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Any English buff will tell you that tautologies — needlessly repeating a word or idea — are generally frowned upon in professional writing. Just use “PIN,” not “PIN number” since PIN means “personal identification number,” and “ATM,” not “ATM machine,” as the acronym stands for “automated teller machine.”
But what about “please RSVP”? It might not be obvious to the average English speaker, but that phrasing is actually redundant. “RSVP” is French for “respond please,” so “please RSVP” technically means “please respond please.”
However, English speakers have pretty much turned “RSVP” into a verb, as in, “Did you RSVP to their dinner yet?” So at the risk of sounding desperate or just extra polite this holiday season, we think “please RSVP” is just fine. But save yourself the space and forgo the periods in this abbreviation.
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Hone your writing skills and never use "hone in" again. Get writing tips, have fun with words and learn something new in a one-minute read each week by signing up for Stylebot’s newsletter.
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