Ever catch yourself writing “make a decision” instead of simply “decide”? In this quick video, I unpack why those extra words—called smothered verbs—quietly weaken your prose and how recognizing them can sharpen every sentence. Together we’ll explore when it’s worth keeping the formal phrasing and when it’s better to let your verbs shine so your intentions stay vivid on the page.
Hello, Jane Cleland here. The question is, “I’ve heard that smothered verbs are bad. I’m ready to revise, but can you help me figure out what the problem is and how to fix them?”
Yes. Smothered verbs are generally bad. A smothered verb occurs when you take a perfectly good active verb and convert it into a noun. For example, instead of make a decision, why not just say, decide. Instead of issue an invitation, how about invite? Let the verb be powerful. Let it do its thing.
You know, this is one of my best revision tips in developing a revision plan that I talk about in my book, Beat the Bots, and it is important that you understand what are you trying to express and how to make it as powerful as possible. Here’s an example from the book.
“We’re here to conduct an investigation.” Why not just say, “We’re here to investigate.” Now, what might be an exception to that? If I’m trying to be very formal, arm’s length distance, if I have an investigator who’s perhaps pedantic, maybe his conversational style would be, “We’re here to conduct an investigation.” I could see that.
But from a writing point of view, I want that to be a conscious decision on your part, not automatic, and that’s where our discernment, our judgment, comes into play. I know you can do it. Make these decisions on the sentence level and generally let the verbs be powerful. Make them active. I know you can do it. How do you approach it? I’d love to read your comments.
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