Difference between Technical Writing and

Academic Writing

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1. Technical Writing:
technical writing refers to a piece of writing which focuses on
providing detailed and lucid information about the product or service.
It contains factual and straight forward content.
It is entirely goal-oriented and it talks about different ways by which the
desired goal can be achieved.
Mainly Technical writings are something new or existing concept based on
the same technical domain.
Here the writer avoids to explain a specific subject matter by providing
his/her own point of view.
Example
includes suppose a writer writing an article based on the topic comes under computer
science domain on Geeks for Geeks.

2. Academic Writing:
refers to a piece of writing which focuses on proving a theory or
viewpoint in one way or the other and emphasizes upon one specific
subject.
Through academic writing the writer intends to prove a theory or
viewpoint in one way or the other.
Mainly academic writings are based on academic findings and academic
research.
The writer can explain a specific subject matter by providing his/her own
point of view.
Example includes suppose a professor writing on a concept related to Chemistry and that
published on college’s monthly magazine.
Difference between Technical Writing and Academic
Writing :
S.No
. TECHNICAL WRITING ACADEMIC WRITING
Technical writing focuses on Academic writing focuses on
providing detailed and lucid proving a theory or viewpoint in one
information about the product or way or the other and emphasizes
01. service. upon one specific subject.
Technical writing contains factual and Academic writing contains contents
02. straight forward content. on specific discipline or field.
Technical writers should have expert Academic writers have learner’s
03. knowledge. knowledge.
Its purposes are to demonstrate
04. Its purpose is getting something done. what a person knows.
In technical writing the knowledge of In academic writing the knowledge
topic is more than the reader who is of topic is less than the teacher who
05. going through it. is evaluating the topic.
Audience of Technical writing may be Audience of academic writing may
several people who are specifically be a teacher or students or some
06. belongs to the same technical field. people related to filed.
In technical writing graphics, charts In academic writing graphics, charts
and numbers are used very frequently and numbers are sometimes used to
07. to support conclusion. explain the concept well.
Technical writing follows subject Academic writing follows technical
08. specific vocabulary. vocabulary.
Own or personal point views are not Own or personal point of view may
09. included. be included.
Its example includes suppose a
Its example includes suppose a writer professor writing on a concept
writing an article based on the topic related to Chemistry and that
comes under computer science published on college’s monthly
10. domain on GeeksforGeeks. magazine.
The 4 Types of Sentence
Structure
In What is a Sentence? we saw the minimum requirements for
the formation of a sentence. Now we can look in more detail at
the four types of sentence structure.

 Simple sentence structure

 Compound sentence structure
 Complex sentence structure
 Compound complex sentence structure.

Simple Sentence Structure

A simple sentence consists of one independent clause. (An
independent clause contains a subject and verb and expresses
a complete thought.)

 I like coffee.
 Mary likes tea.
 The earth goes around the sun.
 Mary did not go to the party.

Compound Sentence Structure

A compound sentence is two (or more) independent clauses
joined by a conjunction or semicolon. Each of these clauses
could form a sentence alone

 I like coffee and Mary likes tea.

 Mary went to work but John went to the party.
  Our car broke down; we came last.

There are seven coordinating conjunctions:

 and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so

Complex Sentence Structure

A complex sentence consists of an independent clause plus a
dependent clause. (A dependent clause starts with a
subordinating conjunction or a relative pronoun, and contains
a subject and verb, but does not express a complete thought.)
 We missed our plane because we were late.
 Our dog barks when she hears a noise.
 He left in a hurry after he got a phone call.
 Do you know the man who is talking to Mary?

Here are some common subordinating conjunctions:

 after, although, as, because, before, how, if, once, since,

than, that, though, till, until, when, where, whether, while

Here are the five basic relative pronouns:

 that, which, who, whom, whose

Compound-Complex Sentence Structure
A compound-complex sentence consists of at least two

independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses.

