Having run across two redundant usages in one sentence this morning — forewarned and whether or not – I’ve decided to take a break from our usual political fare in favor of some fun stuff concerning language:
The problem with forewarned is that the first syllable is unnecessary. Any good warning is made beforehand.
The problem with whether or not is that you don’t need the or not. It suffices to say, for example, that you wonder whether spring will arrive early this year.
Past history is another common redundancy. All history is past.
Similarly, all plans concern the future. Hence, future plans is redundant. By the same token, funeral homes ought not promote pre-planning. After all, there’s no such thing as post-planning.
And how about actual facts? Kind of silly, right? If they ain’t actual, they ain’t facts.
Speaking of facts, a bald man, by definition, has a bald head. So, why say he’s bald-headed when bald will do?
Here are some other common redundancies, in alphabetical order:
Balsa wood
Bouquet of flowers
Close proximity
Cancel out
Completely destroyed
Consensus of opinion
Disappear from sight
Earlier in time
Fellow classmates
Few in number
Final outcome
Former graduate
Former veteran
Free gift
Head honcho
Kneel down
Look ahead to the future
Mental telepathy
Minestrone soup
Over-exaggerate
Passing fad
Personal friend
Pizza pie
Repeat again
Reply back
Safe haven
Skipped over
Small size
Sudden impulse
Sum total
Truly sincere
Tuna fish
Two equal halves
Vacillate back and forth
Write down
Even a prefix can be redundant, such as in “reiterate”. As a liberal-minded guy, however, my favorite example is GWB’s infamous “They misunderestimated me” zinger from 2000.
ATM Machine…
PIN number.