Hi, it's Lisa here from Capstone Editing.
In this video,
I'll explain how to improve your academic
writing by avoiding
colloquial language.
Colloquial language is appropriate to
a characteristic of conversational speech
or informal writing.
Academic writing requires a formal time characterized by
careful language choices to convey your ideas to to readers as precisely
as possible.
Colloquial language, on the other hand, doesn't satisfy this need
for exactness of expression.
In fact, on the other hand is a great example.
It's perfectly acceptable for speech, but if I saw it in a postgraduate thesis
I was editing, I would change it to a more appropriate and formal term like
—'conversely.'"
Pam Peters, who wrote the Cambridge guide
to Australian English usage, says that "'Colloquial language
undermines the serious effect you want to have on the reader.'"
She advises that your writing should not appear
casual, imprecise, or gloss over details.
So, to create the best impression when writing academically, it's recommended to
find formal equivalents for any colloquialisms you might be tempted to
use.
Okay, so what do you need to avoid?
Some types of colloquial language are obviously inappropriate for use in
academic writing, such as slang. For example, 'till' instead of 'until.'
And phrases like 'my bad' or 'cool.'
However, there are some other types of colloquial language that also need to be
avoided, that are less obvious. Which I'll explain.
Clichés are a form of colloquial language, A cliché is an expression that is an
expression that has been overused to the extent that it loses its
original meaning or novelty.
For example, 'time will tell' and 'as luck
would have it.'
These expressions are commonly used in speech, but for formal writing they
lack both the specificity and meaning required to lend accuracy to your writing,
and the originality to make your writing more interesting.
Instead, you could use phrases like 'become clear over time'
and 'fortunately.'
Idioms also need to be need to be avoided. An idiom is a word or phrase that is not
taken literally.
Some examples are 'a drop in the ocean' and 'cut to the chase'
These expressions are extremely common in speech,
but they pose important problems in academic writing.
First, as with clichés, these expressions lack specificity of meaning.
Second, and even more, problematically,
because idioms cannot be
understood literally, using them risks
misinterpretation of your meaning by readers, without the necessary language
skills.
Fillers also need to be avoided in academic writing