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UNIT 5
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IMPROVING YOUR WRITING
1. Some people can relate to the hustle and bustle of city life.
2. Some people thrive on the energy and motion of city life.
3. This book is worth its weight in gold to the car owner.
4. This book can save the car owner hundreds of dollars a year in repairs.
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You probably found that sentences 2 and 4 contained fresher language. Which
words and phrases in sentences 1 and 3 have you heard or seen before, in conversation, on TV, or in magazines and newspapers? List them:
can relate to; the hustle and bustle; worth its weight in gold
Clichés and trite expressions like the following have become so familiar that
they have almost no impact on the reader. Avoid them. Say what you mean in
your own words:
Cliché:
She is pretty as a picture.
Fresh:
Her amber eyes and wild red hair mesmerize me.
Or occasionally, play with a cliché and turn it into fresh language:
Cliché:
. . . as American as apple pie.
Fresh:
. . . as American as a Big Mac.
Cliché:
The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
Fresh:
“The grass is always greener over the septic tank.”—Erma Bombeck
TEACHING TIP
Ask students for other
examples of overused
expressions. Write these on
the board and have students
think of fresher and more
interesting ways to say the
same thing.
Trite Expressions and Clichés
at this point in time
awesome
better late than never
break the ice
cold cruel world
cool, hot
cry your eyes out
easier said than done
free as a bird
hustle and bustle
in this day and age
last but not least
living hand to mouth
one in a million
out of this world
sad but true
tried and true
under the weather
work like a dog
green with envy
©HMCo
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The following is a partial list of trite expressions to avoid. Add to it any others
that you overuse in your writing.