How to Write More Concisely | Tips to Shorten Your Sentences
Concise writing presents ideas clearly and does not use more words than are truly necessary. Conciseness is an important characteristic of academic writing, especially given how complex the subject matter frequently is.
Two of the biggest enemies of concise writing are inflated phrases and redundancies. It’s easy to think that using more complicated-sounding phrases will give your text a more academic feel, but mostly it just makes it harder to follow.
Using the below strategies will make your writing not only tighter, but also more effective.
Table of contents
Avoid inflated phrases
One of the simplest ways to make your writing more concise is to avoid “inflated” phrases that use several words where just one or two would be sufficient.
| Inflated phrase | Example | More concise alternative | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| A majority of | A majority of respondents were single parents. | Most | Most respondents were single parents. |
| A sufficient amount/number of | A sufficient number of cases were selected. | Enough | Enough cases were selected |
| As a result of | The interview was cancelled as a result of illness. | Because of, due to | The interview was cancelled due to illness. |
| At all times | The laptop was kept in a locked office at all times. | Always | The laptop was always kept in a locked office.* |
| At the present time, at this point in time | The IT sector is expanding at the present time. | Now, currently | The IT sector is currently expanding.* |
| By means of | The surveys were distributed by means of email. | By | The surveys were distributed by email. |
| Draw attention to | Articles often draw attention to the most problematic cases. | Point out, point to | Articles often point to the most problematic cases. |
| Due to the fact that, in light of the fact that | This definition cannot be used due to the fact that it is too limiting. | Because | This definition cannot be used because it is too limiting. |
| For the purpose of | A spreadsheet was used for the purpose of recording the data. | For | A spreadsheet was used for recording the data. |
| For the reason that | Consultants were excluded for the reason that they are not regular staff. | Because | Consultants were excluded because they are not regular staff. |
| Have a tendency to | Economists have a tendency to favor policy reform. | Tend to | Economists tend to favor policy reform. |
| Have an impact on | Age appears to have an impact on confidence. | Affect | Age appears to affect confidence. |
| Have the ability to | The scale has the ability to measure to the microgram. | Be able to, can | The scale can measure to the microgram. |
| In comparison to | The data showed that CEOs earn more in comparison to CFOs. | Than | The results showed that CEOs earn more than CFOs. |
| In light of the fact that | Saad’s theory is chosen in light of the fact that it is most relevant. | Because | Saad’s theory is chosen because it is most relevant. |
| In order to | More research is needed in order to fill this gap. | To | More research is needed to fill this gap. |
| In spite of the fact that, despite the fact that | In spite of the fact that the sample size was limited, … | Although | Although the sample size was limited, … |
| In the event that | In the event that a question was left blank, … | If | If a question was left blank, … |
| In the neighborhood of | The factory produces in the neighborhood of 5,000 cars a week. | About | The factory produces about 5,000 cars a week. |
| In the year YYYY | Sales peaked in the year 2001. | YYYY | Sales peaked in 2001. |
| Is of the opinion | Wang (2009) is of the opinion that the model must be expanded. | Thinks, believes | Wang (2009) believes that the model must be expanded. |
| Make a calculation of | We made a calculation of the average IQ. | Calculate | We calculated the average IQ. |
| Make decisions about | Marketers must make decisions about their target audience. | Decide on | Marketers must decide on their target audience. |
| On two occasions | The patients were tested on two occasions. | Twice | The patients were tested twice. |
| Small in size | The control group is relatively small in size. | Small | The control group is relatively small. |
| The people who are located in | The people who are located in rural areas had fewer symptoms. | The people in | The people in rural areas had fewer symptoms. |
| The reason why | The reason why the population decreased is unknown. | The reason | The reason the population decreased is unknown. |
| Until such time as | Smartphones will be used until such time as a new technology is developed. | Until | Smartphones will be used until a new technology is developed. |
| Whether or not | The goal was to identify whether or not gender made a difference. | Whether | The goal was to identify whether gender made a difference. |
* If you replace a prepositional phrase with an adverb, that adverb may need to shift to another part of the sentence.
Avoid redundancies
Another easy way to make your writing more concise is to avoid redundancies, which occur when the same idea is being expressed twice. In most cases, the meaning of one word is clearly implied in another (for example, isn’t a summary by nature brief? Could collaboration be done in any other way but together? Isn’t an import by definition foreign?).
| Redundant phrase | Improvement |
|---|---|
| Advance planning | Planning |
| Alternative choice | Alternative |
| And etcetera | Etcetera |
| Ask the question | Ask |
| Assemble together | Assemble |
| Basic fundamentals | Fundamentals |
| Biography/autobiography of her life | Biography/autobiography |
| Brief moment | Moment |
| Brief summary | Summary |
| Careful scrutiny | Scrutiny |
| Cash money | Cash |
| Classify into groups | Classify |
| Collaborate together | Collaborate |
| Combine together | Combine |
| Compete with each other | Compete |
| Completely filled | Filled |
| Cooperate together | Cooperate |
| Could possibly | Could |
| Crisis situation | Crisis |
| Current incumbent | Incumbent |
| Current trend | Trend |
| Depreciate in value | Depreciate |
| Different kinds | Kinds |
| Disappear from sight | Disappear |
| During the course of | During |
| Each and every | Each |
| Earlier in time | Earlier |
| Empty space | Space |
| Equal to each other | Equal |
| Estimated at about | Estimate at |
| Favorable approval | Approval |
| Fellow colleague | Colleague |
| Few in number | Few |
| Final conclusion | Conclusion |
| Final end | End |
| First and foremost | Foremost |
| First of all | First |
| Follow after | Follow |
| Foreign imports | Imports |
| Former graduate | Graduate |
| Free gift | Gift |
| Future plans | Plans |
| General public | Public |
| Grow in size | Grow |
| Had done previously | Had done |
| HIV virus | HIV |
| Input into | Input |
| Interdependent on each other | Interdependent |
| Introduced for the first time | Introduced |
| Joint collaboration | Collaboration |
| Knowledgeable experts | Experts |
| Later time | Later |
| Little baby | Baby |
| Live audience | Audience |
| May possibly | May |
| Meet together | Meet |
| Might possibly | Might |
| Mix together | Mix |
| Mutually interdependent | Interdependent |
| Mutual respect for each other | Mutual respect |
| New innovation | Innovation |
| New invention | Invention |
| None at all | None |
| Oral conversation | Conversation |
| Over exaggerate | Exaggerate |
| Passing fad | Fad |
| Past history | History |
| Past memories | Memories |
| Present time | Present |
| Previously listed above | Previously listed |
| Protest against | Protest |
| Recur again | Recur |
| Re-elect for another term | Re-elect |
| Regular routine | Routine |
| Reply back | Reply |
| Safe haven | Haven |
| Spell out in detail | Spell out |
| Splice together | Splice |
| Still persists | Persists |
| Sum total | Total |
| Surrounded on all sides | Surrounded |
| Tall in height | Tall |
| Two/2:00 pm in the afternoon | Two/2:00 pm |
| Two equal halves | Halves |
| True facts | Facts |
| Unexpected surprise | Surprise |
| Unintentional mistake | Mistake |
| Very unique | Unique |
| Visible to the eye | Visible |
| Warn in advance | Warn |
More about repetition and redundancy
Sources in this article
We strongly encourage students to use sources in their work. You can cite our article (APA Style) or take a deep dive into the articles below.
This Scribbr articleVinz, S. (April 16, 2020). How to Write More Concisely | Tips to Shorten Your Sentences. Scribbr. Retrieved October 17, 2022, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-writing/write-concisely/
