Unnecessary jargon and buzzwords make it harder for people to understand your point, especially when they do not share your workplace or specialist vocabulary. Use familiar, specific words for a broad audience—but keep technical terms when they are accurate, useful shorthand for readers who know them. When a necessary term may be unfamiliar, explain it where it first appears.
Why jargon can lose your reader
Jargon is language familiar to a particular profession, organization, or group. That familiarity makes it efficient among people who share the same knowledge; outside that group, the same term can slow readers down or obscure what you mean. Microsoft’s style guidance on avoiding jargon recommends considering whether your audience knows a term and whether a familiar alternative would work.
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Readers may skip unfamiliar terms, abbreviations, or acronyms and miss the point around them. The CDC warns writers not to let language used with colleagues spill into writing for consumers in its module Get to the Point: Write for Immediate Understanding. This matters whenever the reader needs to understand information or act on it—not just when a text is formally technical.
Why buzzwords are especially unhelpful
Buzzwords often sound important without stating a concrete action, result, or fact. Phrases such as “drive alignment” or “leverage synergies” may leave a reader wondering who will do what. GOV.UK’s clear-language guidance recommends replacing vague expressions with specific descriptions, and gives everyday alternatives such as “buy” instead of “purchase” and “help” instead of “assist.”
#1 Best Overall
Ask what the phrase means in practical terms. If “optimize the workflow” means “remove two approval steps,” say that. If a phrase cannot be translated into a clear action or claim, it may not be telling the reader anything useful.
When specialist language belongs
Plain language does not mean removing every technical term. A precise term may be the clearest option when readers know it, or when no everyday alternative preserves the meaning. Digital.gov’s plain-language guidance advises defining technical terms when they are necessary and have no clear substitute.
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| Choice | Best fit | Risk to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday wording | Broad audiences, new readers, or instructions where immediate understanding matters | A simpler phrase may lose an important distinction if it is not precise enough |
| Specialist wording | Readers who share the relevant technical context, or concepts with no accurate everyday substitute | Readers outside that context may misunderstand or skip the term |
For example, a technical team may use an established term as shorthand in a discussion among specialists. A public-facing explanation should not assume that everyone recognizes it: define it briefly at first use, or choose a familiar description if that keeps the meaning accurate.
A practical edit for clearer writing
- Identify the reader and purpose. Decide who needs the information and what they need to understand or do.
- Put the main point first. State the result, decision, or action before background detail. Use headings and focused paragraphs to make the rest easier to scan.
- Replace vague language with specifics. Name the action, the person or group responsible, and any relevant result. Prefer a familiar word when it carries the same meaning.
- Keep necessary technical terms. Retain a term when it is precise, familiar to the intended audience, or has no accurate everyday substitute. Define it the first time if some readers may not know it.
- Expand unfamiliar abbreviations. Spell out an acronym or abbreviation on first use when the audience may not recognize it; avoid relying on workplace shorthand.
- Check sentence structure. Use active voice when it makes clear who did what. The Australian Government Style Manual’s plain-language guide recommends putting important information first, using everyday words, and keeping paragraphs focused. It suggests an average sentence length of 15 words and a maximum of 25 as practical targets, not universal rules.
- Read it as an outsider. Ask whether someone beyond your immediate team can explain the main point and what to do next. If not, clarify the wording or supply the missing context.
Clear writing without dumbing things down
Good communication is not a contest to use the fewest technical words. The goal is to help the intended reader grasp the right meaning. A specialist audience may benefit from accurate shared terminology; a general audience may need a plain explanation first. Choose words for the reader in front of you, not to sound impressive.
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