《中式英语之鉴》Part one

十九

Part One: Unnecessary Word

1. Unnecessary Nouns and Verbs
Unnecessary Nouns:
1. Some nouns are redundant, as their meaning is already included elsewhere in the sentence. For example, “to accelerate the pace of economic reform” can be simplified to “to accelerate economic reform”.
2. Category nouns are common in Chinglish but unnecessary in English. For example, “promote the cause of peaceful reunification” can be simplified to “promote peaceful reunification”.
Unnecessary Verbs:
Unnecessary verbs often pair with nouns to form wordy phrases. For example, “make an improvement” can be simplified to “improve”. There are two principal types:
1. unnecessary verb plus noun;
2. unnecessary verb plus unnecessary nouns plus third word.

2. Unnecessary Modifiers
1. Redundant modifiers
Modifiers repeat or overlap with the meaning of the modified words. For example, “new innovations” can be simplified to “innovations” since “innovations” implies something new.
2. Self-evident modifiers
The meaning of the modifier is already evident in other parts of the sentence. For example, “family” in “a family relative” is redundant because “relative” typically refers to a family member.
3. Intensifiers
Some translators overuse intensifiers. For example, words like “extremely” in “extremely important” can be replaced with “essential”.
4. Qualifiers
Unnecessary qualifiers should be avoided. For instance, “the key to the solution” can be simplified to "the solution".
5. Clichés
Set structures or clichés are overused and it lacks originality. For example, overused expressions like “correct understanding” should be avoided due to their redundancy and lack of originality.