Sometimes, attention to details requires a writer to exclude words altogether rather than include the correct or more appropriate ones. The phrases kind of and sort of provide excellent examples. To the experienced writer, they scream wordiness.
Wordiness will always diminish the professional image any writing conveys. That’s because the best writing always possesses clarity and conciseness. Of course, writers should seek first to be clear; the reader must receive the communicated message as the writer intended. But often, more than one way exists to achieve that clarity. That’s where conciseness comes in. Concise use of language conveys precision, a much more professional connotation than the sloppiness conveyed with using unnecessary words.
That’s what kind of and sort of are. They are colloquial phrases carried into written English from spoken English to mean rather, somewhat, or somehow. The imprecision of these words effectively communicates nothing. That’s why eliminating them altogether improves the professional image your writing conveys.
Consider the example sentence in the graphic above. Because kind of means rather, we can replace the one with the other. This produces
Wordiness will always diminish the professional image any writing conveys. That’s because the best writing always possesses clarity and conciseness. Of course, writers should seek first to be clear; the reader must receive the communicated message as the writer intended. But often, more than one way exists to achieve that clarity. That’s where conciseness comes in. Concise use of language conveys precision, a much more professional connotation than the sloppiness conveyed with using unnecessary words.
That’s what kind of and sort of are. They are colloquial phrases carried into written English from spoken English to mean rather, somewhat, or somehow. The imprecision of these words effectively communicates nothing. That’s why eliminating them altogether improves the professional image your writing conveys.
Consider the example sentence in the graphic above. Because kind of means rather, we can replace the one with the other. This produces
The design could not tolerate the rather adverse environment of the customer.
But that word rather doesn’t enrich the description or even enable it. What meaning becomes lost when we remove the word altogether?
The design could not tolerate the adverse environment of the customer.
No substantial meaning is lost by removing the qualifier. Compare this sentence with the original in the example graphic. This final sentence is a stronger one and conveys a more professional image because the writer minimizes the words needed to convey the message clearly.
Using kind and of together can sometimes be appropriate. Consider this example:
Using kind and of together can sometimes be appropriate. Consider this example:
The engineers use a special kind of material in their process.
Here the words kind and of together do not mean rather, somewhat, or somehow. They act separately and independently in the conveyance of the writer’s message. In this instance such a construction is appropriate.
But whenever your writing uses kind of as a qualifying adjective to mean rather, somewhat, or somehow, avoid its use altogether. The same goes for sort of as well. Learn the differences between spoken English and written English, and eliminate unnecessary words from your writing. More precise writing is better writing that better communicates not only your message but also a sense of professionalism associated with you, your organizations, and your brands.
But whenever your writing uses kind of as a qualifying adjective to mean rather, somewhat, or somehow, avoid its use altogether. The same goes for sort of as well. Learn the differences between spoken English and written English, and eliminate unnecessary words from your writing. More precise writing is better writing that better communicates not only your message but also a sense of professionalism associated with you, your organizations, and your brands.
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