Business Comm Chapter 5

Which statement contains a dangling expression? (A) Robert started analyzing the data after he told Jose about the deadline. (B) Mr. Carlton, our treasurer, spoke to the bank's managers on Thursday. (C) When you review a message, you should identify errors to be corrected. (D) David read the memo to Sammy, but he didn't like the new policy. (E) Michael asked Heather to make copies of the news article.

David read the memo to Sammy, but he didn't like the new policy.

Long words are appropriate when (A) slang is insufficiently formal for the message. (B) you want to stimulate a particular reaction. (C) short words can't convey your meaning. (D) negative language is not practical. (E) you are including brief subjunctive phrases.

short words can't convey your meaning.

One way to avoid exaggeration and sound more sincere is to use only an appropriate number of modifiers.

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Identify the sentence that does not contain a cliché, slang, or a buzzword. (A) If you want to play ball with me, you need to increase your offer. (B) Let me take this opportunity to congratulate you on your promotion. (C) As you requested, I sent a new catalog to the supervisor. (D) The bottom line is that we must strategize about improving our customer relations. (E) If I can be of further help, please do not hesitate to call me.

As you requested, I sent a new catalog to the supervisor.

Which statement does not contain a dangling expression? (A) Eric informed Jason about the policy changes, but he doesn't like the changes. (B) While reviewing the corporate report, a few discrepancies were found. (C) During a trip to the Boston office, the auditor will review the financial reports. (D) Abraham Lincoln wrote the Gettysburg Address while traveling to Gettysburg on the back of an envelope. (E) The manager plans to address the use of cell phones in weekly meetings.

During a trip to the Boston office, the auditor will review the financial reports.

Which of the following is not a good guideline for writing clearly? (A) Be sure the message is accurate and complete. (B) Use familiar words and phrases. (C) Emphasize compound sentences. (D) Avoid dangling expressions. (E) Eliminate unnecessary jargon.

Emphasize compound sentences.

Which statement about jargon is correct? (A) Jargon is effective when one is communicating with individuals in the same field. (B) Jargon can help a computer technician explain a network problem to a nontechnical manager. (C) Business writers should use jargon to impress their readers. (D) Slang is a synonym for jargon. (E) Jargon should be avoided in all business situations.

Jargon is effective when one is communicating with individuals in the same field.

Which sentence does not contain a cliché or overused expression? (A) According to a review of the records, you paid your bill after the due date. (B) Please review the enclosed report and send your comments to the president before November 20. (C) It goes without saying that customer service representatives must be polite at all times. (D) I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the development team for its extraordinary effort on the project. (E) Under separate cover you will receive three copies of the contract.

Please review the enclosed report and send your comments to the president before November 20.

Which sentence effectively uses words that are familiar to businesspeople? (A) Please ascertain whether the deliverance of merchandise will be forthcoming in the duration of the business cycle. (B) He was not cognizant of the actuality that he was still in a probationary period. (C) A financial deficit may be encountered during the transitional period following the merger. (D) The board of directors will soon meet to discuss acquiring the Sonar Company. (E) The accountant will commence to compute the amount of monetary funds that should be allocated for remunerations.

The board of directors will soon meet to discuss acquiring the Sonar Company.

Identify the sentence that contains specific, concrete language. (A) The committee met several times to discuss the proposal. (B) Many employees are dissatisfied with the change in retirement benefits. (C) A substantial number of complaints were received from customers. (D) Three new representatives will complete their training this week. (E) The speaker used an emotional tone when addressing the sales meeting.

Three new representatives will complete their training this week.

Identify the statement that does not contain an unnecessarily long word. (A) Brian fabricated the events of the accident to circumvent prosecution. (B) Please initiate the modification of the innovative computer system. (C) Try to bring William with you because he is vital to the meeting's success. (D) The vice president will recapitulate the presentation about how to utilize the new software. (E) Initiate termination procedures for employees who are not indispensable.

Try to bring William with you because he is vital to the meeting's success.

