Officialese

In today's article we are going to talk about Officialese, a topic of great importance today. Officialese is a topic that has captured the attention of many people around the world, due to its relevance in different aspects of society. From its impact on the economy, politics, technology, culture, among others, Officialese has proven to be a topic that does not go unnoticed. In this article we will analyze different perspectives on Officialese, as well as its evolution over time and its influence on everyday life. Additionally, we will explore some concrete examples of how Officialese has changed the way we face various challenges in our daily lives. Without a doubt, Officialese is a topic that invites us to reflect and open our minds to new ideas and approaches. Don't miss this interesting article about Officialese!

Not to be confused with official language.

Officialese, bureaucratese, or governmentese is language that sounds official. It is the "language of officialdom". Officialese is characterized by a preference for wordy, long sentences; complex words, code words, or buzzwords over simple, traditional ones; vagueness over directness; and passive over active voice (some of those elements may, however, vary between different times and languages). The history of officialese can be traced to the history of officialdom, as far back as the eldest human civilizations and their surviving official writings.

Officialese is meant to impress the listener (or reader) and increase the authority (more than the social status) of the user, making them appear more professional. Ernest Gowers noted that officialese also allows the user to remain vague. It can be used to make oneself understood to insiders while being hard to decipher by those unfamiliar with the jargon and subtexts used. Its use is known to put off members of the general public and reduce their interest in the material presented. Officialese has been criticized as making one's speech or prose "stilted, convoluted, and sometimes even indecipherable"; or simply as the "cancer of language". It is thus more pejoratively classified as one of the types of gobbledygook. Its use can also result in unintended humorous incidents, and has been often satirized.

Several similar concepts to officialese exist, including genteelism, commercialese, academese, and journalese. The existence of officialese has been recognized by a number of organizations, which have made attempts to curtail its use in favour of plain language.

See also

References

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External links

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