Professional Communication

Academic/Scientific Writing
What is Academic Language?

• Academic language or academic English is a register, that is, a variety of a language used for a speci c
purpose and audience in a particular context.

• Different in vocabulary and structure from the everyday spoken English of social interactions.

• Each type of communication (both academic and social) has its purpose, and neither is superior to the
other.

• Academic language is much more than vocabulary (language needs to be understood in relation to the
speakers/writer involved, the purpose of the communication, the audience/readers, and the context)

• Academic writing is usually unadorned and direct.

• generaly formal than writing in non-academic materials

• Avoid expressions that are too informal, unsophisticated, vague, exaggerated, or subjective, as
well as those that are generally unnecessary, redundant, and incorrect.

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•The learning of academic language requires more than learning about a variety
of linguistic components.

•It encompasses knowledge about ways of being in the world, ways of thinking,
interacting, speaking, and sometimes writing and reading, connected to
particular identities and social roles (Gee, 1992).

•Language operates within a sociocultural context, not in isolation

Academic Language in Writing

• Clear and concise expression of ideas in both written and spoken form- not a string of long,
inappropriate words.

• Wide range of vocabulary is essentatial -use of right words and shorter ones

• Avoid using everyday, informal language (colloquialisms, and slang words).

• In writing - structure (complete sentences, logical arrangement of ideas into paragraphs or

sections, grammar, spelling etc).

• Use connecting words and phrases to make your writing explicit and easy to follow

• Check your grammar and spelling carefully

Avoid some aspects of informal English

• Use of contractions (eg: It’s, he’ll instead of It is and he will unless you are quoting someone.

• Use colloquial language or slang words (eg. kid, a lot of/lots of, cool)

• Generally avoid "phrasal verbs" (e.g. put out, look into etc): Use one word equivalents, instead.

• Avoid common but vague words and phrases such as stuff, thing. Your writing needs to be more precise.

• Do not use “etc”.

• Never use the type of language used in texting!

• Aways write as concisely as you can, with no irrelevant material.

• Objective rather than subjective

Phrasal verbs

Informal: The balloon was blown up for the experiment.

Formal: The balloon was ___?_____for the experiment.

Informal: The patient got over his illness.

Formal: The patient ___?____ from his illness

Informal: Tomorrow's match has been called off because of the harsh weather
Formal: Tomorrow's match has been ___?_____because of the icy weather
Informal sentence starts

Certain words sound informal when used at the beginning of a sentence. Replace them with appropriate
transition words or can be simply avoided.

Example Alternative

Plus Plus, the participants were in (Moreover/Furthermore), the participants were

agreement on the third question in agreement on the third question

So So, it can be concluded that the Therefore, it can be concluded that the model
model needs further re nement needs further re nement
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Words that are used in casual conversations that do not belong in academic essays, called dead words

Refer: https://www.sjsu.edu/writingcenter/docs/handouts/Academic%20Language.pdf
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/formal-and-informal-language
ALTERNATIVES
Vague expressions

Using vague terms makes the writing imprecise and may cause people to interpret it in different ways.
Always try to be as speci c as possible.

Example Alternative

Stuff People are concerned about People are concerned about

their stuff their (belongings/possessions)

Thing The report presents The report presents many (details/ ndings/
many things recommendations)

A while This topic has interested This topic has interested researchers
researchers for a while for more than 30 years
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Too exaggerated

Some adverbs of frequency (such as always and never) and intensi ers (words that create emphasis, such as really) are
often too dramatic.
They may also not be accurate – you’re making a signi cant claim when you say something is perfect or never happens.
These terms do sometimes add value, but try to use them sparingly.

Example Alternative

Always, Researchers always argue that Researchers (frequently/

never commonly/ typically) argue that

Perfect The perfect solution to the (An ideal solution/one of the best
problem solutions) to the problem

Really, so, This theory is really important This theory is (important/critical/

super crucial)
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• Be careful with your statements - for example,

“Everybody shops online" - no, they don't. You must be specific and provide evidence to
support your writing. Be cautious unless you can, for example, prove it is always true, or true for
everyone you are talking about.

