9.10 Quick question for you
Does this sound familiar?
I popped in to the Brooklyn Cafe to grab a coffee with Heather and do a quick run through our presentation. She had a quick question before we jumped right in. “One sec while give a quick call to Josh,” I said, though I could see that she was ready to dive into the details. “It’ll be real quick.”
These days, just about everything is “quick,” as you can see in this list of commonly-used phrases:
grab
divejumphoppop inquick run throughquick callquick questionreal quick, one sec.
Athena Advises
The next time you are tempted to ask someone a “quick question,” ask yourself whether the answer will be all that quick. If so, what does the word “quick” add? If not, consider whether asking someone a question that requires careful attention can accurately be described as “quick.”
(Let’s not even get into the grammar of calling a question “quick.”)
If the answer requires thoughtful consideration or even professional expertise, a grownup may even be a little bit put off by all this hopping, jumping and diving. The “quick” vocabulary might even be received as a lack of appreciation for the time someone is taking to reply to your question.
While you may continue to speak this way, my advice is to adopt a somewhat slower pace in your writing! When writing to teachers or colleges--even if it is "just a quick email," use your best adult level of diction.
“Just saying.”
Dr. Marlena Corcoran
Founder and CEOAuthor of Year by Year to College, on amazon.com, amazon.de and many national amazon sites