Intermediate
Grammar
#concise-writing
#technical-writing
#documentation
#style
Concise IT Writing (Cut the Filler)
5 exercises — identify and remove the most common filler patterns in technical English: bloated phrase structures, nominalisations, and redundant meta-commentary.
Top 10 filler patterns to cut from your writing
- "in order to" → "to"
- "due to the fact that" → "because"
- "make use of" → "use"
- "in a [adj] manner" → "[adverb]" (efficiently, quickly)
- "is responsible for [verb]-ing" → just the verb
- "there are X that" → restructure with real subject
- "at this point in time" → "now"
- "in the process of" → remove entirely
- "a number of" → "several" or a specific number
- Nominalisation: "perform an investigation" → "investigate"
0 / 37 completed
1 / 37
A developer writes a comment in a PR:
"In order to be able to support the processing of requests in a more efficient manner, we should consider making use of a caching layer."
Which revision is most concise without losing meaning?
"In order to be able to support the processing of requests in a more efficient manner, we should consider making use of a caching layer."
Which revision is most concise without losing meaning?
Option A eliminates five common filler patterns in one pass: "In order to" → "To" (saves 2 words). "be able to support the processing of" → "support" (removes stacked infinitives + nominalisation). "in a more efficient manner" → "efficiently" (adjective phrase → adverb). "consider making use of" → "consider adding" (removes dead verb stacking). "a caching layer" ✓ (already concise). The 10 most common filler patterns in technical writing: (1) "in order to" → "to"; (2) "due to the fact that" → "because"; (3) "at this point in time" → "now"; (4) "make use of" → "use"; (5) "in a [adjective] manner" → "[adverb]"; (6) "the fact that" → remove or rephrase; (7) "provide support for" → "support"; (8) "is able to" → "can"; (9) "perform an analysis of" → "analyse"; (10) "in the event that" → "if". Each filler removed makes your docs faster to read and more professional.
2 / 37
A technical writer reviews a README sentence:
"There are a number of issues that were identified during the testing phase that need to be addressed before the release."
Choose the best concise rewrite.
"There are a number of issues that were identified during the testing phase that need to be addressed before the release."
Choose the best concise rewrite.
Option B applies three key conciseness moves: (1) "There are X that" → restructure with the subject directly: "There are issues that" → "Several issues". (2) Remove double relative clauses: "issues that were identified during testing that need to be addressed" → "issues identified during testing must be resolved" (one participial phrase, one main verb). (3) Weak passive → strong modal: "need to be addressed" → "must be resolved" (stronger, shorter). Option A is better than the original but keeps "a number of" (→ "several") and the awkward "they need addressing". Option C adds filler ("that exist", "prior to release time"). Option D creates more complexity. Pattern: whenever you see "There is/are…", ask if you can restructure with a real subject: "There is a function that handles authentication" → "A function handles authentication."
3 / 37
An engineer writes a Jira ticket description:
"The purpose of this ticket is to make improvements to the performance of the API endpoint."
What is the most concise equivalent?
"The purpose of this ticket is to make improvements to the performance of the API endpoint."
What is the most concise equivalent?
Option B is the winner for Jira/GitHub issues and PR titles: imperative verb + object, no meta-commentary. "The purpose of this ticket is to" = pure filler — the reader already knows what a ticket is for. Ticket and PR title formula: [Verb] [what] [optional: for/in/to + where/scope]. Examples: "Improve API endpoint performance" / "Fix null pointer exception in auth middleware" / "Add rate limiting to the /payments endpoint" / "Remove deprecated v1 routes" / "Refactor user session management". Why not A or C? Option A still has "The purpose is to" — slightly better but still unnecessary setup. Option C uses nominalisation ("performance improvement") instead of a verb ("improve"). Option D is passive and awkward. Key principle: in technical context (tickets, commit messages, PR descriptions), start with the imperative verb. No preamble needed.
4 / 37
Which version of this status update email sentence is the most concise and professional?
Option C removes three layers of filler in one rewrite: "are currently in the process of conducting an investigation" → "are investigating" (present continuous is sufficient — no need to announce the process of doing a process). "the root cause of the outage" → "the outage's root cause" (possessive is slightly more compact; both are fine). Filler phrases removed: "currently" (present tense already implies current). "in the process of" (says nothing — remove always). "conducting an investigation" → "investigating" (nominalisation → verb). Option A has all three fillers. Option B replaces "currently" with "At the present moment in time" — worse! That phrase = 5 words for 0 meaning. Option D has "have begun to start" (two verbs for one action) + "the process of". Status update principle: readers want facts fast. Every extra word between the reader and the information is friction. Write "We are investigating" not "We are currently in the process of conducting an investigation into".
