Write shorter sentences to clarify your thesis

Writing that is concise presents ideas and information clearly and does not use more words than are truly necessary. Conciseness is an important characteristic of academic writing, especially given how complex the subject matter frequently is.

Two of the biggest enemies of concise writing are inflated phrases and redundancies. It’s easy to think that using more complicated-sounding phrases will give your text a more academic feel, but mostly it just makes it harder to follow.

Using the below strategies will make your writing not only tighter, but also more effective.

Avoid inflated phrases

One of the simplest ways to make your writing more concise is to avoid “inflated” phrases that use several words where just one or two would be sufficient.

Examples of inflated sentences in theses that you can write more concise

Inflated phrase	Example	More concise alternative	Example
A majority of	A majority of respondents were single parents.	Most	Most respondents were single parents.
A sufficient amount/number of	A sufficient number of cases were selected.	Enough	Enough cases were selected
As a result of	The interview was cancelled as a result of illness.	Because of, due to	The interview was cancelleddue to illness.
At all times	The laptop was kept in a locked office at all times.	Always	The laptop was always kept in a locked office.*
At the present time, at this point in time	The IT sector is expanding at the present time.	Now, currently	The IT sector is currently expanding.*
By means of	The surveys were distributed by means of email.	By	The surveys were distributed by email.
Draw attention to	Articles often draw attention to the most problematic cases.	Point out, point to	Articles often point to the most problematic cases.
Due to the fact that, in light of the fact that	This definition cannot be used due to the fact that it is too limiting.	Because	This definition cannot be used because it is too limiting.
For the purpose of	A spreadsheet was used for the purpose of recording the data.	For	A spreadsheet was used for recording the data.
For the reason that	Consultants were excluded for the reason that they are not regular staff.	Because	Consultants were excluded because they are not regular staff.
Have a tendency to	Economists have a tendency to favor policy reform.	Tend to	Economists tend to favor policy reform.
Have an impact on	Age appears to have an impact onconfidence.	Affect	Age appears to affectconfidence.
Have the ability to	The scale has the ability to measure to the microgram.	Be able to, can	The scale can measure to the microgram.
In comparison to	The data showed that CEOs earn more in comparison to CFOs.	Than	The results showed that CEOs earn more than CFOs.
In light of the fact that	Saad’s theory is chosen in light of the fact that it is most relevant.	Because	Saad’s theory is chosenbecause it is most relevant.
In order to	More research is needed in order tofill this gap.	To	More research is needed to fill this gap.
In spite of the fact that, despite the fact that	In spite of the fact that the sample size was limited, …	Although	Although the sample size was limited, …
In the event that	In the event that a question was left blank, …	If	If a question was left blank, …
In the neighborhood of	The factory produces in the neighborhood of 5,000 cars a week.	About	The factory produces about 5,000 cars a week.
In the year YYYY	Sales peaked in the year 2001.	YYYY	Sales peaked in 2001.
Is of the opinion	Wang (2009) is of the opinion that the model must be expanded.	Thinks, believes	Wang (2009) believes that the model must be expanded.
Make a calculation of	We made a calculation of the average IQ.	Calculate	We calculated the average IQ.
Make decisions about	Marketers must make decisions about their target audience.	Decide on	Marketers must decide on their target audience.
On two occasions	The patients were tested on two occasions.	Twice	The patients were tested twice.
Small in size	The control group is relatively small in size.	Small	The control group is relatively small.
The people who are located in	The people who are located in rural areas had fewer symptoms.	The people in	The people in rural areas had fewer symptoms.
The reason why	The reason why the population decreased is unknown.	The reason	The reason the population decreased is unknown.
Until such time as	Smartphones will be used until such time as a new technology is developed.	Until	Smartphones will be useduntil a new technology is developed.
Whether or not	The goal was to identify whether or not gender made a difference.	Whether	The goal was to identify whether gender made a difference.

* If you replace a prepositional phrase with an adverb, that adverb may need to shift to another part of the sentence.

Avoid redundancies

Another easy way to make your writing more concise is to avoid redundancies, which occur when the same idea is being expressed twice. In most cases, the meaning of one word is clearly implied in another (for example, isn’t a summary by nature brief? Could collaboration be done in any other way but together? Isn’t an import by definition foreign?).

Examples of avoiding redundancies in theses

Redundant phrase	Improvement
Advance planning	Planning
Alternative choice	Alternative
And etcetera	Etcetera
Ask the question	Ask
Assemble together	Assemble
Basic fundamentals	Fundamentals
Biography/autobiography of her life	Biography/autobiography
Brief moment	Moment
Brief summary	Summary
Careful scrutiny	Scrutiny
Cash money	Cash
Classify into groups	Classify
Collaborate together	Collaborate
Combine together	Combine
Compete with each other	Compete
Completely filled	Filled
Cooperate together	Cooperate
Could possibly	Could
Crisis situation	Crisis
Current incumbent	Incumbent
Current trend	Trend
Depreciate in value	Depreciate
Different kinds	Kinds
Disappear from sight	Disappear
During the course of	During
Each and every	Each
Earlier in time	Earlier
Empty space	Space
Equal to each other	Equal
Estimated at about	Estimate at
Favorable approval	Approval
Fellow colleague	Colleague
Few in number	Few
Final conclusion	Conclusion
Final end	End
First and foremost	Foremost
First of all	First
Follow after	Follow
Foreign imports	Imports
Former graduate	Graduate
Free gift	Gift
Future plans	Plans
General public	Public
Grow in size	Grow
Had done previously	Had done
HIV virus	HIV
Input into	Input
Interdependent on each other	Interdependent
Introduced for the first time	Introduced
Joint collaboration	Collaboration
Knowledgeable experts	Experts
Later time	Later
Little baby	Baby
Live audience	Audience
May possibly	May
Meet together	Meet
Might possibly	Might
Mix together	Mix
Mutually interdependent	Interdependent
Mutual respect for each other	Mutual respect
New innovation	Innovation
New invention	Invention
None at all	None
Oral conversation	Conversation
Over exaggerate	Exaggerate
Passing fad	Fad
Past history	History
Past memories	Memories
Present time	Present
Previously listed above	Previously listed
Protest against	Protest
Recur again	Recur
Re-elect for another term	Re-elect
Regular routine	Routine
Reply back	Reply
Safe haven	Haven
Spell out in detail	Spell out
Splice together	Splice
Still persists	Persists
Sum total	Total
Surrounded on all sides	Surrounded
Tall in height	Tall
Two/2:00 pm in the afternoon	Two/2:00 pm
Two equal halves	Halves
True facts	Facts
Unexpected surprise	Surprise
Unintentional mistake	Mistake
Very unique	Unique
Visible to the eye	Visible
Warn in advance	Warn