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Index of resources and exercises: Overview
- PDF: Plain
English, Plain
Language, or Clear
Writing; Why Use Plain
Language? (US Census Bureau); Infographic: Plain
Englsh, Please! (National Adult Literacy Agency, Ireland) | What
is journalese? How is it different from Plain English? | Discussions
on journalese (external links)| Resources in journalism (internal links)
| PDF style guides for journalism and business institutions
(external links) | PDF resources on grammar for
journalists (external links) | Resources on Plain Language / Plain English
for business writing | Free editing programs (external
links) | PDF and PPT resources on Plain English for science writing
(external links) | PDF resources on Plain English for academic writing
(internal links) | Resources on Technical Writing in Plain
English (internal and external links) | Resources on Plain Language
for government communications (external links)| OWL Purdue University
resources on Engish grammar and composition (external links)| Plain English
resources (internal links) | PDF resources on writing
for the Internet from 4Syllables (external links)
| PDF resources on writing (internal links) | Miscellaneous
exercises on Plain English | Plain
English exercises on wordy words and phrases vs. simpler words and phrases
| Plain English writing and
editing exercises (internal and external links) | PDF
resources and interactive exercises for legal writing | “Legal
Writing in Plain English” by Bryan A. Garner | Miscellaneous
English grammar exercises | Common
English grammar errors (exercises) | Exercises
based on “Grammar Tests” (Birmingham UK resource) | Vocabulary
exercises (synonyms, antonyms, logic list, classified phrasal verbs, idioms) | Reading comprehension
exercises | Paragraph summarizing and
paragraph completion exercises; correct sequence of sentences (making
up a story) | Recommended
resources in Plain English, Plain Language, or Clear Writing (including
health literacy flashcards - medical terms, phrases, references, and their
Plain English equivalents or definitions)
What is journalese? How is it different from
Plain English? “Journalese” is the artificial or hyperbolic,
and sometimes over-abbreviated, language regarded as characteristic of
the news style used in popular media (Wikipedia). On the other hand, “Plain
English” (aka “Plain Language” or “Clear Writing”) is writing in such
a way that readers can find what they need, understand what they find,
and use what they find to meet their needs. The goal of Plain English
writing is clarity.
Bryan Garner (editor of Black’s Law Dictionary): “The
phrase ‘plain English’ certainly shouldn’t connote drab and dreary language.
Actually, plain English is typically quite interesting to read. It’s robust
and direct—the opposite of gaudy, pretentious language. You achieve plain
English when you use the simplest, most straightforward way of expressing
an idea. You can still choose interesting words. But you’ll avoid fancy
ones that have everyday replacements meaning precisely the same thing.”
For more information about what Plain English is, read “Plain
Language, Plain English or Plain Writing for government offices, private
companies, schools, and organizations” (external link).
|
What is journalese?
(external links): “200
journalism cliches — and counting” from The Washington Post; “There
is no ease in journalese” from Detroit Free Press; “What
Is Journalese (and What's Wrong With It)?” from ThoughtCo; “Journalese:
The Sequel” from The New York Times; “Journalese
is like a poker player’s tell: it shows when a story is flimsy” from
New Statesman America; “Journalese:
A strange English dialect” and “The
many pitfalls of journalese: Clarity, not clichés, should be the journalist’s
lodestar” from The Economist (UK newspaper that has been using plain
language since its founding in 1843); “The
World in Journalese” from The Institute for Cultural Research; “Thirty
words journalists should stop using”;
“Ease off the journalese”; “Columnist
probes journalistic clichés” from The Sydney Morning Herald; “Clichés
and Journalese” from The BBC News Styleguide; “Political
clichés fill airwaves during conventions”; “Impeach
political clichés in your scripts”; “Stuck
in amid hell with you” from The Guardian; “Let’s
ditch the journalese”; “Avoiding
fad, clichés and jargon”; “Keep
elected officials and journalists that cover them honest. Call out these
slippery lines and clichés.”; “The
20 clichés of journalism”; “15
Journalistic Clichés That You Should Also Avoid”; “Jargon,
Weasel Words, And Gobbledygook”; “Words
Journalists Use That People Never Say”
PDF resources on journalism (external
links): Editorial
(overview); Editorial
writing tips; The
Complete Book of Feature Writing; News
writing
PDF resources from JProf (internal links):
Principles
of clear, effective writing; Preview
stories handout; Speech
