1.5: Plain Language
- Page ID
- 74949
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Crafting Your Message with Plain Language
Learning Objectives
Principle 1: Use Active Voice
Recognizing Active and Passive Voice
Example 1: The original screenplay for Good Will Hunting was written by Matt Damon for an English calss when he was student at Harvard University.
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Example 2: As an actor, Matt Damon is loved by millions of fans worldwide.
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Check Your Understanding
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Using Action Verbs to Make Sentences More Interesting
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Note
Using Action Verbs Alone to Avoid Passive Voice
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Writing in the Active Voice
Using Passive Voice
Principle 2: Use Common Words Instead of Complex Words
Writing without Jargon or Slang
Principle 3: Use a Positive Tone When Possible
Principle 4: Write for Your Reader
Organize Your Document to Meet Your Readers’ Needs
Principle 5: Keep Words and Sentence Short (Conciseness)
Eliminating Repetitive Ideas
Removing Repeated Words
Rewording to Eliminate Unnecessary Words
Avoid Expletive Pronouns (Most of the Time)
Note
Do not confuse expletive pronouns with passive voice (as also noted briefly in Principle 1: Use the Active Voice). Both expletive sentences and passive voice use forms of the verb to be, often result in wordiness, and sometimes obscure important information, but they are not the same thing grammatically. The following example should help to clear up any mix-up between the two.
Conclusion
Key Takeaways and Check In
Learning Highlights
Check In
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