• You should consistently use evidence from your source reading to back up what you are saying
and reference this correctly.
Hedging/being cautious

• Hedging language refers to how a writer expresses certainty or uncertainty. Often in academic writing,
a writer may not be sure of the claims that are being made in their subject area, or perhaps the ideas
are good but the evidence is not strong.

• Use verbs, when necessary, such as would, could, may, might which ‘soften’ what you’re
saying.

• Use qualifying adverbs such as some, several, a minority of, a few, many to avoid making
overgeneralisations.

• Use phrases such as It is believed that … It is thought that … It is a widely held view that …It
has been reported that … It has commonly been assumed that …

(You must then provide the evidence to explain how/why that view, for example, is held and why this is
important, or 'right'/'wrong' in regards to your assignment question)
Sacles of Formality

Formal Neutral Informal

Offspring Children Kids

Abode/residence House/flat Place

Goodbye Bye-bye Bye or cheerio

Go amiss Go wrong Go pear-shaped It all went pear-shaped.

Avoid

• Jargon (i.e., “insider” terminology that may be dif cult for readers from other elds to understand,
In-group or specialized language. )

• Clichés (i.e., expressions that are heavily overused, such as think outside of the box and at the end
of the day)

• Everyday abbreviations (e.g., approx., ASAP, info.)

• Slang (e.g., cops, cool)
• Gender-biased language
• Generally unnecessary (e.g., redundant expressions that do not add meaning, such as compete with
each other instead of simply compete, discuss about (instead of discuss), repeat again (instead of
repeat)
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Informal constructions Example Alternative

A lot of, a couple of A lot of studies (Many/several/a great number

of) studies

Isn’t, can’t, doesn’t, would’ve (or The sample isn’t The sample is not
any other contraction)

You, your You can clearly see the One can clearly see the results.
results The results can clearly be seen
(i.e., the second-person
perspective)
 • Jargon - specialized vocabulary/terminology associated with a particular eld/profession, trade,
or area of activity. It is normally employed in a particular communicative context and may not be
Jargon well understood outside that context.

• For example, a lab report for chemistry requires different academic structure and vocabulary than
a newspaper article for social studies or a food recipe for home economics.

• Jargons are not usually understood by people outside that area. Jargon can help communicate
speci c concepts, but it can also make things less obvious or less accessible to outsiders.

Medical Jargon, Legal Jargon, Business Jargon, Police Jargon, Military Jargon

Only use in-group jargon when you are writing for members of that group. You should never use
jargon for a general audience without rst explaining it

Special terms can be useful shorthand within a particular audience and may be the clearest way to
communicate with that group. However, going beyond necessary technical terms to write in jargon
can cause misunderstanding or alienation, even if your only readers are specialists
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Cliche words

• A cliché is a tired, stale phrase or idiom that, because of overuse, has lost its impact.
• They tend to remain in use as part of everyday speech, they are not an effective means of
communicating in academic writing.

At the end of the day - ultimately

Refer: https://walton.uark.edu/business-communication-lab/Resources/ nal_Cliches.pdf

https://www.oxford-royale.com/articles/english-cliches/

https://libguides.mhs.vic.edu.au/c.php?g=940331&p=6843298

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Avoid Clippings

Shortening of a word tends to make it less formal.

•I’ll meet you in the lab(oratory).

•What’s on telly tonight? (???)
•We should put on an ad(vertisement) / an advert(isement)
•Shall I (tele)phone them?
•Her sister is a vet(erinary surgeon).
•Can I use your mobile (phone)?
Short Monosyllabic informal words

Informal versions of words are often short and monosyllabic.

•It cost me ten quid [pounds]

•I will help you peel the spuds [potatoes]
•My bike’s been stolen [bicycle]
•Come and meet my Mum and Dad [mother and father]
•Hi! Can’t stop; see you, bye! [hello; goodbye]
•I will get a cab from the station [taxi]
Avoid Gender-Biased Language

• Writing without gender bias is sound and effective and necessary for most audience.
• Avoid sexist language.
• Don’t refer to “the doctor” as he; instead, make the subject plural and refer to them as they. Avoid he/she, herself/
himself etc. unless you are referring to a speci c individual.