stories handout; Inverted
pyramid news story; Rules
for using commas
PDF style guides for journalism and business
institutions (external links): Associated
Press (AP) Style Guide; AP
Style Guide Cheat Sheet; The
Economist Style Guide; Asian
Development Bank Handbook of Style and Usage (2017); Reuters
Handbook of Journalism
PDF resources on grammar for journalists (external
links): ASJMC
Insights 2006 (“When Journalism Majors Don’t Know Grammar” and
“Journalism Schools and the Teaching of Grammar”); English
Grammar for Journalists; Towards
a Working Grammar for Journalists; Got
Grammar? (City University of New York); Spelliing
and Grammar: Their Importance to Journalism (ERIC); Journalism
and media (Pearson Longman)
Free training resources on journalism
(external links): Journalism
Center (resources for high school and college journalists); Media
Helping Media; UNESCO
Series on Journalism Education (with internal PDF Journalism,
‘Fake News’ and Disinformation); 1
Million Story Ideas and Writing Prompts for Student Journalists (College
Media Matters) with 2019
update; Over
1,000 Writing Prompts for Students (The New York Times)
Miscellaneous PDF resources on journalism
(external links): The
News Manual (standard text in newsrooms across the Asia-Pacific region,
developed with UNESCO); Newspaper
Basics for Student Journalists; Handbook
of Independent Journalism; A
glossary to keep beside the TV; Writing
Style Differences in Newspaper, Radio, and TV
Recommended resources on business and general
writing (internal and external links): “The
Simple Secrets of Writing and Speaking (Almost) Like A Professional”
College Edition; “Business
English for Success” from The Saylor Foundation (the discussions and
exercises in this book can also be used for journalism, law, and general
writing); other resources from The Saylor Foundation: Writers’
Handbook and Successful Writing;
“On Writing Well” by William Zinsser; “Style, Toward Clarity and Grace”
by Joseph M. Williams.
Resources on Plain Language/Plain English for
business writing (external links): Are
English Majors Good Business Writers?; Introducing
Plain Language Principles to Business Communication Students (Rachelle
Greer, University of Wyoming); Write
in Plain English: Lose The Jargon And Connect With Your Reader (Forbes);
How
to improve your business writing (Harvard Business Review); Plain
English — Essential to Great Business Writing; Business
Writing for Everyone: Chapter 1: Exploring Your Reading and Writing
Beliefs; Chapter 2: The Writing Process; Chapter 3: Context, Audience,
Purpose; Chapter 4: Style and Tone; Chapter 5: Organizing your ideas;
and 13 other chapters; Why
Plain Language is good for business (The Language Lab, Business Communications);
87
Advanced Business Writing Tips That Actually Work; In
Business, Plain Words Say it Best; 21
of the most hated business phrases; How to improve your business writing;
The
Case for Plain-Language Contracts (Harvard Business Review); Plain
English for Better Business Writing; Effective
Business Writing: The Importance of Plain Language; 6
reasons why using Plain Language is a bullseye for your business;
8
Business Writing Guidelines to Remember (Acrolinx); What
is Plain English and why use it in Business Writing?; Plain
English — Essential to Great Business Writing; The
need for Plain English in global business (Pearson); Global
Business Speaks English (Harvard Business Review); Writing
In Plain Language Will Improve Customer Relationships; 6
Causes of Miscommunication — How to Use Plain Language Effectively
(Money Crashers); Business
Communication Layering: Technical Content For Different Audiences;
Why
You Should Always Use Plain English in Your Business Communications;
In
Business, Plain Words Say it Best (Canada One); Five
Ways To Achieve Clarity in Your Business Writing (National Center
for Business Journalism)
|
PDF, PPT, and other
resources on Plain English for science writing (external links):
“Bridging
the Divide between Science and Journalism” (Journal of Translational
Medicine, 2010); “Worlds
Apart: How Distance Between Science and Journalism Threatens America’s Future”
(First Amendment Center); “The
Science of Scientific Writing” by Gopen and Swan; A
Summary of “The Science of Scientific Writing”; “Scientific Communication:
A Student Guide to Scientific Writing” (NYU Shanghai); Writing
science in plain English; Writing
Science in Plain English (Voice of America); The
Craft of Scientific Writing (PPT); Writing
science in plain English by Dr. Lynn Dicks, Conservation Science Group,
Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge (30-minute Youtube video);
Scientific
Writing: Clarity, Conciseness, and Cohesion (from Duke University);
How
to write consistently boring scientific literature by Kaj Sand-Jensen,
University of Copenhagen; Plain
Language in Science: Signs of Intelligible Life in the Scientific Community?
