GOWERS, (Sir) Ernest (Arthur)
GOWERS, (Sir) Ernest (Arthur) [1880–1966]. English civil servant and writer on usage, born in London, and educated at Rugby and Clare College, Cambridge, where he studied classics. He entered the Civil Service in 1903 and rose to become chairman of the Board of Inland Revenue. On his retirement in 1930, he was chairman of numerous official bodies and committees of inquiry. At the invitation of the Treasury (concerned at the obscure or convoluted style of many civil servants), he wrote Plain Words: A Guide to the Use of English (1948) and The ABC of Plain Words (1951). These were combined, with revisions, in The COMPLETE PLAIN WORDS (1954). The books show his insistence on clarity, precision, and directness as essential for expository writing. Gowers's reputation as a sensible and sensitive authority on usage and style led to his being invited to revise FOWLER'S DICTIONARY OF MODERN ENGLISH USAGE (2nd edition, 1965). See EFFECTIVE WRITING, EUPHEMISM, HOUSE STYLE, PUN, USAGE GUIDANCE AND CRITICISM.
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GOWERS, (Sir) Ernest (Arthur)
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