GENERIC USE

Mankind can also refer to all human beings, male and

female, usually in the sense of social or conscious • Original: mankind
beings. Although people generally consider it less sexist • Alternatives: humanity, people, human beings
than man, it is usually better to use a di erent
expression, such as human beings (with a plural verb) or • Original: man's achievements
humankind (with a singular verb): • Alternative: human achievements
The argument goes that because “man” referred to • Original: man-made
people more than men as a gender, it was gender- • Alternatives: synthetic, manufactured, machine-made
neutral, and so, “mann-cynn” is also gender-neutra
• Original: the common man
• Alternatives: the average person, ordinary people
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 OCCUPATIONS

• Original: chairman
• Alternatives: coordinator (of a committee or department),
moderator (of a meeting), presiding of cer, head, chair • Original: policeman and policewoman
• Alternative: police of cer
• Original: businessman
• Alternatives: business executive, business person
• Original: male nurse
• Original: reman • Alternative: nurse
• Alternative: re ghter
• Original: woman doctor
• Original: mailman • Alternative: doctor
• Alternative: mail carrier
• Original: steward and stewardess
• Alternative: ight attendant
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Refer: https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/gender-inclusive-language/
Slang words and Idiomatic Expressions

Avoid using them in formal academic writing:

• slang (words like y'all, yinz, cool, guys)

• idiomatic expressions ("pull someone's leg," "spill the beans," It was raining cats and dogs (Informal and less
credible)

For writing a very informal or humorous piece, slang or idiomatic expressions may be appropriate.
 Wordiness

Wordiness, or redundancy, often takes the form of circumlocutions (the use of many words
to say something that could be said in fewer words without losing meaning), or ller
words or ller phrases.

Don’t be tempted to use redundant words to increase your word count: they won’t add to
the quality of your writing! As an added danger, ller words/phrases can also be considered
cliché.
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First person pronouns

Avoid personal language (I, my, we etc). unless your guidelines allow it or require it (for example,
writing a re ective piece about your experience).

Informal: I considered various research methods for the study.

Formal: Various research methods were considered for the study

Informal: We believe the practice is unsustainable.

Formal: It is believed the practice is unsustainable

Informal: During the interview, I asked students about their experiences.

Formal: During the interview, students were asked about their experience
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Appropriate Pronoun Usage

English has no generic or common-gender—pronoun

“The student needs HIS pencil."

Recast into the plural

• Original: Give each student his paper as soon as he is finished.

• Alternative: Give students their papers as soon as they are finished.

Reword to eliminate gender problems.

• Original: The average student is worried about his grade.
• Alternative: The average student is worried about grades.
Using the masculine pronouns to refer to an inde nite pronoun (everybody, everyone, anybody,
anyone) also has the effect of excluding women. In all but strictly formal uses, plural pronouns have
become acceptable substitutes for the masculine singular.

• Original: Anyone who wants to go to the game should bring his money tomorrow.
• Alternative: Anyone who wants to go to the game should bring their money tomorrow.
An alternative to this is merely changing the sentence. English is very exible, so there is little reason
to "write yourself into a corner”:

• Original: Anyone who wants to go to the game should bring his money.
• Alternative: People who want to go to the game should bring their money.
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Euphemisms and Taboo words

Euphemisms are typically used to avoid the explicit mention of forbidden subjects, as opposed to
avoiding the use of forbidden elements of the language.

In social interactions, euphemisms are used to avoid directly addressing subjects that might be
deemed negative, embarrassing, or otherwise discomforting to the speaker or their listeners.

The substitution of a mild or pleasant expression for one that is too strong or unpleasant.