(Science Editor, Nov - Dec 2001, Vol 24 No 6); Scientific
Writing Resource from Duke University Graduate School: principles, examples,
worksheets; Alan
Alda’s Crusade to Make Science Talk a Jargon-Free Zone (Scientific American);
Alan
Alda wants scientists to cut out the jargon; Science,
in the Words of Alan Alda (The Atlantic); What
Academics Can Learn From Alan Alda (Time); 5
Questions: Alan Alda on communicating science effectively (Stanford
Medicine); Resources from Duke University Graduate School Scientific Writing
Resource: Scientific
Writing for Scientists: Improving Clarity (PDF), Scientific
Writing: Clarity, Conciseness, and Cohesion (PDF), Lesson
I: Subjects / Actions, Lesson
II: Cohesion, Coherence, and Emphasis, and Lesson
III: Concision and Simplicity; How
to write a plain-language abstract; Science
in Ten Hundred Words: The “Up-Goer Five” challenge; 5
Steps to simplifying language in research communication; English
Communication for Scientists (Scitable, A Collaborative Learning Space
for Science); Video
abstracts and plain language summaries are more effective than graphical
abstracts and published abstracts; Abstract
Plain Language Summaries (Pfizer); Communicating
using Plain Language (Aurora College Research Institute); The
secret to using tenses in scientific writing (infographic); Resources
from American Geophysical Union: Sharing
Planetary Science in Plain Language; Science
Communicators: On Avoiding Jargon; Watch
Your Words! Science vocabulary with dual meanings; The
value of a plain-language abstract (The Plainspoken Scientist, AGU blog)
PDF resources on Plain English for academic writing
(external links):
“Why Academics Stink at Writing” by Steven Pinker; “Academic
Writing in English” from University of Helsinki; “Dancing
With Professors: The Trouble With Academic Writing” (New York Times);
“Consequences
of Erudite Vernacular Utilized Irrespective of Necessity: Problems with
Using Long Words Needlessly” (Oppenheimer, Princeton University)
Resources on Technical Writing in Plain English:
Internal links (PDF) - Philip
Tory’s Technical Writing Course; Improving
Your Technical Writing Skills (University of London); External links
- Plain
Language Is for Everyone, Even Experts (Nielsen Norman Group); Technical
Writing Need Not Be Abstruse—Use Plain Language for Maximum Impact;
10
Guidelines for Plain English Technical Writing for Nontechnical Readers;
At
the Intersection of Plain Language and Technical Communications; Technical
Writing in Plain English; Understanding
Plain Language and Simplified Technical English; How
to fix the 7 most common glitches in technical writing; Why
simple language isn't so simple: the struggle to create plain language
in documentation; Basics
of Plain Language in Technical Documentation
Plain Language for government communications
(external links): Why
Use Plain Language? (US Census); Plain
English Lexicon: 2,700 commonly-used words from public information
documents (Living Word Vocabulary); European
Commission guide on how to write clearly; Plain
English Guide (Government of South Australia);
Content design: planning, writing and managing content (gov.uk); Plain
Language: how to write clearly to meet the needs of your readers;
Plain
English Writing Do’s and Don’ts (Klariti); What
is Plain English Gobbledygook?; Plain
Language in the US Gains Momentum: 1940-2015 (Karen Schriver)
PDF resources from OWL Purdue University resources
on English grammar and composition (external links): Eliminating
Unnecessary Words; Five
Principles of Readability; Parallelism
Handout; Micro
Level Cohesion Handout; Macro
Level Cohesion Handout; Verb
Use for ESL Writers Handout; Intra-Paragraph
Organization for ESL Writers Handout
PDF resources on Plain English (internal and
external links): 15
Top Tips in Plain English Writing; Introducing
Plain Language; Writing
style guide; Using
Plain English (Asian Development Bank);
Special English Word Book for radio, television, and Internet (Voice
of America)
PDF resources on writing for the Internet from
4Syllables and on website design from DHHS (external links):
10
tips for web writers and editors; Concise
writing; Everyday
words; Active
voice; Making
content findable; A-Z
of better web writing; Designing
scannable content; Verbs:
Nominalisations; Writer’s
review checklist; Research-based
web design and usabillity guidelines (DHHS)
Free editing programs (external links):
Rewordify (this program
aims at improving vocabulary and reading comprehension, but it can be
used as an editing tool); Drivel
Defence (this program identifies your long sentences and suggests
simpler words). |
Miscellaneous Plain English exercises (no time limit but with automatic
scoring)
- Avoid
big words and pompous diction (1)
- Avoid
big words and pompous diction (2)
- Avoid
big words and pompous diction (3)
- Avoid
big words and pompous diction (4)
- Avoid
big words and pompous diction (5)
- Avoid
double negatives
- Avoid
doublets and triplets
- Avoid dummy
subjects
- Avoid hidden
verbs (nominalization)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (1)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (2)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (3)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (4)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (5)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon(6)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (7)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (8)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (9)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (10)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (11)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (12)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (13)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (14)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (15)
