Phrases to avoid in formal situations
Spanish Slang Unveiled: Speak with Flair!: Phrases to avoid in formal situations
In formal situations, it is important to avoid informal, vague, exaggerated, and subjective phrases. Some examples of phrases and language to avoid include:
- Informal expressions like “a bit,” “a lot of,” contractions (e.g., “isn’t,” “can’t”), “kind of,” and “sort of.”
- Vague terms such as “stuff,” “thing,” and nonspecific time phrases like “a while.”
- Exaggerations and absolutes like “always,” “never,” and intensifiers like “really,” “so,” or “super.”
- Slang, clichés (overused expressions like “think outside the box”), jargon (field-specific terms that may confuse others), colloquialisms, and everyday abbreviations (e.g., ASAP, info).
- Words or phrases that are redundant or unnecessary.
- Second-person pronouns (“you,” “your”) and contractions should be replaced with more formal alternatives.
- Avoid beginning sentences with informal words such as “plus,” “so,” “and,” or “besides” in formal writing.
By choosing precise, specific, and formal vocabulary, one can maintain clarity, professionalism, and objectivity in formal writing or speech contexts. Alternatives include using “many” instead of “a lot,” “somewhat” instead of “kind of,” and “one” or passive constructions instead of “you”. 2, 3, 5, 6