"Rather, very, little, pretty -- these are the……" — William Strunk, Jr.
"Rather, very, little, pretty -- these are the leeches that infest the pond of prose, sucking the blood of words. The constant use of the adjective little (except to indicate size) is particularly debilitating; we should all try to do a little better, we should all be very watchful of this rule, for it is a rather important one, and we are pretty sure to violate it now and then."
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William Strunk, Jr.
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28 Quotes by William Strunk, Jr.
William Strunk, Jr. has 28 quotes on this site.
A few more worth reading:
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Remember, it is no sign of weakness or defeat that your manuscript ends up in need of major surgery. This…
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The situation is perilous, but there is still one chance of escape.
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If you don't know how to pronounce a word, say it loud!
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It is worse to be irresolute than to be wrong.
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Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, non-committal language.
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The surest way to arouse and hold the attention of the reader is by being specific, definitive, and concrete. The…
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A drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.
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The adjective hasn't been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place,
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The approach to style is by way of plainness, simplicity, orderliness, sincerity.
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A dash is a mark of separation stronger than a comma, less formal than a colon, and more relaxed than…
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In exposition and in argument, the writer must likewise never lose his hold upon the concrete; and even when he…
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In his Philosophy of Style, Herbert Spencer gives two sentences to illustrate how the vague and general can be turned…
See all 28 quotes by William Strunk, Jr. »
More Adjective Quotes
This quote is filed under Adjective Quotes,
one of 87 quotes in that category. Here are a few more:
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Jealous, adj. Unduly concerned about the preservation of that which can be lost only if not worth keeping.
— Ambrose Bierce
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Mad, adj. Affected with a high degree of intellectual independence.
— Ambrose Bierce
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Ambidextrous, adj.: Able to pick with equal skill a right-hand pocket or a left.
— Ambrose Bierce
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Edible, adj.: Good to eat, and wholesome to digest, as a worm to a toad, a toad to a snake,…
— Ambrose Bierce
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Famous, adj.: Conspicuously miserable.
— Ambrose Bierce
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I like that 'Mad Men' is now an adjective I use to describe clothing when I'm shopping: 'I like this…
— Alison Brie
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Goresthorpe Grange is a feudal mansion - or so it was termed in the advertisement which originally brought it under…
— Arthur Conan Doyle
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The adjective is the banana peel of the parts of speech.
— Clifton Fadiman
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Whatever one wishes to say, there is one noun only by which to express it, one verb only to give…
— Guy de Maupassant
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Cuisine has become too complicated - this is about subject, verb, adjective: duck, turnips, sauce.
— Alain Ducasse
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If you can remember all the accessories that go with your best outfit, the contents of your purse, the starting…
— Stephen King
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Whatever the thing you wish to say, there is but one word to express it, but one verb to give…
— Gustave Flaubert
See all 87 Adjective Quotes »