Readers: People who add unnecessary words, in order to add emphasis, are what the Horribly Wrong team bluntly calls “cowardly writers.” They’re paranoid that they haven’t made their point. An extra word rarely means better writing. A series of powerful and brief sentences is all the impact you need. Be brave!

1. $500 dollars

This literally says, “Five hundred dollars dollars.”

2. 8 a.m. in the morning

“8 a.m.” Or, “8 in the morning.” Not both.

3. At 12 midnight. At 12 noon.

Just “midnight” or “noon.”

4. Whether or not

Just “whether.”

5. Each and every

Same thing. Really. It is. Look at it.

6. First and foremost

Same thing.

7. Rules and regulations

They are different in only the most technical ways. For your purposes, they’re the same thing.

8. Residential neighborhood

What other kind of neighborhood is there?

9. Strangled to death

Strangled presumes death.

10. Fatally drowned

“Drowned” presumes death. (“Was drowned” implies murder)

11. Completely destroyed

“Destroyed” presumes complete destruction, unless modified by “partly” or “partially.”

12. Trained professional

If you’re being paid, you got trained to some extent.  For that matter, even amateurs and volunteers get at least some training. Redundant!

Watch this on video! https://youtu.be/UCj0VGJdlP0

Next time: More redundant redundancies

Readers: "Something Went Horribly Wrong," features samples of bad writing we see nearly every day. You can participate! Be our duly deputized “grammar police:” Your motto: “To protect and correct.” Send in your photos of store signs, street signs, newspaper headlines, tweets, and so on. It doesn’t have to be a grammatical error. It can be just what we call “cowardly writing.” Include your name and home town so we properly can credit you. You're free to add a comment, although we reserve the right to edit or omit. Now get out there! Send to Eliot@eliotkleinberg.com