Audience & purpose

Every piece of writing is shaped by two questions: who is it for (the audience) and why was it written (the purpose)? Purpose usually falls into one of three buckets — to persuade, to inform, or to entertain — though texts can blend these. Understanding the audience means thinking about what they already know, what language level suits them, and what tone will land well.

Key terms

Audience:

Who a text is written for.

Purpose:

Why a text was written — to persuade, inform or entertain.

Tone:

The attitude or feeling a writer's language creates.

Questions

1. 1. The 'audience' of a text is:

   • The writer
   • Who the text is written for
   • The title
   • The page count

2. 2. The 'purpose' of a text is:

   • Why it was written
   • How long it is
   • Who wrote it
   • The font used

3. 3. A recipe is mainly written to:

   • Persuade
   • Inform
   • Entertain
   • Argue

4. 4. A joke book is mainly written to:

   • Inform
   • Entertain
   • Persuade
   • Instruct

5. 5. An advertisement's main purpose is to:

   • Inform neutrally
   • Persuade
   • Entertain only
   • Instruct step by step

6. 6. A text written for young children usually uses:

   • Complex language
   • Simple, clear language
   • Legal jargon
   • Statistics only

7. 7. A text written for experts in a topic can use:

   • Only pictures
   • Technical language they'll understand
   • No information
   • Only simple words

8. 8. A children's picture book is written mainly to:

   • Entertain (while often informing gently too)
   • Persuade the reader to buy something
   • Instruct trained professionals
   • Argue a formal legal case

9. 9. A university lecture and a children's TV show explaining the same topic mainly differ in their:

   • Audience
   • The topic's importance
   • The country they are made in
   • The time of day they air

10. 10. Identifying the purpose of a text helps you understand:

    • The font used
    • Why it was written and how to read it
    • The page number
    • The price

11. 11. An advertisement's main purpose is usually to:

    • Inform neutrally
    • Persuade the audience to buy or act
    • Entertain only
    • Instruct step-by-step

12. 12. A text message to a friend and a formal email to a teacher differ mainly because of:

    • Audience
    • The alphabet used
    • The country
    • The date

13. 13. Knowing your audience helps you choose the right:

    • Page colour
    • Tone and language
    • Font size only
    • Paper type

14. 14. A user manual for a washing machine is written mainly to:

    • Entertain
    • Inform
    • Persuade
    • Argue

15. 15. A company writes two versions of a product description — one for a technical magazine, one for social media. This shows they are adapting for different:

    • Prices
    • Audiences
    • Countries
    • Colours

16. 16. Which of these is true about the purpose of a text?

    • It can only ever have one purpose
    • It can only ever persuade
    • It can be a mix, like informing AND persuading
    • Purpose never matters

17. 17. A formal letter of complaint uses a different tone to a text to a friend mainly because of:

    • The audience and purpose
    • The weather
    • The date
    • The country

18. 18. A safety sign at a construction site is written to:

    • Entertain workers
    • Inform and warn quickly
    • Persuade customers
    • Tell a story

19. 19. If you don't consider your audience's existing knowledge, your writing risks:

    • Being too short
    • Being confusing or condescending
    • Always being persuasive
    • Having no purpose

20. 20. A political flyer for an election typically combines:

    • Only entertainment
    • Persuasion and information
    • Only technical jargon
    • Only humour

21. 21. Adjusting your language for a younger audience mainly changes a text's:

    • Purpose
    • Vocabulary and sentence complexity
    • Country of origin
    • Page number