English Toolkit

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11.2Inappropriate register
TYPICAL ERROR The Prime Minister was uptight about the effect the announcement would have.
CORRECTION The Prime Minister was very anxious about the effect the announcement would have.

EXPLANATION When we write or speak, we have a range of words from which to choose. The less formal the situation, the less formal our language needs to be; the more formal a situation, the more careful we need to be with how we express ourselves. This means that we need to use a more formal register (selection, range, catalogue) of words in more formal contexts. For example, expressions such as uptight are regarded as informal slang, so in more formal contexts, we should use more formal terms such as anxious or worried.

Part of the fun of the English language is that new terms are constantly being invented, especially by young people. However, the jargon used by particular groups may not be regarded as cute or even understood by the wider community, so we should always keep our audience in mind and use appropriate language. The tenor (closeness or distance) of our relationship with our audience has to be considered as does the context.

Find two more formal alternatives for the following words.
a
cool, sick, rad

b
tacky

c
bungle

d
gross

e
chill out

fantastic

repulsive

tasteless

unwind

blunder

brilliant

relax

disgusting

gaudy

debacle

Success!