One type of word that too frequently springs up like a noxious weed in student writing is the qualifier/intensifier. Intensifiers are words like very, really, actually, and truly. Most of the time, they are either: 1.) not needed at all; or 2.) best eliminated by thinking of a better word (adjective, adverb or verb), thus embedding the “very-ness” into the newer, better word.
Let’s take for example the ever (over) popular intensifier “very,” a word I habitually cross out in student writing. Instead of writing that a building is “very tall” -- yawn, how blandly vague! -- why not describe the building as “monolithic” or “gargantuan,” both words that encapsulate the “very-ness” (and some massiveness too) into the “tallness”?
If “she runs really fast,” the intensifier “really” modifies the adverb “fast,” which in turn modifies the verb “runs.” So why not just replace the intensifier AND the adverb with a stronger verb? “She sprints” or “she dashes.”
Here’s another good example. Frequently, where I work, teachers will receive a message that announces, “Fire drills will be conducted today unless it is actively raining.” This message always leaves me scratching my head. How is “actively raining” different from “raining”?... Anytime you can eliminate an unnecessary word, that’s a great and beautiful revision and you should celebrate accordingly!
Perhaps the worst offenders are “truly” and “actually.” If “she is truly going to do it,” then “she is going to do it.” If “he handed me an actual loaf of bread,” then “he handed me a loaf of bread.” Adding “truly” or “actually” doesn’t make an object or action more real than it already is. In recent years, I’ve seen “physically” used too often as well. “The man physically handed me a dollar bill.” Ooookaaayyy… How about, “The man handed me a dollar bill” instead?
So, in sum, you should truly, really and actually stop using these unnecessary qualifiers and intensifiers!
© 2014 Bob Dial. All rights reserved.
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