The subject…	Does the action	Receives the action
Verb form	Plain verb: checked	be + past participle: was checked
The doer	Named first, as the subject	After “by”, or left out
Use it…	By default: shorter and direct	When the doer is unknown or unimportant
Example	The nurse checked the chart.	The chart was checked by the nurse.

“was barking” and “is cold” are not passive: the subject acts or simply is

Drop the repeated idea in a redundant pair: gift, result, history, plans

hardly, barely and scarcely are already negative: I can hardly hear you

Start with the real subject, not “There are”: Three nurses work nights

Show 4 more facts

Absolute words take no “very”: unique, not very unique

State it positively: late, not “not on time”

Mention identity only when it matters: “the engineer,” not “the female engineer”

Explain or replace jargon for a general reader: “high blood pressure” for lay readers

Pearl

Ask who did it, and make that word the subject.

Practice this topic, then test the whole section.

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