 John didn't come because he was ill so Mary was not

happy.
 He left in a hurry after he got a phone call but he came
back five minutes later.

A dependent clause is also called a subordinate clause.

The above sentences are basic examples only. In some cases

other arrangements are possible (for example, a dependent
clause can come before an independent clause

What Are Conditional Sentences?

Conditional sentences express conditions that are required to be followed in order to achieve the
desired end results. According to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, a conditional sentence is
defined as “a sentence that begins with if or unless and expresses a condition”, and according to
the Collins Dictionary, “if a situation or agreement is conditional on something, it will only
happen or continue if this thing happens”.

The Cambridge Dictionary defines a conditional sentence as “ a sentence, often starting with “if”
or “unless”, in which one half expresses something which depends on the other half”, and
according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a conditional is defined as “the mood or form that
is used to say that something is true or happens only if something else is true or happens”.

Types of Conditional Sentences with Examples

In the English language, conditional sentences are divided into four main types namely,

 Zero Conditional Sentences

 First Conditional Sentences
 Second Conditional Sentences
 Third Conditional Sentences
Let us take a look at each type of conditional sentence in detail.

Zero Conditional Sentences

A zero conditional sentence is one which refers to a general truth. It denotes situations in which a
particular thing or action always results in the other. In zero conditional sentences, both the
dependent clause and the independent clause are written in the simple present tense. This is
mainly due to the fact that the outcomes are guaranteed.

A few examples of zero conditional sentences are given below.

Examples of Zero Conditional Sentences

 When you smoke, your lungs are affected.

 The lawn gets wet when it rains.
 Babies cry when they are hungry and sick.
 If you don’t water the plants, they die.
 If you don’t exercise, you gain weight.

First Conditional Sentences

First conditional sentences are those sentences that express a situation in which the end result
would be the one to most likely happen. This, however, is not the guaranteed outcome.

The tense used in a first conditional sentence is as follows:

 Simple present tense in the ‘if clause’ – the dependent clause.

 Simple future tense in the independent clause which expresses the outcome that is most
likely to happen in the future as a result of the other action expressed in the ‘if clause’.
Take a look at the examples below to understand.

Examples of First Conditional Sentences

 If you talk to someone about how you feel, you will feel better.
 If you are focussed, you will achieve your goal.
 If you take some medicines, you will feel better.
 If you go out now, you will get wet in the rain.
 If you like animated movies, you will like Inside out.
Second Conditional Sentences
Second conditional sentences are sentences in which hypothetical situations or unrealistic events
that are not likely to ever happen are mentioned. In this type of conditional sentences, the tense
used would be – simple past tense for the ‘if clause’ and use of a modal auxiliary along with
a main verb in the independent clause. The common modal auxiliaries used in second conditional
sentences include might, would, could, should, etc.

Look at the example sentences given below to learn how they work.

Examples of Second Conditional Sentences

 If I had a teleporting device, I would travel around the world in a jiffy.

 If I knew animation graphics, I would create real life animated characters.
 If I had a time travel machine, I could go back to my past and change a few things.
 If I won the lottery, I would buy all the famous super cars.
 If I had a choice, I would never marry at all.

Third Conditional Sentences

Third conditional sentences express alternate circumstances in the present. This is used to
indicate that the outcome would have been different if there was a change in the past event
mentioned in the dependent clause. The tense rules to be followed in third conditional sentences
are – past perfect tense in the ‘if clause’ (the dependent clause) and modal auxiliary verb (would,
should, could, etc.) + have + past participle in the independent clause.

Take a look at the following sentence examples to understand.

Examples of Third Conditional Sentences

 If I had been there, I would have surely helped you in one way or another.
 If Ashish had been with me, he would have known how to make me feel better.
 If they had taken him to hospital sooner, he would not have died.
 If you had not fought with me, everything would have been fine.
 If the teacher had informed us earlier, we could have finished it in time.