⚠️ “It’s Only One Word — It Won’t Matter”

⚠️ “It’s Only One Word — It Won’t Matter”

The misconception

Students often treat register leaks as trivial — individual words in an otherwise strong paragraph. The logic is: the analysis is good, so one informal word will not cost marks. This misunderstands how register is assessed.

The correction

AQA’s Level 4 descriptor requires sophisticated and accurate use of language. Register is not a separate element to mark — it permeates every judgement about whether language use is “sophisticated”. A paragraph with three informal intensifiers reads as a student who has not yet achieved full control of their academic voice. Examiners read thousands of scripts; informal register is immediately visible and changes the level impression before the content is assessed.

The fix is mechanical: after drafting, scan every sentence for the five leak types. It takes 30 seconds. The common traps are “really,” “very,” “you,” “a lot of,” and “it’s.” Replace each with a formal alternative before submitting.

The one exception

Contractions in quoted material are not leaks — they belong to the source text. If a character says “I can’t stand it,” you write the contraction inside the quotation marks. The register rule applies to your own analytical prose, not to the material you quote.