10 UX Writing Rules from Linguistics

Look at your phone. Every button, menu, and notification is a tiny conversation. When an app says “Get Started” or an error message sighs “Oops, something went wrong”, you’re not just reading words—you’re engaging in a piece of micro-linguistics. User Experience (UX) writing, the craft of choosing these words, is far more science than art. It’s a direct application of how we, as humans, process language.

As we move towards an even more integrated digital world in 2025, the science of language is what separates frustrating technology from intuitive, human-centered experiences. The best UX writers are, in essence, practical linguists. They understand that a digital interface is a dialogue, and for that dialogue to be successful, it must follow the unwritten rules of human communication. Let’s decode ten of these rules, grounding them in core linguistic principles.

The Linguistics of a Better User Experience

1. Be Clear, Not Clever

The Linguistic Principle: Grice’s Maxim of Manner. The philosopher of language Paul Grice proposed that effective communication relies on a “Cooperative Principle”. One of his four maxims is the Maxim of Manner, which urges us to be perspicuous—specifically, to avoid obscurity and ambiguity. We instinctively follow this in conversation to be understood.

In UX Writing: A user is on your site or in your app to achieve a goal, not to solve a riddle. Your copy should facilitate that goal with maximum clarity. Witty puns or overly creative jargon can create cognitive friction, forcing the user to stop and think, “What do they want me to do”?

• Bad: Let’s Blast Off! (On a registration button)
• Good: Create Account

2. Be Concise

The Linguistic Principle: Grice’s Maxim of Quantity & Cognitive Load. Grice’s Maxim of Quantity states: “Do not make your contribution more informative than is required”. Every extra word you add increases the user’s cognitive load—the amount of mental effort required to process information. Humans have a limited working memory, and unnecessary text exhausts it.

In UX Writing: Respect your user’s time and mental energy. Cut every word that doesn’t serve a critical function. This is especially true for mobile interfaces where screen space is precious.

• Bad: You must fill out all the required fields in this form before you will be able to proceed to the next step.
• Good: Please fill in all required fields. (Or even better, just use a clear visual indicator like a red asterisk *).

3. Be Helpful and Honest

The Linguistic Principle: Grice’s Maxim of Quality. This maxim is simple: “Be truthful”. Don’t say what you believe to be false or that for which you lack adequate evidence. Honesty is the bedrock of trust in any conversation, including one with a machine.

In UX Writing: Your interface should be a trustworthy guide. If a file upload will take a minute, don’t promise it will be “instant”. If a feature is only available on a paid plan, say so upfront. This is most critical in error messages. A cryptic “An error occurred” breaks trust; an honest “We couldn’t connect to the server. Please check your internet connection and try again” builds it by being helpful.

• Bad: Error #502.
• Good: Could not save changes. It looks like you’re offline. We’ll try again as soon as you reconnect.

4. Put the Important Stuff First

The Linguistic Principle: Information Structure & Front-loading. In English and many other languages, syntax naturally places the most important information at the beginning of a sentence. Psycholinguistic studies show that readers comprehend sentences faster when the main point (the independent clause) comes before the secondary point (the dependent clause). This reduces the mental effort of holding a condition in memory while waiting for the main idea.

In UX Writing: This applies to everything from titles to buttons. Start with the action or the key piece of information. Users scan, and they need to see the value immediately.

• Bad: To see a full list of all your previous orders, click here.
• Good: See your previous orders.

5. Use the User’s Vocabulary

The Linguistic Principle: Sociolinguistics & Audience Design. We naturally adjust our language (our lexicon, tone, and syntax) depending on who we’re talking to. This is called audience design. Speaking to a child is different from speaking to a technical peer. Using the wrong vocabulary can alienate your audience.

In UX Writing: Avoid internal company jargon or overly technical terms. The language in your interface should match the user’s mental model. What words would they use to describe this action? Researching your audience’s language is key.

• Bad: Authenticate to persist session.
• Good: Log in to save your progress.

6. Mind Your Imperatives

The Linguistic Principle: The Pragmatics of Imperatives. In linguistics, pragmatics is the study of how context contributes to meaning. A bare command (an imperative verb like “Enter” or “Do”) can sound forceful or rude depending on the social context and power dynamic. “Close the window” is fine in an emergency but impolite otherwise.

In UX Writing: The interface is there to serve the user, not boss them around. Frame your calls-to-action (CTAs) as invitations or tools the user can choose to wield. Using verbs that focus on the user’s goal (“Get”, “Find”, “Create”) feels more empowering than a stark command.

• Bad: Enter your credit card information.
• Good: Add a payment method.

7. Maintain a Consistent Voice

The Linguistic Principle: Register. Register is a linguistic term for the level of formality or style of language used in a particular situation. A consistent register (e.g., always formal, always playful and casual) makes a speaker predictable and coherent. A person who switches erratically between slang and academic jargon is confusing.

In UX Writing: A consistent voice and tone builds a coherent brand personality. If your onboarding is fun and casual (“Let’s get this party started”!), your error messages shouldn’t be robotic and cold (“Transaction failed. Error code: 8E-2”). This consistency makes the experience feel more stable and trustworthy.

• Bad: Onboarding: “Welcome, rockstar! Let’s get you set up”. Error: “System error 401: Unauthorized”.
• Good: Onboarding: “Welcome! Let’s get you set up”. Error: “Access denied. You don’t have permission to view this page”.

8. Use Positive Framing

The Linguistic Principle: The Framing Effect. This is a cognitive bias where people decide on options based on whether they are presented with positive or negative connotations. For example, a yogurt described as “80% fat-free” is perceived more favorably than one described as “20% fat”, even though they are identical. Language frames our perception of reality.

In UX Writing: Frame your messages positively to reduce anxiety and encourage action. Focus on the benefit of doing something rather than the punishment for not doing it.

• Bad: You won’t be able to recover your account if you don’t add a recovery email.
• Good: Add a recovery email to keep your account secure.

9. Write for Scannability

The Linguistic Principle: Psycholinguistics of Reading. Eye-tracking studies have shown for decades that users don’t read web pages word-for-word; they scan in patterns (often an F-shape), looking for keywords, headings, and visually distinct elements. Long, unbroken blocks of text are cognitively taxing and likely to be skipped entirely.

In UX Writing: Structure your text to be scanned. Use clear headings, short paragraphs, bulleted or numbered lists, and bold text for keywords. This respects the natural behavior of the user and allows them to find information efficiently.

• Bad: A long paragraph explaining the three benefits of a premium subscription.
• Good: A clear heading like “Go Premium to Unlock”: followed by three concise bullet points.

10. Be Relevant, Always

The Linguistic Principle: Grice’s Maxim of Relation. The final of Grice’s maxims is perhaps the most obvious: “Be relevant”. In conversation, we expect contributions to be relevant to the current topic. A random, off-topic comment breaks the conversational flow.

In UX Writing: The text you present must be relevant to the user’s current context and task. A pop-up asking for a review five seconds after a user opens the app for the first time is irrelevant and annoying. A tooltip should explain the feature it’s attached to, not something else on the page.

• Bad: An error message that just says “Invalid input”.
• Good: An error message that appears right below the relevant field and says, “This username is already taken. Try another”?

Language as the Ultimate Interface

UX writing isn’t about sprinkling pretty words over a design. It’s about using language as a precision tool. By understanding the deep-seated linguistic principles that govern communication—the need for cooperation, clarity, and cognitive ease—we can build technology that feels less like a machine we operate and more like a partner we collaborate with. As AI and conversational UIs become even more sophisticated, this foundation in linguistics won’t just be helpful; it will be essential.