1. As long as you use correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling in your business writing, you will be able to communicate your meaning.
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2. Style consists of the way your message is expressed, including the effectiveness of the words, sentences, paragraphs, and tone.
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3. Elements of written communication such as spelling, abbreviations, and punctuation are known as mechanics.
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4. Slang is an informal expression, often short-lived, that is identified with a specific group of people.
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5. A writer using the phrase "thinking outside of the box" would be admired for fresh, original thinking.
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6. Completeness is the most important attribute of a business message, as it is the basis of the writer's credibility.
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7. Your written message will be clearer if it is accurate, makes use of familiar words, and avoids the use of dangling expressions.
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8. Any message that omits key information is not accurate.
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9. A misplaced modifier is one common type of dangling expression.
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10. To be sure your message is understood, use as much specific jargon as possible when communicating with people outside your organization.
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11. Effective business writers select words to impress their readers by evoking a reaction such as excitement, anger, or amusement.
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12. Instead of using a vague word such as "substantial," it is better to use a more specific description, such as "140 miles."
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13. Concrete language is effective only if it is sufficiently emotionally charged to stimulate a response.
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14. Rather than eliminating long words from your business communication, use them in moderation when appropriate.
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15. You can best help readers grasp your meaning by using old, familiar clichés rather than fresh, original language.
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16. A cliché is a phrase that has been used for so long that it is not considered original.
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17. Effective communicators avoid slang in business writing because it does not represent standard word usage.
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18. Because slang words are in use for long periods, people who read business documents that are several years old should have no problem understanding them.
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19. Using buzzwords in business writing is a good way to show your familiarity with issues and trends in contemporary media.
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20. Readers will see your writing as falsely trying to impress if you add the ending "-ize" to transform nouns into verbs (such as "agenda" into "agendize")
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21. Redundancy is an ineffective method of repeating and reinforcing an idea that you expressed earlier in your message.
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22. Businesspeople value redundancy in messages because they need more data on which to base their decisions.
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23. By substituting a single word for a phrase, you can improve the pace of communication.
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24. Hidden verbs weaken sentences because they do not emphasize the main action.
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25. The phrase "made a payment" contains an expletive.
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26. An expletive at the beginning of a sentence can make the subject of the sentence unclear.
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27. In some messages, you can save space by stating information and substituting clauses for adjectives or adverbs.
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28. A sentence that consists of one independent clause that cannot stand alone as a complete thought is a simple sentence.
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29. The three basic sentence types are compound-complex, complex, and simple.
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30. When you want to give equal weight to two closely related ideas in a single sentence, use a compound sentence.
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31. The first clause in a compound sentence receives more emphasis than the second, independent clause.
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32. The independent clause of a complex sentence should contain the supplemental information.
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33. You can keep your business writing interesting and express relationships between ideas by varying the pattern and length of your sentences.
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34. An effective business message includes sentences that range from 22 to 32 words in length.
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35. The passive voice focuses attention on the entity receiving the action rather than performing the action.
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36. When you use the active voice, you are emphasizing the doer rather than the receiver of the action in that sentence.
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37. You should use active-voice verbs to convey negative news tactfully or to reduce emphasis on the doer of the action.
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38. Repeating a particular word in several sentences within a paragraph highlights separate ideas and demonstrates parallelism.
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39. A sentence lacks parallelism if similar ideas are expressed using different grammatical structures.
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40. The purpose of parallel structure is to link ideas and add a pleasing rhythm to sentences and paragraphs, which enhances coherence.
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41. By matching nouns with nouns and adjectives with adjectives, you can achieve parallel structure.
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42. "Our school is buying both pens and pencils for students' use" is a sentence with proper parallel structure.
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43. To summarize a paragraph's content, you should position your topic sentence at the end.
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44. The purpose of a paragraph is to group topic sentences in logical order for the reader's convenience.
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45. Including examples or more analysis in a paragraph helps you develop the main idea.
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46. Effective writing avoids both redundancy and repetition.
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47. A paragraph lacks unity when it contains sentences or details that are not directly related to the topic.
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48. When each sentence flows smoothly from the sentence before it and connects smoothly to the sentence after it, the resulting paragraph has coherence.
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49. You can signal a change in direction within a paragraph by starting a new sentence to introduce an additional topic.
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50. The transitional word "nevertheless" shows a contrasting relationship.
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51. The transitional word "finally" indicates a summary or conclusion.
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52. Pronouns can bind sentences and ideas together to create a more coherent paragraph.
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53. To achieve coherence, effective writers use different terms for the same idea, such as "manager" and "supervisor."
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54. The appropriate length of a paragraph depends on the organization's requirements, not on the reader's comprehension level.
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55. Paragraphs provide readers with a physical break, keeping your message from looking either boring and too simplistic or intimidatingly complex.
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56. One reason to control paragraph length is to avoid obscuring a key idea that appears in one of the middle paragraphs.
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57. A series of short paragraphs can weaken coherence by obscuring underlying relationships.
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58. Business writers aim for paragraphs that are 60 to 80 words long, with three or four sentences supporting a single topic sentence.
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59. To sound confident, effective writers often use the phrase "I know that" in front of key assertions.
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60. Effective business communicators use a confident, competent tone in their messages but avoid sounding arrogant.
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61. Readers may think you are unsure of yourself if you use self-conscious phrases such as "I hope" in your messages.
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62. Believing that your decision is based on sound reasoning increases your risk of writing with less confidence.
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63. Writing "I am certain that you will agree" in a business letter conveys an appropriate level of confidence.
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64. Using platitudes will give readers the sense that you have a condescending attitude.
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65. Adapting your language to the reader's needs helps you convey an appropriately condescending attitude.
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66. Obvious flattery detracts from the sincerity of your message.
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67. One way to avoid exaggeration and sound more sincere is to use only an appropriate number of modifiers.
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68. The statement "I am amazed that you filled in the form correctly" has a courteous tone.
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69. Effective communicators do not signal which of the ideas in a message are the most important because readers should be encouraged to draw their own conclusions.
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70. Putting an idea in a short, simple sentence emphasizes its importance.
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71. You can emphasize an idea by putting it into the first or last paragraph.
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72. To avoid influencing readers' attitudes toward an idea, you should imply but not actually say that it is of "primary importance."
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73. You are acting ethically if you imply but do not state that an idea is much more important than it is.
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74. Using words such as "deny" and "cannot" helps you make a positive impression on your audience.
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75. Using positive expressions helps you build goodwill among audience members.
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76. To build goodwill in a business letter, use neutral expressions such as "cannot" and "will not."
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77. When writing a letter to a customer, emphasize what your organization can do rather than what it cannot do.
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78. When your message emphasizes how you, as the writer, will benefit, you are applying the "you" attitude.
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79. You look selfish if your message focuses only on what the reader will get from doing what you request in your message. |