Hedging Language - Academic Writing
Academic English UK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cGxewHh3bw

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0:01 hi welcome to this presentation on hedging language sometimes called cautious words and phrases so this presentation will include a definition
0:14 it will talk about four key areas of hedging introductory verbs adverbs of frequency modal adverbs adjectives and nouns and that clauses and some
0:28 exercises to finish off everything I talked about today is on our website and there's downloadable worksheets academic English UK comm / hedging okay so a
0:42 definition an important feature of academic writing is the concept of cautious language often called hedging or vague language in other words it is
0:53 necessary to make decisions about your stance on a particular subject or the strength of the claims you are making if you're not sure about how strong and how
1:03 factual your terms or your ideas are then you soften your language through hedging so we start with introductory verbs these are your verbs like seem
1:17 tend assume appear to be think believe doubt indicate suggest is likely to be an example sentence scientists believe the population growth will peak in the
1:33 next 20 years softening okay next adverbs of frequency these your adverbs such as often sometimes usually rarely regularly
1:47 generally typically an example would be it is often stated the population growth will peak in the next 20 years rather than it it is stated okay modal verbs
2:03 this year modal's will must would may might could and can and an example would be scientists believe that popular Ruth could peek in the next 20 years
2:17 so rather than well could this soften were not really sure modal adjectives certain definite clear probable and possible similar sentence it is probable
2:34 that population growth will peak in the next 20 years modal adverbs certainly definitely clearly probably possibly perhaps
2:46 conceivably arguably it is possibly true that population growth will peak in the next 20 years
2:57 modal nouns so this is taking over an adjective and using the noun form assumption possibility probability certainty conception and argument yeah
3:12 there is a probability the population growth will peak in the next 20 years finally that clause is it could be the case that it could be argued that it may
3:27 be assumed that it might be suggested that there is every possibility that it could be argued that population growth will peak in the next 20 years that
3:38 Clause is so you get the idea of softening our statements just to show that we are not a hundred percent sure and these are not scientific facts that
3:52 have been proven overwhelmingly so now it's your terms please pause this slide read these sentences and just try and rewrite them or put in hedging language
4:11 okay the answers again pause this slide and have a look there's more than one answer for any of these sentences but this is just a general idea
4:26 how to hedge structures into your sentences okay that's the end of today's presentation if you'd like more information on
4:39 academic writing go to our website academic English UK comm thank you