Language Styles and Styles of Expression: Types and Characteristics

What is a language style?

Textual coherence is achieved by properly matching individual elements, such as:

• syntax (sentence construction — from simple sentences to highly complex ones);
• vocabulary (word choice, such as technical, fashionable or colloquial terms);
• word-forming devices (such as diminutives, augmentatives and compounds);
• inflectional and phonetic devices (such as archaisms, neologisms, onomatopoeia, alliteration and rhyme).

A style of expression, meaning a particular structure, gives a statement its specific stylistic shape. This allows it to fulfil certain, often very precisely defined, functions.

The choice of language style and the resulting need to organise the text appropriately depend on factors such as:

• the situation in which the author finds themselves;
• the subject of the statement;
• the target audience;
• the communication objective;
• the author’s specific preferences (aesthetic sense and linguistic sensitivity);
• fashion (language characteristic of a particular period or era).

What are the types of language style?

You already know that language styles are characterised by a specific form used to fulfil particular functions and reach a target audience. Now discover the most important types.

Colloquial style

Most spoken communication uses a colloquial style, although exceptions may include courtroom speeches. It is also used in many written genres: letters, diaries and emails, as well as blogs. We learn it naturally because we encounter it from the first days of our lives.

The vocabulary used in this style can be divided into:

• emotionally neutral words (referring to everything around us);
• expressive words (such as humorous or informal terms and swear words).

Colloquial style allows the use of:

• idioms (for example: I’m at the end of my rope; it’s raining cats and dogs);
• repetitions (for example: green everywhere, just green; spring is a season of vivid green);
• sentences that do not follow standard rules, are complicated or are examples of so-called anacolutha — distorted or defective constructions (for example: first the dog died, and then its owner);
• ellipsis — omitting information that is obvious from the context (for example: I listen to rock music, while my partner listens to classical music).

Official style

This is the style of expression characteristic of various institutions and the people representing them. It is one of the most popular styles, second only to colloquial language.

Two subtypes of official style can be distinguished:

• administrative — official documents (business letters, contracts, minutes, notices, complaints, applications, résumés, CVs and so on);
• legal — normative acts (constitutions, statutes, regulations, instructions, decrees and so on).

These forms of expression are characterised primarily by:

• standardisation:
  • template-based structure, often involving forms and applications,
  • formulaic word choice,
  • the use of set phrases (such as “Dear Sir or Madam” and “Yours faithfully”),
  • permissible formal or bureaucratic expressions (such as “at this point in time” or “in the possession of”).
• precision:
  • unambiguous terminology,
  • concise messages,
  • few or no epithets,
  • avoiding expressiveness and vivid imagery,
  • division into paragraphs, sections and points;
• directiveness:
  • orders,
  • prohibitions,
  • permissions;
• impersonal character:
  • the use of impersonal verb forms (such as “notice is hereby given”, “the work was completed” and “applicants are requested to”);
  • actions expressed using third-person singular verb forms (such as “The court upholds the decision…”);
  • the recipient is often identified using an indefinite pronoun (such as “anyone subject to a custodial sentence…”).

Official texts often include stamps or seals in their headers and signatures, giving them formal authority.

Informative and journalistic style

Its purpose is to communicate information about specific events. Informative style stands out through its exclusive use of verified information, which should be presented concisely while still providing sufficient detail. The author should write:

• impersonally;
• impartially;
• according to a standard structure;
• with limited expressiveness.

Journalistic style allows for longer forms, such as columns, articles, essays and feature reports. Here, interpretation, evaluation and commentary matter alongside information. The author may express opinions and attempt to influence the audience. It is acceptable to:

• use a wide range of language devices;
• combine colloquial and scientific styles, or even artistic style;
• use expressive language;
• use emotionally charged words.

Scientific style

Because subjects and methodologies vary widely, the defining feature of this style is its diversity. The most common scientific texts include articles (a stated thesis followed by an argument), dissertations (a discussion of a specific issue from a particular perspective) and papers (originally written and then presented aloud).

Two subtypes of scientific style can be distinguished:

• academic and theoretical — communication between specialists is characterised by:
  • a large number of specialised words and scientific terms,
  • a predominance of complex sentences,
  • objective assumptions that often require the use of impersonal sentences,
  • a lack of expressive elements,
  • phrasing that signals the author’s distance or uncertainty (for example, “It may be assumed that…”).
• popular science — communication between specialists and non-specialists is characterised by:
  • information presented in language that readers without a background in the subject can understand,
  • the use of expressions characteristic of journalistic or even artistic texts,
  • the use of metaphors, comparisons and descriptions to make the subject easier to understand.

Artistic style

Authors may use a wide range of stylistic devices and rich, vivid vocabulary, as well as create entirely new words or combinations.

The following are acceptable:

• language errors;
• language stylisation (such as archaisms, colloquialisms and scientific jargon);
• words belonging to other language styles.

Developing your own language style

Sometimes a style of expression makes it possible to identify its author. This is usually connected with the use of particular phrases, stylistic devices or characteristic sentence structures. Such techniques are especially common in literary genres, including poetry, but they also appear in essays and columns.

The ability to identify an author from text samples is a clear advantage in artistic writing. Outside that context, however, the use of a personal style is usually quite limited. Creating different types of content, especially to a client’s specific brief, requires compliance with strict requirements, such as SEO guidelines, designed to achieve particular objectives. In such situations, the effectiveness of the text takes priority over the author’s individual language style.

Stylistic harmony — how can you avoid stylistic errors?

If your task is to create a text in a specific language style, you must not only understand its characteristics but also follow the principles of stylistic harmony. It makes a text coherent, consistent and aligned with a particular style, increasing the chances that it will be understood as intended.

To avoid errors that may lead to communication failure, remember these three principles:

1. adapt the style of the words you use to the type of statement (for example, in informative and journalistic writing, avoid an accumulation of expressive colloquial terms, euphemisms, slang and swear words);
2. maintain a consistent style within each sentence and DO NOT MIX words belonging to different styles (for example, using official language in direct personal communication may be difficult to understand);
3. use language stylisation only when it is justified (for example, archaisms should evoke the style of a particular era; otherwise, introducing outdated words into everyday language is entirely unnecessary).