Changes for page Simple sentences
Last modified by Lizzie Bruce on 2020/01/11 23:51
From version 2.34
edited by Lizzie Bruce
on 2019/03/08 22:54
on 2019/03/08 22:54
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... ... @@ -4,24 +4,26 @@ 4 4 5 5 * **people in a hurry** – simply written content is easier to scan and absorb instantly 6 6 * **people who are stressed** – if you're anxious you find it harder to comprehend things 7 -* **people who are multi-tasking** – if you're holding a baby orrunning business yourattention's divided8 -* **cognitive impairments** – easy tounderstand wordsandsentences carry less cognitive load9 -* **visual impairments** – short andsimple sentences convey meaning in a smaller visual field10 -* **motor impairments** – i t'slesstiring whenyoucan understandwhat youreadquickly7 +* **people who are multi-tasking** – if you're distracted it's hard to comprehend convoluted structures 8 +* **cognitive impairments** – shorter, non-complex sentences carry less cognitive load 9 +* **visual impairments** – short, simple sentences convey meaning in a smaller visual field 10 +* **motor impairments** – clear, concise content is shorted so requires less navigation 11 11 ))) 12 12 13 13 == 14 14 Guidelines == 15 15 16 +Short, simple sentences are better on the web than long, protracted prose with complex syntax. WCAG says: "using the clearest and simplest language appropriate is highly desirable." 16 16 18 + 17 17 (% class="wikigeneratedid" id="H1.MakeyouraveragesentenceA015wordslong." %) 18 -[[1. Make your average sentence 15 words long.>> 1. Make your average sentence 15 words long.||anchor="#1"]]20 +[[1. Make your average sentence 15 words long.>>doc:||anchor="#1"]] 19 19 20 20 (% class="wikigeneratedid" id="H2.A0Avoidcomplexsentencestructures." %) 21 -[[2. Avoid complex sentence structures.>> 2. Avoidcomplex sentence structures.||anchor="#2"]]23 +[[2. Avoid complex sentence structures.>>doc:||anchor="#2"]] 22 22 23 23 (% class="wikigeneratedid" %) 24 -[[Usability evidence>> Usability evidence||anchor="#UESS"]]26 +[[Usability evidence>>doc:||anchor="#UESS"]] 25 25 26 26 27 27 ---- ... ... @@ -32,9 +32,18 @@ 32 32 33 33 The maximum sentence length for a good level of comprehension is 25 words. Split long sentences up into 2 or 3, or use bullet points. 34 34 35 -Oxford Guide to plain English, GOV.UK and linguists agree 15 word sentences are fine but above 40 words is hard to understand.37 +Oxford Guide to plain English, GOV.UK and linguists agree: 36 36 39 +* 15 word sentences are more likely to be comprehensible 40 +* 25 words is a good maximum sentence length limit 41 +* above 40 words sentences are hard to comprehend easily 42 + 37 37 44 +Example: 45 + 46 +(% class="mark" %)This sentence is about 15 words long and is easy to understand. (%%) 47 + 48 + 38 38 === {{id name="#2"/}}2. Avoid complex sentence structures. === 39 39 40 40 They are less easy to comprehend quickly. Understanding them requires more cognitive effort than simple sentences. ... ... @@ -55,11 +55,11 @@ 55 55 56 56 == {{id name="#UESS"/}}Usability evidence: simple sentences == 57 57 58 -Oxford Guide to plain English 69 +[[Oxford Guide to plain English>>https://global.oup.com/academic/product/oxford-guide-to-plain-english-9780199669172?cc=gb&lang=en&]] , Oxford University Press, 2013 59 59 60 -Jyoti Sanyal 'Indlish '71 +Jyoti Sanyal 'Indlish: The book for every English-speaking Indian' 61 61 62 -Author Ann Wylie 73 +[[Author Ann Wylie>>https://www.wyliecomm.com/]], Reach more readers website 63 63 64 64 [[Writing for GOV.UK>>url:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/content-design/writing-for-gov-uk]], UK Government website 65 65 ... ... @@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ 67 67 68 68 [['Content design'>>url:https://contentdesign.london/book/]], Sarah Richards, 2017 69 69 70 -[['The role of word difficulty and sentence length in text comprehension'>> url:https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a114935.pdf]], T. M. Duffy and P. K. U'Ren, 198281 +[['The role of word difficulty and sentence length in text comprehension'>>https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED215330]], T. M. Duffy and P. K. U'Ren, 1982 71 71 72 72 [['The Influence of Semantics and Syntax on What Readers Remember'>>url:https://www.hcde.washington.edu/files/people/docs/Isakson_Spyridakis_Sem_Syn.pdf]], C. S. Isakson and J. H. Spyridakis, 1999 73 73