UNIT FIVE Avoid Overusing Sentences that Begin with

UNIT FIVE Avoid Overusing Sentences that Begin with It and There 避免過度使用It及There開頭句

Another form of wordiness and ambiguity is sentences beginning with There and It.

例句 (Original) There appears to be a fluctuation in the curve. (Revised) The curve appears to fluctuate. (Original) It was her decision that led to his promotion. (Revised) She decided to promote him.

例句 (Original) There is little doubt that the proposed procedure outperforms the conventional one. (Revised) The proposed procedure undoubtedly (clearly, obviously) outperforms the conventional one. (Original) It is multifunction printers that combine printing and scanning capabilities. (Revised) Multifunction printers combine printing and scanning capabilities.

Unless It refers to a specific noun in the previous sentence, omit It is entirely. Several common phrases beginning with It is can be omitted since they do not add to the sentence's meaning.

例句 It is well known that It may be said that It is a fact that It is evident that It has been found that It has long been known that It goes without saying that

If omitted entirely, several common phrases beginning with It and There can be stated more simply.

例句 (Original) It is our opinion the assumption is true. (Revised) We believe the assumption is true.

例句 Instead of Say It is possible that may, might, could There is a need for must, should It is important must, should It could happen that may, might, could There is a necessity for must It is necessary/critical/crucial/imperative that must It is noted that notably, It is interesting to note that interestingly, It is obvious/clear that obviously/clearly,

A simple way of omitting a phrase beginning with It is or There is is to delete that, which, or who behind the subject.

例句 (Original) It is the manager who organizes the time sheets. (Revised) The manager organizes the time sheets. (Original) There is a mechanical power that draws heat out of the combustion [燃燒] engine. (Revised) A mechanical power draws heat out of the combustion engine.