Plain Language - Definition

Definition

Most literacy and communications scholars agree that plain language means:

  • "Clear and effective communication" (Joseph Kimble)
  • "The idiomatic and grammatical use of language that most effectively presents ideas to the reader" (Bryan Garner)
  • "Clear, straightforward expression, using only as many words as are necessary. It is language that avoids obscurity, inflated vocabulary and convoluted construction. It is not baby talk, nor is it a simplified version of ... language." (Dr Robert Eagleson)
  • "A literary style that is easy-to-read because it matches the reading skill of the audience" (William DuBay)
  • "Language that is clear, concise and correct" (Richard Wydick)

Read more about this topic:  Plain Language

Famous quotes containing the word definition:

    “I’m beginning to think that the proper definition of “Man” is “an animal that writes letters.””
    —Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson] (1832–1898)

    “... we all know the wag’s definition of a philanthropist: a man whose charity increases directly as the square of the distance.”
    —George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)

    “Was man made stupid to see his own stupidity?
    Is God by definition indifferent, beyond us all?
    Is the eternal truth man’s fighting soul
    Wherein the Beast ravens in its own avidity?”
    —Richard Eberhart (b. 1904)