Which term means avoiding directness in communication to lessen a negative effect?

Which term means avoiding directness in communication to lessen a negative effect?

• A. hedging
• B. notional syllabus
• C. extrinsic modality
• D. progressive aspect

Answer: (A)

Hedging is the practice of avoiding directness in speech to lessen potential negative effects. It involves using cautious or tentative language to soften statements, protect the listener from offense, and reduce the risk of disagreement or strong pushback. You’ll see it in phrases like “it seems,” “perhaps,” “could,” or “a few tweaks might be helpful,” which keep the speaker’s stance flexible rather than asserting something as an absolute fact. This helps in delicate conversations, such as giving feedback, negotiating, or proposing changes, because it signals openness to discussion and preserves face for others. The other terms don’t capture that softening effect. One refers to a morphological aspect related to ongoing action, not to tone or directness. Another is a non-standard term that doesn’t describe a linguistic strategy for how we phrase things. The remaining one isn’t about softening but about other grammatical categories.

Hedging is the practice of avoiding directness in speech to lessen potential negative effects. It involves using cautious or tentative language to soften statements, protect the listener from offense, and reduce the risk of disagreement or strong pushback. You’ll see it in phrases like “it seems,” “perhaps,” “could,” or “a few tweaks might be helpful,” which keep the speaker’s stance flexible rather than asserting something as an absolute fact.

This helps in delicate conversations, such as giving feedback, negotiating, or proposing changes, because it signals openness to discussion and preserves face for others.

The other terms don’t capture that softening effect. One refers to a morphological aspect related to ongoing action, not to tone or directness. Another is a non-standard term that doesn’t describe a linguistic strategy for how we phrase things. The remaining one isn’t about softening but about other grammatical categories.