City of Boston writing guide

What to do

Write for your constituent first, always

Have an idea of who you want to provide the information to before you start. What you're writing should be like a conversation with a friend.

Remember to use the active voice

For example, instead of writing, “The bill should be paid by the property owner,” we would write, “The property owner pays the bill.” It’s much more simple and direct.

An easy way to tell if you are using the active or passive voice is to add “by zombies” after the verb in the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense after adding “by zombies,” it’s in the passive voice. If not, it’s in the active voice. For example:

Passive: The town was attacked (by zombies). Still makes sense.
Active: Zombies attacked (by zombies) the town. Doesn’t make sense.

There are trickier versions of the passive voice, but this is an easy tip to keep in mind.

be short and to the point

If a headline is longer than 11 words, it’s probably too long. Use full names and titles in headlines. Paragraphs should be two to three sentences at most. Aim for a sentence length of 15 to 20 words. For example:

“Perhaps more important than fire fighting itself in many modern industrial countries is fire prevention,” could just be: “Fire prevention is important.”

Brevity can also increase readability and make the site more friendly for people using smartphones.

Write for smaller screens

The more text, the more scrolling someone does on their smartphone or tablet.

consider a bulleted list

Do you find yourself with a big paragraph? By breaking down your points into a bulleted list instead of a huge block of text, you’ll increase readability and comprehension. For example:

“The Fire Prevention Division, in the Boston Fire Department, directs fire prevention activities. It handles the more technical fire prevention problems, maintains appropriate records, grants permits, investigates the causes of fires, and conducts public education programs,” could just be:

“The Fire Prevention Division:

handles more technical fire prevention problems
maintains appropriate records
grants permits
investigates the cause of fires, and
conducts public education programs.”

Just remember, you don’t have to bullet everything on a page. Only use bulleted lists when they make sense.

Personalize the experience for our constituents

Don’t be afraid to say "we" instead of “The City.” Instead of "residents" or “applicants,” consider saying "you."

Can we use a photo with the content?

Photos add depth to what you are talking about, and may provide greater context for users struggling with reading comprehension.

Break up content into blocks or chunks

This allows readers to digest the content more easily. Ideally, you should separate these blocks of text with headlines and bullet lists of information.

Write as you talk

This is a common rule in writing. The content that you create should be like a conversation between two people. Stuffy language can get in the way.

One of the easiest ways to write as you talk is with contractions. People talk in contractions — like can’t and don’t — and using them helps people relate to what you’re writing. The important thing to remember, though, is not to overuse them. Only use them when they sound natural.

What to avoid

jargon and government legalese

We should be writing to the person with the least amount of knowledge on the topic. See a list of plain English words to use instead.

Run-on sentences and multiple commas in a sentence

Use periods where you can to help a reader digest the content.

Words like “may” and “shall”

When something needs to be done to complete a task, make sure a resident knows by using strong words like “must.”

Acronyms

A human-centered website doesn’t require a government reference guide. Explain what it is you're talking about in detail.

Symbols

While symbols — like “&” and “@” — can shorten your text, please just spell out what you’re writing. Symbols like these will only confuse your readers, especially those who may be learning English as a second language.

Repetition

If the full title of person or place has been used already as a first reference on the page, we don’t have to repeat that full title. “Mayor Michelle Wu” would simply become “the Mayor” down the page.

Associated Press style

While there are some exceptions, we are using Associated Press, or “AP,” rules to guide our writing on the new site. A general Google search that includes “AP style” in the question will usually give you the right answer. Here are some common tips pulled directly from the AP stylebook:

Addresses

Use the abbreviations Ave., Blvd., and St. only with a numbered address: 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Spell them out and capitalize when part of a formal street name without a number: Pennsylvania Avenue. Lowercase and spell out when used alone or with more than one street name: Massachusetts and Pennsylvania avenues.

All similar words (alley, drive, road, terrace, etc.) always are spelled out. Capitalize them when part of a formal name without a number; lowercase when used alone or with two or more names.