5 / 37
A developer documents a function. Which description is most concise and accurate?
Option B achieves perfect function documentation conciseness by applying four rules: (1) Skip "this function is responsible for" — start with the verb: "Validates". (2) Active voice over passive: "validates" instead of "user input gets validated". (3) Remove pleonasms: "a boolean value that is either true or false" — "boolean" already means true or false; just say "true" / "false". (4) "X if Y, Z otherwise" — the standard pattern for conditional return docs. Docstring golden rule: describe what the function does, not what it is. One sentence max for the summary line. Pattern for return value: "Returns [what] if [condition], [what] otherwise." More examples: "Returns the user record if found, null otherwise." / "Throws ValidationError if any required field is missing." / "Caches the result for 5 minutes; returns cached value on subsequent calls." Option C keeps "has the responsibility of" and the vague "returns boolean". Option D uses passive voice throughout.
6 / 37
Sarah: 'I've noticed that the API response time for retrieving user profiles is consistently slow. We need to investigate this and determine the root cause before escalating.'
Which of the following Slack messages from Mark, a senior developer, provides the most concise and actionable update?Sarah's message is lengthy and doesn't immediately offer a solution or direction. Option A provides a clear first step – monitoring – which is crucial. Options B and C are too vague; 'bad for user experience' isn't actionable, and simply scaling up without understanding the cause is often wasteful. Option D introduces a Jira ticket prematurely, when immediate action is needed. Mark's response directly suggests an initial investigation based on available data.7 / 37
Mark is responding to a notification about slow API response times. Here's his Slack message:
mark@example.com: 'We're seeing some latency when fetching user profiles via the /users endpoint. Let's investigate and identify any bottlenecks.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and actionable for Mark to send?
The original message is slightly vague and doesn't immediately suggest a next step. Option B is the most direct, clearly identifying the problematic endpoint and requesting urgent action. Options A lacks specific details about the issue, while option D is too informal and shifts responsibility without clear direction. Option C, though longer than ideal, precisely states the problem and desired outcome – making it the most concise and actionable message for a senior developer.
8 / 37
Liam is drafting a comment for a code review of a new feature that allows users to upload profile pictures. He writes: 'To ensure optimal user experience and prevent potential performance degradation issues, we should implement robust error handling mechanisms throughout the image processing pipeline.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and effective for Liam's comment?
Liam's original phrasing is overly verbose and uses phrases like 'to ensure' and 'potential performance degradation issues.' The best option removes unnecessary introductory clauses and directly states the action needed. While 'Better' isn't *perfect*, it's a significant improvement over the original by removing redundant wording. Options A and C are too generic, while D adds an extraneous goal (optimal user experience) that isn't necessarily implied.
9 / 37
Sarah: 'I've noticed that the API response time for retrieving user profiles is consistently slow. We need to investigate this and determine the root cause before escalating.'
Which of the following Slack messages from Mark, a senior developer, provides the most concise and actionable update?Sarah's message is lengthy and doesn't immediately offer a solution or direction. Option A provides a clear first step – monitoring – which is crucial. Options B and C are too vague; 'bad for user experience' isn't actionable, and simply scaling up without understanding the cause is often wasteful. Option D introduces a Jira ticket prematurely, when immediate action is needed. Mark's response directly suggests an initial investigation based on available data.10 / 37
Mark is responding to a notification about slow API response times. Here's his Slack message:
mark@example.com: 'We're seeing some latency when fetching user profiles via the /users endpoint. Let's investigate and identify any bottlenecks.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and actionable for Mark to send?
The original message is slightly vague and doesn't immediately suggest a next step. Option B is the most direct, clearly identifying the problematic endpoint and requesting urgent action. Options A lacks specific details about the issue, while option D is too informal and shifts responsibility without clear direction. Option C, though longer than ideal, precisely states the problem and desired outcome – making it the most concise and actionable message for a senior developer.
