Casually noting that something is present in English just uses the verb “to be”, whereas “to exist” is reserved for more positive assertions.
Category Archives: Overused words
As you ought to realise
Realising mostly means comprehending rather than creating something: getting the picture, not painting it.
Some supporting figures
People regularly tell me that they keep hearing natives use the words and phrases I say should be avoided. Which we do; the question is how often. Here are some figures to help back it up.
Cause and effect
“Causing something to take place” isn’t incorrect. But 99 times out of 100, the native speaker would say it was “made to happen”.
Don’t mention it
When someone mentions something, it’s a minor sideline, a small point. “Oh, by the way…” Not a general verb for a statement in a report or document.
Chapter and verse
A document really has to be pretty large before you can call its subdivisions “chapters”. We’re talking a small book, not a ten-pager.
Support
A perfectly good word, but hugely less common than its Dutch equivalent. So Dutch authors overuse it horrendously.
In relation to, with regard to
Texts by Dutch authors tend to be full of little phrases like these. Sure, they have their place, but there’s often a natural one-word alternative.
Performance
“Performance” is the noun that comes from “to perform”. But it’s not the right word to use for carrying out tasks or doing work: the overtones are too confusing.
Relations and relationships
Dutch uses the same word for both (relatie), but the meanings in English are distinctly different.
Advanced Dunglish 