Course Catalog / BMU 150 / Glossary
Glossary: BMU 150 Write It Clear: Emails, Essays and Applications
- active voice
- The doer comes first and does the action. The clinic sent the bill.
- change note
- One sentence naming your biggest change.
- claim
- Your main point, stated as a position you can support. Also called a thesis.
- confabulation
- When an AI tool states false content as if it were true.
- cover letter
- A short letter, usually one page, that goes with a resume and explains why you fit one job.
- deadline
- The date and time you need an answer or action by.
- evidence
- Facts, examples, or short stories that show a reason is true.
- filler
- Words that add length but no meaning, like just, really, or I wanted to.
- hidden verb
- A verb turned into a noun, like make a decision instead of decide.
- main point
- The one sentence you want your reader to remember or act on.
- main point first
- Putting your main point at the start, also called the inverted pyramid or bottom line up front.
- passive voice
- The action comes first and the doer is late or missing. The bill was sent.
- prompt
- The question or task the essay must answer.
- proofread
- Fix spelling, names, numbers, and dates in a nearly done draft.
- purpose
- The job your message does: ask, tell, explain, or persuade.
- reader
- The person who will read your message and decide what to do with it.
- request
- The specific thing you want the reader to do.
- revise
- Improve the content, order, and sentences of a draft.
- show, do not claim
- Give an example that proves a strength instead of just naming it.
- so what
- Why your claim matters to the reader or what should happen next.
- subject line
- The short title of an email. It shows in the inbox before the reader opens it.
- tailor
- Shape your writing for one reader and one prompt, instead of using the same text everywhere.
- tone
- How your writing sounds to the reader: warm, firm, formal, or casual.
- word limit
- The most words the prompt allows. Treat it as a rule.
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