- Avoid
pretentiousness, wordiness, and jargon (16)
- Avoid
redundant modifiers
- Avoid
wordiness (basis, manner, fashion, and way)
- Omit
unnecessary words (“of,” “to,” “on,’
and other prepositions)
- Use
short, simple words (1)
- Use
short, simple words (2)
- Use
short, simple words (3)
- Use
short, simple words (4)
- Use
short, simple words (5)
- Use
short, simple words (6)
- Use
short, simple words (7)
- Use
short, simple words (8)
- Use
single words instead of phrases (1)
- Use
single words instead of phrases (2)
Plain English exercises with moderate time limit and automatic scoring
Plain English exercises: avoid redundancies (no time limit but with automatic
scoring)
- Avoid
redundancies (modifiers, pairs, categories) Part 1
- Avoid
redundancies (modifiers, pairs, categories) Part 2
- Avoid
redundancies (modifiers, pairs, categories) Part 3
- Avoid
redundancies (modifiers, pairs, categories) Part 4
- Avoid
redundancies (modifiers, pairs, categories) Part 5
- Avoid
redundancies (modifiers, pairs, categories) Part 6
Asian Development Bank’s Clear
Writing guidelines (flashcards; exercises with time limit and automatic
scoring)
Exercises from OECD Style Guide 2nd
Edition (British English; with time limit and automatic scoring)
Gender-neutral
and gender-free language (flashcards; based on British Columbia Securities
Commission Plain Language Style Guide)
Plain English exercises on avoiding redundancies (with time limit and
automatic scoring)
Plain English exercises on avoiding wordiness, formalism, redundancy,
nominalization or hidden verbs, doublets, dummy subjects, and double negatives
(with extreme to moderate time limit and automatic scoring)
Plain English exercises on avoiding wordiness, pretentiousness, legalese,
and jargon (with automatic scoring and time limit of 45 or 60 seconds)
|
Miscellaneous Plain English exercises with extreme time limit and automatic
scoring
30 seconds per 10-item quiz
- Avoid
hidden verbs (nominalizations), Part 1
- Avoid
hidden verbs (nominalizations), Part 2
- Avoid
hidden verbs (nominalizations), Part 3
- Avoid
hidden verbs (nominalizations), Part 4
45 seconds per 10-item quiz
- Use
simple words, Part 1
- Use
simple words, Part 2
- Use
simple words, Part 3
- Use
simple words, Part 4
- Use
simple words, Part 5
- Use
simple words, Part 6
- Use
simple words, Part 7
- Use
simple words, Part 8
- Use
simple words, Part 9
- Use
simple words, Part 10
- Use
simple words, Part 11
- Use
simple words, Part 12
- Use
simple words, Part 13
- Use
simple words, Part 14
- Use
simple words, Part 15
45 seconds per 10-item quiz
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 1
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 2
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 3
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 4
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 5
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 6
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 7
- Use
simple words or phrases instead of legalese
or wordy phrases, Part 8
Plain English words and phrases (matching-type exercises)
Flashcards (based on materials from Department of Management Services
Florida, USA; no scoring or time limit)
Plain English exercises on avoiding wordiness, pretentiousness, legalese,
and jargon (each exercise has 10 items and a time limit of 90 seconds)
Plain English writing and editing exercises (internal and external
links)
|
Wordy words and phrases vs. simpler words and phrases
based on the US Air Force Communications Handbook 33-337
dated 27 May 2015, also known as “The Tongue and Quill” |
|
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Miscellaneous
English grammar exercises |
|
|
Common
English grammar errors (exercises)
(from “Common Mistakes in English with Exercises” by
T. J. Fitikides) |
- Exercise 01 (nouns - confusion of number)
- Exercise 02 (habit or custom)
- Exercise 03
- Exercise 04 (comparative or superlative)
- Exercise 05 (comparative - superlative)
- Exercise 06 (many - much)
- Exercise 07 (his - her)
- Exercise 08 (interesting - interested)
- Exercise 09 (adjectives)
- Exercise 10 (a -an)
- Exercise 11 (tenses)
- Exercise 12 (simple present - present continuous)
- Exercise 13 (simple past - past continuous)
- Exercise 14 (simple past tense - present perfect)
- Exercise 15 (tense)
- Exercise 16 (don’t - doesn’t)
- Exercise 17 (tag questions)
- Exercise 18 (avoid double negatives)
- Exercise 19 (make - do)
- Exercise 20 (sit - seat - set)
- Exercise 21 (rise - raise)
- Exercise 22 (fly - flow - flee)
- Exercise 23 (borrow - lend)
- Exercise 24 (refuse - deny)
- Exercise 25 (learn - teach)
- Exercise 26 (see - look)
- Exercise 27 (hear - listen)
- Exercise 28 (fall - fell)
- Exercise 29 (choose the correct word)
- Exercise 30 (correct position of adverbs, adverbial phrases)
- Exercise 33 (very - too)
- Exercise 32 (very - much)
- Exercise 33 (very much - too much)
- Exercise 34 (hard - hardly)
- Exercise 35 (to - at)
- Exercise 36 (in - into)
- Exercise 37 (in - on - at)
