Word Choice & Economy
Nominalization
Flag abstract noun forms of verbs that hide the action.
What It Does
Detects nominalizations — words where a perfectly good verb has been turned into a noun (often with suffixes like -tion, -ment, -ness, -ance). Each flagged word includes the verb form as a suggested alternative.
Uses NLP to ensure the word is genuinely being used as a noun, not as a verb.
Why It Matters
Nominalizations bury the action inside a noun, forcing the writer to add weak supporting verbs:
- Nominalized: "The investigation was conducted by detectives."
- Direct: "Detectives investigated."
The direct version is shorter, clearer, and more dynamic. Nominalizations are one of the biggest contributors to bureaucratic, lifeless prose.
What Gets Flagged
Nominalized Verbs
Severity: Hint
Example (flagged):
His decision to leave surprised everyone.
Why: "Decision" buries the action of deciding.
Suggested revision:
He decided to leave, surprising everyone.
Common nominalization patterns detected:
| Suffix | Noun Form | Verb Form |
|---|---|---|
| -tion | investigation | investigate |
| -sion | decision | decide |
| -ment | improvement | improve |
| -ance | performance | perform |
| -ence | dependence | depend |
| -ness | awareness | be aware |
The analyzer covers 100+ nominalization pairs across all major suffix categories.
Configuration
No configuration options.
Technical Details
- Source:
prose-craft - Scope: Line-level
- Method: Curated nominalization dictionary + NLP noun verification