Text simplification

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Text simplification is an operation used in

Text simplification is illustrated with an example used by Siddharthan (2006).[1] The first sentence contains two relative clauses and one conjoined verb phrase. A text simplification system aims to change the first sentence into a group of simpler sentences, as seen just below the first sentence.

• Also contributing to the firmness in copper, the analyst noted, was a report by Chicago purchasing agents, which precedes the full purchasing agents report that is due out today and gives an indication of what the full report might hold.
• Also contributing to the firmness in copper, the analyst noted, was a report by Chicago purchasing agents. The Chicago report precedes the full purchasing agents report. The Chicago report gives an indication of what the full report might hold. The full report is due out today.

One approach to text simplification is lexical simplification via lexical substitution, a two-step process of first identifying complex words and then replacing them with simpler synonyms. A key challenge here is identifying complex words, which is performed by a machine learning classifier trained on labeled data. Researchers, frustrated by the problems with using the classical method of asking research subjects to describe words as either simple or complex, have discovered that they can get a higher consistency in more levels of complexity if they ask labelers to sort words presented to them in order of complexity.^[2]

See also

• Automated paraphrasing
• Controlled natural language
• Language reform
• Lexical simplification
• Lexical substitution
• Semantic compression
• Text normalization
• Simplified English
• Basic English

References