11 / 37
Liam is drafting a comment for a code review of a new feature that allows users to upload profile pictures. He writes: 'To ensure optimal user experience and prevent potential performance degradation issues, we should implement robust error handling mechanisms throughout the image processing pipeline.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and effective for Liam's comment?
Liam's original phrasing is overly verbose and uses phrases like 'to ensure' and 'potential performance degradation issues.' The best option removes unnecessary introductory clauses and directly states the action needed. While 'Better' isn't *perfect*, it's a significant improvement over the original by removing redundant wording. Options A and C are too generic, while D adds an extraneous goal (optimal user experience) that isn't necessarily implied.
12 / 37
Sarah: 'I've noticed that the API response time for retrieving user profiles is consistently slow. We need to investigate this and determine the root cause before escalating.'
Which of the following Slack messages from Mark, a senior developer, provides the most concise and actionable update?Sarah's message is lengthy and doesn't immediately offer a solution or direction. Option A provides a clear first step – monitoring – which is crucial. Options B and C are too vague; 'bad for user experience' isn't actionable, and simply scaling up without understanding the cause is often wasteful. Option D introduces a Jira ticket prematurely, when immediate action is needed. Mark's response directly suggests an initial investigation based on available data.13 / 37
Mark is responding to a notification about slow API response times. Here's his Slack message:
mark@example.com: 'We're seeing some latency when fetching user profiles via the /users endpoint. Let's investigate and identify any bottlenecks.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and actionable for Mark to send?
The original message is slightly vague and doesn't immediately suggest a next step. Option B is the most direct, clearly identifying the problematic endpoint and requesting urgent action. Options A lacks specific details about the issue, while option D is too informal and shifts responsibility without clear direction. Option C, though longer than ideal, precisely states the problem and desired outcome – making it the most concise and actionable message for a senior developer.
14 / 37
Liam is drafting a comment for a code review of a new feature that allows users to upload profile pictures. He writes: 'To ensure optimal user experience and prevent potential performance degradation issues, we should implement robust error handling mechanisms throughout the image processing pipeline.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and effective for Liam's comment?
Liam's original phrasing is overly verbose and uses phrases like 'to ensure' and 'potential performance degradation issues.' The best option removes unnecessary introductory clauses and directly states the action needed. While 'Better' isn't *perfect*, it's a significant improvement over the original by removing redundant wording. Options A and C are too generic, while D adds an extraneous goal (optimal user experience) that isn't necessarily implied.
15 / 37
Sarah: 'I've noticed that the API response time for retrieving user profiles is consistently slow. We need to investigate this and determine the root cause before escalating.'
Which of the following Slack messages from Mark, a senior developer, provides the most concise and actionable update?Sarah's message is lengthy and doesn't immediately offer a solution or direction. Option A provides a clear first step – monitoring – which is crucial. Options B and C are too vague; 'bad for user experience' isn't actionable, and simply scaling up without understanding the cause is often wasteful. Option D introduces a Jira ticket prematurely, when immediate action is needed. Mark's response directly suggests an initial investigation based on available data.16 / 37
Mark is responding to a notification about slow API response times. Here's his Slack message:
mark@example.com: 'We're seeing some latency when fetching user profiles via the /users endpoint. Let's investigate and identify any bottlenecks.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and actionable for Mark to send?
The original message is slightly vague and doesn't immediately suggest a next step. Option B is the most direct, clearly identifying the problematic endpoint and requesting urgent action. Options A lacks specific details about the issue, while option D is too informal and shifts responsibility without clear direction. Option C, though longer than ideal, precisely states the problem and desired outcome – making it the most concise and actionable message for a senior developer.
17 / 37
Liam is drafting a comment for a code review of a new feature that allows users to upload profile pictures. He writes: 'To ensure optimal user experience and prevent potential performance degradation issues, we should implement robust error handling mechanisms throughout the image processing pipeline.'
Which of the following revisions is most concise and effective for Liam's comment?
Liam's original phrasing is overly verbose and uses phrases like 'to ensure' and 'potential performance degradation issues.' The best option removes unnecessary introductory clauses and directly states the action needed. While 'Better' isn't *perfect*, it's a significant improvement over the original by removing redundant wording. Options A and C are too generic, while D adds an extraneous goal (optimal user experience) that isn't necessarily implied.
18 / 37
David writes the following comment on a code review:
`'This section of code is quite complex and difficult to understand. We need to break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks to improve readability and maintainability.'`
Which option provides the most concise and effective revision?
