Eliminating redundancy is one of the key skills to fluency, but what is redundancy or a redundant word/phrase? If you can remove a word from a sentence without changing its core meaning, that word is redundant or unnecessary. Not every redundancy is a flaw, sometimes it is helpful to add variety to your sentences. The safest way to get rid of redundant phrase is to hire a professional copy-editor. Check out the following example, it is not only redundant but […]
Dragoman prefers “and so on” or “and so forth” to “etc.” (et cetera) to show that there are many other similar things or people that we can add. However, combining “such as” with “and so on” or “and so forth” in a sentence causes a redundancy. Incorrect: Animals such as mountain lions, wolves and so on are carnivores. Correct: Animals such as mountain lions and wolves are carnivores.
If we begin by saying e.g., which means for example, it is redundant to add and so on or and so forth at the end. Incorrect: Some EU countries (e.g., Italy, Belgium, Greece and so on) are largely dependent on gas imports from abroad. Correct: Some EU countries (e.g., Italy, Belgium, Greece) are largely dependent on gas imports from abroad. Redundancy or wordiness is the enemy of clarity; makes it difficult to read and understand your sentences. On this knowledbase […]