Always use figures for an address number: 9 Morningside Circle. Spell out and capitalize First through Ninth when used as street names; use figures for 10th and above: 7 Fifth Ave., 100 21st St.

Dates

Always use Arabic figures for dates, without st, nd, rd, or th. For example:

We were married on July 1, 2013.
On September 5, we celebrate Labor Day.

Headlines

For text used as a headline, only capitalize the first word and proper nouns. Use single quotes for quotation marks. For example:

Neighborhood Development joins federal housing program
Mayor names new director for Animal Control
‘Prepare for the storm,’ Mayor says

Numerals

In general, spell out one through nine: The Red Sox finished first. He had nine months to go.

Use figures for 10 and above, and whenever preceding a unit of measure or referring to ages of people, animals, events, or things. For percentages, use numerals with “percent,” not “%”. For example:

We picked more than 20 apples at the orchard.
The City Council is revising the 8-year-old laws.
We want you to spend 50 percent of your time on reading.

Time

Use figures except for noon and midnight. Use a colon to separate hours from minutes. You don’t need the “:00” when referring to an hour of the day. For example:

The meeting took place at 11 a.m., but we plan to meet again at 3:30 p.m.

When referring to a time span, please use a hyphen instead of the words “to” or “through.” For example:

A typical work day for most people takes place from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

If you are writing about a time span in the afternoon, evening, or in the morning, you don’t need to write out the first a.m. or p.m. For example:

We plan to discuss the proposal from 9-11 a.m. We should also set some time aside from 3-5 p.m.

Titles

Capitalize formal titles when they are used before one or more names: Pope Francis, President Barack Obama, Vice Presidents John Jones and William Smith.

Lowercase and spell out titles when they are not used with an individual’s name: The president issued a statement. The pope gave his blessing.

Lowercase and spell out titles in constructions that set them off from a name by commas. For example:

The vice president, Joe Biden, was re-elected in 2012.
Pope Francis, the current pope, was born in Argentina.

There are certain exceptions to this rule for the City of Boston, which you can find below.

Years

Use figures, without commas, for years: 1975. Use an s without an apostrophe to indicate spaces of decades or centuries: the 1890s, the 1800s.

Some examples:

January 1972 was a cold month. January 2 was the coldest day of the month.
His birthday is May 8. February 14, 1987, was the target date.
She testified that it was Friday, December 3, when the accident occurred.

Special writing rules

Mayor

Always capitalize “Mayor” when referring to the Mayor of Boston. This is true whether or not you use the Mayor’s name. For example:

Mayor Michelle Wu is coming to the meeting today.
Michelle Wu, the Mayor of Boston, is coming to the meeting today.
The Mayor is coming to the meeting today.

If you are talking about “mayors” in general, you do not need to capitalize the word. For example:

Mayor Michelle Wu will be among the mayors who will visit the White House this week.
Climate change is a big concern for mayors in many major cities along the coast.

City Council

Always capitalize “City Council” when referring to the Boston City Council. This is true whether or not you use “Boston” before “City Council.” For example:

The Boston City Council will make a decision on the ordinance today.
The City Council will make a decision on the ordinance today.

If you are talking about “city councils” in general, you do not need to capitalize the words. For example:

In many major cities, city councils help enact laws.

City

Always capitalize “City” when referring to the City of Boston. For example:

The City is ready for First Night.
This time of year, students from around the world come to the City to attend college.

If you are talking about “cities” in general, you do not need to capitalize the word. For example:

Boston is one of the major cities on the East Coast.
Climate change is a big concern for cities across the United States.

Use the ‘Oxford’ comma

Always use the “oxford” comma. If you use a serial list in your writing, please remember to include a comma before “and” at the end of the sentence. For example:

Boston’s professional sports teams include the Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins, and Celtics.

Phone numbers

Always use the click-to-call friendly format for phone numbers. Remember to use dashes so that the numbers are recognized on mobile devices. For example:

Please use 617-353-4500, instead of (617) 653-4500, or 617.635.4500.

Plain English word list

Word list

Background information

Here are some suggestions for plain language words to use instead of complicated jargon or legalese. We put together this list from a couple of different sources.

