GUIDELINES FOR IMPROVING SENTENCE CONSTRUCTION

Guidelines / Examples
Unclear / Clearer (Suggested answers)
1 / Consider sentence length, sentence structure, and punctuation.
Vary sentence length and sentence structure. / Oscilloscopes are used by everyone from television repair technicians to physicists and are indispensable for anyone designing or repairing electronic equipment. / Oscilloscopes are used by everyone from television repair technicians to physicists. They are indispensable for anyone designing or repairing electronic equipment.
2 / Be careful where you place subordinate clauses.
Avoid interrupting the main clause with a subordinate one if clarity will be compromised. / The fluidization process, whenever a gas is used to achieve fluidization, is not normally uniform. / Whenever a gas is used to achieve fluidization, the fluidization process is not normally uniform.
3 / Use parallel constructions.
§  Similar grammatical construction for a series of words, phrases or clauses must be used.
§  Reader can see the link between your ideas. / The scope of the project is to design chemical plant equipment, devise processes for manufacturing chemicals and products and the implementation of the manufacturing processes. / The project’s scope is to design chemical plant equipment, devise processes for manufacturing chemicals and products, and implement of these processes.
4 / Avoid unclear pronoun references.
Be sure that pronouns you use refer clearly to a noun in the current or previous sentence. / Some of the systems that make up digital oscilloscopes are the same as those in analog oscilloscopes; however, they contain additional data processing systems. / Some of the systems that make up digital oscilloscopes are the same as those in analog oscilloscopes; however, digital oscilloscopes contain additional data processing systems.
5 / Use active voice.
·  Indicates the performer of the action and is easier to understand.
·  Is more concise sentence construction. / Experiments have been conducted to test the hypothesis. (passive) / Scientists have conducted experiments to test the hypothesis. (active)
(WHO DOES WHAT?)
6 / Avoid noun strings.
·  Using several nouns one after another.
·  Change one noun to a verb. / This report explains our investment growth stimulation projects. / This report explains our plan to stimulate investment growth.
7 / Avoid overusing noun forms of verbs (or nominalizations).
Use verbs instead. / The implementation of the plans was successful. / The plans were implemented successfully. (passive)
We implemented the plans successfully. (active)
8 / Avoid multiple negatives.
Use affirmative forms rather than several negatives. / Less attention is paid to advertisements that lack human interest stories than to other kinds of advertisements. / People pay more attention to advertisements with human interest stories than to other kinds of advertisements.

Online resource: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

2

1. Oscilloscopes are used by everyone from television repair technicians to physicists and are indispensable for anyone designing or repairing electronic equipment.
2. The fluidization process, whenever a gas is used to achieve fluidization, is not normally uniform.
3. The scope of the project is to design chemical plant equipment, devise processes for manufacturing chemicals and products and the implementation of the manufacturing processes.
4. Some of the systems that make up digital oscilloscopes are the same as those in analog oscilloscopes; however, they contain additional data processing systems.
5. Experiments have been conducted to test the hypothesis. (passive)
6. This report explains our investment growth stimulation projects.
7. The implementation of the plans was successful.
8. Less attention is paid to advertisements that lack human interest stories than to other kinds of advertisements.