Should I Use Abstract Nouns in Technical Writing?
Abstract nouns are nouns that you can’t touch, see, hear, taste or smell. They are intangible concepts or feelings like “ability”, “confusion” and “dedication”.
Abstract nouns are common in corporate communication but don’t let that fool you. Use them too much in and your writing will be unclear and too long.
Example: We conducted an investigation into the sudden drop of daily active users.
In this sentence, the verb is “conducted.” The verb is vague and it steals the attention from the more powerful word “investigation”, which is an abstract noun.
A shorter and clearer version of the sentence is:
We investigated into the sudden drop of daily active users.
See how the abstract noun was turned into a powerful verb?
More examples:
The analysis of the data took place. ❌
We analyzed the data. ✅
The achievement of good performance ❌
Performing well ✅
Now over to you…
Look for abstract nouns in your writing. Use the list below to help you get started. For each abstract noun you find:
- Replace it with a verb
- Restructure the rest of the sentence to fit the new verb
Common abstract nouns in business writing and technical documentation
- Acceptance
- Accomplishement
- Agreement
- Appearance
- Arrangement
- Decision
- Dedication
- Delivery
- Demand
- Discussion
- Gain
- Growth
- Implementation
- Information
- Investigation
- Measurement
- Movement
- Performance
- Profit
- Progress
- Reduction
