I am indebted to an Associate and friend – Jim Sinopoli – CEO – Founder of Smart Buildings www.smart-buildings.com for his insight and thought about words and phrases, we should avoid when creating specifications and other related documents. We wanted to share them with you.
20 Most Ambiguous ‘Weasel’ Words and Phrases not to be used in a Specification
1. User-Friendly
2. Seamless
3. Robust
4. Flexible
5. Heretofore (or other legalize words)
6. Securely Mounted
7. Carefully Performed
8. Common Practice in the Industry
9. Minimize
10. Etc.
11. Workman-like-Manner
12. When required
13. Any
14. And/or
15. Satisfactory to the Owner
16. Provide as Indicated Full and complete
17. Actual
18. Immediately
19.Maximize
20. Optimize
Think about what you say when preparing specifications – Does the reader understand what you mean? Often this is where the confusion starts that often leads to nasty words, time lost and in many times lawsuits.
