Academic style in writing

Before you continue, reflect on your previous writing experiences and the feedback you have received. How would you rate your ability in the following skills? Rate your ability from ‘good’ to ‘needs development’. 

Reflect on your answers. Congratulations if you feel confident about your skills. You may find it helpful to review the materials on this page to confirm your knowledge and possibly learn more. Don't worry if you don't feel confident. Work through these materials to build your skills. 

Learn more about academic style in writing by watching this video:.

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Check your understanding of the video by choosing the best description of the writing style of each sentence.  

Continue to the next section to explore the features that make some writing more, or less, appropriate. 

Think about the academic texts that you have read for your units. What, do you think, are common features of academic writing? 

For each of the following pairs of sentences, decide which one you would choose to use in your written assignments. 

You will notice that the feedback in this task doesn’t say that an answer is wrong. Think about academic writing this way: 

• Academic style is not a set of strict, unchanging language rules. 

• Academic style is a series of language choices. 

• Your language choices often depend on your discipline and the genre (or type) of assignment. 

• Your language choices should always help your reader understand your points. 

• Academic writing is not informal and conversational. 

• Academic writing is not very formal and pompous. 

• Academic writing is clear, concise and precise. 

In this section, you were introduced to academic style at a general level. The following sections will focus on specific aspects of academic writing in more detail.

Being a student means learning both the knowledge and language of your discipline. All disciplines have a specific vocabulary that you will learn and use in your writing. If you would like to learn more about building your academic and discipline-specific vocabulary, visit Building your vocabulary for university. This section will focus on how vocabulary choices affect academic style. 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

1. 

In this pair, most academic writers would choose sentence B. They rarely use contractions and slang or conversational language. 

Read this sample paragraph and find examples of inappropriate choices. 

Here is the same paragraph. Select the best word to replace the conversational language in the original. 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

2. 

In this pair, most academic writers would choose to use sentence B. English often has several choices for words that describe an action (verbs). You may need to make a choice between a multi-word verb and a single verb. Academic writers do not often use multi-word verbs. 

Read these sentences and click on the multi-word verbs. 

Here are the same sentences. Select the best word to replace the multi-word verbs in the original. 

Many verbs are collocates; that is, they are used with a preposition (e.g. to, on, with). In the quote below, you can see three: 

Figure 3.1 shows the number of male and female deaths in 2020 contributing to the top 5 causes. The leading cause of death for males was coronary heart disease, accounting for 10,040 (12%) deaths, followed by dementia (5,250; 6.2% of deaths) (AIHW, 2022). 

Hint: 

If you are unsure which words you should choose, you can search Google Scholar to see what other authors choose.  Below, you can see the results of Google Scholar searches for put up with and tolerate.  

Over to you 

Read a draft you are writing and look for multi-word verbs. Are they appropriate? 

Australian academic culture puts great value on writing that is objective; that is, it avoids seeming too personal. Writers often create a sense of objectivity by distancing themselves from their research.  They may do this by removing personal references and focusing on building convincing arguments supported by research, strong evidence and reasoning. Objectivity and subjectivity are broad areas that you may explore while you develop your argumentation skills.  However, the focus of these materials is narrower: using personal pronouns and passive voice. 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw these three pairs of sentences. 

3 

4. 

5.

Many writers would choose to use the A sentences: those without the personal pronouns.  

One way to create an objective style is to avoid pronouns, like you, I or we. The pronoun, you, is used frequently on this page because the tone is conversational. When you are doing your unit readings, you will rarely see you in academic texts, but you may sometimes see I or we. You may see this when published writers are: 

In some cases, the writers are referring to themselves because that is accepted practice in their discipline. In others, they do it to acknowledge their personal influence on the research or to lay claim to a new idea.  Importantly, when you see pronouns in published papers, they have been used by experts whose objectivity, research skills and reasoning are already established.  

As a student learning how to write academically, you may choose to avoid personal pronouns until you are confident you can use them appropriately. You can do this in the following ways: 

Passive voice is a common choice in academic writing because it focuses the readers’ attention on the action, not who did the action. If you are unsure about passive voice, the next two activities will help you revise the structure. 

Read these sentences and decide if they are active or passive voice. Drag them to the correct place. 

