Nouns and Verbs

As a general rule, write with nouns and verbs (they give writing its body and colour), not adjectives and adverbs.

As a second general rule, prefer action verbs to abstract nouns.

Using verbs

Verbs keep the reader reading. Choose strong verbs to replace weak ones such as is and are.

Use vivid verbs over drab linking verbs such as seems, appears, feels, looks, sounds, does, get, go, has, put, utilise, prioritise, implement.

Save would, should, could, may, might and can for situations involving real uncertainty. Do not use them to soften your assertions. If you are unsure about something, do not write it.

Using nouns

Do not use five nouns when one or two will do. It is ‘road works’, not ‘ongoing highway maintenance programme’.

Beware of noun proliferation and nominalisation (deriving nouns from verbs or adjectives). Sometimes verbs can strengthen a sentence by replacing nominalisation. Look for empty verbs followed by nouns and replace them with strong verbs:

• ‘he discovered’ rather than ‘he made a discovery’
• ‘he resisted’ rather than ‘he put up resistance’
• ‘the police investigated’ rather than ‘the police conducted an investigation’
• ‘he does not expect’ rather than ‘he has no expectation’
• ‘the study was careless’ rather than ‘the study tended towards carelessness’
• ‘the policies were different’ rather than ‘the policies showed marked differences’.