ENGLISH 5, 6 & 7
INFORMAL AND FORMAL LANGUAGE
Here’s some help to make ya’ll write them formal texts and whatnot…
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INFORMAL VERBS |
FORMAL VERBS |
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put off rack up make up stand for find out leave out point out go against get in touch with need to say sorry go up go down set up look at blow up find out bring about think about get put up deal with seem show start keep free show up let okay |
postpone, delay accumulate fabricate represent discover, ascertain omit indicate oppose contact required apologize increase decrease establish examine explode discover cause consider obtain tolerate handle appear demonstrate, illustrate, portray commence retain release arrive permit authorize |
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INFORMAL TRANSITIONS |
FORMAL TRANSITIONS |
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anyways plus/also but so also okay, OK I think in the end to sum up in a nutshell/Basically all right |
nevertheless moreover/ furthermore however therefore/thus in addition acceptable in my opinion finally in conclusion to summarize acceptable |
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INFORMAL EMPHASIS |
FORMAL EMPHASIS |
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lots of/ a lot of tons of, heaps of totally very, really |
much, many large quantities of, a number of completely, strongly definitely |
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INFORMAL ABBREVIATIONS ETC. |
FORMAL ABBREVIATIONS ETC. |
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ASAP pic, photo LOL, OMG “like, you know”
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as soon as possible picture, photograph - i.e.(id est/that is), etc. (et cetera/and so forth) |
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INFORMAL WORDS |
FORMAL WORDS |
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kids bad good really big right wrong smart cheap loaded |
children negative positive considerable correct incorrect intelligent inexpensive rich |
USEFUL FORMAL PHRASES
Introducing the topic
Some people argue that… / Have you ever considered… / The question raises the issue of…
Stating an opinion etc.
I believe that… / It is my belief that… / This essay will argue that… / …will be covered in this essay.
Giving reasons
One reason for this is that… / This can be explained by… / This can be attributed to the fact that…
Giving further reasons
Not only that, but… / It should also be stated that…
Citing general opinions
It has been claimed that… / It is widely believed that…
Hedging strategies
It could be argued that… / One explanation might be that… / This suggests that…
Strengthening an argument
There can be no doubt that… / These are just some of the reasons why…
Concluding and summarizing
In conclusion… / In short… / On the whole… / To return to my original idea…
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INFORMAL LANGUAGE |
vs. |
FORMAL LANGUAGE |
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Contractions are common. |
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Avoid contractions. Use full form. |
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Phrasal verbs are common. |
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Avoid phrasal verbs. |
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Everyday conversations and blogs. |
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Academic writing and official documents. |
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Improvised and sometimes vague. Structure is not important. |
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Structured (use paragraphs and correct punctuation) and precise. |
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Short simple sentences. Or not. You decide – that’s the whole idea with informal things.
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Complicated sentences. But, please, do not get too ambitious. Unfortunately, no A’s just for trying. Remember that. |
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Slang? Sure, go nuts! |
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Slang? No, for the love of God! |
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Verb-based phrases: ”Crime was increasing rapidly and the police were becoming concerned.” |
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Noun-based phrases: ”The rapid increase in crime was causing concern among the police.”
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kinda, wanna, gonna, dude, stuff |
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Latin-based words are popular. |
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Subjective. |
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Objective. |
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In short, formal language is commonly used in academic and official contexts whereas informal language is used pretty much everywhere else. Basically, in most of our normal everyday communication. Most of the texts in my assignments are somewhere in between formal and informal (but, mostly, they tend to go more towards informal).
For more on formal/informal language:
Check out what Thomasz P. Szynalski wrote here.
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