Warning! Passive voice helps increase objectivity, but Grammarly, Word editor, and many contemporary writing guides recommend using active voice. This is because it is often more direct and concise. 

Use passive voice in these situations: 

1. When the object is more important than the subject.

2. When the action is more important than who did it. 

3. When the doer of the action is either unknown or obvious.

Over to you 

1. Read a draft you are writing and look for pronouns. Are they appropriate? 
2. Read a draft you are writing and look for passive voice examples. Are they appropriate? 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

6 

 In these sentences, the writer is making a claim based on their research findings. Sentence A shows caution, while sentence B seems more confident. Academics use cautious language for two reasons: 

1. Academic knowledge is continually evolving. Writers are cautious in their claims because new information may emerge to challenge their interpretationof the evidence. Cautious language allows space for other writers to interpret the evidence differently. 

2. Academic writers match the strength of their language to the strength of their evidence. Writers who make strong claims without strong evidence are not likely to be taken seriously.  

Language choices include: 

• hedges: language that shows caution 

• boosters: language that shows confidence.  

For instance, many academic writers and editors would be unlikely to support or publish this claim: 

Temperature studies demonstrate that global warming will dramatically increase mortality and forced migration by 2030. 

However, they may find this claim more credible: 

Overall, most temperature studies in this review indicate a relationship may exist between global warming, higher mortality and a potential increase in forced migration. 

Click on the hotspots. Note how different elements of this sentence add caution (or hedge) the claim. 

As a student, you will write assignments and use evidence to support your opinion. Choosing appropriate hedges and boosters when interpreting your evidence demonstrates that you can think critically and use good academic style. 

The first step to using hedges and boosters yourself is to notice how other writers use them to show different degrees of caution or confidence.

Read the following sentences and put them in order from most confident at the top to most cautious at the bottom. 

Fill the gaps with hedging or boosting language. Pay attention to grammar to help you make your choices. 

Over to you 

Read a draft you are writing and look for examples of hedges and boosters. Are they appropriate for the strength of the evidence you are using to support your point? 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

9. 

Many new academic writers strive to use a formal tone in their assignments. Some confuse the wordiness in sentence A with formality. Academic writing should be clear and concise, and your readers should not have to work hard to unpack (understand) your message. Sentence B expresses the same message so that the reader can understand the first time they read it. 

If you compare examples A and B again, you may notice the different sentence lengths. Sentence A has 45 words, whereas B has 20 words. B is also easier to understand. If you focus on the needs of your reader, you should avoid unnecessarily long complex sentences. 

Remember: academic writing does not need to be complex; it needs to convey complex ideas clearly. 

Redundancy is using two words or phrases that mean the same thing. The redundancies in sentence A include: 

• maximum upper  
• external ambient 
• typical – in normal circumstances. 

Read these sentences and click on the redundant words or phrases. 

Verbosity means using unnecessary long phrases when a single word, or more concise phrase, is available. Verbose phrases in sentence A include: 

• There are some points to remember. 
• for the purpose of using 
• is regarded to be 

Replace the verbose phrase with a concise alternative.

Download this list of verbose phrases and keep it as a reminder when you are writing your assignments.

Avoid using sentences that begin with a dummy subject: words like there or it which carry no meaning.  The images below explain further.

Note: You will see dummy subjects used in academic writing, particularly in set phrases like: 

• It is possible that... 
• It is clear that... 

These are phrases used as hedges and boosters. You may use these sparingly, but you should minimise starting sentences with dummy subjects because: 

• they weaken sentence structure 

• they increase verbosity 

• your readers must read to the end of the sentence before they arrive at your main message. 

Rewrite these sentences to remove the dummy subjects. 

One lecturer offers this useful advice to students. 

Over to you 

Read a draft you are working on for one of your units.  

• Sentence length: count the number of words in your sentences. If you have many sentences over about 30 words long, can you reduce the length? 

• Redundancy: look for words with similar meanings. Are both necessary? 

• Verbosity: look for phrases. Could one word express the same idea more concisely? 

• Dummy subjects: look for sentences that begin with 'there'. Could you use a better subject? 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

7 

Most academic writers would agree that sentence B is the more appropriate choice. This is because sentence A is vague, while sentence B is precise. Vague language is a problem in academic writing because: 

• it lacks specific detail which would make your ideas credible 

• your readers may not interpret your ideas in the way you intend. 

