By name: elements-of-style description: > High-impact writing rules from Strunk's Elements of Style (1918, public domain). Focused on active voice, conciseness, specificity, and positive form. Use when editing prose for clarity and force.
Elements of Style -- Core Rules
These rules have the highest impact on writing quality. Apply them to all prose output.
Rule 1: Use the active voice
The active voice is more direct and vigorous than the passive.
| Weak (passive) | Strong (active) |
|---|---|
| My first visit to Boston will always be remembered by me. | I shall always remember my first visit to Boston. |
| There were a great number of dead leaves lying on the ground. | Dead leaves covered the ground. |
| The reason that he left college was that his health became impaired. | Failing health compelled him to leave college. |
| It was not long before he was very sorry that he had said what he had. | He soon repented his words. |
Avoid making one passive depend directly upon another. The passive voice is acceptable when the receiver of the action is the topic of the paragraph.
Rule 2: Put statements in positive form
Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, non-committal language. Use not as a means of denial or antithesis, never as evasion.
| Weak (negative evasion) | Strong (positive) |
|---|---|
| He was not very often on time. | He usually came late. |
| not honest | dishonest |
| did not remember | forgot |
| did not pay any attention to | ignored |
| did not have much confidence in | distrusted |
Rule 3: Use definite, specific, concrete language
Prefer the specific to the general, the definite to the vague, the concrete to the abstract.
| Vague | Concrete |
|---|---|
| A period of unfavorable weather set in. | It rained every day for a week. |
| He showed satisfaction as he took possession of his well-earned reward. | He grinned as he pocketed the coin. |
Rule 4: Omit needless words
Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all his sentences short, but that he make every word tell.
| Wordy | Concise |
|---|---|
| the question as to whether | whether |
| there is no doubt but that | no doubt |
| used for fuel purposes | used for fuel |
| he is a man who | he |
| in a hasty manner | hastily |
| owing to the fact that | since |
| the fact that he had not succeeded | his failure |
Rule 5: Avoid a succession of loose sentences
Do not construct too many sentences of two co-ordinate clauses joined by and, but, so, who, which, when. Vary sentence structure: use simple sentences, semicolon-joined clauses, periodic sentences, and sentences of three clauses.
Words to Watch
These words often signal weak writing. When you spot them, consider revision:
- case, character, nature -- Usually redundant ("acts of a hostile character" becomes "hostile acts")
- factor, feature -- Hackneyed; replace with something more direct
- interesting -- Don't announce; demonstrate
- very -- Use sparingly; prefer words strong in themselves
- however -- Not to come first in its sentence when meaning "nevertheless"
- literally -- Often incorrectly used to support exaggeration