ACT English: What is Redundancy and How to Fix it
The key to being a great author is to realize your target market. On the ACT English take a look at, the target market you’re writing to is, well, The ACT Dubai.
Something vital to be aware of ACT is they select a clear, concise style of writing. In widespread, the greater to-the-point, the higher. This doesn’t necessarily mean the shortest solution is constantly an appropriate solution, though. Truthfully, it depends on the sentence and what its predominant concept is.
When it involves selecting answers at the ACT, if it could be said in a simpler way, it’s probably no longer an appropriate preference.
What is Redundancy?
Redundancy, related to wordiness, is your enemy at the ACT Training Centres in Dubai. Redundancy is basically the addition of extra fluff that isn’t always essential to the effectiveness of the sentence. Sometimes it’s repeating the identical factor in one of a kind methods, now and again it’s the usage of synonyms with the same meaning right subsequent to each other. Either manner, it does not help reach the aim of clear and concise writing.
Let’s look at more than one examples of redundancy in writing:
However, contrary to popular opinion, boneless wings are simply wet fowl nuggets.
Can this be stated in a shorter manner without losing which means? Yes.
Are any elements of this sentence essentially pronouncing the identical factor, and consequently redundant? Also Yes.
‘However’ and ‘contrary to’ essentially suggest the identical aspect, so you simplest need one to get your point across, there’s no want to restate the identical factor. Using each at once plagues the sentence with redundancy, and breaks the clear and concise rule earlier than you even get to the moist chicken nugget element.
I just love sudden surprises!
Wanna know something surprising?
Surprises.
Surprises are unexpected.
You should simplify this sentence by means of losing ‘sudden’ absolutely. It’s implied that surprises are sudden without announcing they may be, and you don’t want it to make your factor.
It must be stated that redundancy does have a place in ordinary language. Often, redundant phrases sound accurate due to the fact we are saying them all of the time in actual life. Be prepared for ACT to get elaborate with that, and keep in mind how much they love clarity and preserving it concisely.
Redundancy at the ACT
You are probably thinking: how do I know while the ACT is trying out for redundancy? They won’t make it clear with neon lights and pointing arrows, in spite of everything. You’ll be looking for redundancy while taking the ACT. If any part of the sentence in the query might be stated with fewer words or by using synonyms, it could be redundant.
Let’s strive a exercise ACT query:
Carla is usually including additional gadgets to her buying cart to get free delivery.
A. NO CHANGE
B. Carla usually provides items
C. Carla regularly adds more things
D. Carla can pay extra for additional gadgets brought
Explanations:
A – Right off the bat, they hit us with “including additional”. Essentially the identical word, just with distinct suffixes, so we realize it’s redundant. This can’t be the best solution because redundancy is in no way correct on the ACT.
B – Simple, smooth, gets the point across.
C – This one is better than the original sentence, but ‘adds’ implies something extra, outside of what Carla is already shopping for. Therefore, ‘adds’ doesn’t want ‘more’ to get the factor throughout genuinely and concisely. While no longer as horrific as “including extra”, it’s nonetheless no longer without redundancy, so C is inaccurate.
D – It’s redundant at this factor: ‘addition’ and ‘introduced’ or any variant of the phrase ‘upload’ used more than as soon as in a sentence is not concise. You get the point, so D is inaccurate.
That leaves us with choice C. Clear, concise, to the point, and the best option to accurate this sentence.
A smooth manner to tell if the question you’re caught on entails redundancy is to peer if the solution alternatives are grammatically accurate or no longer. If each preference is grammatically correct, there’s an awesome hazard: it’s not a grammar query, however instead a fashion question. Commonly, this class of question at the ACT is testing your information of redundancy and how to fix it.
How to Fix Redundancy in Writing
The simplest manner to repair redundancy is to prioritize concise writing. Take out details which are useless, and look out for synonyms in the identical sentence.
Let’s look at another instance:
She combed her hair meticulously and thoroughly.
In this sentence, meticulously and thoroughly mean precisely the equal element, so you handiest want one among them to get your point across. This sentence would be wrong on the ACT and desires revision.
You can be tempted to write down the usage of fancy synonyms and sentence shapes to electrify the graders at the ACT, but keep your target audience in thoughts. They don’t care how many synonyms you understand with the same meaning, they want the maximum direct path to the point. Vocab stuffing for the sake of vocab stuffing gets you nowhere in standardized trying out. Save that on your blog.
Redundancy vs. Wordiness
Similar to redundancy, wordiness is frequently tested on the SAT and ACT. Wordiness is beating across the bush and fluffing up sentences to feature detail, whether or not it’s necessary or now not. However, as we know, you should prioritize clear and concise language at the ACT and SAT.
Feel free to stuff your writing with as many elements as your coronary heart desires outside of the checking out room, but during the ACT, say it absolutely, and say it quickly.
Here is an instance of wordiness so you recognise what to look out for:
Francesca likes tacos, however now and again she thinks they’re too spicy and desires they had less seasoning.
The underlined part of this sentence will be stated in a far easier manner. The fewer words the higher, even as keeping grammatical correctness. You could say:
Francesca likes tacos, however occasionally they’re too highly spiced for her flavor.
All factors of the sentence are nonetheless made, we just used fewer phrases. If a solution preference is grammatically correct and says basically the equal element with fewer phrases, there’s a very good chance it’s correct.
Final Thoughts
Similar to the SAT, the ACT prefers a clear, concise style of writing. Wordiness and redundancy are the opposite of clean and concise, so you ought to continually be in search of them for the duration of the test.
Wordiness takes too lengthy to get to the point and redundancy says the identical factor greater than as soon as unnecessarily. The fine way to repair redundancy is to make sure all phrases in a sentence are intentional and purposeful, without clouding the which means or getting repetitive.