When we speak or give a presentation, we often use emphatic language to get our point across more, well, emphatically!
However, in writing, we should eliminate this language if possible to avoid sounding emotionally involved.
Emphatic language includes techniques such as:
- – Emphatic alternatives to ‘and’: not only… but also…; both… and…
- – Cleft sentences: including additional emphatic phrases with the verb ‘to be’:
What they need is an editor.
The most important thing to do is to reach an agreement.
Cleft sentence removed: They need an editor.
They need to reach an agreement.
- – Inversion:
Only when the meeting had finished did we realize that we had forgotten to raise a key point.
When the meeting had finished, we realized that we had forgotten to raise a key point.
Can you remove the emphatic language underlined in these sentences?
- 1. What has changed has been the type of poliovirus material whose risk is to be eliminated.
- 2. Prevention of sexual transmission of infection, coupled with timely detection and treatment initiation, will not only benefit and improve the health of those who are living with the infection but also help in the prevention of onward transmission.
- 3. There is a gender working group that functions at the country level that is known as ‘The regional gender working group for HIV-affected people’.
Answer key
- 1. The type of poliovirus material whose risk is to be eliminated has changed.
- 2. Prevention of sexual transmission of infection, coupled with timely detection and treatment initiation, will benefit and improve the health of those who are living with the infection and help in the prevention of onward transmission.
- 3. A gender working group that functions at the country level is known as ‘The regional gender working group for HIV-affected people’.
- ________________________________________________
- Carol Waites (PhD)
- Email: carolswritingtips@gmail.com
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- https://carolswritingtips.com/writingtips/
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- Presentation/editing by Christina O’Shaughnessy (editor)
- https://worldwidewriting.org/