3 Easy Ways to Make Your Scientific Writing More Clear

Unclear writing is a serious problem in the sciences. Readers are often forced to sift through complex language, abstract words, and jargon to understand a potentially difficult topic—a recipe for trouble. If you confuse your reader, they will not enjoy reading your writing. This means they are less likely to remember what you’re writing about, and they are less likely to read your writing in the future.

No matter what topic you write about, your reader should easily understand your content. They should stay engaged long enough to want to read more.

How do you ensure that your reader stays engaged? It boils down to readability, or how easily your reader understands your writing.

Unfortunately, we can struggle to even consider readability while writing. This challenge is mostly because we suffer from the curse of knowledge. We already know the point we are trying to make. But instead, we need to think about what the reader knows about the topic. We need to consider our audience.

Improving the readability of your writing is no simple feat. And it can’t be covered in a 5-minute read (there are several books dedicated to the subject). But with a few simple tweaks, you can greatly improve the readability of your writing.

Transform Abstract Nouns into Concrete Nouns

A noun identifies a person, place, or thing—a concrete object. On the other hand, an abstract noun represents an intangible thing, such as an idea, feeling, or quality. It describes something you cannot experience with one of your five senses—something you cannot see, hear, touch, taste, or smell.

Abstract nouns, also known as nominalizations, are common and an important part of language. They help to describe something concisely that would otherwise take many words to explain. For example, theory (idea), love (feeling), and dedication (quality) are all abstract nouns.

The trouble comes when writers use abstract nouns to sound more sophisticated. But these words can be confusing for readers.

How do you identify an abstract noun? Watch for words ending in “-tion.”

Let’s look at an example:

We made the observation that the genetic mutation affected protein localization.

If we convert the abstract nouns (observation, mutation, localization) to concrete nouns, we get:

We observed that the mutated gene affected where the protein located.

The second sentence is much clearer to the reader, and it conveys the same meaning.

Abstract nouns can be helpful when explaining complicated concepts, but they can be harmful when used too often and with the wrong intentions. Use them thoughtfully, and your reader will more easily understand—and appreciate—your writing.

Substitute Short Words for Long Ones

In aiming for a sophisticated tone, many researchers use bigger words than needed. For example, they will use terminate, alteration, or subsequent, when a simple end, change, or next will do.

It’s not their fault. Many researchers have not been trained in how to write effectively. Instead, they mimic the writing they learned from their mentors and colleagues, or what they read in the literature, which is plagued with poor writing.

To help your reader more easily understand your writing, substitute short words for long ones. Simple words are clear and direct.

Let’s look at another example:

Subsequently, we investigated whether mutating the DNA would facilitate improvements in protein function.

With a few simple substitutions, we can transform the sentence into:

Next, we studied whether mutating the DNA would improve protein function.

If you want to engage your reader, resist the temptation to use long words where shorter ones will do. Your message will be clearer and have a much greater impact.

Trim Wordy Phrases

Science authors commonly use wordy phrases in their writing. Yet, scientific writing often has dreaded word or character limits. And more importantly, too many words can distract your reader from the point you want to make.

Look for unnecessary words or phrases in your writing that can be removed or shortened. For example, instead of writing in close proximity to, use near. Or instead of using the majority of, use most.

Let’s look at an example:

During the course of the study, the majority of cells died in response to treatment with the drug.

With a few revisions, we can make the sentence clearer and cut the word count nearly in half:

During the study, most cells died after treatment with the drug.

By omitting needless words from your writing, you can help your reader clearly understand what you want to convey to them. And you can more easily meet those dreaded length limits. 

Three Steps in the Right Direction

Take these three tips to your next writing project. For your first draft, write as you normally would—as you feel most comfortable right now. Then read through it once to modify abstract nouns, then again to substitute short words for long ones, and then again to remove unnecessary words. And if you’d like additional help, enlist the support of an editor. Every writer can benefit from a good editor.

These tips may seem minor, but they will have a big impact on your writing. You will be amazed at how much the readability of your writing improves. And by how many more readers you keep coming back for more.