This is an interactive web page for checking a sample of writing. It is modeled after the ancient Unix utilities style and diction. Enter or copy text into the first box below. The scores to the right give the readability of the text according to various formulas.
The Flesch reading ease score is based on a range of 0-100, with lower values for harder text and higher values for easier text; the other scores show the approximate (US) school grade of the text. Grades 13-16 correspond to college level; grades higher than 16 correspond to graduate school level.
Click the "Submit" button to look for possible problems in the text. (This feature is limited to about 50,000 characters of text.) Words of three or more syllables are underlined. You should check the words or phrases in red to see if they should be re-written according to the suggestion in the brackets.
Click the "Demo" button one, two, or three times to see different samples of text. Check the scores for each sample; do you think the scores match the abilities of students in those grades? The different formulas give different estimates of grade level. Which formula is the most accurate? Click the "Submit" button to look for problems and to see the more complex words underlined.
Become an excellent writer!
Read these books:
The Elements of Style
The Chicago Manual of Style
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
Roget's International Thesaurus
The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage
A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers
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