“Why You Should Not Use Nominalisations When You Write” by Amanda Patterson via WritersWrite #amwriting #writerslife #WritingCommunity #writingadvice #writingtips www.writerswrite.co.za/why-you-shou...
Why You Should Not Use Nominalisations When You Write
Writers Write is your one-stop writing resource. In this post, we explain why you should not use nominalisations when you write.
www.writerswrite.co.za
April 19, 2025 at 4:12 AM
“Why You Should Not Use Nominalisations When You Write” by Amanda Patterson via WritersWrite #amwriting #writerslife #WritingCommunity #writingadvice #writingtips www.writerswrite.co.za/why-you-shou...
New tale talesfrom.dev/blog/the-amb... in which we see developers decomposing a noun into...Nouns! Are nouns dangerous? Why do we need them? What is a nominalization?
#csharp #dotnet #dddesign #softwaredevelopment #java #typescript #softwarearchitecture #fsharp #softwaredeveloper
#csharp #dotnet #dddesign #softwaredevelopment #java #typescript #softwarearchitecture #fsharp #softwaredeveloper
The ambiguity of nouns: absolutisms, transformations and nominalisations
Is every noun the same kind of thing?
talesfrom.dev
September 7, 2026 at 7:08 PM
New tale talesfrom.dev/blog/the-amb... in which we see developers decomposing a noun into...Nouns! Are nouns dangerous? Why do we need them? What is a nominalization?
#csharp #dotnet #dddesign #softwaredevelopment #java #typescript #softwarearchitecture #fsharp #softwaredeveloper
#csharp #dotnet #dddesign #softwaredevelopment #java #typescript #softwarearchitecture #fsharp #softwaredeveloper
franchement désolée mais ça me saoule genre évidemment que j'arrive pas à bosser j'ai juste pas envie de me farcir des discours de faits divers sur le viol pour dénicher des nominalisations alors que le monde a décidé qu'apparement c'était la fête du slip
March 2, 2026 at 4:46 PM
franchement désolée mais ça me saoule genre évidemment que j'arrive pas à bosser j'ai juste pas envie de me farcir des discours de faits divers sur le viol pour dénicher des nominalisations alors que le monde a décidé qu'apparement c'était la fête du slip
How many cups of coffee should it take to get through an academic article?
How about none?
If you lighten the burden on the reader, they won't be falling asleep.
One easy way to lighten the burden is to reduce the number of zombie nouns in your writing.
#academicsky #phdsky #writing🧪
How about none?
If you lighten the burden on the reader, they won't be falling asleep.
One easy way to lighten the burden is to reduce the number of zombie nouns in your writing.
#academicsky #phdsky #writing🧪
Zombie Nouns | ReallyWrite
Zombie nouns (or nominalisations) are unnecessarily long, heavy nouns that would work better as verbs or adjectives.
www.reallywrite.com
November 14, 2024 at 12:15 PM
How many cups of coffee should it take to get through an academic article?
How about none?
If you lighten the burden on the reader, they won't be falling asleep.
One easy way to lighten the burden is to reduce the number of zombie nouns in your writing.
#academicsky #phdsky #writing🧪
How about none?
If you lighten the burden on the reader, they won't be falling asleep.
One easy way to lighten the burden is to reduce the number of zombie nouns in your writing.
#academicsky #phdsky #writing🧪
I have been looking at nominalisations in the context of deontic morals (compare the semantics of "must" and "an obligation"), and I do think that something funny happens with scope when you nominalise, but it's above my paygrade.
December 28, 2025 at 3:09 AM
I have been looking at nominalisations in the context of deontic morals (compare the semantics of "must" and "an obligation"), and I do think that something funny happens with scope when you nominalise, but it's above my paygrade.
My favourite #AcademicWriting tools
✔️ Structure your paragraph by starting with a topic sentence.
✔️ Avoid nominalisations (put actors in the subject and their actions in the verb).
✔️ Put material you want to emphasise at the end of the sentence.
from Kail: uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/sc...
✔️ Structure your paragraph by starting with a topic sentence.
✔️ Avoid nominalisations (put actors in the subject and their actions in the verb).
✔️ Put material you want to emphasise at the end of the sentence.
from Kail: uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/sc...
June 13, 2025 at 9:29 PM
My favourite #AcademicWriting tools
✔️ Structure your paragraph by starting with a topic sentence.
✔️ Avoid nominalisations (put actors in the subject and their actions in the verb).
✔️ Put material you want to emphasise at the end of the sentence.
from Kail: uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/sc...
✔️ Structure your paragraph by starting with a topic sentence.
✔️ Avoid nominalisations (put actors in the subject and their actions in the verb).
✔️ Put material you want to emphasise at the end of the sentence.
from Kail: uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/sc...
