The “as opposed to” rule in writing

You won’t find it in any English grammar textbook, but the “as opposed to” (AOT) rule has always been one of the most useful techniques I use to keep my writing concise and uncluttered. It goes a long way to eliminating unnecessary adjectives and reducing redundancies. When you’re editing your material (whether it’s a full length book, a magazine article, or a letter to a client) put every sentence to the AOT test and use the delete key liberally.

Here are a few AOT law breakers I’ve come across (with the unnecessary word in italics):

“I joined her at 5 pm in the evening.”(As opposed to what? 5 pm in the morning?)

“We need to carefully plan our future actions.” (AOT what? Planning our past actions?)

“He was approached by an armed gunman.” (AOT what? An unarmed gunman wouldn’t pose much of a threat, now would he?)

“I made advance reservations for the seminar.” (AOT what? Retroactive reservations?)

“The peach was smooth to the touch.” (AOT what? Smooth to the smelling?)

“The convention featured several well-known celebrities.” (AOT what? Obscure celebrities?)

“…at least 20 or more.” (AOT what? At least 20 or less?)

“Let me repeat that again.” (AOT what? I can’t even think of a sarcastic comeback for this one!)

“It was in close proximity to the airport.” (AOT what? Far away proximity?

“He’s the bald-headed man in the corner.” (AOT what? The bald-footed guy?

“The patient’s vertebrae had fused together.” (AOT what? Fused apart?)

“She was nostalgic for the past.” (AOT what? Nostalgic for the future?)

“They were all personal friends of mine.” (AOT what? Impersonal friends of someone else?)

How many can you spot in your writing? Don’t feel badly when you do. I’ve been a professional writer and editor for four decades and I still find at least two in every article I write!

p.s. The funniest example of an AOT violation is “tuna fish.” (AOT what? Tuna bird?)

Tags: concise, grammar, redundancy