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Writing & Research · pattern C, Text in

Readability scores, and what they can and cannot tell you.

Paste your text for Flesch reading ease, Flesch–Kincaid grade level and the Gunning fog index, alongside the sentence and syllable statistics all three are computed from.

Inputs

The formula used

206.835 − 1.015 × (words ÷ sentences) − 84.6 × (syllables ÷ words)

Every readability formula is a function of two things only: sentence length and word length. They cannot see whether a sentence makes sense.

Flesch reading ease

60.1

Flesch reading ease. Plain and accessible.

Words
54
Sentences
3
Words per sentence
18.0
Syllables per word
1.52
Flesch–Kincaid grade
9.3
Gunning fog index
12.4
Words of 3+ syllables
7

The scores measure length, not clarity.

Flesch, Flesch–Kincaid and Gunning fog all combine average sentence length with average word length, so they reward short sentences and short words regardless of whether the meaning survived. Academic writing legitimately scores badly: precise terminology has long words and qualified claims have long sentences. The scores are useful as a diagnostic for sentences that have quietly grown to forty words, and useless as a target.

Questions about reading level

What score should academic writing get?
Typically 30 to 50 on Flesch reading ease, which the scale labels difficult. That is normal and appropriate for a discipline with technical vocabulary; a first-year essay scoring 70 is often under-specified rather than clear.
Which formula should I use?
For most purposes Flesch–Kincaid grade level is the easiest to interpret because it maps onto school years. Fog weights multi-syllable words more heavily, which penalises technical fields hardest.
Do markers use readability scores?
Almost never directly. They read for argument, evidence and structure. Use the score to catch your own worst sentences, then fix them by splitting, not by simplifying the content.

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