My youngest was actively taught to write passive sentences full of unnecessary nominalisations and Latinate words while studying HSC English. As an editor it takes me *years* to beat that out of young medical/business writers, and academics usually bypass that kind of writing training. Infuriating.
October 23, 2023 at 10:16 PM
My youngest was actively taught to write passive sentences full of unnecessary nominalisations and Latinate words while studying HSC English. As an editor it takes me *years* to beat that out of young medical/business writers, and academics usually bypass that kind of writing training. Infuriating.
6️⃣ Avoid nominalisations → Use verbs instead of abstract nouns derived from verbs (e.g., “decide” instead of “make a decision”).
February 22, 2025 at 2:24 PM
6️⃣ Avoid nominalisations → Use verbs instead of abstract nouns derived from verbs (e.g., “decide” instead of “make a decision”).
And finally don't get me started on the Spanish visa page's language: a flood of nominalisations, abstractions and legalese. It would take a long thread to parse just how difficult and off-putting this is. (And bear in mind this is for non-citizens, many of whom are non-native speakers.) 6/
May 28, 2026 at 11:01 AM
And finally don't get me started on the Spanish visa page's language: a flood of nominalisations, abstractions and legalese. It would take a long thread to parse just how difficult and off-putting this is. (And bear in mind this is for non-citizens, many of whom are non-native speakers.) 6/
I enjoy sharing & deconstructing this with students & research writers, but was today reminded by an undergraduate writer that nominalisations are rife and OK in rap & #HipHop lyrics, and are so for good reasons, eg #rhythm & reality
#AcWri
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#tleap
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
#AcWri
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#tleap
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
Beware of nominalizations (AKA zombie nouns) - Helen Sword
YouTube video by TED-Ed
youtu.be
November 25, 2024 at 11:05 PM
I enjoy sharing & deconstructing this with students & research writers, but was today reminded by an undergraduate writer that nominalisations are rife and OK in rap & #HipHop lyrics, and are so for good reasons, eg #rhythm & reality
#AcWri
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#tleap
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
#AcWri
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#tleap
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
Not getting lost in process, when processes are all there are. Moving away from unhelpful nominalisations in our discussions about problems
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
Not getting lost in process | Grounded Systems
www.grounded.systems
January 10, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Not getting lost in process, when processes are all there are. Moving away from unhelpful nominalisations in our discussions about problems
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
Calls: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations: Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and Lakoff (1970). Especially…
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and Lakoff (1970). Especially…
Calls: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations
Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and Lakoff (1970). Especially after Chomsky (1970), nominalizations have…
dlvr.it
February 17, 2025 at 11:11 PM
Calls: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations: Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and Lakoff (1970). Especially…
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and Lakoff (1970). Especially…
#read #noetic #nonfiction #books
1000+ pages long. Intimidating tome full of nominalisations, metadiscourse, hedging, zombie nouns, unnecessary passives and more. It's good.
But 100 pages into it my arms and brain felt tired. Maybe one day...
1000+ pages long. Intimidating tome full of nominalisations, metadiscourse, hedging, zombie nouns, unnecessary passives and more. It's good.
But 100 pages into it my arms and brain felt tired. Maybe one day...
December 9, 2024 at 6:25 AM
#read #noetic #nonfiction #books
1000+ pages long. Intimidating tome full of nominalisations, metadiscourse, hedging, zombie nouns, unnecessary passives and more. It's good.
But 100 pages into it my arms and brain felt tired. Maybe one day...
1000+ pages long. Intimidating tome full of nominalisations, metadiscourse, hedging, zombie nouns, unnecessary passives and more. It's good.
But 100 pages into it my arms and brain felt tired. Maybe one day...
Linguists know about language but don’t necessarily know how to speak or write well. You don’t need to know what nominalisations are to use them well. And other way round.
I write as I write. Sometimes I argue aggressively but never (/(almost never) with malice or ill intent.
I write as I write. Sometimes I argue aggressively but never (/(almost never) with malice or ill intent.
June 21, 2025 at 1:14 PM
Linguists know about language but don’t necessarily know how to speak or write well. You don’t need to know what nominalisations are to use them well. And other way round.
I write as I write. Sometimes I argue aggressively but never (/(almost never) with malice or ill intent.
I write as I write. Sometimes I argue aggressively but never (/(almost never) with malice or ill intent.
More pointless nominalisations - conclusions, decisions - and failure to really understand what processes are
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
Not getting lost in process | Grounded Systems
www.grounded.systems
January 11, 2025 at 8:05 AM
More pointless nominalisations - conclusions, decisions - and failure to really understand what processes are
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
www.grounded.systems/2025/01/not-...
I held my tongue every time I heard ridiculous nominalisations like "comfortability", but I've just heard someone use the word "uncomfortability" and now realise the bitter cost of my inaction/unactability.
