Is ‘jargon monoxide’ polluting your writing?
Deepti Sur | August 18, 2026
Image by Michelangelo Buonarroti / Pexels licence
You won’t find jargon monoxide in a chemistry textbook. But you’ll find it in plenty of emails, reports, and meeting minutes. This pollutant is business jargon that gets in the way of clear communication.
If you’ve been ‘circling back’ or ‘leveraging synergies’, you may be accidentally contributing to jargon monoxide emissions.
Early warning signs
Jargon often starts as useful shorthand between colleagues who share the same knowledge.
The trouble begins when those words become barriers instead of bridges.
Take this sentence:
We’ll leverage our core competencies to optimise customer centricity.
It may sound impressive, but what does it actually mean?
Compare it with:
We’ll work together to give customers a better experience.
The second version is shorter, clearer, and easier to understand.
And that’s the tricky thing with jargon — it may sound professional, but it often compromises clarity.
How jargon monoxide builds up
Most people use corporate buzzwords because everyone else at work does.
Then the ‘curse of knowledge’ takes over. Once we know something well, we forget what it’s like to not know it. We assume everyone understands the same language.
And the more jargon we use, the more natural it feels. Before long, one jargon word becomes two, then ten, and soon it becomes our default language.
Know the side effects
While a little jargon might seem harmless, too much can create problems.
Jargon slows progress
People spend more time explaining what they mean than getting work done. Extra conversations and unnecessary meetings become the norm. As misunderstandings grow, important details get lost, mistakes happen, and actual work takes longer than it should.
Jargon excludes people
Every workplace develops its own language, and that’s natural. But not everyone speaks it: new staff, clients, contractors, and colleagues from other teams may feel left out.
Jargon weakens trust
People are less likely to trust messages that are difficult to understand. Confusing language creates uncertainty — it leaves readers wondering what it really means, or if there’s a hidden meaning.
Jargon increases mental effort
This extra mental effort is called cognitive load. Instead of focusing on the message, readers spend their energy working out what the jargon means and what they have to do next.
Check your jargon monoxide levels
Do this quick clarity check before sending your next email or report.
- Am I writing to impress or to help?
- Can I replace buzzwords with simpler alternatives?
- Would someone new understand the content?
- Would a client know exactly what I mean?
If your answers raise even a small doubt, it’s a sign to simplify.
Open the windows and let plain language in
You do not need jargon to sound professional or credible. The best communicators can explain complex ideas in plain language.
Plain language invites everyone into the conversation. It respects readers’ time, reduces unnecessary effort, and helps people make informed decisions.
So let’s circle back to plain language and move the needle on clarity to achieve net-zero business jargon monoxide emissions.
Just kidding!
But if you’re ready to clear the jargon monoxide from your writing, our Business Writing Essentials workshop can show you how.