For instance, what does this sentence mean? 

Troppo architecture in Darwin is beautiful. 

What is beautiful architecture to you? Is it an asymmetrically shaped office block with chrome fixtures and polished marble? Is it a rustic cottage built from local hand-hewn timber? 

Click on the hotspots to learn more about the language that makes sentence A vague.

Minimise your use of vague words. Wherever possible, choose a specific word to express precisely what you want to say. 

To ensure your writing is precise, you should choose: 

• specific adjectives and adverbs that describe quantity, quality, frequency or time 

• clear nouns and verbs that identify specific people, things and concepts. 

Here are some examples:

Over to you: 

Read a draft you are writing for one of your units. Look for examples of the vague language listed in the table. Can you replace it with a more precise choice? 

Ensure your ideas are fully supported with credible evidence and your citations are unambiguous. Follow these guidelines: 

1. Place your citation as closely as possible to the idea you are citing. 
2. Use signpost language to clarify the role of citations, where necessary. 
3. Use signpost language to guide readers through the evidence. 

These examples will show you how citations can be made clearer by following these guidelines. 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

8.  

Sentence B uses signpost language to link the events and clarify the order of the procedure for the reader. In contrast, sentence A may seem disjointed because the reader must infer the links. Academic writing style in English is explicit; that is, the organisation and links between ideas is made very clear by the writer.  

For some new university students, writing explicitly feels unnatural. The aims and links between ideas seem obvious, so explaining them seems superfluous. However, you cannot assume that your readers:

• have the same knowledge that you do
• understand your points in the way you intend.

Also, you may be aware that different cultures communicate in different ways, but you may not know that this sometimes affects writing. 

1. 

English is known as a writer responsible language (Hinds, 1987). That means that the writer is responsible for making their meaning as clear as possible for the reader. If the reader doesn't understand, it is the writer's fault. If you are from a reader responsible language background, such as some Asian, South American or European cultures, you may prefer writing that is more subtle in its messaging. If the reader doesn't understand, they need to be more attentive. 

2. 

Different cultures value different patterns of communication. Research by Kaplan (1966) described some common communication patterns.

• English is depicted by a straight line. It is known to value writing that is direct, linear, and always on-topic (A). 
• Some cultures value repetition. They prefer writing that repeats ideas in different ways to develop the central point (B).
• Some cultures value writing that goes around the central point to explore it from different perspectives before dealing with it directly (C).
• Some cultures use digressions to enrich the main point (D). 

These explanations are simplistic, they do NOT mean that every writer from a certain culture writes in the same way, and they do NOT suggest that English writing is superior. However, it does mean that your background may influence your writing style in a way that is different to what some lecturers may expect at university. 

Reflect on your background and on your previous reading and writing experience in English and in any other language that you speak. 

• What do you consider to be good writing?
• Have you noticed differences between the writing of different cultures?

To ensure that your academic writing is explicit, you can:  

1. give clear aims and an outline of your assignment in your introductions 
2. rephrase your main message in your conclusions 
3. ensure your paragraphs are well constructed 
4. use clear headings and subheadings in your reports 
5. use a range of cohesive devices to make your ideas easy to follow 
6. use signpost language to make your ideas easy to follow. 

In Exploring Academic Style above, you saw this pair of sentences. 

10 

Sentence A contains many nominalisations, which make it more verbose at 23 words than sentence B, which has 16 words. 

What are nominalisations?  

• Nominalisations are abstract nouns; that is, they express ideas rather than concrete things. 

• Nominalisations have usually been created from other words. Examples include: 

Used well, nominalisations are valuable for:  

1. discussing important abstract concepts. For example: enculturation is a useful term with a specific use and meaning in Sociology.  
2. expressing ideas concisely and objectively. For example:  

• When we compared the results, we observed that they correlated closely. 

• A comparison of results showed a close correlation. 

Used poorly, nominalisations make academic writing dense and difficult to read. They are common in writing which is trying too hard to be formal. Sword (2012) refers to nominalisations as Zombie Nouns because they make your writing dense and lifeless. She offered this example of over nominalisation: 

The proliferation of nominalisations in a discursive formation may be an indication of a tendency towards pomposity and abstraction. 

