From the course: Writing in Plain English (2016)

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Delete extra words from your writing

Delete extra words from your writing

From the course: Writing in Plain English (2016)

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Delete extra words from your writing

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- When you hear the word expletive, you may think of a profane, vulgar obscene word, and those kinds of words certainly have no place in business writing. However, we're focusing on another meaning. The linguistic definition of expletive is a word without meaning that is added merely as a filler. When we think of a filler of any kind, wood filler, tooth filling, we understand that something is being added merely to fill a space. In the instance of split wood and a cavity, that filler can be a good thing. In writing, it's generally a bad thing. Sometimes fillers are used to refer to any word or expression that merely adds words to a sentence. In this lesson, I'm using filler specifically for the expletives: there and it. Those meaningless words that add nothing to the sentence except extra words. There is, there are, it is, are the opening words to watch for. Just to clarify, there is used correctly as an adverb, identifying a place. Put the book over there on the table. And it is used…

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