- Exercise 38 (choose the correct preposition)
- Exercise 39 (no - not)
- Exercise 40 (it’s - its)
- Exercise 41 (past - passed)
- Exercise 42 (choose the correct word)
- Gerund or infinitive, part 1
- Gerund or infinitive, part 2
- Gerund or infinitive, part 3
- Infinitives (without “to”)
- Miscellaneous, Part 1
- Miscellaneous, Part 2
- Miscellaneous, Part 3
- Miscellaneous, Part 4
- Miscellaneous, Part 5
- Miscellaneous, Part 6
-
-
-
|
|
Exercises based on “Grammar Tests”
(PDF resource from Birmingham UK)
|
Various topics (Elementary Level Tests)
- Grammar
Elementary (Test - 1) 44 items
- Grammar
Elementary (Test - 2) 57 items
- Grammar
Elementary (Test - 3) 60 items
- Grammar
Elementary (Test - 4) 84 items
- Grammar
Elementary (Test - 5) 57 items
- Grammar Elementary Test -
6, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 6 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 7 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 6, Part 8 (7 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 7, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 7, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 7, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 7, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 7, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 7, Part 6 (8 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 6 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 7 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 8 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 9 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 8, Part 10 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 9, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 9, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 9, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 9, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary
Test - 9, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary
Test - 9, Part 6 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 9, Part 7 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 9, Part 8 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 6 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 10, Part 7 (6 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 11, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 11, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 11, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 11, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 11, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 11, Part 6 (11 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 12, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 12, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 12, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 12, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 12, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 12, Part 6 (5 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 13, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 13, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 13, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 13, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 13, Part 5 (13 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 14, Part 1 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 14, Part 2 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 14, Part 3 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 14, Part 4 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 14, Part 5 (10 items)
- Grammar Elementary Test
- 14, Part 6 (5 items)
Modals (Multi-Level Tests)
Question Tags (Multi-Level Tests)
|
Comparatives - Superlatives (Multi-Level Tests)
Infinitives - Gerunds (Multi-Level Tests)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 1 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 2 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 3 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 4 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 5 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 6 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 7 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 8 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 9 (10 items)
- Multi-Level Grammar Test 8 Infinitives
- Gerunds, Part 10 (10 items)
Tenses - Passives (Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Level Tests)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 1, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 2, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 3, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 4, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 5, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 6, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 7, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 8, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 9, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 10, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 11, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 12, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 13, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 14, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 15, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 16, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 17, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 18, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 19, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 20, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 21, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 22, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 23, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 24, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 25, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 26, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 27, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 28, 10 items)
