Why Should a Writer Worry About Word Inflation?

Inflation always makes me think of something that’s puffed up — like a balloon or a child’s toy. Do you want your work to puff up with unnecessary words? To seem childish?

This post provides more than 250 phrases you can delete or replace with shorter alternatives.

No more word inflation.

Let’s Analyze a Few Examples

Example 1

Hayden didn’t pay any attention to the pain in his shoulder as he took a seat in the restaurant booth and had a quick look at his watch. I have time to spare, he thought.

Do you see any areas where you could cut words?

Hayden ignored the pain in his shoulder as he sank into the restaurant booth and peeked at his watch. I’m early, he thought.

The edits save a dozen words and accelerate the narrative.

Example 2

Bella accessed the street by means of the alley. In short order she’d meet her cheating fiancé head-on. He’d deny it, of course, in spite of the fact that she had read all of the text messages. Was she ready and willing to forgive him?

Did you spot the redundancies?

Bella accessed the street via the alley. Soon she’d confront her cheating fiancé. He’d deny it, of course, although she had read all the text messages. Was she prepared to forgive him?

More than a dozen words saved, although in this situation some of the redundancies might be appropriate for Bella’s thoughts.

Example 3

Pol was ready and willing to join the club, but time and time again the membership committee had, for all intents and purposes, told him they would never give his application the go-ahead.

You should be getting good at this by now.

Pol was eager to join the club, but the membership committee had repeatedly implied that they would never approve his application.

Note the different interpretation of ready and willing — eager in this case versus prepared in Example 2 — an excellent reason to avoid the phrase.

Recognize Frequent Offenders

Your suspicious nature should activate whenever you encounter phrases that begin with cause, for, give, go, have, in, make, not, or take:

Cause

cause concern: concern, upset, worry

cause confusion: baffle, confuse, perplex

cause pain: distress, hurt, wound

cause surprise: alarm, shock, surprise

For

for all intents and purposes: [delete]

for the most part: [delete]

for the purpose of: to

for the time being: meantime, meanwhile

Give

give a heads-up: alert, caution, forewarn

give a nod: agree, concur, nod

give a nod to: approve, endorse, support

give a sigh: sigh

give a salute: acknowledge, greet, salute

give a thumbs-up: approve, endorse, support

give a wink: wink

give chase: chase, pursue, track

give the go-ahead: approve, authorize, consent

Go

go along with: accept, agree, concur

go back over: rethink, retrace, review

go by car: drive

go by plane: fly

go on foot: walk

go through: endure; read; use

go walking: stride, stroll, walk

Have

have a nap: doze, nap, snooze

have a tendency: favor, incline, tend

have a discussion: consider, debate, discuss

have a conversation: chat, converse, discuss

have an idea: conceive, imagine, visualize

have a quick look: glance, look, peek

have to: must, should

In

in a good mood: cheerful, happy, jovial

in a little while: forthwith, soon, straightaway

in actual fact: [delete]

in good health: fit, hale, healthy

in regard(s) to: apropos, concerning, regarding

in the event that: if

in the near future: directly, momentarily, pronto, shortly, soon

in the process of: [delete]

in short order: pronto, quickly, soon

in spite of the fact that: although, nevertheless, still

in terms of: [delete]

Make

make a decision: choose, decide, resolve

make a move: move, rouse, stir

make an announcement: announce, declare, proclaim

make it to: arrive, reach

Not

not have much confidence: distrust, doubt, suspect

not honest: deceitful, dishonest, misleading

not important: inconsequential, insignificant, unimportant

not on time: late, overdue, tardy

not pay attention: disregard, ignore, snub

not remember: forget

Take

take a seat: park, settle, sit

take an enormous toll: distress, torment, torture

take captive: capture, catch, ensnare

take care of: handle, manage, undertake

take exception: disapprove, object, protest

take into account: allow, consider, include

take notice: detect, notice, see

More redundancies:

Study the following list, and be sure as well to explore Redundancies 101: 400+ Redundant Words to Avoid in Writing.

again and again: constantly, repeatedly, repetitively

against the law: illegal, illicit, unlawful

are reflective of: echo, mirror, reflect

as a matter of fact: actually, really

as opposed to: versus

as to whether: whether

at all times: always

at the present time: currently, now, today

at the end of the day: eventually, finally, ultimately

be aware of: discern, know, recognize

be in love with: adore, love, worship

be watchful: guard, observe, watch

by means of: per [dated], through, via

by virtue of the fact that: because, since

cease and desist: cease, desist, discontinue, stop

continue on in perpetuity: endure, last forever

cut down on: lessen, lower, reduce

decrease in strength: abate, dilute, weaken

do away with: abolish, eliminate, kill

due to the fact that: because, since

figure out: decipher, realize, solve

filled to capacity: brimming, full, packed

get out of: escape, exit, leave

given the fact that: since

go around and around in circles: circle, rehash reoccur

go to play golf: golf

going to: will

inasmuch as: because, since, whereas

increase in strength: increase, intensify, strengthen

intend to: will

it is important to note that: [delete]

lack the ability to: cannot

lead to the destruction of: destroy

meet head-on: challenge, confront, tackle

more so than ever before: especially, more than ever, particularly

need to: must

needless to say: [delete]

null and void: invalid, void, worthless

offer a suggestion: propose, recommend, suggest

on a regular basis: consistently, often, regularly

pick out: choose, pick, select

pick up on: detect, notice, see

play up: accentuate, emphasize, stress

put together: assemble, build, construct

put off: delay, postpone, stall

ready and willing: eager; prepared, ready

result in a decrease: decrease, dwindle, shrink

result in an increase: expand, increase, multiply

seeing as how: because, since

spell out: clarify, detail, explain

spot on: appropriate, correct, precise

there were times when they: every time they, whenever they

time and time again: often, recurrently, repeatedly

to the point: concise, succinct, terse

tried and true: established, tested, verified

utter an objection: challenge, object, protest

well-thought-of: reputable, respectable, trustworthy

with reference to: apropos, concerning, regarding

with time to spare: early

Occasional Redundancies Add Personality to Writing

To prevent repetition or awkward wording, redundancies sometimes provide viable alternatives.

Readers expect dialogue to include clichés and occasional superfluous words. Exploit every possible tool to differentiate characters’ voices and make them believable.

Tag, You’re It

Locate and remove redundancies in the following.

Exercise 1

Sadie gave a wink to her neighbor and made a decision to ask him out on a date. “Hi,” she said. “Would you like to have coffee with me?”

He didn’t pay any attention to her but went walking by as though he hadn’t heard.

She gave a sigh. Must be out of phase again.

Suggested solution

Sadie winked at her neighbor. “Hi. Would you like to have coffee with me?”

He ignored her, walking by as though he hadn’t heard.

She sighed. Must be out of phase again.

Notes: Besides the obvious redundancies, we know Sadie is talking; therefore, a dialogue tag is unnecessary in the first paragraph. Her dialogue shows she’s asking her neighbor out on a date, so there’s no need to state the obvious.

Exercise 2

Steve went by car on a regular basis to the golf course. He went to play golf twice every week and usually wasn’t on time, because he wouldn’t remember his clubs until he made it to the next block. Then in actual fact he’d have to turn around.

Suggested solution

Steve drove often to the golf course. He hit the greens twice weekly and was usually late, because he’d forget his clubs until he reached the next block. Then he’d have to turn around.

Notes: Redundancies have been removed. However, an idiom, hit the greens, was added to eliminate the repetition of golf. Steve seems distracted. That distraction could form the basis of a comedic or mysterious plot.