Looking for a better option for a complicated word? Click on a drawer below, hit (ctrl + f) on your keyboard, and type your word in. We might have an answer.

A - C

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INSTEAD OF:	CONSIDER USING:
(an) absence of	no, none
abundance	enough, plenty, a lot (or say how many)
accede	agree, grant, allow
accelerate	speed up
accentuate	strengthen, emphasize
access [verb]	enter, use, gain, entry
accommodation	where you live, home
accompanying	with
accomplish	do, finish
accordingly	so
according to our records	our records show
accountability	responsibility for
accustomed to	used to
acknowledge	thank you for
acquaint yourself	find out, read
acquiesce	agree
acquire	buy, get
additional	more, extra
address [sense 'consider']	tackle, deal with, consider
adjacent	next to
adjustment	change, alteration
admissible	allowed, acceptable
advantageous	useful, helpful
advices	information, instructions
advise [ sense 'inform']	inform, tell, let [me] know
affix	add, write, fasten, stick on, fix to
afford an opportunity	let, allow
afforded	given
aforementioned, aforesaid	[get rid of or be more specific]
aforesaid	this, earlier in this document
aggregate [noun]	total
aligned	lined up, in line
alleviate	ease, reduce, lessen
allocate	give
along the lines of	like, as in
alternative	choice, other
alternatively	or, on the other hand
ambit	scope
ambiguous	more than one meaning
ameliorate	improve, help
amendment	change
annuity	pension, lifetime income
annul	cancel
anticipate	expect
apparent	clear, obvious
applicant	[use 'you' where possible]
application [noun]	use
apportion	split
appreciable	large, great
apprise	inform, tell, let [me] know
appropriate (adjective)	suitable, right, proper
appropriate to	suitable for
approximately	about, roughly
as a consequence of	because
as of the date of	from
as regards	about, on the subject of
ascertain	find out
assemble	build, gather, put together
assist, assistance	help
at an early date	soon (or say when)
at its discretion	can, may (or edit out)
at the moment	now (or edit out)
at the present time	now (or edit out)
attain	reach
attend	come to, go to, be at
attributable to	die to, because of
attribute [verb]	earmark
authorize	allow, let
authority	right, power, may (as in "have the authority to")
axiomatic	obvious, goes with saying
belated	late
beneficial	helpful, useful
bestow	give, award
branchild	idea
breach	break
by means of	by
burgeon	grow, increase
calculate	work out, decide
category	group
cease	stop, end
circumvent	get around, void, skirt, circle
clarification	explanation, help
cognizant of	aware of, know about
combine	mix
combined	together
cohort	group [with shared characteristics]
collaborate	work together, work with
commence	start, begin
commencement date	start date
commensurate with	consistent with
communicate	talk, write, telephone (be specific)
competent	able, can
compile	male, collect
complete	fill in, finish
comply with	keep to, meet
component	part
comprise	make up, include

