Plain language favors short sentences, common everyday words over jargon, and content organized with clear headings and logical structure, so that a reader does not need specialized knowledge or extra cognitive effort to follow along. It directly supports WCAG’s Understandable principle and benefits people with cognitive and learning disabilities, non-native speakers, and honestly, nearly every reader under time pressure.
Plain language is not the same as oversimplified or condescending writing; it is entirely possible to explain a genuinely complex legal or technical topic in plain language without losing accuracy, which is why it has become standard practice in government communication and increasingly in accessible content strategy generally.