This is very, very unnecessary

This post was inspired by the warm feedback that I received recently from a friend of mine, David Sloly, for my first book, The Joy of English (2012). What was interesting about his comments was that it matched the feedback of others in that he now self edits himself from using the word very.

David wrote: "I still dip in and out of your book and find it useful (nearly wrote very useful, but now I don't."

His sentiments are typical of the responses I've had over the years. Of the 100 areas of English and grammar that feature in the book it amazes me that this teeny, tiny tip about the word very is the one that always seems to resonate the most with my readers.

It seems to blow people's minds.

So, I thought I would share some of what I wrote in the book about using (or not using) the word very.

The first piece of advice is: avoid overusing very.

The word very, I stated, is arguably one of the most overused words in the English language, especially as a "booster" word. The habitual use of very fosters not only a poor vocabulary but also displays it for all to see.

• "People use it without realising that it adds nothing in meaning and is merely a calorie-free word that is good only for padding out text. This is why all good writers self-edit their work and banish it from their writing. There are some typical problems caused by the indiscriminate use of very. Apart from being so (very) disliked in good writing, describing some- thing with very can actually result in diluted meaning. Consider these: 
  
  a very precise measurement
  a very brief affair
  a very central location  
  
  On reflection: precise already means “(very) accurate/specific”; brief already means “(very) short duration”; and central already means, “in the centre”. They are all absolute meanings. If very is necessary for the meaning to be clear, then the words precise, brief and central lose power. The other major problem with resorting to very is that it can become rather nonsensical. Let me show you what I mean:   a very resistant material a very see-through blouse   As with precise, brief and central, using very with resistant makes no sense: something is either resistant or not. Unlike very expensive, which is relative and not an absolute, a blouse is either see-through or it is not –so why describe it as very see-through? There is simply no need."

Other examples include: a very big family, a very big car, very preliminary results, a very overbooked flight.

I point out in the book that if something is "very wet", why not write "soaked"? If something is "very small", why not write "tiny"? The goal is not to write clever words, just better words.

• As you can see, the use of very in this way will prevent writers from having to think of better words to express what they mean. Too many verys and the writing soon becomes dull and unexciting.
  
  Check your writing for instances of very xxx and think about what might be a better word to use instead. Consult a thesaurus and replace two words with one. Your writing will improve greatly when you inject it with great new words.  
  
  Very boring > tedious, mundane, coma-inducing
  Very quiet > shy, reserved, mute
  Very important > critical, vital, key

Very is one of those words that is so ingrained in everyday copy and has become second nature to many a writer. They fly in without more than a second thought. If you do Control + F search through your own recent work there is a good chance you will find a lot of verys.

Now that you have read my post (or the full chapter in my book) I am confident that you will have developed some new-found instincts to to resist using very. (It gets easier with time and practice.)

The advantage of avoiding very in your writing is that, by stripping just one word from your vocabulary, you will find yourself searching for clearer and more effective ways to express your thoughts. 

J