voice for some such perfunctory expression as there is, or could be heard.
| There were a great number of dead leaves lying on the ground. | Dead leaves covered the ground. | |
| The sound of a guitar somewhere in the house could be heard. | Somewhere in the house a guitar hummed sleepily. | |
| The reason that he left college was that his health became impaired. | Failing health compelled him to leave college. | |
| It was not long before he was very sorry that he had said what he had. | He soon repented his words. |
11. Put statements in positive form.
Make definite assertions. Avoid tame, colorless, hesitating, non-committal language. Use the word not as a means of denial or in antithesis, never as a means of evasion.
| He was not very often on time. | He usually came late. | |
| He did not think that studying Latin was much use. | He thought the study of Latin useless. | |
| The Taming of the Shrew is rather weak in spots. Shakespeare does not portray Katharine as a very admirable character, nor does Bianca remain long in memory as an important character in Shakespeare's works. | The women in The Taming of the Shrew are unattractive. Katharine is disagreeable, Bianca insignificant. |
The last example, before correction, is indefinite as well as negative. The corrected version, consequently, is simply a guess at the writer's intention.
All three examples show the weakness inherent in the word not. Consciously or unconsciously, the reader is dissatisfied with being told only what is not; he wishes to be told what is. Hence, as a rule, it is better to express even a negative in positive form.
| not honest | dishonest | |
| not important | trifling | |
| did not remember | forgot | |
| did not pay any attention to | ignored | |
| did not have much confidence in | distrusted |
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