Identify the sentence that does not contain a mechanical error. (A) Please call the Springfield; MO, office. (B) He ordered 6 new computer systems for the office. (C) I understand the brochure is completed please send me a copy. (D) The new ceo plans to improve productivity by 15% in one year. (E) We use special packaging to protect our products.

We use special packaging to protect our products.

Short and simple words (A) should be used at all times to avoid dangling expressions. (B) are less likely than long, complex words to be misused or misunderstood. (C) are more effective if used in moderation. (D) contribute to an overly conversational tone. (E) are appropriate as supplements for clichés and jargon.

are less likely than long, complex words to be misused or misunderstood.

Mechanics include all of the following except (A) content. (B) punctuation. (C) number expression. (D) word division. (E) abbreviations.

content.

Short and simple words help business writers (A) impress their readers. (B) emphasize the receiver of the action. (C) use jargon to build credibility. (D) express their meaning without distracting readers. (E) use redundancy in appropriate situations.

express their meaning without distracting readers

A competent communicator frequently uses the word you, regardless of whether positive or negative news is conveyed.

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A writer using the phrase "thinking outside of the box" would be admired for fresh, original thinking.

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Adapting your language to the reader's needs helps you convey an appropriately condescending attitude.

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An effective business message includes sentences that range from 22 to 32 words in length.

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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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Because emails are short and informal, writers using this channel may begin most sentences with "I."

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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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Believing that your decision is based on sound reasoning increases your risk of writing with less confidence.

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Businesspeople value redundancy in messages because they need more data on which to base their decisions.

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Completeness is the most important attribute of a business message.

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Concrete language is effective only if it is sufficiently emotionally charged to stimulate a response.

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Effective business writers select words to impress their readers by evoking a reaction such as excitement, anger, or amusement.

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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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Effective writing avoids both redundancy and repetition.

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In some messages, you can save space by stating information and substituting clauses for adjectives or adverbs.

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Parallel structure is essential in report headings, but less important on bulleted lists on presentation slides.

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Repeating a particular word in several sentences within a paragraph highlights separate ideas and demonstrates parallelism.

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The first clause in a compound sentence receives more emphasis than the second, independent clause.

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The independent clause of a complex sentence should contain the supplemental information.

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The length of a paragraph depends on the organization's requirements, not on the reader's comprehension level.

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The phrase made a payment contains an expletive.

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The purpose of a paragraph is to group topic sentences in logical order for the reader's convenience.

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The statement "I am amazed that you filled in the form correctly" has a courteous tone.

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The three basic sentence types are compound-complex, complex, and simple.

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To achieve coherence, effective writers use different terms for the same idea, such as manager and supervisor.

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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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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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To build goodwill in a business letter, use neutral expressions such as cannot and will not.

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To sound confident, effective writers often use the phrase "I know that" in front of key assertions.

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To summarize a paragraph's content, you should position your topic sentence at the end

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Using buzzwords in business writing is a good way to show your familiarity with issues and trends in contemporary media.

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Using words such as deny and cannot helps you make a positive impression on your audience.

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When your message emphasizes how you, as the writer, will benefit, you are applying the "you" attitude.

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Writers should ask themselves "What's in it for me?" and then write so that the answer is obvious.

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Writing "I am sure that you will agree" in a business letter conveys an appropriate level of confidence.

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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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You can best help readers grasp your meaning by using old, familiar clichés rather than fresh, original language.

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You can signal a change in direction within a paragraph by starting a new sentence to introduce an additional topic.

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You look selfish if your message focuses only on what the reader will get from doing what you request in your message.

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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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sentence that consists of one independent clause that cannot stand alone as a complete thought is a simple sentence.

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By using short, simple words, you (A) emphasize the emotional meaning rather than the logical meaning of your message. (B) encourage readers to respond to your message using short slang words. (C) avoid a conversational tone that can distract readers from relevant facts and figures. (D) keep ethnocentrism out of your writing. (E) focus readers on the content of your message, not on how it is conveyed.

focus readers on the content of your message, not on how it is conveyed.

