Splunk® Style Guide

Splunk Style Guide

Acrobat logo Download manual as PDF


Acrobat logo Download topic as PDF

Pronouns

Pronouns replace nouns. When you use pronouns in your writing, make sure that the pronoun correctly refers to the noun it replaces, known as its antecedent.

Gender-neutral pronouns

Write for inclusivity and don't make assumptions about sex or gender. When you write Splunk documentation, avoid using gender-specific and sexist language.

Most of the topics in Splunk documentation use the second-person singular pronoun, "you" and "your", to address a single user directly. If you have to write in the third person or refer to someone in the third person, make sure that you choose gender-neutral third-person pronouns, such as "they", "their", and "them".

In Splunk documentation, it's acceptable to use a plural pronoun with a singular antecedent when you refer to people. Use third-person-plural pronouns when you refer to a person of unspecified gender. Don't write "him or her" or "his or hers".

Correct
The end user must add lines of code to their app to enable it in Splunk Enterprise.

In most cases, you can make the antecedent plural to keep agreement with the pronoun.

Correct
End users must add lines of code to their app to enable it in Splunk Enterprise.

In many cases, and preferably, you can rewrite the sentence to be more direct.

Correct and better
You must add code to your app to enable it in Splunk Enterprise.

The following examples are not acceptable uses of pronouns in Splunk documentation:

Noninclusive
The end user must add lines of code to his or her app to enable it in Splunk Enterprise.
Sexist
The end user must add lines of code to her app to enable it in Splunk Enterprise.
Sexist
The end user must add lines of code to his app to enable it in Splunk Enterprise.

If you refer to an actual person, find out what pronoun they prefer and use that pronoun when you write about them.

Personal pronouns

Use the second-person pronoun, "you", in Splunk documentation. Avoid first-person pronouns, such as "I", "our", "us", and "we", unless you are responding to customer feedback or are writing a tutorial.

Relative pronouns

"That" and "which" don't mean the same thing, so don't use them interchangeably.

In a sentence, "that" introduces an essential clause. If you remove the words after "that", the sentence doesn't make sense.

Correct
For HDFS working directory, provide the path in HDFS that you want Hunk to use as a working directory.

"Which" introduces a nonessential clause. If you remove the words after "which", the sentence still makes sense, although it is less detailed.

Correct
Splunk Enterprise changes one of the default port settings in the server.conf file, which is one of the stanzas you copied but didn't edit.

When referring to a person, use "who" instead of "that".

Vague pronouns

Avoid ambiguous references between a pronoun and its antecedent. Vague pronouns include "this", "that", "which", and "it". To add clarity, replace the vague pronoun with a noun.

Correct
Set the enableReduction value to true.
Incorrect
Set it to true.
Last modified on 25 May, 2022
PREVIOUS
Possessives
  NEXT
Recommendations

This documentation applies to the following versions of Splunk® Style Guide: current


Was this documentation topic helpful?


You must be logged into splunk.com in order to post comments. Log in now.

Please try to keep this discussion focused on the content covered in this documentation topic. If you have a more general question about Splunk functionality or are experiencing a difficulty with Splunk, consider posting a question to Splunkbase Answers.

0 out of 1000 Characters