“Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print. Never use a long word where a short one will do.”

—  George Orwell, book Politics and the English Language

"Politics and the English Language" (1946)
Context: Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print. Never use a long word where a short one will do. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. Never use the passive voice where you can use the active. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

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George Orwell photo
George Orwell473
English author and journalist 1903–1950

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