- Grammar Test Elementary / Pre-Intermediate Tenses – Passives (Part 29, 10 items)
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Synonyms (intermediate and upper intermediate
levels)
Synonyms (advanced level; using contextual clues)
Antonyms (intermediate and upper intermediate levels)
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Logic list (intermediate and upper intermediate
levels)
Classified phrasal verbs
Idioms |
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Paragraph
summarizing and paragraph completion exercises;
correct sequence of sentences (making up a story)
based on PDF
resource from Birmingham UK |
Paragraph summarizing
Correct sequence of sentences (making up a story)
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Paragraph completion
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Plain English PDF resources for legal writing
Plain
Language Guide: How to Incorporate Plain Language into Court Forms, Websites,
and Other Materials (National Association for Court Management, USA)
“Readers’
Expectations, Discourse Communities, and Effective Bar Exam Answers”
by Denise Riebe, Duke University School of Law, Senior Lecturing Fellow
Resources by Judge Gerald Lebovits, adjunct professor at Columbia, Fordham,
and New York University law schools
Plain English exercises based on Judge Gerald Lebovits' articles (except
for flashcards, all exercises have time limit and automatic scoring)
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Plain English interactive exercises for legal writing
Plain English guidelines used in restyling of US Federal Rules
of Court (flashcards)
Flashcards (no scoring or time limit)
Plain English guidelines from various government regulatory agencies
on how to create clear, concise, and effective disclosure documents
(flashcards)
Preferred Expressions (Drafting Legal Documents, Federal Register; all
exercises have time limit of 2 minutes and automatic scoring)
- Words and phrases
to be avoided and preferred usages, Hawaii Legislative Drafting
Manual
- Word Use Guide,
Idaho Legislation Drafting Manual
- Alternative
words and shorter phrases, Illinois Bill Drafting Manual
- Use simple language,
Part 1, Maine Legislative Drafting Manual
- Use simple language,
Part 2, Maine Legislative Drafting Manual
- Words to be
Avoided, Montana Bill Drafting Manual 2012
- Preferred Words
and Phrases, Oregon Bill Drafting Manual
- Legalese and
Preferred Usage, Texas Legislative Drafting Manual
- Preferred
Words and Phrases, Part 1, West Virginia Drafting Manual
- Preferred
Words and Phrases, Part 2, West Virginia Drafting Manual
- Preferred
Words and Phrases, Part 3, West Virginia Drafting Manual
- Preferred
Words and Phrases, Part 4, West Virginia Drafting Manual
(2) Flashcards, based on Minnesota Revisor’s
Manual 2013 Edition
(3) Flashcards,
based on “Drafting Legislation in Hong Kong: A Guide to Styles
and Practices” |
“Legal
Writing in Plain English” by Bryan A. Garner |
Bryan A. Garner is a U.S. lawyer, lexicographer, and teacher who has written
several books about English usage and style, including “Garner’s
Modern American Usage” and “Elements of Legal Style.”
He is the editor-in-chief of all current editions of Black’s Law
Dictionary. He has coauthored two books with Justice Antonin Scalia: “Making
Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges” (2008) and “Reading
Law: The Interpretation of Legal Texts” (2012). Garner is the only
co-author of a Supreme Court Justice in the history of the Court.
Founder and president of LawProse,
Inc., he serves as Distinguished Research Professor of Law at Southern
Methodist University Law School.
Garner has contributed to the field
of procedural rules. In 1992-1994, he revised all amendments to the various
sets of Federal Rules-Civil, Appellate, Evidence, Bankruptcy, and Criminal-by
the United States Judicial Conference. In the mid-1990s, he restyled the
Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure and the Federal Rules of Criminal
Procedure, which were adopted by the Judicial Conference, then by the
United States Supreme Court, and enacted by Congress. The Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure were restyled in 1993-1994 and adopted on December
1, 2007. The Administrative Office of the United States Courts has printed
and distributed Garner’s booklet “Guidelines for Drafting
and Editing Court Rules” (1996).
Garner has revised the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, the California
Rules of Appellate Procedure, the California Judicial Council Rules, the
Local Rules of the United States Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit,
and the Rules on Judicial-Conduct and Disability Proceedings (for federal
courts).
Since 2012, Garner has had a monthly column in the American Bar Association
Journal. Since 1999, he has had a similar column in the ABA's Student
Lawyer.
