Tautology
Not a Fancy Name for Teasing
As an author there are some things that I must watch out for in my writing. Repetition, characters who make no sense, and plot drift among other. Unintentionally saying the same thing twice in a different way in one sentence is called tautology.
A tautology is an expression or phrase that says the same thing twice, just in a different way. For this reason, tautology is usually undesirable, as it can make you sound wordier than you need to be and make you appear foolish. Occasionally, tautology can help to add emphasis or clarity or introduce intentional ambiguity. But, in most cases, it’s best to choose just one way to state your meaning and eliminate the extra verbiage.
https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-tautology.html
We have all heard them and many times we have used them in both speech and writing. Of course, sometimes an author will use it purposefully to emphasize a character’s trait or muddy the plot so to speak. Typically I try to avoid them.
Here are some great examples of Tautology”
- Boys will be boys.
- After we change the game, it wont be the same.
- Assless chaps. All chaps are assless.
- Global Pandemic. Pandemic means all the people.
- I went and saw him personally.
- Hot Water Heater
- I heard it with my own ears.
- Former Alumni
- In my opinion, I think….
- PIN number
- HIV virus
- Figure of Speech
- Necessary requirement
The list goes on and on. I know I am guilty of saying some of these. How about you? I will guess you do. I almost want to challenge myself to write a story full of tautologies! It would be fun if you could add your own Tautology in the comments. Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
