Why Should Writers Avoid To Be in Its Various Forms?

William Shakespeare’s King Lear asked, “Who is it that can tell me who I am?”

Hamlet said, “To be or not to be, that is the question.”

Centuries later, we face the same dilemma.

To be is an integral part of everyday speech. It exists for a reason. However, this verb can cause lackluster writing if overused.

Here’s an Easy Fix for Phrases That Start With There

We can often omit there is, there was, there were, and there will be with minor changes in capitalization and punctuation. Whenever possible, we should choose stronger verbs.

There is no doubt that …
No doubt …

There is no method that is guaranteed to succeed.
No method guarantees success.

There was a man who had a horse.
A man owned a horse.

There was one child who got measles.
One child contracted measles.

There are many weeds that overwinter.
Many weeds overwinter.

There are many voters who are sick of the candidates’ attacks.
Many voters find the candidates’ attacks disgusting.

There will be many who disagree.
Many will disagree.

There will be several lectures that explain redundancies.
Several lectures will explain redundancies.

Active Verbs Strengthen Writing

The right verb can show in one word what might take several phrases to express otherwise.

Which is more direct?

I am a writer OR I write.

I am the one who cares OR I care.

In the second of each preceding example, the word count diminishes, and the sentence becomes more active.

The lion was behind the tree.

Why was the lion behind the tree? Was he having a nap? Stalking prey? Basking in the sunshine?

The lion hid behind the tree.

Now we have a sentence that adds to the story.

The toddler was in the bathtub.

Why? Was the child taking a bath? Hiding from Mommy? Drowning?

The toddler cowered in the bathtub.

With one simple edit, we see the makings of a story.

There was an eagle in the sky.

Unimaginative.

An eagle soared across the sky.

Can you see the eagle?

Continuous Tense Usually Weakens Writing

Continuous is formed by combining to be with the present participle (-ing form) of another verb. You may find occasions where continuous works best for you, but examine every instance.

Scrutinize the following examples. In most cases, the second sentence is stronger.

I am strolling.
I stroll.

I was rowing the boat.
I rowed the boat.

I will be attending the recital.
I will attend the recital.

He is ogling the girls on the street.
He ogles the girls on the street.

She was dancing and twirling.
She danced and twirled.

He will be singing a solo.
He will sing a solo.

They are laughing at him.
They laugh at him.

The kids were swimming without water wings.
The kids swam without water wings.

They will be working all weekend.
They will work all weekend.

Occupations Represent More Than Labels

Instead of naming a person’s occupation, show it.

He is a mechanic.
He repairs Fords.

She is a gourmet chef.
She makes the best crème brûlée in town.

He is a teacher.
He teaches physics.

She is a doctor.
She specializes in internal medicine.

He is a pilot.
He pilots his own twin-engine Cessna Citation.

She is a writer.
She writes horror fiction.

More Examples

His features were a network of wrinkles and spots.
A network of wrinkles and spots obscured his features.

Two boats were in the water.
Two boats floated in the water.

Gerald was in the yard.
Gerald dawdled in the yard.

Fifty guests were in the room.
Fifty guests wedged into the room.

The flowers were in the vase.
The flowers wilted in the vase.

There were ants on the sandwich.
Ants swarmed the sandwich.

There were leaves in the gutters.
Leaves choked the gutters.

He was in the hallway.
He loitered in the hallway.

The preceding examples draw on verbs from the following list.

Try These Active Replacements for To Be in Past Tense

They represent only a few of the thousands you could choose.

A to C
abided/abode, assembled, balanced, basked, bent, blanketed, blocked, burrowed, choked, collected, colonized, convened, covered, cowered, cozied up, crouched, curled up, crammed, crowded

D to K
dawdled, dozed, drooped, existed, filled, floated, flocked, flooded, gathered, harbored, heaped, hid, hovered, huddled, hung around, idled, inhabited, inundated, jammed, kneeled, knelt

L to P
lay, lazed, lined, lingered, lived, lodged, lolled, lounged, massed, met, mounded, nestled, occupied, packed, perched, piled, poised, populated, posed, postured

R
reclined, relaxed, remained, reposed, resided, rested, reunited, roomed, roosted

S
sagged, sat, saturated, settled, sheltered, slept, slouched, slumbered, slumped, snoozed, sojourned, sprawled, spread-eagled, squished, squeezed, stacked, stayed, stood, stooped, stretched out, stuck, sunned, swamped, swarmed

T to W
teemed, tenanted, thronged, unwound, waited, wallowed, wedged, wilted