July 2, 2026 at 5:41 PM
I held my tongue every time I heard ridiculous nominalisations like "comfortability", but I've just heard someone use the word "uncomfortability" and now realise the bitter cost of my inaction/unactability.
The classifiers I am building combine:
• Jargon lexicon terms per 1,000 words
• Rare/coined terms per 1,000 words
• Hyphenated compounds per 1,000 words
• Nominalisations per 1,000 words
...
• Jargon lexicon terms per 1,000 words
• Rare/coined terms per 1,000 words
• Hyphenated compounds per 1,000 words
• Nominalisations per 1,000 words
...
May 25, 2026 at 9:38 AM
The classifiers I am building combine:
• Jargon lexicon terms per 1,000 words
• Rare/coined terms per 1,000 words
• Hyphenated compounds per 1,000 words
• Nominalisations per 1,000 words
...
• Jargon lexicon terms per 1,000 words
• Rare/coined terms per 1,000 words
• Hyphenated compounds per 1,000 words
• Nominalisations per 1,000 words
...
Probably the two worst nominalisations of all time.
March 26, 2024 at 8:49 PM
Probably the two worst nominalisations of all time.
I 🥰 sharing this with multidisciplinary researchers during #PACEspace sessions:
Helen Sword (cf 'stylish academic writing') is a 💫 force for pumping joy, life, fun, voice, light, love & soul into #AcWri {JM}
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#AcademicLiteracies
#DoctoralWriting
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
Helen Sword (cf 'stylish academic writing') is a 💫 force for pumping joy, life, fun, voice, light, love & soul into #AcWri {JM}
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#AcademicLiteracies
#DoctoralWriting
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
Beware of nominalizations (AKA zombie nouns) - Helen Sword
YouTube video by TED-Ed
youtu.be
November 27, 2024 at 6:41 PM
I 🥰 sharing this with multidisciplinary researchers during #PACEspace sessions:
Helen Sword (cf 'stylish academic writing') is a 💫 force for pumping joy, life, fun, voice, light, love & soul into #AcWri {JM}
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#AcademicLiteracies
#DoctoralWriting
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
Helen Sword (cf 'stylish academic writing') is a 💫 force for pumping joy, life, fun, voice, light, love & soul into #AcWri {JM}
#Nominalisations
#ZombieNouns
#AcademicLiteracies
#DoctoralWriting
youtu.be/dNlkHtMgcPQ
Calls: Workshop at SinFonIJA 19: Deverbal Nominalizations and Participles
Calls: Workshop at SinFonIJA 19: Deverbal Nominalizations and Participles
Call for Papers:
Deverbal nominalisations and participles are among the most intensively studied representatives of so-called mixed categories. At least since Chomsky (1970), they have played a central role in debates on how syntax, morphology, and semantics interact in word formation. They occupy a theoretical middle ground between verbs and nouns/adjectives: they may preserve argument structure, aspectual interpretation, and event semantics, while simultaneously exhibiting nominal or adject
dlvr.it
April 14, 2026 at 11:15 AM
Calls: Workshop at SinFonIJA 19: Deverbal Nominalizations and Participles
Confs: Workshop at SinFonIJA 19: Deverbal Nominalizations and Participles
Confs: Workshop at SinFonIJA 19: Deverbal Nominalizations and Participles
Deverbal nominalisations and participles are among the most intensively studied representatives of so-called mixed categories. At least since Chomsky (1970), they have played a central role in debates on how syntax, morphology, and semantics interact in word formation. They occupy a theoretical middle ground between verbs and nouns/adjectives: they may preserve argument structure, aspectual interpretation, and event semantics, while simultaneously exhibiting nominal or adjectival morphology and
dlvr.it
March 5, 2026 at 12:10 PM
Confs: Workshop at SinFonIJA 19: Deverbal Nominalizations and Participles
Confs: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations
Confs: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations
The JENom workshop series aims to bring together researchers who are interested in the morphology, syntax, and semantics of nominalizations. This year, JENom 11 takes place in Graz (Austria) on July 3-4, 2025, and is organized by the Institute of Linguistics at the University of Graz. The workshop program is available on the website: https://sites.google.com/view/jenom-nominalizations/program.
Invited speakers:
Predrag Kovačević (University of Novi Sad)
Rossella Varvara (University of Pavia
dlvr.it
May 16, 2025 at 6:14 AM
Confs: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations
Calls: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations: 2nd Call for Papers:
Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and…
Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and…
Calls: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations
2nd Call for Papers:
Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and Lakoff (1970). Especially after Chomsky (1970),…
dlvr.it
January 28, 2025 at 3:38 AM
Calls: 11th Workshop on Nominalizations/11èmes Journées d'Etude sur les NOMinalisations: 2nd Call for Papers:
Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and…
Meeting Description:
The study of nominalizations has represented one of the main topics in modern linguistic research starting at least as early as in Lees (1960), Vendler (1968) and…