Clear language

Plain English

Make content clear and understandable, to open the web up for users with different literacy levels and access challenges.

WCAG states that "using the clearest and simplest language appropriate is highly desirable."

The United Nations recommends plain language for communications.
 

1. Choose easy and short words not formal and long ones.

Use ‘buy’ instead of ‘purchase’, ‘help’ instead of ‘assist’, and ‘about’ instead of ‘approximately’.

Write for the reading comprehension of a 9 year old. This helps you reach the most users and makes your content easy to scan.
 

2. Jargon and buzzwords are unlikely to be clear language.

Often, these words are too general and vague and can lead to misinterpretation or empty, meaningless text. Avoid them. Instead, think about what the term actually means and describe that. Be open and specific.

Example:
"Let's touch base in 10 and do some blue sky thinking." This uses jargon.
"Let's meet in 10 minutes to think of some ideas." Conveys same meaning using clear language.

3. Write conversationally.

Picture your audience and write as if you were talking directly to them, with the authority of someone who can help and inform.

4. Test your content with users

What is 'plain' for one person may not be for someone else.

Short sentence length

Simple sentence structure