C - F

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Instead of:	Consider using:
compulsory	required, you must
conceal	hide
concept	idea
concerning	about
consequently	so
considerable	large
conclusion	end
concur	agree
condition	rule
consequently	so
considerable	great, important
constitutes	makes up, forms, is
construct [verb]	build
construe	interpret
consult	talk to, meet, ask
consumption	amount used
contemplate	think about
contrary to	against, despite
correct	put right
correspond	write
corroboration	evidence, proof, support
costs the sum of	costs
counter	against
courteous	polite
cumulative	added up, added together
currently	now (or edit out)
customary	usual, normal
deduct	take away, take off, substract
deem	treat as, consider
defer	put off, postpone
deficiency	lack of
delete	cross out
deliverables	results, outputs, what we'll provide
demonstrate	show, prove
denote	show
depict	show
designate	name, specify
desire	wish, want
desist	stop
despatch or dispatch	send or post
despite the fact that	although, despite
determine	decide
determine [legal sense]	end, terminate
detrimental	harmful
diminish	lessen, reduce
disburse	pay
discharge [verb]	pay off, settle
disclose	tell, show
disconnect [verb]	cut off
discontinue	stop, end
discuss	talk about
disseminate	spread
documentation	papers, documents
domiciled in	living in
dominant	main
due to the fact that	as, because
duration	time, life
during which time	while
dwelling, domicile	home, property
economical	cheap, good value
egress	exit, way out
elect, election [outside of political context]	choose, choice
eligible	allowed, qualified
elucidate	explain, make clear
emanate from	come from, stem from
emphasize	stress
empower	allow, let
enable	allow
enclosed	inside, with
encounter	meet
endeavor	try, attempt
enhance	improve
enquire	ask
enquiry	question
ensure	make sure
entitlement	right
envisage	expect, imagine, forecast, think
equitable	fair
equivalent	equal, the same
erroneous	wrong, mistaken
establish	set up, create, form
evaluate	test, check
eventuate	result, occur, happen
evince	show, prove
ex officio	because of his or her position
exhaustive	complete
exceptionally	only when, in this case
excessive	too many, too much
exclude	leave out
excluding	apart from, except
exclusively	only
exempt from	free from
expedite	hasten, speed up
expeditiously	as soon as possible, quickly
expenditure	spending
expire	run out
expiration	end
extant	current, in force
extremity	limit
fabricate	make, make up

F - M

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Instead of:	Consider using:
facilitate	help
factor	reason
failure to	if you do not
finalize	end, finish
following	after
for the duration of	during, while
for the purpose of	to
for the reason that	because
formulate	plan, devise
forthwith	now, at once
forward [verb]	send, give
frequently	often
fundamental	basic
furnish	give, provide
further to	after, following
furthermore	also
generate	produce, give, make
give consideration to	consider, think about
grant	give
henceforth	from now on, from today
hereby	now, by this (or edit out)
herein	here (or edit out)
hereinafter	after this (or edit out)
hereof	of this
hereto	to this
heretofore	until now
hereunder	below
herewith	with this
hitherto	until now
hold in abeyance	wait, postpone
hope and trust	hope, trust (but not both)
hypothecate	earmark
if and when	if, when (but not both)
if this is not the case	if so
illustrate	show, explain
immediately	at once, now
impart	give, pass on, tell, inform
implement [verb]	carry out, do
imply	suggest, hint at
in a number of cases	some (or say how many)
in accordance with	in line with
in addition (to)	and, as well as, also
in advance	before
in case of	if
in conjunction with	with
in connection with	for, about
in consequence	because, as a result
in excecss of	more than
in lieu of	instead of
in order to	to
in receipt of	get, have, receive, receiving
in relation to	about
in regard to	about, concerning, on
in respect of	about, for
in the absence of	without
in the course of	while, during
in the event of	if, when
in the eventuality of	if, when
in the majority of instances	most, mostly
in the near future	soon (or say when)
in the neighborhood of	about, around
in view of the fact that	as, because
inappropriate	wrong, unsuitable
inception	start, beginning
incorporating	which includes
incurred	have to pay, owe
indicate	show, suggest
inform	tell
initially	at first
initiate	being, start
insert	put in
instances	cases
insofar as	as far as
institute [verb]	being, start
intend to	will
interim [noun]	meantime, for the time being
intimate	say, hint
irrevocable	cannot be reversed or change
irrespective of	despite, even if
is in accordance with	agrees with, follows
is of the opinion	thinks
issue	give, send
it is known that	I/we know that
jeopardize	risk, threaten
juncture	point, time
(a) large number of	many, most (or say how many)
(to) liaise with	to meet with, to discuss with, to work with (whichever is more descriptive)
locality	place, area
locate	find, put
magnitude	size
mandatory	required by law, (you) must
manner	way
manufacture	make
material	relevant
materialize	happen, occur
marginal	small, slight
may in the future	may, might, could
merchandise	goods
mislay	lose
modification	change

