Question 1

A piece of writing that scores well on a readability index is not necessarily readable.

Accepted Answer

While a readability index can give an indication of the complexity of the text, it does not account for other factors such as the audience's prior knowledge or interest in the topic. Therefore, a piece of writing may score well on a readability index but still be difficult for readers to comprehend or engage with.

Question 2

When you have two or more similar ideas to express,make them parallel.

Accepted Answer

Parallelism helps to organize and clarify multiple similar ideas and improves the readability of the writing. It also shows the relationship between the ideas and makes it easier for the reader to understand the writer's intention.

Question 3

If you start a sentence with an indefinite pronoun,chances are the sentence can be shortened.

Accepted Answer

Starting a sentence with an indefinite pronoun such as "someone," "something," or "anyone" often leads to wordy or unnecessary phrasing that can be shortened.

Question 4

To reduce words,some writers make liberal use of such directional points as "the latter," "the former," "the aforementioned," and "as mentioned above." The reduction in words this way helps to make the meaning clearer to the reader.

Accepted Answer

Using terms like "the latter," "the former," "the aforementioned," and "as mentioned above" can actually make text more difficult to understand because they force the reader to remember or look back at previous statements, which can disrupt the flow and clarity of the writing.

Question 5

You can help clarify your writing by stringing together several short sentences into one long one.

Accepted Answer

Stringing together several short sentences into one long sentence can actually make the writing more confusing and difficult to understand. It's important to use a variety of sentence lengths and structures to create a cohesive and easy-to-follow piece of writing.

Question 6

When completing a business message,you should evaluate content,organization,style and tone,review for readability,edit for clarity,and edit for conciseness.

Accepted Answer

It is important to evaluate content, organization, style and tone when completing a business message. In addition, reviewing for readability and editing for clarity and conciseness will also improve the effectiveness of the message.

Question 7

The most common readability formulas calculate the amount of usage of the 1,000 most often used words in the English language in order to ascertain the readability level of your material.

Accepted Answer

Most common readability formulas, such as the Flesch-Kincaid Readability Test or the Gunning Fog Index, primarily focus on sentence length and word complexity (e.g., syllable count) rather than the frequency of usage of the most common words.

Question 8

For longer and/or more complex documents it is a good idea to set aside a first draft for a day or two before beginning the revision process.

Accepted Answer

It is recommended to take a break from a first draft before starting the revision process in order to approach it with fresh eyes and a clear mind. This is especially important for longer and more complex documents.

Question 9

Spell-checkers,grammar-checkers,and computerized thesauruses are taking the place of good writing and editing skills.

Accepted Answer

Even with the use of spell-checkers, grammar-checkers, and computerized thesauruses, good writing and editing skills are still essential for producing high-quality written communication. These tools can aid in the writing and editing process, but they should not be relied upon solely to produce well-crafted content.

Question 10

Professional communicators get their message right the first time and don't need to worry about rewriting.

Accepted Answer

Even professional communicators may need to revise their message to ensure it is clear, effective, and tailored to their audience. Editing and rewriting are important parts of the communication process.

Question 11

"Visible to the eye" is an example of a redundancy.

Accepted Answer

"Visible" already implies that something can be seen by the eye, so adding "to the eye" is unnecessary and redundant.

Question 12

The subject and predicate of a sentence should be kept as close together as possible.

Accepted Answer

Keeping the subject and predicate close together in a sentence helps to improve clarity and reduce ambiguity in the sentence structure.

Question 13

The details given in the middle section of a message have the greatest impact on the audience.

Accepted Answer

The primacy and recency effects suggest that the information presented at the beginning and end of a message often has the greatest impact on the audience, as these are the parts most likely to be remembered.

Question 14

Revising simple and informal messages,such as IM's and Text Messages,can take as long as more formal messages.

Accepted Answer

Revising simple and informal messages typically takes less time than revising formal messages due to their brevity and less stringent requirements for structure and language.

Question 15

Parallel forms are more difficult to read and skim.

Accepted Answer

Parallel forms are designed to be equivalent in terms of difficulty and content, so they should not be more difficult to read and skim than each other.

Question 16

The best use of a thesaurus is to find fresh,interesting words that accurately convey your intended meaning.

Accepted Answer

A thesaurus can be a helpful tool to enhance one's writing by providing alternative words with similar meanings. However, it is important to use a thesaurus wisely and not simply replace words with fancier-sounding synonyms without understanding their true connotations and nuances. The primary goal should always be to effectively communicate your intended message to your audience.

Question 17

Although readability indexes are easy to apply,they ignore some factors that contribute to reading ease.

Accepted Answer

Readability indexes typically only consider factors such as sentence length and word complexity, but ignore other factors like sentence structure and organization, which can also affect reading ease.

Question 18

Grammar,spelling,clarity and other fundamentals of good writing are just as important,or even more important,in electronic media as they are in other written media.

Accepted Answer

Good writing skills are critical for effective communication, regardless of the medium. In fact, with electronic communication, it is even more important as there is a greater risk of miscommunication due to the lack of nonverbal cues and the ease of misinterpreting written messages.

Question 19

Redundancies are useful to readers because repetition leads to better recall of information.

Accepted Answer

Redundancies can make writing less clear and concise, potentially confusing readers rather than aiding recall.

Question 20

To avoid making a judgment in your business messages,you should use as many hedging words (such as may or seems )as possible.

Accepted Answer

Using too many hedging words can make your message seem uncertain or unclear. It's important to balance clarity and decisiveness with politeness and flexibility.

Quiz 6: Completing Business Messages