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More Diction LESSON SUMMARY This lesson continues the ideas presented in the last lesson: writing clearly and communicating accurately. It covers colloquialism, loaded language, consistent point of view, parallelism, and gender-neutral language.
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ood writers know that communicating requires choosing words carefully. Writing styles that are too formal or informal, inappropriate, or just plain emotional turn readers off. You may have the best ideas in the world, but if you can’t get them across in writing, no one will ever act on your great ideas. On the other hand, well-expressed, commonplace ideas are more likely to get attention. How you choose your words has everything to do with whether your writing gets the attention it deserves.
Colloquialism
Colloquialisms are informal words and phrases such as a lot, in a bind, pulled it off, and so on. These words and phrases are widely used in conversations between friends, but in written communication, they portray an attitude of chumminess or close friendship that may cause your message to be taken less seriously than you intended. You may even insult your reader without meaning to. A friendly, colloquial tone is fine in a personal letter; however, a more formal tone is better for business communications, which are meant to be taken seriously. Compare
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