Business Comm Chapter 4

Clichés are __________.

Clichés, expressions that have become exhausted by overuse, should be avoided in business writing. They lack freshness and clarity and may be misunderstood by people of different cultures. See page 96.

To make your business messages more effective, revise for vigor and directness. You can strengthen your writing by unburying verbs, controlling exuberance, and choosing precise words. Which of the sentences does not contain buried verbs?

Consider the economic climate; Buried verbs have been needlessly converted into wordy noun expressions. Keep your messages clear and concise by unburying verbs to avoid wordy verb/noun conversions. Engaged in the preparation of can be unburied as prepared. Make an assumption can be unburied as assume. Take action can be unburied as act.

In order to sound businesslike, many writers use stale expressions. Which of the following is a fresh, vigorous, and clear phrase?

Enclosed is; Stale or trite business phrases often interfere with the clarity and directness of business messages. Separately, about, and enclosed is are clearer and more direct than the other choices.

Headings should be used in reports only; they are not appropriate for other business documents such as e-mail messages, letters, and memos.

False; Headings appear most often in reports; however, headings can also improve readability in e-mails, letters, and memos. See page 101.

Microblogging consists of short messages exchanged on social media networks.

Microblogging consists of short messages exchanged on social media networks such as Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr. Regardless of the medium, your messages must be concise, clear, and correct. See page 94.

How many typefaces should you use in a business document?

Use no more than two typefaces within a document, and choose typefaces from the serif or sans serif category. See page 100.

Proofreading and evaluating your work will help you compose messages that are clear, concise, and direct. Revise for clarity by eliminating trite phrases, avoiding jargon and slang, and dropping cliché́s. How can you eliminate unclear writing?

Write for clarity, not to impress someone. Focus on expressing your point, not impressing your reader.

All of following statements regarding bulleted or numbered lists are accurate except __________.

end punctuation should be added to all bulleted or numbered lists; Numbered lists show a sequence, and bulleted lists should be used to highlight items that don't necessarily show a chronology. Additionally, capitalize the initial word of each line, and end punctuation only if the listed items are complete sentences, and make all lines parallel in construction. See pages 100-101.

The following sentence demonstrates effective business writing: The hiring committee will perform an analysis of each candidate's application.

False; This sentence needlessly converts a verb (analyze) to a wordy noun expression (perform an analysis of), adding sentence length, draining verb strength, slowing the reader, and muddying the thought. Rewrite the sentence: The hiring committee will analyze each candidate's application. See page 97.

Which statement regarding headings is most accurate?

Headings are an effective tool to highlight information and improve readability. They also help the reader separate major ideas from details and skim information quickly. Although headings appear most often in reports, they can also improve readability in other business documents. See pages 101-103.

Headings are important for visual impact and readability. Which of the following sentences about headings are true?

Headings help writers organize information and help readers absorb information. Headings increase the readability and skim value of a document by providing quick previews or reviews. Documents may have several different levels of headings including main headings, subheadings, and category headings. Headings may be found in e-mails, letters, and memos, but they are most commonly encountered in reports.

To be successful in the business world, you must be able to create concise and easy-to-read messages. As you revise, eliminate flabby expressions, long lead-ins, fillers, redundancies, and empty words. Your audience will appreciate your brevity. Which of the following sentences contain flabby expressions?

In the event that Marie calls, please inform her that we will be proceeding along the normal course of events. Concise sentences are trim and lean. Avoid flabby phrases such as in the event that, proceeding along the normal course of events, feel free to, and until such time.

Which of the following is the best tip for proofreading documents?

Once the message is in its final form, you should proofread it. Proofreading before the document is completed is generally a waste of time because you may check items that are eventually changed. See pages 103-104.

The third phase of the 3-x-3 writing process involves __________.

The final phase of the 3-x-3 writing process focuses on editing, proofreading, and evaluating. Editing involves improving the content and sentence structure of your message. Proofreading involves correcting its grammar, spelling, punctuation, format, and mechanics. Evaluating is the process of analyzing whether your message achieves its purpose. See page 90.

There is a new procedure that is now required for submitting time sheets is an example of a sentence containing __________.

The sentence contains a filler: There is. This sentence could be made more concise by eliminating the filler: A new procedure is now required for submitting time sheets. See pages 92-93.

I am sending you this letter to let you know that the team is ready for its next assignment.

The team is ready for its next assignment; This revision doesn't contain a long lead-in stating something obvious, such as I am sending you this letter.

It is the user who should contact the help center.

The user should contact the help center Avoid wordy phrases such as it is the user who. Strive for simplicity and directness in your messages.

Words such as definitely, quite, extremely, very, and actually are __________.

These words are adverbs. Excessive use of these adverbs should be avoided to strengthen business writing. See page 97.

Ragged-right margins increase white space and improve readability.

True; When right margins are ragged—that is, without alignment or justification—they provide more white space and improve readability. Therefore, you are best served by using left-justified text and ragged-right margins without justification. See page 99.

As you revise, make your writing clear by using specific verbs, concrete nouns, and vivid adjectives.

True; As you revise, make sure your words are clear and precise so that the audience knows exactly what you mean. Clear writing creates meaningful images in the reader's mind through specific verbs, concrete nouns, and vivid adjectives. See page 98.

When you compose a message, you want your audience to find the information it needs quickly and to understand it. Your message should be easy to read and comprehend. Strategic use of white space improves document readability. Which of the following techniques employ white space?

Using bulleted and numbered lists; To improve the readability of a document, create ample white space by using bulleted and numbered lists, breaking paragraphs into shorter chunks, and using headings.

When microblogging, you should practice all of the following except __________.

When microblogging, you should create short, concise messages. You should also include only main ideas, choose descriptive but short words, personalize your message if possible, and be prepared to write several versions. See pages 94-95.

The buried verb phrase engage in evaluation can be revised to __________.

evaluate; Using a noun phrase instead of a verb lengthens your sentence, weakens the verb, and reduces clarity. Unbury verbs to create more effective messages.

For complex documents it's best to proofread __________.

from a printed copy; Although you may proofread documents on a computer screen for a quick check, you should proofread complex documents from a printed copy. See pages 104-105.

The best way to evaluate the effectiveness of your writing is__________.

through feedback from your receiver