Writing Book 6 · Lesson 4

What is special about academic English? — bring the words back

Two words can mean the same and belong in different places. Choosing is about the writing, not the meaning.

The words

postpone
put off
improve
get better
deteriorate
get worse
identify
find
address
deal with
indicate
point out
support
back up
omit
leave out

Watch how it is built

1postpone means about the same as put off.
The trip was postponed until Friday.
2improve means about the same as get better.
Her writing improved over the term.
3deteriorate means about the same as get worse.
The weather deteriorated by evening.

Two ways to say it

✗ The trip was put offd until Friday. — this is not wrong, but it is everyday talk.

✓ The trip was postponed until Friday. — this is how a writer says it.

Ask yourself: “Where would a reader expect to meet this word?”

Remember

Every everyday verb has a formal twin.

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