Redundancies/Wordiness

When something is redundant, it is repetitive or excessive. Most of us use unnecessary words when writing, especially when we're unsure of ourselves or our topics. Some of us have been encouraged to write this way by high school teachers. It sounds more official on the surface.

It's easy to correct a wordy paper. After writing your rough draft, take a pen and slash through the excess baggage. Sometimes you can substitute one or two words for a whole string of nonsense. Other times, you may have to rework your sentence. Ask yourself, "What am I trying to say?" Be concise.

Redundant:	My own personal opinion is that we should ban all final exams given to students at the end of the semester.
Precise:	Final exams should be banned.

How would you correct the following sentences?

1. It seems to me that each and every one of us is guilty of being redundant and repetitive on one occasion or another in our lives.
2. I would like to state that your report on further progress looks good.
3. I remember one Christmas that sticks in my mind.
4. The risks are various and range from minor infections to deadly illnesses, while the benefits are only temporary and of a short duration.
5. I am sending along a Xerox copy of Ms. Jackson's manual in regard to word processing.
6. I drank so much I couldn't hardly drive home to my house.
7. In this book it states that we have an absolutely unique town hall. This town hall is the tallest in height in the nation. In my opinion, I think that we should be proud of that.
8. When I first got the job, it was for the very fact that I had traveled so very frequently.
9. I feel that because fencing is an individual sport that it allows you to push yourself to your full limits.
10. My grandmother cannot afford to buy a car because she does not have enough income coming in to be able to buy one.

Possible Corrections:

1. Each of us is redundant on occasion.
2. Your progress report looks good.
3. One Christmas sticks in my mind.
4. The risks range from minor infections to deadly illnesses, while the benefits are only temporary.
5. I am sending a copy of Ms. Jackson's word processing manual.
6. I drank so much I could hardly drive home.
7. This book states that we have a unique town hall. It is the tallest in the nation. We should be proud of that.
8. I got the job because I had traveled so frequently.
9. Because fencing is an individual sport, it allows you to push yourself to your limits.
10. My grandmother cannot afford to buy a car because she does not have enough income.

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