To ensure ethical communication, business writers should use (A) positive words and an emphatic tone. (B) integrity, fairness, and good judgement. (C) persuasion and tactful, indirect language. (D) ambiguous and complex language. (E) more information than the reader needs.

integrity, fairness, and good judgement.

Your message is inaccurate if you (A) include the who, what, when, where, and why. (B) omit something important that readers should know. (C) take care with the mechanics. (D) truthfully present the facts and figures. (E) present information without manipulating your readers.

omit something important that readers should know

If you use clichés in your business writing, you (A) should balance them with concrete, specific examples. (B) need short, simple words to convey relevant facts and figures. (C) risk having your readers misinterpret the main points you want to convey. (D) send the message that you can't be bothered with tailoring your words to your readers. (E) focus your readers on the content of your message, not on the way it is conveyed.

send the message that you can't be bothered with tailoring your words to your readers.

Style consists of (A) the effective use of words, sentences, paragraphs, and tone. (B) creative ideas presented in subjunctive form. (C) the balanced use of complex, compound, and negative language. (D) business messages organized with the main point first. (E) frequent use of redundancy to reinforce important points.

the effective use of words, sentences, paragraphs, and tone.

"Our school is buying both pens and pencils for students' use" is a sentence with proper parallel structure.

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A cliché is a phrase that has been used for so long that it is not considered original.

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A misplaced modifier is one common type of dangling expression.

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A paragraph lacks unity when it contains sentences or details that are not directly related to the topic.

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A sentence lacks parallelism if similar ideas are expressed using different grammatical structures.

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A series of short paragraphs can weaken coherence by obscuring underlying relationships.

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All else being equal, an idea with more space devoted to it will be judged as more important than an idea covered more briefly.

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An expletive at the beginning of a sentence can make the subject of the sentence unclear.

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Any message that omits key information is not accurate.

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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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By matching nouns with nouns and adjectives with adjectives, you can achieve parallel structure.

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By substituting a single word for a phrase, you are "getting rid of the lard" in a sentence.

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Effective business communicators use a confident, competent tone in their messages but avoid sounding arrogant.

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Effective communicators avoid slang in business writing because it does not represent standard word usage.

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Elements of written communication such as spelling, abbreviations, and punctuation are known as mechanics.

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Hidden verbs weaken sentences because they do not emphasize the main action.

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Including examples or more analysis in a paragraph helps you develop the main idea.

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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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Obvious flattery detracts from the sincerity of your message.

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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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Paragraphs provide readers with a physical break, keeping your message from looking either boring and too simplistic or intimidatingly complex.

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Pronouns can bind sentences and ideas together to create a more coherent paragraph.

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Putting an idea in a short, simple sentence emphasizes its importance.

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Rather than eliminating long words from your business communication, use them in moderation when appropriate.

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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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Readers will see your writing as unoriginal and even monotonous if you add the ending -ize to transform nouns into verbs (such as agenda into agendize).

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Redundancy is an ineffective method of repeating and reinforcing an idea that you expressed earlier in your message.

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Slang is an informal expression, often short-lived, that is identified with a specific group of people.

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Style consists of the way your message is expressed, including the effectiveness of the words, sentences, paragraphs, and tone.

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Techniques for creating paragraph coherence include using transitional words, using pronouns, and repeating key words.

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The passive voice focuses attention on the entity receiving the action rather than performing the action.

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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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The transitional word finally indicates a summary or conclusion.

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The transitional word nevertheless shows a contrasting relationship.

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To achieve a sincere tone, avoid obvious flattery.

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Using platitudes will give readers the sense that you have a condescending attitude.

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Using positive expressions helps you build goodwill among audience members.

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Using the passive voice when discussing a reader's mistake is often appropriate.

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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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When writing a letter to a customer, emphasize what your organization can do rather than what it can't do.

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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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When you want to give equal weight to two closely related ideas in a single sentence, use a compound sentence.

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You can emphasize an idea by putting it into the first or last paragraph.

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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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You may use long words in your business writing if the language is familiar to you and to your reader.

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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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