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MLP: Rejecting redundancies

| December 15, 2021 1:00 AM

With tongue planted firmly in cheek and at great personal risk, I must dispute some of Mrs. Language Person's recent references to redundant expressions. Many of these miscues are merely contractions of subtler meaning that are routinely understood by both users and listeners.

Several examples presented are spot on to her point. Others involve context and, understood for the context in which they are typically used, make perfect sense. They are colloquialisms.

An “unexpected surprise” is surely silly. However an “added bonus” may well describe an additional bonus to the one already received, as when listing a list (and checking it twice) of bonuses. While we must admit that added bonuses rarely occur, employers desperate to keep fine employees like Mrs. Language Person may find they are best served by adding bonuses to a bonus, not necessarily a bonehead move.

An “unintentional mistake” can refer to an unintended consequence flowing from an action that is only later recognized as a mistake. Our world is plagued by these unintentional mistakes. Of course it is more consequentially plagued by intentional mistakes.

It does occur that the phrase “longer in length” is used to differentiate “longer in time” from “longer by measurement. The all-important context comes into play here, as in discussing with a building contractor whether the two by four that is longer in length lengthens the time it will take to build the house. This is an experience many of us have had. The difference can be crucial…

And finally we must visit the phrase “where he, she, or it, is at. This is a contraction of meaning intended to convey more than physical location. It speaks to the emotional, mental, and spiritual condition of the subject in question. It operates as a comprehensive expression. “Where is she?” asks location. “Where is she at?” asks for a more in depth consideration of many different factors that may well lead to where she is.

I love Mrs. Language Person with all my heart, although it would be problematic to express that in a halfhearted way, as I would likely be on the operating table fighting for my life.

I just hope she understands that this is where I am at with these expressions.

STEPHEN D. BRUNO

Dalton Gardens