Another foray into the fascinating world of unnecessary words,
repetitions and other heinous crimes of grammar. If guilty, kindly write out
the following a hundred times each!
Absolutely certain:
You’re certain, are you? Well, if you are, you’re unlikely to be partially so.
Certainty is absolute, so the adjective is superfluous: Cut it out.
Basic fundamentals: If it’s basic, it’s fundamental. Tautology is
bad for you; don’t do it.
Close proximity: Now,
you know better than this. If something is in the proximity of something else,
it’s close to it; that’s what proximity means. Chose you word; one or the
other, not both.
Definite decision: Not
all decisions are final, but all decisions are definite, otherwise no decision
has been made. Cut away the inessential.
Estimated at about:
Estimation is approximation, so is ‘about’ in this context. You don’t need the
extra word.
Invited guests: We
call uninvited people ‘gate-crashers’. By their nature, guests have been invited.
Past history: History
is a record of past occurrences. If you’re recording the present or a predicted
future, it isn’t history. ‘Past’ isn’t needed.
Revert back: If
something reverts, it goes back to an earlier state. Leave the back against the chair and lean on
it.
Still remains: When
something remains it is still there. Let’s keep the still in the shed, making the illegal hooch, eh?
Usual custom:
Custom is routinely observed, that’s what makes it a custom. Unusually, however,
here it is possible to have an unusual custom, which is a custom practised in
one place but not common in another.
Another rant done with.
But, beware; there will be more!
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