Simple English
moeru-ai/airi
Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so it is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop.
Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so the result is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop.
Install Simple English
$ npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install danielvm-git/bigpowers simple-english --agent claude-codeProject scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/simple-english .claude/skills/simple-english && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.
Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/
Install the "simple-english" agent skill from https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-english into .claude/skills/simple-english/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "simple-english", then confirm the skill loads.Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$skill-installer install https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-englishType this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.
$ npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install danielvm-git/bigpowers simple-english --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/simple-english .agents/skills/simple-english && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "simple-english" agent skill from https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-english into .agents/skills/simple-english/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "simple-english", then confirm the skill loads.Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install danielvm-git/bigpowers simple-english --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/simple-english .cursor/skills/simple-english && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.
Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/
Install the "simple-english" agent skill from https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-english into .cursor/skills/simple-english/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "simple-english", then confirm the skill loads.Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gemini skills install https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git --path skills/simple-english--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.
$ npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install danielvm-git/bigpowers simple-english --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/simple-english .gemini/skills/simple-english && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.
Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "simple-english" agent skill from https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-english into .gemini/skills/simple-english/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "simple-english", then confirm the skill loads.Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gh skill install danielvm-git/bigpowers simple-englishInstalls for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/simple-english .github/skills/simple-english && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.
GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "simple-english" agent skill from https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-english into .github/skills/simple-english/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "simple-english", then confirm the skill loads.GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install danielvm-git/bigpowers simple-english --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/simple-english .opencode/skills/simple-english && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.
OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "simple-english" agent skill from https://github.com/danielvm-git/bigpowers/tree/main/skills/simple-english into .opencode/skills/simple-english/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "simple-english", then confirm the skill loads.OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
Facts
- Skill name
simple-english- GitHub stars
- 256
- Token cost
- ~932 tokens
- SKILL.md length
- 406 words
- Files
- 3 (incl. scripts)
- Skills in repo
- 39
- Repo updated
- First seen
- Licence
- MIT
At a glance
Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so the result is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop.
- Works in 6 steps: Select mode (Pragmatic default for… → Classify each passage as procedural or… → Fix vocabulary before drafting (pick one… → …
- Incident reports
- SKILL.md covers Your task, Passage classification, Core limits and Approved modals & slop…, plus 3 more sections
- Runs Python scripts from its folder; calls make and python3
What it does
Simple English is an agent skill from danielvm-git/bigpowers. Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so the result is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop. Use for documentation, READMEs, runbooks, procedures, error messages, release notes, incident reports, and API guides. Also use when the user says "STE", "Simplified Technical English", "ASD-STE100", "de-slop", "make this readable", "write for non-native readers", or asks for docs that translate well. Enforces the 53 rules of the standard (Issue 9) with a…
Its SKILL.md is about 930 tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 3 other files, including scripts (for example `REFERENCE.md` and `scripts/ste_lint.py`).
It sits in Development, covering Technical documentation, Runbooks and postmortems and Changelog and release notes. The repository describes itself as: Agent skills synthesizing years of software engineering discipline into a prescriptive methodology for solo developers. The licence is MIT.
When your agent uses it
- Incident reports
- The user says STE
- Simplified Technical English
- Make this readable
Example prompts
- “Simplified Technical English”
- “ASD-STE100”
- “de-slop”
- “/simple-english”
Requirements
- Python 3
Workflow steps
6 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.
- Select mode (Pragmatic default for docs/READMEs; Strict when user requests full STE/compliance).
- Classify each passage as procedural or descriptive.
- Fix vocabulary before drafting (pick one verb/noun per concept).
- Apply core limits and rules from REFERENCE.md.
- Run mandatory self-check before delivery.
- Leave code, identifiers, and quoted errors untouched.
What it can do on your machine
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 812d57a. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.
Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
Ships 1 file in scripts/ (Python), which the agent can run.
Shell commands in SKILL.md call:
makepython3
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
No URLs in SKILL.md.
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.
Context cost
Simple English loads about 932 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 136 tokens; SKILL.md has 406 words of instructions outside code blocks.
Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.
Safety
Auto-check passed
The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.
Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); the scripts in this folder are not scanned.
SKILL.md
The full file from danielvm-git/bigpowers at commit 812d57a, republished under its MIT licence (© danielvm-git). 406 words, ~932 tokens.
Download SKILL.mdSave it as
.claude/skills/simple-english/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder). This skill also uses 2 other files; get the full folder from GitHub.- name
- simple-english
- description
- Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so the result is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop. Use for documentation, READMEs, runbooks, procedures, error messages, release notes, incident reports, and API guides. Also use when the user says "STE", "Simplified Technical English", "ASD-STE100", "de-slop", "make this readable", "write for non-native readers", or asks for docs that translate well. Enforces the 53 rules of the standard (Issue 9) with a deterministic lint gate.
- model
- sonnet
- effort
- standard
- phase
- Sustain
Simple English
HARD GATE — Do NOT deliver technical text without classifying it first as procedural or descriptive. Every sentence limit and verb form depends on this choice.
HARD GATE — Do NOT change code, identifiers, CLI flags, file paths, or quoted error messages. Leave them exact.
HARD GATE — Do NOT claim STE compliance. State that final approval rests with the writer.