A more direct and concise example is:  

Writers who overload their sentences with nominalisations tend to sound pompous and abstract. 

Remember: academic writing does not need to be complex; it needs to convey complex ideas clearly.  

You can avoid over nominalising by being aware of the nouns and verbs you use in your sentences. 

 Rewrite these sentences.

Over to you 

• Reread a draft you are writing for one of your units. 

• If you see nouns ending in -tion, -ment, -al, -th, -ry, or – ence, consider whether each is describing an important abstract concept or whether you could replace it with the verb. 

ALL academic writing follows the basic principles of clarity, brevity, and precision. ALL academic writing aims to communicate effectively with readers with an appropriate level of formality. However, you will notice that some disciplines communicate a little differently to others.  

Let's do an informal quiz to see what you already know. Don't worry if you are not sure about the answers. Have a guess.

Don't worry if you didn't know the answers to this quiz. The aim was to raise your awareness of how disciplines can vary in academic style.  The next section will look at a strategy for building your knowledge of the academic style of your discipline. 

When you become a university student, you will do a lot of reading to learn the content of your discipline. You should also read to learn the language of your discipline. 

Think of yourself as a text detective. 

As you read, pay attention to how the writers express themselves. Look for useful language and note the choices the writers make. 

We will practise by analysing abstracts from three disciplines: Law, Engineering and Nursing. If they are not your discipline, do not try to understand the content. Focus on the language. 

• Do the writers use personal pronouns? 

• Do the writers use active or passive voice? 

• Do the writers use hedges or boosters? 

• How do the writers make their abstracts explicit? 

To be a text detective, you should: 

1. read your text for the content you need for your assignments 
2. read it again for language 
3. use highlighter functions to identify interesting or useful language 
4. use different colours to identify different language features like voice, signposts, or hedges. 
5. keep notes of useful language with an example sentence to help you remember. 

If you do this regularly, especially in your first year, you will quickly develop an understanding of how your discipline communicates and what language choices you should make. Also, it will: 

• improve your reading and writing skills 

• make noticing language a habit which will help you throughout studies and into your professional life. 

At university, you write to inform or persuade your readers. You don’t write to impress your readers. Don’t use complex language if it will make it hard for your reader to understand you. 

Use this checklist to help you maintain a clear, concise academic style in your assignments. 

If you would like more support, visit the Language and Learning Advisors page. 

Gardner, S., Nesi, H., & Biber, D. (2018). Discipline, level, genre: Integrating situational perspectives in a new MD analysis of University student writing. Applied Linguistics, 40(4), 646-674. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amy005 

Hinds, J. (1987). Reader versus writer responsibility: A new typology. In U. Connor, & R. Kaplan (Eds.), Writing across languages: Analysis of L2 texts (pp. 141-152). Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley. 

Hyland, K. (1999). Academic attribution: citation and the construction of disciplinary knowledge. Applied Linguistics, 20(3), 341–367. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/20.3.341 

Hyland, K. (2003). Self-citation and self-reference: Credibility and promotion in academic publication. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 54(3), 251–259. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.10204 

Hyland, K. (2005). Stance and engagement: A model of interaction in academic discourse. Discourse Studies, 7(2), 173-192. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461445605050365 

Hyland, K. (2018). The essential Hyland: Studies in applied linguistics. Bloomsbury Publishing. 

Kaplan, R. B. (1966). Cultural thought patterns in inter‐cultural education. Language learning, 16(1‐2), 1-20. 

Staples, S., & JoEtta, A. (2022). Comparing the situational and linguistic characteristics of first year writing and engineering writing. Applied Corpus Linguistics, 2(3), 100031. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acorp.2022.100031 

Swales, J. & Feak, C. (2012) Academic Writing for Graduate Students. (3rd Ed.) Ann Arbor: Michigan University Press. 

Sword, H. (2012, July 23). Zombie nouns. Opinionator. https://archive.nytimes.com/opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/23/zombie-nouns/ 

Wallwork, A.(2016) English for Academic Research: Writing Exercises. (2nd Ed) New York: Springer.