React Docs Voice & Style

Universal Rules

• Capitalize React terms when referring to the React concept in headings or as standalone concepts:
  • Core: Hook, Effect, State, Context, Ref, Component, Fragment
  • Concurrent: Transition, Action, Suspense
  • Server: Server Component, Client Component, Server Function, Server Action
  • Patterns: Error Boundary
  • Canary: Activity, View Transition, Transition Type
  • In prose: Use lowercase when paired with descriptors: "state variable", "state updates", "event handler". Capitalize when the concept stands alone or in headings: "State is isolated and private"
  • General usage stays lowercase: "the page transitions", "takes an action"
• Product names: ESLint, TypeScript, JavaScript, Next.js (not lowercase)
• Bold for key concepts: state variable, event handler
• Italics for new terms being defined: event handlers
• Inline code for APIs: useState, startTransition, <Suspense>
• Avoid: "simple", "easy", "just", time estimates
• Frame differences as "capabilities" not "advantages/disadvantages"
• Avoid passive voice and jargon

Tone by Page Type

| Type | Tone | Example | |------|------|---------| | Learn | Conversational | "Here's what that looks like...", "You might be wondering..." | | Reference | Technical | "Call useState at the top level...", "This Hook returns..." | | Blog | Accurate | Focus on facts, not marketing |

Note: Pitfall and DeepDive components can use slightly more conversational phrasing ("You might wonder...", "It might be tempting...") even in Reference pages, since they're explanatory asides.

Avoiding Jargon

Pattern: Explain behavior first, then name it.

✅ "React waits until all code in event handlers runs before processing state updates. This is called batching."

❌ "React uses batching to process state updates atomically."

Terms to avoid or explain: | Jargon | Plain Language | |--------|----------------| | atomic | all-or-nothing, batched together | | idempotent | same inputs, same output | | deterministic | predictable, same result every time | | memoize | remember the result, skip recalculating | | referentially transparent | (avoid - describe the behavior) | | invariant | rule that must always be true | | reify | (avoid - describe what's being created) |

Allowed technical terms in Reference pages:

• "stale closures" - standard JS/React term, can be used in Caveats
• "stable identity" - React term for consistent object references across renders
• "reactive" - React term for values that trigger re-renders when changed
• These don't need explanation in Reference pages (readers are expected to know them)

Use established analogies sparingly—once when introducing a concept, not repeatedly:

| Concept | Analogy | |---------|---------| | Components/React | Kitchen (components as cooks, React as waiter) | | Render phases | Restaurant ordering (trigger/render/commit) | | State batching | Waiter collecting full order before going to kitchen | | State behavior | Snapshot/photograph in time | | State storage | React storing state "on a shelf" | | State purpose | Component's memory | | Pure functions | Recipes (same ingredients → same dish) | | Pure functions | Math formulas (y = 2x) | | Props | Adjustable "knobs" | | Children prop | "Hole" to be filled by parent | | Keys | File names in a folder | | Curly braces in JSX | "Window into JavaScript" | | Declarative UI | Taxi driver (destination, not turn-by-turn) | | Imperative UI | Turn-by-turn navigation | | State structure | Database normalization | | Refs | "Secret pocket" React doesn't track | | Effects/Refs | "Escape hatch" from React | | Context | CSS inheritance / "Teleportation" | | Custom Hooks | Design system |

Common Prose Patterns

Wrong vs Right code:

\`\`\`js
// 🚩 Don't mutate state:
obj.x = 10;
\`\`\`

\`\`\`js
// ✅ Replace with new object:
setObj({ ...obj, x: 10 });
\`\`\`

Table comparisons:

| passing a function | calling a function |
| `onClick={handleClick}` | `onClick={handleClick()}` |

Linking:

[Read about state](/learn/state-a-components-memory)
[See `useState` reference](/reference/react/useState)

Code Style

• Prefer JSX over createElement
• Use const/let, never var
• Prefer named function declarations for top-level functions
• Arrow functions for callbacks that need this preservation

Version Documentation

When APIs change between versions:

Starting in React 19, render `<Context>` as a provider:
\`\`\`js
<SomeContext value={value}>{children}</SomeContext>
\`\`\`

In older versions:
\`\`\`js
<SomeContext.Provider value={value}>{children}</SomeContext.Provider>
\`\`\`

Patterns:

• "Starting in React 19..." for new APIs
• "In older versions of React..." for legacy patterns