Synonyms VS repetition of key words

Writing Tips >> Synonyms VS Repetition of Key Words

Overuse of common words may create a text which is repetitive and boring for the reader. To add interest and increase the impact of their writing, scientific authors need to consider when it appropriate to use synonyms to avoid repetition of key words and when it is better to repeat the key word. Words that can commonly be substituted have a general meaning, however, more specific terms, such as proper names, should not be paraphrased as it may be more difficult to find an exact substitute.

 

Examples of synonyms

Below are some words which are commonly used in scientific writing that can be replaced because they have a general meaning. Suggested synonyms are listed on the right-hand side.

 

Key word Synonyms
Experiment Study, work, research
Results Findings
Work Research, study, experiment
To suggest To show, to indicate
To examine To analyse, to research, to evaluate
To perform To conduct, to complete
Method Framework, approach
Proposed Suggested, developed

 

Example

The extract below shows an example of overuse of some common words, which have been highlighted.

In this work, we performed a study involving specially produced optical fibres to gain an insight into their suitability for telecommunications. This study involved performing a series of studies on the transmission capacity of the fibres. The results from the study agreed with the simulation results. The proposed method can be useful for the development of optical fibres.

 

The extract below shows how the highlighted words can be substituted.

We conducted an experiment involving specially produced optical fibres to gain an insight into their suitability for telecommunications. This research involved completing a series of studies on the transmission capacity of the fibres. The findings from the experiment agreed with those from the simulation. The suggested approach can be useful for the development of optical fibres.
Acknowledgements >> Dangling modifier >> Expressions of beliefs >> Fragment sentences >> Hedging language in giving review >> Irregular plurals >> Lexical density >> Misuse of prepositions >> Organization of chapters >> Parallelism >> Responses to Peer review >> Sentence complexity >> Subjective / redundancy adjectives >> Synonyms VS repetition of key words >> Uses of acronyms >> Uses of articles before the abbreviations / acronyms

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