# Plain Words

Canonical: https://www.bookquiver.com/rebecca-gowers/plain-words

![Plain Words](https://quivercdn.com/covers/penguin/rebecca-gowers/plain-words_978-02-4196-034-9.jpg?v=2026-04-25%2014%3A22%3A04)

- Authors: [Rebecca Gowers](https://www.bookquiver.com/rebecca-gowers), [Ernest Gowers](https://www.bookquiver.com/ernest-gowers)
- Language: en_GB
- Published: 2014-03-27

## Description

'Be short, be simple, be human.' When Sir Ernest Gowers first wrote Plain Words , it was intended simply as a guide to the proper use of English for the Civil Service. Within a year, however, its humour, charm and authority had made it a bestseller. Since then it has never been out of print. Six decades on, writer Rebecca Gowers has created a new edition of this now-classic work that both revises and celebrates her great-grandfather's original. Plain Words has been updated to reflect numerous changes in English usage, yet Sir Ernest's distinctive, witty voice is undimmed. And his message remains vital: our writing should be as clear and comprehensible as possible, avoiding superfluous words and clichés - from the jargon of 'commercialese' to the murky euphemisms of politicians. In a new preface, this edition draws on an extensive private archive, previously hidden away in family cupboards and attics, to tell the story behind a book that has become an institution: the essential guide to making yourself understood.

## Editions

### Plain Words

- Publisher: Penguin
- ISBN: 978-02-4196-034-9
- Pages: 320
- Published: 2015-03-26
- Language: en_GB

### Plain Words

- Publisher: Penguin
- Medium: ebook
- ISBN: 978-02-4196-035-6
- Published: 2014-03-27
- Language: en_GB