Like many writing professionals, I run much of my work through a grammar checking tool. My company made this part of our standard process because it allows us to automate some of the more mundane aspects of the editing process and increase the control we have over the quality of our writing product. Using a grammar editor has helped improve my writing, provide opportunities to positively critique my colleagues’ work, and increase my work cadence.
However, there are also clear limitations to using artificial intelligence to monitor your writing, which is why I rarely use it in my personal life. Below, I’ll take a closer look at some of the biggest drawbacks to using a grammar editor.
1. Grammar Tools Limit Your Vocabulary
While using grammar plug-ins and related tools can be effective for checking basic mechanics and punctuation, I’ve found that these tools are far less effective when working with a large vocabulary.
Grammar checkers will often identify the frequently used terms and suggest others. In my experience, these words tend to be repetitive and from a relatively shallow pool of vocabulary. It is therefore not uncommon to receive the same recommendation for multiple words in an article. If you accept all or most of the suggestions, this has the effect of creating additional redundancies in your work—the very problem you were trying to avoid in the first place.
A residual effect is that you end up with a more limited vocabulary than you first began with. Over time, choosing words recommended by your grammar checker can constrain the variety of language you use, and often, make your writing less interesting to read.
2. Grammar Tools Alter Your Sentence Structure
When you use more advanced grammar checking tools, you’ll frequently receive recommendations to “simplify” the style and structure of your paragraphs. Sometimes, these recommendations are beneficial to your readers and add clarity.
However, you should carefully consider if these proposed changes constitute real improvements. I’ve often found that some of these suggestions merely shorten sentences for simplicity’s sake, while others change the meaning of my prose entirely.
Especially if sentence style and structure is important to you, think twice before accepting every grammar checker recommendation at face value. Rather, consider whether the revision brings your sentence closer to its intended meaning, or instead adds another layer of confusion.
3. Grammar Tools Can Dictate Your Language and Style
Lastly, and most critically, grammar tools have a tendency of dictating your language and style. Through subtly (or sometimes, not so subtly) suggesting that certain words are better to use in a context, grammar checkers have a tendency to recreate written work in their own image.
Whether it is proposing that you use a recommended tone or suggesting that certain words would resonate better with an imagined audience, grammar tools can turn from a neutral editor into an opinionated observer that will “nudge” you to modify your copy to meet its wishes, or simply close it out.
No matter if you are working on behalf of a client or company, or are simply writing for yourself, a human editor is always a more fair judge of style and tone than an artificial one. In the long term, you will be better off building a relationship with a trusted colleague, friend, or even a professional editor instead of delegating this important work to a computer.
Keeping Your Own Style
Ultimately, grammar checking tools are just one modern technology in the writer’s arsenal. In the proper context, they can expedite and improve your writing.
But don’t mistake your grammar checker for a vocabulary or style coach. Trusting these more nuanced and personal aspects of authorship to automated tools can result in writing that is uniform and even bland.
Instead, consider how you can develop a writing style that is all your own—and engage the services of professionals to improve your writing.