The original comment uses overly verbose language and doesn't directly suggest a solution. Options B and C offer specific, actionable advice – refactoring and decomposition – which are standard practices in code reviews. Option A is too vague, while option D adds unnecessary detail about investigation.
19 / 37
During a standup meeting, Alex says: 'I'm currently working on implementing the new user authentication feature. I've been focusing on the API integration and handling the token validation process.'
Which of the following is the most concise way to update the team about his progress?
Alex's initial statement is perfectly acceptable. Option A repeats information unnecessarily. Option B adds 'some progress,' which isn't always needed in a standup. Options C and D are overly verbose and less direct than the original phrasing.
20 / 37
A developer is writing a PR description for a change that optimizes database queries.
Which of the following descriptions best summarizes the work?
Option B is concise and directly explains the purpose of the change – optimized queries. Option A is overly detailed and uses jargon like 'load on the server.' Option C focuses solely on completion without explaining *how* it was achieved. Option D is a generic description that lacks specifics.
21 / 37
Maria sends this Slack message to her team:
`'We need to investigate the possibility of an issue with the background processing queue. The system is experiencing significant delays in handling new tasks, and it's impacting user experience.'`
Which revision is most effective for quickly alerting the team?
Option 1 is direct and clearly states the problem. It avoids unnecessary phrases like 'the possibility of an issue' and 'significant delays.' Option A is too vague, while options C and D are overly formal and lack urgency.
22 / 37
You're reviewing a code change that implements a new API endpoint for retrieving product data. The developer's commit message reads: 'This commit adds the functionality to retrieve products from the database.'
Which revision is more concise and informative?
Option 0 is the most direct and uses the specific endpoint name (
/products), which is crucial context. Options B and C are unnecessarily verbose. Option D is overly descriptive and doesn't convey the essential functionality.23 / 37
David writes the following comment on a code review:
`'This section of code is quite complex and difficult to understand. We need to break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks to improve readability and maintainability.'`
Which option provides the most concise and effective revision?
The original comment uses overly verbose language and doesn't directly suggest a solution. Options B and C offer specific, actionable advice – refactoring and decomposition – which are standard practices in code reviews. Option A is too vague, while option D adds unnecessary detail about investigation.
24 / 37
During a standup meeting, Alex says: 'I'm currently working on implementing the new user authentication feature. I've been focusing on the API integration and handling the token validation process.'
Which of the following is the most concise way to update the team about his progress?
Alex's initial statement is perfectly acceptable. Option A repeats information unnecessarily. Option B adds 'some progress,' which isn't always needed in a standup. Options C and D are overly verbose and less direct than the original phrasing.
25 / 37
A developer is writing a PR description for a change that optimizes database queries.
Which of the following descriptions best summarizes the work?
Option B is concise and directly explains the purpose of the change – optimized queries. Option A is overly detailed and uses jargon like 'load on the server.' Option C focuses solely on completion without explaining *how* it was achieved. Option D is a generic description that lacks specifics.
26 / 37
Maria sends this Slack message to her team:
`'We need to investigate the possibility of an issue with the background processing queue. The system is experiencing significant delays in handling new tasks, and it's impacting user experience.'`
Which revision is most effective for quickly alerting the team?
Option 1 is direct and clearly states the problem. It avoids unnecessary phrases like 'the possibility of an issue' and 'significant delays.' Option A is too vague, while options C and D are overly formal and lack urgency.
27 / 37
You're reviewing a code change that implements a new API endpoint for retrieving product data. The developer's commit message reads: 'This commit adds the functionality to retrieve products from the database.'
Which revision is more concise and informative?
Option 0 is the most direct and uses the specific endpoint name (
/products), which is crucial context. Options B and C are unnecessarily verbose. Option D is overly descriptive and doesn't convey the essential functionality.28 / 37
David writes the following comment on a code review:
`'This section of code is quite complex and difficult to understand. We need to break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks to improve readability and maintainability.'`
Which option provides the most concise and effective revision?
The original comment uses overly verbose language and doesn't directly suggest a solution. Options B and C offer specific, actionable advice – refactoring and decomposition – which are standard practices in code reviews. Option A is too vague, while option D adds unnecessary detail about investigation.
29 / 37
During a standup meeting, Alex says: 'I'm currently working on implementing the new user authentication feature. I've been focusing on the API integration and handling the token validation process.'
