Use Simple Tense and Voice

Summary

Using simple tense and voice makes content easier to understand. It is more direct and simplifies the meaning of the content. For example, in English, “read chapter three” is easier to understand than “chapter three should be read.”

Overview

Use simple tense and voice to help make “who is doing what” clear.

In English:

• Use present tense to simplify the meaning of a sentence.
• Use present tense and active voice to make the sentence structure easier to understand.

For example:

• Use: The bylaws describe how to meet the requirements for ownership.
• Avoid: To meet the requirements for ownership, the bylaws describe the actions you would need to take.

These rules differ when you write in other languages. In other languages, use the most common tense and voice for the topic of your document.

Who is Helped

Using simple tense and voice helps people with cognitive or learning disabilities related to reading skills, language processing, and memory. Sentences written in the present tense and active voice are easier to understand and process. They also make content easier to recall.

We all benefit from clear writing. Sentences written in simple tense and voice decrease everyone’s cognitive load.

Guidelines

Use Active Voice

In English, French, and Spanish, write sentences using active voice to speak directly to your audience when possible. This guidance is especially true when describing something or telling a story. Active voice eliminates ambiguity and makes understanding who is doing what easier.

• Active voice sentences usually begin with a subject followed by an action. The subject is performing the action.

• Example: Devon incorporated accessibility into the website’s code. In this sentence, “Devon” is the subject, and “incorporated” is the action he performs.

It is best to avoid using passive voice when you write. Passive voice can confuse the sentence order and disguise who is doing what.

• Passive voice sentences usually use some form of “to be.” When you write a sentence in the passive voice, the subject is undergoing the action.

• Example: Accessibility was incorporated by Devon into the website’s code. In this sentence, the subject “accessibility” is receiving the action of the verb “was incorporated.”

Sometimes, passive voice is helpful. See this article from Grammarly for information on Passive Voice: When to Avoid It and When to Use It.

In some languages, such as Swedish and Turkish, passive voice is more widely used. You may need to use passive voice more often when writing in these or other languages.

Use Present Tense

Present-tense sentences are the simplest and easiest to understand in English. In other languages where this is not the case, use the option that is the easiest to understand.

Use present tense to talk about:

• actions that are happening now,
• something that is generally true,
• something permanent, and
• something that is done regularly.

Use other voices or tenses when they are easier to understand. You may need to use other tenses than the present when writing in languages other than English.

Do not use the present tense when writing about events in the past or future.

Simple (Use)	Complex (Avoid)
The director told his employees about their raise at the holiday party.	The employees were told about their raise at the holiday party by the director.
Her performance improves every month.	Month after month, we see her performance improve.
Our company proposed new guidelines for hosting online meetings.	New guidelines for hosting online meetings were proposed by our company.

Table 1: Simple & Complex Statements

Writing Instructions

When giving instructions:

• Use the imperative voice without qualifications (enter a valid email) or specify who should take the action (new students line up on the left).
  • Be consistent with your choice.
• Use “must” if the action is required (you must enter a valid email).

Simple (Use)	Complex (Avoid)
Include a summary.	A summary should be included.
You should add a summary to long documents.	A summary should be added to long documents.
You must add a summary to documents over 500 pages.	For documents over 500 pages long, you must always add a summary.

Table 2: Simple & Complex Instructions

Check Spelling and Grammar

Spelling and grammar-checking tools can suggest changes to simplify the tense and voice of your document.

• See Check Spelling and Grammar for more information on using these editing tools.

References

• Making Content Usable for People with Cognitive and Learning Disabilities - Objective 3: Use Clear and Understandable Content (W3C)

• Federal Plain Language Guidelines (plainlanguage.gov)

• Australian Government Style Guide - Sentences (gov.au)

• Active vs. Passive Voice: What’s the Difference? (Grammarly)

• Passive Voice: When to Avoid It and When to Use It (Grammarly)