Die - passed away

Handicapped (Offensive)- differently abled

Taboo is anything that is “forbidden on the grounds of social customs, taste, religious beliefs, or other
such categories.” Hence, in the context of academic writing, taboo words are considered words and
phrases whose usage is frowned upon in academic texts.
Too subjective
• Some words and phrases reveal your own bias. For instance, if you state that something will obviously happen, you are
indicating that you think the occurrence is obvious – not stating a fact.

• Expressing your opinion is appropriate in certain sections of a dissertation and in particular types of academic texts (such
as personal statemens and re ective or argumentative essays. In most cases, though, take care when using words and
phrases such as those below – try to let the facts speak for themselves, or emphasize your point with less biased
language.

• be objective rather than subjective.

Example Alternative

Beautiful, ugly, A review of the literature A review of the literature yielded

wonderful, horrible, yielded many great articles many relevant articles
great, boring

Obviously, naturally, The The results clearly indicate

of course results obviously indicate
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Academic Wordlist

The Academic Word List is a compilation of the most frequent words in academic texts.

Refer: https://www.jcu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/1015348/Academic-Word-List.pdf

https://docs.steinhardt.nyu.edu/pdfs/metrocenter/atn293/pdf/academic_vocabulary_list.pdf

https://www.eapfoundation.com/vocab/academic/

http://www.uefap.com/vocab/select/awl.htm
 Replace the phrasal verbs in the sentences with a more appropriate verb from the list below.
Don't forget to keep the same tense.

uctuate. investigate. eliminate. raise. reduce. propose. intervene. establish

1. Researchers have been looking into the problem for 15 years.

2. This issue was brought up during the seminar.
3. It is assumed that the management knows what is happening and will therefore step in if
there is a problem.
4. Schools cannot altogether get rid of the problem of truancy.
5. The number of staff has been cut down recently.
6. It was very dif cult to nd out exactly what happened.
7. House prices have a tendency to go up and down.
8. A potential solution was put forward two years ago.
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Replace the following phrasal verbs with a more formal single word.

1. The locals could not put up with the visitors from the city.
2. The decline was brought about by cheap imports.
3. The university is thinking about installing CCTV.
4. Sales are likely to drop off in the third quarter.
5. He went on speaking for over an hour.
6. The meeting was put off until December.
7. The cinema was pulled down ten years ago.
8. People have cut down on their consumption of beef.
Which of the two alternatives in bold do you think is more appropriate in academic writing?

1. The government has made considerable/great progress in solving the problem.

2. 2. We got/obtained excellent results in the experiment.
3. The results of lots of/numerous tests have been pretty good/encouraging
4. A loss of jobs is one of the consequences/things that will happen if the process is automated.
5. The relationship between the management and workers is extremely/really important.
6. Some suggestions springing up from/arising from the study will be presented..
Replace the contractions in the following sentences with full forms where
necessary.

1. The results weren't very encouraging.

2. We'll have to conduct another experiment.
3. She's been all around the world.
4. It's the best solution to the problem.
5. Our questionnaire shows that teachers aren't paid what they're worth.
6. He'd rather announce the ndings at the conference.
7. The department's approach didn't succeed.
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 Suggest improvements to the following sentences to avoid use of “you” and “we”.

1. You can apply the same theory of learning to small children.

2. You can only do this after the initial preparation has been conducted.
3. The gures are accurate to within 1%, but you should note that local variations
may apply.
4. In the second section of the report, we will consider the environmental
consequences.
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Suggest alternatives to the following to avoid use of personal language.

1. In this essay I will discuss the main differences between the English and Scottish legal
systems.

2. I have divided my report into ve sections.

3. In the third part of the essay, we will look at the reasons for public hysteria over the SARS
virus.
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Rewrite the following in a more formal style.

1. The positive feedback made up for the problems we came across during the trials.

2. You can clearly see the differences between these two learning processes.

3. The subjects didn't have much dif culty with the task.

4. We found example after example of autonomous systems in lots of countries

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Make these statements more cautious.

1. Today, everyone uses credit cards for all their shopping.

2. Drinking wine is bad for you.

3. Global warming will have disastrous consequences for the whole world.

4. Teleworking leads to isolation.

5. Women are worse drivers than men.