Which of the following is the most concise way to update the team about his progress?
Alex's initial statement is perfectly acceptable. Option A repeats information unnecessarily. Option B adds 'some progress,' which isn't always needed in a standup. Options C and D are overly verbose and less direct than the original phrasing.
30 / 37
A developer is writing a PR description for a change that optimizes database queries.
Which of the following descriptions best summarizes the work?
Option B is concise and directly explains the purpose of the change – optimized queries. Option A is overly detailed and uses jargon like 'load on the server.' Option C focuses solely on completion without explaining *how* it was achieved. Option D is a generic description that lacks specifics.
31 / 37
Maria sends this Slack message to her team:
`'We need to investigate the possibility of an issue with the background processing queue. The system is experiencing significant delays in handling new tasks, and it's impacting user experience.'`
Which revision is most effective for quickly alerting the team?
Option 1 is direct and clearly states the problem. It avoids unnecessary phrases like 'the possibility of an issue' and 'significant delays.' Option A is too vague, while options C and D are overly formal and lack urgency.
32 / 37
You're reviewing a code change that implements a new API endpoint for retrieving product data. The developer's commit message reads: 'This commit adds the functionality to retrieve products from the database.'
Which revision is more concise and informative?
Option 0 is the most direct and uses the specific endpoint name (
/products), which is crucial context. Options B and C are unnecessarily verbose. Option D is overly descriptive and doesn't convey the essential functionality.33 / 37
David writes the following comment on a code review:
`'This section of code is quite complex and difficult to understand. We need to break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks to improve readability and maintainability.'`
Which option provides the most concise and effective revision?
The original comment uses overly verbose language and doesn't directly suggest a solution. Options B and C offer specific, actionable advice – refactoring and decomposition – which are standard practices in code reviews. Option A is too vague, while option D adds unnecessary detail about investigation.
34 / 37
During a standup meeting, Alex says: 'I'm currently working on implementing the new user authentication feature. I've been focusing on the API integration and handling the token validation process.'
Which of the following is the most concise way to update the team about his progress?
Alex's initial statement is perfectly acceptable. Option A repeats information unnecessarily. Option B adds 'some progress,' which isn't always needed in a standup. Options C and D are overly verbose and less direct than the original phrasing.
35 / 37
A developer is writing a PR description for a change that optimizes database queries.
Which of the following descriptions best summarizes the work?
Option B is concise and directly explains the purpose of the change – optimized queries. Option A is overly detailed and uses jargon like 'load on the server.' Option C focuses solely on completion without explaining *how* it was achieved. Option D is a generic description that lacks specifics.
36 / 37
Maria sends this Slack message to her team:
`'We need to investigate the possibility of an issue with the background processing queue. The system is experiencing significant delays in handling new tasks, and it's impacting user experience.'`
Which revision is most effective for quickly alerting the team?
Option 1 is direct and clearly states the problem. It avoids unnecessary phrases like 'the possibility of an issue' and 'significant delays.' Option A is too vague, while options C and D are overly formal and lack urgency.
37 / 37
You're reviewing a code change that implements a new API endpoint for retrieving product data. The developer's commit message reads: 'This commit adds the functionality to retrieve products from the database.'
Which revision is more concise and informative?
Option 0 is the most direct and uses the specific endpoint name (
/products), which is crucial context. Options B and C are unnecessarily verbose. Option D is overly descriptive and doesn't convey the essential functionality.Frequently Asked Questions
What will I practise in "Concise IT Writing — Cut the Filler Exercise"?
Practice cutting filler from technical writing: remove redundant phrases, nominalisations, and weak passives.
How many exercises are in this module?
This module has 37 multiple-choice exercises, each with instant feedback and a full explanation of the correct answer.
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No. Progress is tracked only for your current visit; reloading or leaving the page resets the counter. This keeps the exercise simple and account-free.
Where can I find more Grammar exercises?
Browse the full Grammar hub for related drills, or check the "Next up" link below to continue with a connected topic.
How is this different from reading an article on the same topic?
Articles explain grammar rules in prose; this exercise tests and reinforces those rules through active recall with immediate feedback — the two work best together.
Who writes these exercises?
Every exercise is written by the CoderSlingo team, drawing on real workplace English used in IT roles, then reviewed for accuracy and clarity.