NCO Primary Leadership Subjects
Rule 10: Avoid Sentences that Begin with "It is," "There is,"
or "There are"
Expletive construction is a commonly used sentence structure that contributes to
Definition:
wordiness and the passive voice. Sentences that use expletive construction invert the
Expletive
subject-verb order and begin with there or it plus a form of the verb to be.
construction
Expletive construction weakens a sentence by forcing the use of the passive voice.
Examples:
Expletive
Examples:
construction
WEAK: It is considered by this office that the test is completed.
EMPHATIC: We believe the test is done.
WEAK: There are many examples of this usage.
EMPHATIC: Most writers use this structure.
Writing Mechanics and Composition
3-23
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