Skip to main content

What are Weedy Words?

I do a lot of editing for small publishers and one of the things I see a lot in the manuscripts I work on are weedy words. These weedy words are also known as weak modifiers. Writers tend to use these words hoping to intensify the meaning of a word or phrase. They also use them without knowing it because most people write as they would talk. However, when you use weedy words what happens is we tend to prop our sentences or paragraphs up with a modifier, which may have been strong once but is now weak from overuse.

This happens a lot in normal speech. However, in writing it is better not to write has one would talk. Why, because it is important to make sure every word counts, for example: She gave them a very piercing glance. When she spoke, her voice was really bitter. The weedy words or weak modifiers are "very" and "really" in this sentence. By deleting these two words you will see how much more impact the statement has. She gave them a piercing glance. When she spoke, her voice was bitter. This also changes the tone from passive to active. You can cut such words and not take but add to the impact of a story. The most effective sentences are those in which every word pulls its own weight. Remember, we as writers, need to write tight so here is a short list of weedy words/weak modifiers: just really definitely so even exactly such at all anyway very certainly some and but was that as Another group of words that tend to make sentences or paragraphs passive are hedging words. These words tone down a statement. They give the impression that the writer is afraid to let the statement stand on its own two feet. Here is a list of these words: usually perhaps a little probably sort of look maybe kind of seem rather somewhat almost fairly quite slightly Basically, the trick to eliminate weedy words or word usage is to delete words which don't add to the sentence. These words are rarely missed when cut. However, there are times you have to use these words for the sentence be make since or to be complete, but if you delete one of these words and it doesn't take away from the meaning . . . the word is considered a weedy word.

Popular posts from this blog

The Comeback of 2D Animation: Why We’re Craving Realness Again

There’s something happening in animation right now that’s worth paying attention to—not because it’s simply nostalgic, but because it’s deeply human. As someone who works in the mental health and creative storytelling space, I can’t help but see these conversations about art, AI, and hand-drawn storytelling as part of a bigger theme: our collective hunger for authenticity. We live in a time where AI-generated content is everywhere—convenient, efficient, and often soulless. It’s not surprising that artists and audiences alike are looking back toward something that feels more tactile, more imperfect, more human. That brings us to 2D animation, an art form that has shaped generations and now, it seems, might just be making a comeback. Here’s what Language of the Soul podcast host, Dominick Domingo, had to say on this trend: There’s been a lot of industry talk lately speculating about 2D/traditional ANIMATION making a comeback. Recent articles confirm that although Disney has not greenlit...
Read more

Art, Spirit, and the Journey to Our Authentic Selves

What if creativity isn’t just a talent or a pastime, but a sacred path that helps us remember who we truly are? What if the act of making art—whether through paint, music, or words—could reconnect us with our deepest self and with something greater than ourselves? In a world that often rushes past mystery in pursuit of certainty, conversations about art and spirituality offer a chance to pause, breathe, and wonder. They remind us that creation and contemplation are intertwined. Art has long been a universal language, bridging the visible and the invisible, the personal and the collective. When we engage with it fully—not as a product to perfect, but as a process to trust—we open ourselves to profound transformation. This is the heart of our latest Language of the Soul dialogue with the luminous artist Joan Marie. From the awe that stirred in her heart beneath Michelangelo’s Sistine ceiling to the ethereal, soul-connected works she creates today, Joan’s journey offers a beautiful exa...
Read more

Unmasking Narcissism: Lessons on Healing, Boundaries, and the Human Condition

  When I first sat down with Dominick to interview Stuart Wood, neuroscientist and author of Escaping the Void: How to Support Victims Out of Emotionally Abusive Relationships , I thought I knew what to expect. I’ve been a victim advocate for years. I’ve sat with survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, and I’ve seen the way emotional abuse erodes someone from the inside out. But there was something about this conversation—something about tying narcissism not just to relationships, but to culture at large—that resonated with me on a personal and professional level. Stuart came to the topic of narcissism the way so many of us do—not through clinical theory at first, but through experience. He supported a friend through four years of leaving and healing after an abusive narcissistic marriage. And from there, he wrote a book that demystifies the confusing behaviors and manipulations so often minimized or dismissed, even by victims themselves. Why Narcissism Hits Home I come ...
Read more