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Development and Review of Specifications Attachment 7

Vague Adjectives and Adverbs

Ideally, specifications should state requirements in terms of measurable and quantifiable standards. The inclusion of adjectives and adverbs to modify a requirement rarely adds meaning to a specification, and actually may lead to disputes over interpretation. Listed below are some vague adjectives and adverbs that should generally be avoided in specifications.

About
Adequate
Appropriate
Better
Careful
Deep
Dependable
Desirable
Easy
Economical
Efficient
Entirely
Excessive
Good
High
Highest quality
Insufficient
Less
Low
Major
Neat
Normal
Periodically
Pleasing
Practicable
Practical
Proper
Quick
Reasonable
Recognizable
Relevant
Reputable
Safe
Satisfactory
Secure
Significant
Similar
Simple
Smooth
Some
Stable
Substantial
Sufficient
Suitable
Variable
Wide
Workmanlike
Worse
Updated: 06/27/2017
Federal Highway Administration | 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE | Washington, DC 20590 | 202-366-4000