Prefer present tense over future tense (EK00005)
Present tense describes how your product behaves right now, keeping documentation direct and current. Learn why to prefer it over future tense.
Present tense describes how a product behaves right now, which keeps instructions direct and free of unnecessary words. EkLine flags future-tense phrasing (rule EK00005) so you can rewrite it in present tense.
Why use present tense in documentation?
Section titled “Why use present tense in documentation?”Documentation describes how software works today, not what it will do later. Present tense matches that reality: “The API returns JSON” states a fact, while “The API will return JSON” reads like a promise about the future. Present tense is also shorter and more consistent, so procedures are quicker to scan and translate more cleanly.
What EkLine flags
Section titled “What EkLine flags”EK00005 detects future-tense markers such as will, won't, going to, and the contracted 'll.
- ❌ Incorrect: The API will return JSON.
- ✅ Correct: The API returns JSON.
- ❌ Incorrect: You will see a prompt.
- ✅ Correct: You see a prompt.
How to fix
Section titled “How to fix”Remove the future-tense marker and put the verb in present tense. Change “will return” to “returns” and “you will see” to “you see”.
Why does documentation use present tense?
Section titled “Why does documentation use present tense?”Documentation describes how software works today, not what it will do later. “The API returns JSON” states a fact, while “The API will return JSON” reads like a promise about the future.
When is future tense still correct?
Section titled “When is future tense still correct?”When a sentence describes a genuinely future event — such as a scheduled deprecation with a date — future tense is accurate. Keep the sentence and ignore the rule for that line.
Rule details
Section titled “Rule details”| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Rule ID | EK00005 |
| Category | Tone and voice |
| Default severity | Warning |
| Enabled by default | Yes |
Ignore this rule
Section titled “Ignore this rule”To keep a future-tense sentence on one line, add an inline comment with a reason:
<!-- ekline-ignore-next-line EK00005 -- describes a future deprecation -->This endpoint will be removed on January 01, 2027.To disable the rule across your project, add it to the ignore list in your configuration file.