As
a grammarian, Garner has written books on general English usage, including
Garner’s Modern American Usage. When the University of Chicago Press
published the 15th edition of the influential The Chicago Manual of Style
(ISBN 0-226-10403-6) in 2003, Garner contributed a chapter on grammar
and usage. Garner is the only solo author of a section in The Chicago
Manual of Style. (From Wikipedia)
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(Note: Clicking the
links below will take you to the exercises. You can download
all fifty exercises in a single ASCII text file. Model answers are
in Garner’s book.)
01 Have
something to say--and think it through.
02 For
maximal efficiency, plan your writing projects. Try nonlinear outlining.
03 Order
your material in a logical sequence. Use chronology when presenting facts.
Keep related material together.
04 Divide
the document into sections, and divide sections into smaller parts as
needed. Use informative headings for the sections and subsections.
05 Omit
needless words.
06 Keep
your average sentence length to about 20 words.
07 Keep
the subject, the verb, and the object together--toward the beginning of
the sentence.
08 Prefer
the active voice over the passive.
09 Use
parallel phrasing for parallel ideas.
10 Avoid
multiple negatives.
11 End
sentences emphatically.
12 Learn
to detest simplifiable jargon.
13 Use
strong, precise verbs. Minimize is, are, was, and were.
14 Turn
-ion words into verbs when you can.
15 Simplify
wordy phrases. Watch out for of.
16 Avoid
doublets and triplets.
17 Refer
to people and companies by name.
18 Don't
habitually use parenthetical shorthand names. Use them only when
you really need them.
19 Shun
newfangled acronyms.
20 Make
everything you write speakable.
21 Plan
all three parts: the beginning, the middle, and the end.
22 Use
the “deep issue” to spill the beans on the first page.
23 Summarize.
Don’t overparticularize.
24 Introduce
each paragraph with a topic sentence.
25 Bridge
between paragraphs.
26 Vary
the length of your paragraphs, but generally keep them short.
27 Provide
signposts along the way.
28 Unclutter
the text by moving citations into footnotes.
29 Weave
quotations deftly into your narrative.
30 Be
forthright in dealing with counterarguments.
31 Draft
for an ordinary reader, not for a mythical judge who might someday review
the document.
32 Organize
provisions in order of descending importance.
33 Minimize
definitions. If you have more than just a few, put them in a schedule
at the end--not at the beginning.
34 Break
down enumerations into parallel provisions. Put every list of subparts
at the end of the sentence--never at the beginning or in the middle.
35 Delete
every shall.
36 Don’t
use provisos.
37 Replace
and/or wherever it appears.
38 Prefer
the singular over the plural.
39 Prefer
numerals, not words, to denote amounts. Avoid word-numeral doublets.
40 If
you don’t understand a form provision--or don’t understand
why it should be included in your document--try diligently to gain that
understanding. If you still can’t understand it, cut it.
41 Use
a readable typeface.
42 Create
ample white space--and use it meaningfully.
43 Highlight
ideas with attention-getters such as bullets.
44 Don’t
use all capitals, and avoid initial capitals.
45 For
a long document, make a table of contents.
46 Embrace
constructive criticism.
47 Edit
yourself systematically.
48 Learn
how to find reliable answers to questions of grammar and usage.
49 Habitually
gauge your own readerly likes and dislikes, as well as those of other
readers.
50 Remember
that good writing makes the reader’s job easy; bad writing makes
it hard.
