What Are Redundancies?

These nuisances are superfluous words or phrases also known as pleonasms. Rather than augment writing, they slow action scenes and increase word count — without adding constructive details.

About The Quiz

This quiz, the twenty-fourth in its series, offers ten sentences containing redundancies, and ten suggested solutions.

They are edited examples from books, news media, television shows, and overheard conversations.

The Answers Are in the Definitions

Will your responses prompt a unanimous, undisputed vote of confidence from judge and jury?

In most cases, you should recognize the superfluous words when you scrutinize the definitions provided with each edit.

And maybe your muse will find story ideas among the changes and suggestions.

Can You Find Every Redundant Word or Phrase?

1. We can test out various different scenarios.
2. With the tines of a fork, she blended the butter and sugar together.
3. The current political status quo remains precarious for all parties.
4. First and foremost, the jury needed to elect a foreperson before it could begin deliberations.
5. The contract was filled with excessive and confusing verbiage.
6. They lived in the general vicinity of the bus depot.
7. The main protagonist is a cowboy with a limp.
8. His mental attitude left much to be desired.
9. At this moment, Amanda is in no mood to discuss the matter.
10. He tried to defraud them out of their money.

Suggested Edits

Edit #1:  We can test out various different scenarios.

test: carry out a test

various: different or diverse

You or your editor might prefer to remove different instead of various.

Alternate wording: We can [attempt, explore, try] [multiple, several, a variety of] [approaches, methods, planets].

Edit #2: With the tines of a fork, she blended the butter and sugar together.

blend: to mix two or more substances so that they combine together

Alternate wording: With [a baseball bat, her sword, the hacked-off leg], she [combined, mixed, stirred] the [ingredients, medical waste, lunar dust].

Edit #3: The current political status quo remains precarious for all parties.

status quo: the current state of affairs

If context is clear, you could also remove political.

Alternate wording: The [circumstances, conditions, parameters] remain [hazardous, uncertain, volatile] for [commuters, policymakers, travelers].

Edit #4: First and foremost, the jury needed to elect a foreperson before it could begin deliberations.

foremost: in the first place; first in a series

Alternate wording: The [council, panel, tribunal] needed to [appoint, choose, designate] a [chieftain, commander, leader] before it could begin its [invasion, operation, task].

Edit #5: The contract was filled with excessive and confusing verbiage.

verbiage: an excess of words; redundancy; pleonasm

Alternate wording: The contract [brimmed with, incorporated, overflowed with] confusing [jargon, loquacity, terminology].

Edit #6: They lived in the general vicinity of the bus depot.

vicinity: general area; the area near or surrounding a place

Or you might prefer: They lived in the general area of the bus depot.

Alternate wording: They [hid, resided, stayed] [adjacent to, close to, near] the [front lines, fuel depot, launchpad].

Edit #7: The main protagonist is a cowboy with a limp.

protagonist: the main character of a fictional work

Alternate wording: The [hero, lead character, star] is [a scuba diver, a nurse, a pilot] [who runs out of air, with a flippant attitude, who is hiding a medical condition].

Edit #8: His mental attitude left much to be desired.

attitude: mental state; state of mind

Although mental health professionals might refer to mental attitude to differentiate from physical attitude, a lay person would refrain from such distinctions.

Alternate wording: His [disposition, predilection for _____, temper] [alienated everyone he met, surprised his supervisors, disqualified him as/for _____].

Edit #9: At this moment, Amanda is in no mood to discuss the matter.

is: the third person singular of the present tense of be

If Amanda is in no mood to discuss the matter, readers will know it’s at this moment.

Alternate wording: Amanda [can’t see the forest for the trees [cliché, but might suit some narrative], is too upset to talk, refuses to interact with her peers].

Edit #10: He tried to defraud them out of their money.

defraud: to con a person or entity out of money by deception

Tried to might indicate that the attempt was unsuccessful.

Alternate wording: He [deceived the investors, scammed pensioners out of their savings, swindled thousands of dollars from unsuspecting women].

Master List of Redundancy Quizzes for Writers