M - S

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Instead of:	Consider using:
monies	money, amounts of money
moreover	and, also, as well
necessitate	need, have to, require
negligible	very small
nevertheless	even so, however, yet
nonetheless	even so, however, yet
notify	tell, let us/you know
not less than (ten)	at least (ten)
not more than (ten)	(ten) or less, (ten) or fewer
notwithstanding	even if, despite, still, yet, but
numerous	many (or say how many)
objective	aim, goal
(it is) obligatory	(you) must
obtain	get, receive
occasioned by	caused by, because of
on behalf of	for
on numerous occasion	often
on receipt of	when we/you get
on request	if you ask
on the grounds that	because
on the occasion that	when, if
onus	burden, duty
operate	work, run
optimum	best, ideal
option	choice
ordinarily	normally, usually
other than	except
otherwise	or
outstanding	unpaid
owing to	because of
particulars	details, facts
(a) percentage of	some (or say what percentage)
partially	partly
participate	join in, take part
particulars	details, facts
per annum	a year
perform	do
permissible	allowed
permit	let, allow
personnel	people, staff
persons	people
perpetrator	(alleged) wrongdoer
peruse	read or study carefully, examine
polemical	controversial
possess	have, own
possessions	belongings
predominantly	mainly
prescribe	set, fix
preserve	keep, protect
previous	earlier, before, last
principal [adjective]	main, chief
prioritize	rank
prior to	before
proceed	go ahead
procure	get, obtain, arrange
profusion of	plenty, too many (or say how many)
prohibit	ban, stop
projected	estimated
prolonged	long
promptly	quickly, at once
promulgate	advertise, announce
proportion	part
provenance	source, origin
provide	give
provided that	if, as long as
provisions [of a law, policy]	the law, the policy, rules, terms
proximity	closeness, nearness
purchase	buy
purport [verb]	pretend, claim, profess
pursuant to	under, because of, in line with
qualify for	can get, be able to get
reconsider	think again, about, look again at
reduce	cut
reduction	cut
referred to as	called
refer to	talk about, mention
(have) regard to	take into account
regarding	about
regulation	rule
reimburse	repay
reiterate	repeat, restate
relating to	about
remain	stay
remainder	the rest, what is left
remittance	payment
remuneration	pay, wages, salary
remunerative employment	paid work
render	send, make, give
representations	show, stand for, be
representations	comments
request	ask, question
require	need, want, force
requirements	needs, rules
reside	live
residence	home, property, address
restriction	limit
retain	keep
review	look at (again)
revised	new, changed
save [conjunction]	except

S - Z

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Instead of:	Consider using:
scrutinize	read (look at) carefully
select	choose
settle	pay
similarly	also, in the same way
shall [legal obligation]	must
solely	only
specified	given, written, set
state	say, tells us, write down
statutory	legal, by law
stipulate	state, set, lay down
subject to	depending on, under, keeping to
submit	send, give
subsequent to/upon	after
subsequently	later
substantial	large, great, a lot of
substantially	more or less
sufficient	enough
supplement	go with, add to
supplementary	extra, more
supply	give, sell, delivery
terminate	end, stop
that being the case	if so
the law provides that	the law says
the question as to whether	whether
the way in which	how
thereafter	then, afterwards
thereby	by that, because of that
therein	in that, there
thereof	of that
thereto	to that
thus	so, therefore
to date	so far, up to now
to the extent that	if, when
transfer	change, move
transmit	send
timeously	in goot time
tranche	slice, portion, share, chunk
ultimately	in the end, finally
unavailability	lack of
undernoted	the following
undersigned	I, we
undertake	agree, promise, do
uniform	same, similar
unilateral	one-sided, one-way
unoccupied	empty
until such time	until
utilization	use
utilize	use
variation	change
verify	check, prove
virtually	almost (or edit out)
visualize	see, predict
ways and means	ways
we have pleasure in	we are glad to
whatsoever	whatever, what, any
whensoever	when, whenever
whereas	but
whereby	by which, because of which
whether or not	whether
with a view to	to, so that
with effect from	from
with reference to	about, concerning
with regard to	about, concerning
with respect to	about, for, concerning
with the minimum of delay	quickly (or say when)
whilst	while
willfully	deliberately
you are requested	please
your attention is drawn	please see, please note
zone	area, region