Before-and-After Comparisons
One of the best ways to see how a plain-language approach can improve a document is to look at some examples of documents before and after they received plain language treatments.
Government regulations
- Airworthiness Directives regulation, Federal Aviation Administration
- Fisheries regulations on skipper education, NOAA
- Ambiguous wording rewritten —several short examples
- Wordiness made spare —several short examples
Government manuals, handbooks, reports
- Army Information Security Handbook
- Johnson Space Center manual—Before After
- Johnson Space Center manual—Before After
- Johnson Space Center manual—Before After
- National Park Service museum-loans manual— Before After
Using visual explanations to convey information more clearly
- Car Safety, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Over-the-counter
drug label—Before and After
, Food and Drug
Administration
Government letters, brochures, and other publications
- Medicare Fraud Letter, Health and Human Services
- Essential Health Care Handbook, Health and Human Services
- Losing Weight Brochure
, Health and Human Services
- IRS form CP2000—Before
After
Other before and after examples
State of California Jury Instructions
