Ethan Woodfill

This week’s Writing Concisely 101 is all about unclear pronoun references, intensifiers, and adverbs — let’s call them “fillers.” These little quirks are common and may help one reach a word count, but they can be a nuisance and clutter your writing. Unfortunately, all of these fillers are difficult to spot in your own writing. Read on to learn how removing fillers will tighten up your writing and make you sound like a genius!

Replace unclear pronoun references with nouns

An unclear pronoun reference is when the reader does not know what word the pronoun refers to (the antecedent). While it is not really a filler, it is a common quirk of writers not paying attention. And technically, this is incorrect grammar and your English teacher would bust you for it.

For example:

A camera is on the table. John doesn’t know where this belongs.

The pronoun “this” does not tell the reader what the object is. The reader is forced to rely on the previous sentence to infer that “this” is referring to the camera. An easy fix is to change the pronoun to a noun in most cases.

John doesn’t know where the camera on the table belongs.

Now we just condensed the example into one clear, effective sentence.

Limit intensifiers

Lucas was very sure the dog belonged to his mother.

The dog was really large and intimidating.

Words like “very” and “really” are intensifiers — they add to the power or significance of a adjective — but they do not hold any inherent meaning. Try using a powerful adjective rather than adding an intensifier.

Lucas was certain the dog belonged to his mother.

The dog was colossal.

Now, we’ve added two adjectives that hold their own power and meaning — all in one word! (How concise.)

Stop using adverbs

Like intensifiers, adverbs (words that end in -ly) add power to a verb. But usually, the adverb means the same thing as the verb itself.

Tristan quickly ran to the store.

Running is, by definition, a “quick” verb. To improve this sentence, consider adding a more powerful verb to indicate speed.

Tristan dashed to the store.

Use adverbs sparingly and use stronger verbs to clean up your writing.

TL;DR

Fillers are nice when you need to finish an assignment at the last minute, but they distract from your message and don’t hold meaning. Make sure your antecedents agree with your pronouns, limit the use of intensifiers, and please, stop using adverbs.