- Poor language quality can delay or block publication of work
- Proper English should be used throughout the manuscript
It’s important to take seriously the presentation of your manuscript, especially the language you use to communicate your results. Without clear and proper language, editors and reviewers will not grasp the full message or impact of your work. Even though the findings you report might be cutting edge, poor language quality, including errors in grammar, spelling, or language usage, could delay publication or could lead to outright rejection of the paper, preventing the research from getting the recognition it deserves.
Proper English should be used throughout the entire manuscript, including the captions and headings in figures, charts, graphs, and photos.
- No! It's the author's resposibility...
- but resources are available
Often, authors assume that the publisher or journal editor will correct the language of their manuscript either during the submission or after it has been accepted, but this is not correct. It is always the author’s responsibility to make sure a paper is in the best form possible.
Although publishers don’t correct language, they do often provide resources for authors who are less familiar with the conventions of international journals. Please check www.elsevier.com/authors for more information. Sometimes a technical screening service is also available prior to peer review, and if your paper’s language quality doesn’t meet a journal’s minimum standards, it could be returned to you for improvement. All of Elsevier’s manuscript improvement services are available on webshop.elsevier.com.
- Clear
- Objective
- Accurate
- Concise
The key to presenting your work well is to write clearly, objectively, accurately, and concisely. Native foreign language students should practice writing English at any moment they can, and even keep records in English during their research to practice their language skills.
It’s obvious that you should try to prevent spelling errors by using a spellchecker in English, but the other most common language errors involve: * Sentence construction * Incorrect tenses * Inaccurate grammar * Inconsistent use of English throughout the paper
You should always read the journal’s Guide for Authors to check for any additional language specifications.
- Write direct, short, and factual sentences
- Convey one piece of information per sentenceinformation
- Avoid multiple statements in one Sentencee
The average length of sentences in scientific writing is only about 12-17 words.
A. It was found that study subjects responded well to the infusion of compound X in repeated tests, but they did not respond consistently to the infusion of compound Y.
B. It was found that the study subjects responded well to compound X in repeated tests. It was also found that the response to compound Y was not consistent.
C. We found that the study subjects responded well to compound X in repeated tests. We also found that the response to compound Y was not consistent.
The right answer is C.
You should construct sentences in short, factual bursts. Long and complicated sentences tend to confuse readers. You should also convey only one idea in each sentence, and avoid multiple statements in a single sentence. The average length of sentences in scientific writing is only about 12-17 words.
Additionally, you should use active voice because the active voice will usually shorten sentences and make them more dynamic and interesting for the reader.
Present tense | Past tense
-----------------------------------|------------------------------------------
Use for known facts and hypotheses | Use for experiments conducted and results
You must also take care to use the proper tenses when describing your work and findings.
The present tense should be used for known facts and hypotheses, for example, “The average life of a honey bee IS 6 weeks.”
The past tense should be used for describing experiments that have been conducted and the results of these experiments, for example, “The average life span of bees in our contained environment WAS 8 weeks.”
Being consistent and correct in your use of tenses makes your paper easier to understand for the reader.
- Use active words to shorten sentences
- Avoid contractions and abbreviations
- Minimize use of adverbs
- Elimilate redundant phrases
- Double-check on unfimiliar words or phrases
Pay special attention to the grammar used in your manuscript. One way to help make the work and results clearer for the reader is by using the active, rather than the passive voice.
The passive voice can be used in the Methods section of a paper but otherwise, the active voice will usually shorten sentences and make them more dynamic and interesting for the reader. You are encouraged to use the active phase “we found that…” freely, which is a quick signal to the reader that you are describing one of your results. This is also much more concise and to the point than writing in the passive voice, as in, for example, “it has been found that there had been…”
You should avoid contractions such as “it’s”, “isn’t”, or “weren’t”, which aren’t often used in professional writing, and avoid abbreviations except for very well-known ones, unless you have clearly defined them within the paper.
You should minimize use of adverbs, eliminate redundant phrases, and double-check unfamiliar words or phrases.
A. We didn’t find any correlation between diabetes and consumption of nutrient Y.
**B.** The study subject’s ECG pattern was within normal range.
C. The cholesterol levels were greatly reduced.
D. When we added an additional compound Z, the results remained the same.
You should avoid contractions such as "didn't" in professional writing, and use only very well-known abbreviations, such as ECG or EKG. You should also minimize use of adverbs, such as "greatly," and eliminate redundant phrases, such as "added an additional."
Are you using proper manuscript language?
- Proper English is important so editors and reviewers can understandingand the work
- Use short, concise sentences, correct tenses, and correct grammar
- Refer to the journal’s Guide for Authors for specifications
- Have a native English speaker check your manuscript or use a language editing service
The purpose of publishing a manuscript is to communicate your message to the research community. If your manuscript is poorly written, or presented in a way that makes its message unclear, there is a risk that reviewers, editors, and readers may not understand it. To ensure that your work is comprehensible, it is essential that you use proper English language with concise sentences, correct tenses, and correct grammar. Consult the journal’s Guide for Authors for any additional specifications.
We also recommend that you ask a native English-speaking colleague to help you edit the final version before submission, or take advantage of the language editing services available in Elsevier’s Webshop.