Plain Language Writing Guide

Plain language is a writing standard — not a style. It means your reader can find what they need, understand it on first reading, and act on it. It's the official standard for government communication in the US, UK, Australia, and New Zealand. And it's quietly the standard for anything that needs to actually work.

# What Plain Language Is (and Isn't)

Plain language is often confused with simple language — short words, low grade level, bullet points everywhere. That's not quite right. Plain language is reader-focused, not formula-focused. A technical document for engineers can be written in plain language. A children's book written with long, wandering sentences is not.

The test is always the same: can your intended reader find what they need, understand it, and use it — without having to re-read, ask someone, or guess?

# The Core Principles

Know your audience

Write for the person who knows least about your topic, not the person who knows most. If both need to read it, write for the least-informed and add a glossary.

Lead with the main point

State the conclusion or action first. Background and context come after. Most readers stop before the end — make sure they got the important part first.

Use active voice

Active: "You must submit the form by Friday." Passive: "The form must be submitted by Friday." Active is shorter, clearer, and assigns responsibility.

One idea per sentence

If your sentence needs a semicolon, it probably needs to be two sentences. Each sentence should carry exactly one thought to completion.

Use everyday words

Choose the word your reader already knows over the more formal alternative. "Start" beats "commence". "Use" beats "utilise". Familiarity reduces effort.

Cut every word that doesn't work

Redundant pairs ("each and every"), empty openers ("it is important to note that"), and throat-clearing phrases all add length without meaning.

# Active vs Passive Voice

This is the most common plain language fix — and the most frequently misunderstood. Passive voice isn't grammatically wrong. It's just often unclear, longer, and weaker. Government and legal writing defaults to passive because it avoids assigning blame or responsibility. That's precisely why it frustrates readers.

✗ PASSIVE

It has been determined that your application cannot be processed at this time due to insufficient documentation having been provided.

✓ ACTIVE

We cannot process your application because you haven't provided all the required documents.

The active version is shorter, clearer, and tells the reader exactly what happened and what they need to do. The passive version obscures who made the decision and why.

# Plain Language for Legal and Government Writing

Legal and government writers face a specific challenge: precision. A single ambiguous word in a contract or regulation can have significant consequences. Plain language doesn't ask you to sacrifice precision — it asks you to achieve precision with fewer words.

## Common legal writing problems

Problem	Example	Fix
Nominalisation	"make a decision"	"decide"
Redundant pairs	"null and void"	"void"
Latin phrases	"inter alia"	"among other things"
Archaic terms	"hereinafter referred to as"	"called" or just use the name
Shall vs must	"The applicant shall..."	"The applicant must..." (clearer obligation)
Buried verb	"have the ability to"	"can"

# The "So What?" Test

After each paragraph, ask: so what? What does my reader need to do or know because of this? If you can't answer clearly, the paragraph hasn't made its point. Either sharpen it or cut it.

> $ plain-language --global-standards

Plain language is legally required for federal government communications in the US (Plain Writing Act 2010), mandated in New Zealand's government style guide, and recommended by the UK Government Digital Service for all public-facing content. It's not optional in many contexts — it's the law.

# A Plain Language Checklist

Before you publish, run through these quickly:

Structure: Does the most important information come first? Are headings descriptive, not clever? Is the document navigable without reading everything?

Sentences: Is the average sentence length under 20 words? Is each sentence in active voice where possible? Does each sentence carry one idea?

Words: Have you replaced formal words with everyday alternatives? Have you removed filler phrases? Have you defined any unavoidable jargon?

Reader test: Would someone unfamiliar with this topic understand what they need to do after reading it? If not — what's stopping them?

Check your grade level and readability score as you edit — paste your draft into ReadCalc.

$ open readcalc.com →