What is the Plain Language skill for Claude Code?

It is a specialized capability that guides Claude to write or edit content using simplification techniques, focusing on active voice, short sentences, and jargon elimination to improve accessibility.

Does it support different types of technical writing?

Yes, it includes specific profiles for Tutorials (maximum clarity), How-To guides (direct efficiency), Reference docs (precision), and Explanations (thoughtful clarity).

How does this skill improve technical documentation?

It identifies passive voice markers, flags sentences over 35 words, and suggests simpler alternatives for complex verbs (nominalizations) to make technical info easier to digest.

What readability standards does this skill follow?

The skill is based on the Plain Writing Act of 2010 and established readability metrics like the Flesch-Kincaid grade level, targeting standard reading ease scores of 60-70.

Plain Language Writing

Name: Plain Language Writing
Author: applied-artificial-intelligence

byapplied-artificial-intelligence

•

Content Management

Transforms complex technical content into clear, accessible, and highly readable text using established plain language principles.

The Plain Language skill optimizes written content for broad accessibility by applying principles derived from the Plain Writing Act of 2010 and the Plain Language Movement. It systematically audits and improves documentation, tutorials, and communications by enforcing active voice, reducing sentence complexity, eliminating unnecessary jargon, and removing weak nominalizations. This skill is essential for developers and technical writers who need to ensure their documentation is understood immediately by the widest possible audience without requiring multiple rereads.

Key Features

01Active voice enforcement with a target of >80% usage

02Mode-specific writing styles for Tutorials, How-To guides, and Reference docs

03Automated jargon detection with suggestions for simplification or explanation

04Sentence length optimization targeting an average of under 25 words

05Removal of nominalizations and redundant 'weasel words'

0618 GitHub stars

Use Cases

01Drafting developer tutorials to maximize learner comprehension and reduce cognitive load

02Refining technical documentation for non-technical stakeholders and executive summaries

03Polishing README files and API descriptions for immediate clarity and professional impact

What are Skills?·How to Install

Install with 🐟 Skill.Fish

npx skillfish add applied-artificial-intelligence/claude-code-toolkit plain-language

For use in Claude.ai and ChatGPT

Download Skill