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Recommended resources in Plain English, Plain Language,
or Clear Writing |
Write
in Plain English Training Guide (Careerforce guide for seminars, US
1279 Version 4)
October
13 - International Plain Language Day
A
Plain Language Handbook for Writers in the U.S. Federal Government
(internal PDF; interactive
flashcards also available)
Health Literacy Thesaurus: Medical terms, phrases, references,
and their Plain English equivalents or definitions (flashcards; internal
links):
A (abdomen
- avoid); B
(B cells - by which time); C
(cancer - cystitis); D
(dander - dyspepsia); E
(economical - extend) F
(facilitate - fundamental); G
(gamete - Guillain-Barre Syndrome); H
(H5N1 - hypotension); I
(identical - isolation of ill people); J-K-L
(jaundice - lymphocytes); M
(macrophage - mutation); N
(narcotic - nutritious); O
(objective - overabundance); P
(palatable - purchase); Q
(qualified - quarantine); R
(RA - rupture); S
(sanitary - systemic); T
(taper - tumor); U
(ulcer - UVB) V
(vaccinate - vomit); W
(waning immunity - witness); X,
Z (X-ray - zoonoses)
Health literacy and Plain Language (external links)
Toolkit
for Making Written Material Clear and Effective (U.S. Department of
Health & Human Services Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services; external
link) Before and After revisions and discussions from some government communications
(external links)
Plain Language videos (external links)
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Free online training courses
in Plain Language (external links)
Plain Language groups you can join (external links)
Learn more about Plain Language (external
links)
“Writing
English as a Second Language” by William Zinsser (a talk to the incoming
international students at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism;
external link)
Plain Language checklists (external links)
Plain Language handbooks (PDFs open in new tab)
Field testing your documents (PDFs open in new tab)
Website design, usability, and Plain Language (links open
in new tab)
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Ginny
Redish: Writing Vibrant, Compelling Copy - The Content in Content
Strategy; Content! Content! Content!; Focusing on Conversations and
Key Messages
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How to start a Plain Language program in your organization
Slideshare
presentations about Plain Language (external links)
Writing and editing sentences
English grammar and writing resources (PDFs and external
links open in new tab)
E-books
on writing and other topics from Bookboon (free registration required)
Siegel+Gale Simplicity Survey (PDFs open in new tab)
- A Clarion Call for Transparency (2009): Eighty-four percent of respondents
are “...more likely to trust a company that uses jargon-free,
plain English in its communications.”
- Global Brand Simplicity Index 2013: Simplicity in processes and
communications inspires deeper trust and greater loyalty in customers,
and clears the way to innovation for employees.
- Simple:
Less Is More by Alan Siegel and Irene Etzkorn, Saturday Evening
Post, Nov-Dec 2013 (external link):
“Simplicity works-in business, in government, in life. People
can and should demand it. We need a call to action: the spark for
a movement toward reduction of societal, governmental, and corporate
complexity.”
“Principles of simplicity apply to every interaction, whether
printed, electronic, verbal, or visual. It doesn't matter whether
it is a contract, an instruction, a touchscreen, or a phone tree.
Products of all types-appliances, vehicles, medicines, foods-and services
whether provided by a hotel, a hospital, or an online retailer can
benefit from simplicity.
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Exercises
created by Atty.
Gerry T. Galacio based on copyrighted materials available on the Internet.
You can use these exercises only on a personal, educational,
and non-commercial basis; you must not upload these exercises and resources
to an intranet, to a website, or to the cloud. For comments, questions,
or corrections, email gtgalacio@yahoo.com
Exercises
created with freeware Hot Potatoes v. 6.3 from the University of Victoria
in British Columbia, Canada.
Free
seminar-workshops on English
proficiency and on photojournalism
for Metro Manila schools: email gtgalacio@yahoo.com or text 0927-798-3138
Better
English resources and exercises (free resources on grammar,
pronunciation, spelling, writing, vocabulary, idioms, reading comprehension,
public speaking, etc.); Related website: Interactive
English grammar and vocabulary exercises based on Korean historical dramas
such as A Jewel In The Palace, Dong Yi, Jumong, Empress Ki, Moonlight
Drawn by Clouds (Love In The Moonlight), etc.
Plain
Language, Plain English or Plain Writing for government offices, private
companies, schools, and organizations — overview, definitions,
benefits, and guidelines (external link)
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Be
a better writer or editor through StyleWriter 4: this software
checks 10,000 words in 12 seconds for hundreds of style and English
usage issues like wordy and complex sentences, passive voice, nominalization,
jargon, clichés, readability, spelling, etc. StyleWriter 4 has
a graded 200,000 word and phrase dictionary, covering most of the words
you will ever use in writing.
StyleWriter
4 is widely used in the US federal government (for example, Environmental
Protection Agency). It is used in banks, law offices, and by professionals
from various fields. It is fully customizable and comes with three versions:
USA, UK, and Australian. StyleWriter 4 can edit memos, articles, essays,
business letters, speeches, thesis, dissertations, books (fiction or non-fiction),
and all kinds of corporate communications.
Family
Matters (complete text of the Family Code of the Philippines;
frequently asked questions; relevant laws like RA 9262; legal procedures
and Rules of Court)
Legal
Updates (in-depth discussions of issues affecting the Filipino
family, legal procedures, support, inheritance, etc.): Plain Language
/ Plain English for government offices, private companies, schools, and
organizations; Clear, concise English for effective legal writing; Legal
procedures in civil and criminal cases; Heirs and inheritances
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