Write technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English. STE removes long sentences, synonym rotation, and decorative clauses so a tired reader cannot misread an instruction.
Your task
When asked to write or rewrite technical text, do these steps in order:
- Select mode (Pragmatic default for docs/READMEs; Strict when user requests full STE/compliance).
- Classify each passage as procedural or descriptive.
- Fix vocabulary before drafting (pick one verb/noun per concept).
- Apply core limits and rules from REFERENCE.md.
- Run mandatory self-check before delivery.
- Leave code, identifiers, and quoted errors untouched.
When asked to CHECK text, report each violation with rule number, offending text, and compliant rewrite.
Passage classification
| Procedural (instructions) | Descriptive (explanations) | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Tell the reader what to do | Explain what a thing is or does |
| Verb form | Imperative: "Install the pump." | Simple present, past, or future |
| Sentence limit | 20 words (Rule 5.1) | 25 words (Rule 6.3) |
| Unit rule | One instruction per sentence (5.2) | One topic per paragraph (6.5), max 6 sentences (6.6) |
Show full SKILL.md (177 more words)Show less
Core limits
| Limit | Rule |
|---|---|
| Max 20 words per procedural sentence / 25 words per descriptive sentence or note | 5.1, 6.3, 5.5 |
| Max 6 sentences per paragraph; multi-word nouns max 3 words | 6.6, 2.1 |
| Approved verbs: infinitive, imperative, simple present/past/future, past participle as adj | 3.2 |
| Active voice; no semicolons; put required conditions before commands | 3.6, 8.1, 5.4 |
| Code, numbers with units, identifiers, quoted text count as 1 word each | 8.6 |
Approved modals & slop replacements
Approved modals: can, will, must. Replace should → must (requirement) or delete (recommendation); may/might/could → can.
Common slop replacements: leverage/utilize → use; in order to → to; prior to → before; ensure → make sure that; functionality → function/feature. See full table in REFERENCE.md.
Self-check before delivery
- Count words in 3 longest sentences (over limit → split).
- Search draft for contractions, perfect tenses, banned modals,
-ingverbs after comma, semicolons. - Check
if/whenplacement (must start sentence before command). - Verify consistent single term per concept across whole doc.
Verify
→ verify: test -x skills/simple-english/scripts/ste_lint.py && python3 skills/simple-english/scripts/ste_lint.py --self-test && echo OK
Reference
- REFERENCE.md — full 53-rule catalog, slop substitutions, doc-type adaptations, and verification checklist.
© danielvm-git, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file
Files
SKILL.md and 2 other files (scripts) in skills/simple-english of danielvm-git/bigpowers.
- SKILL.md
- REFERENCE.md
- scripts/ste_lint.py
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 812d57a
Compare with similar skills
Simple English next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.
| Skill | Stars | Used in | Tokens | Auto-check | Licence | Repo updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple English this skilldanielvm-git/bigpowers | 256 | — | ~932 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Simple Englishmoeru-ai/airi | 50k | 2 repos | ~4.6k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Simple Englishropensci/ckanr | 104 | 3 repos | ~2k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Create Docavibebuilder/claude-prime | 120 | — | ~812 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Technical Writercuriositech/some_claude_skills | 243 | — | ~1.4k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Mole CLI Release Flowtw93/Mole | 69k | — | ~2.5k | Automated safety check: Pass | GPL-3.0 |
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Related
Categories
Questions about Simple English
What does Simple English do?
Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so the result is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop. Simple English is an agent skill from danielvm-git/bigpowers. Write or rewrite technical text with the rules of ASD-STE100 Simplified Technical English so the result is clear, unambiguous, and free of AI slop.
When should I use Simple English?
Simple English fits situations like: incident reports; the user says STE; simplified Technical English; make this readable.
How do I install Simple English in Claude Code?
Run `npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/simple-english in danielvm-git/bigpowers) into .claude/skills/simple-english in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
How do I install Simple English in Codex?
Run `npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/simple-english in danielvm-git/bigpowers) into .agents/skills/simple-english in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Can I use Simple English in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?
Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add danielvm-git/bigpowers --skill simple-english -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/simple-english, .gemini/skills/simple-english, .github/skills/simple-english and .opencode/skills/simple-english in your project.
What does Simple English need to run?
Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Simple English needs Python for the scripts in its folder and the command-line tools its instructions call (make and python3). Our summary lists: Python 3.
Does Simple English access the network?
SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.
Is Simple English safe to install?
Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. The check reads SKILL.md only: the scripts in the folder are not scanned, so read them before running anything.
What licence does Simple English use?
Simple English is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.
How many tokens does Simple English use?
About 932 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 3.7k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.
What are the alternatives to Simple English?
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Simple English: Simple English (moeru-ai/airi, 50k stars), Simple English (ropensci/ckanr, 104 stars), Create Doc (avibebuilder/claude-prime, 120 stars) and Technical Writer (curiositech/some_claude_skills, 243 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
Who maintains Simple English?
danielvm-git (a GitHub user) maintains it in danielvm-git/bigpowers, which has 256 GitHub stars. The repository holds 39 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 21, 2026.
Source: danielvm-git/bigpowers on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.