Communicating in English effectively is essential in today's global economy.
在今日全球化的经济环境下,有效地用英语交流已经变得至关重要。
But conveying your ideas clearly is a skill that needs to be learnt. Too often people simply copy the style of their co-worker and especially their superiors as they think this "good English". You see examples in your in-box every day - emails that are difficult to understand and that you need to read over and over again to get the message.
A big mistake is to pad out your writing with unnecessary words and phrases. Remember that the purpose of your writing is to communicate your ideas clearly.
Always try to reduce the number of words in your sentences and avoid lengthy phrases that can be replaced with a shorter alternative. Here are some examples:
总是尽可能减少你句子中使用的字数,避免使用可以用更短的词代替的长词。以下是一些例子:
*Instead of "prior to" use *before*
用"before"代替"prior to"
*Instead of "subsequent" use *after**
用"after"代替"subsequent"
*Instead of "in order to" use *to*
用"to"代替"in order to"
*Instead of "in the event that" use *if*
用"if"代替"in the event that"
*Instead of "with reference to" use *about*
用"about"代替"with the reference to"
*Instead of "state of the art" use *latest*
用"latest"代替"state of the art"
*Instead of "due to the fact that" use *since*
用"since"代替"due to the fact that"
*Instead of "not later than 2pm" use *by 2pm*
用"by 2pm"代替"not later than 2pm"
*Instead of "at the present time" use *now*
用"now"代替"at the present time"
Remember about organisation as well. Use topic sentences to indicate what each paragraph is about. In addition, keep your emails short. No one likes to read an email 10 paragraphs long!