Creating space for people to discover what they already know, in ways that are meaningful and sustainable for them.

WHAT IS CLEAN LANGUAGE?

Clean Language is a client-led approach to inquiry that uses carefully structured questions to help people explore their inner experience in their own words. Rather than interpreting, reframing, or introducing new language, the facilitator stays as close as possible to the client’s exact expressions — including their metaphors, images, and symbols. This creates the conditions for clarity, insight, and change – without the facilitator’s assumptions shaping the outcome.

WHY IS CLEAN LANGUAGE DIFFERENT?

Clean Language is distinctive not because it is neutral, but because it is precise. Key characteristics include:

  • Questions that minimise the facilitator’s assumptions
  • Careful attention to the client’s exact words and metaphors
  • A focus on the client’s inner experience rather than external explanation
  • Respect for the client’s pace, meaning-making, and autonomy

This precision allows complex experiences to be explored without distortion, making Clean Language especially valuable when working with ambiguity, emotion, identity, or change.

MORE ON CLEAN LANGUAGE:

  • Why Metaphors Matter
  • Clean Space and Emergent Knowledge
  • Where Clean Language is used

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FIVE CATEGORIES OF CLEAN LANGUAGE:

  • Symbolic Modelling
  • Clean Space
  • Emergent Knowledge
  • Clean Interviewing
  • Systemic Modelling

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WHERE DOES CLEAN LANGUAGE COME FROM?

Clean Language was developed by counselling psychologist David Grove in the 1980s through his work with clients who had experienced trauma. Grove noticed that even well-intended questions often introduced the therapist’s metaphors, interpretations, or frameworks — sometimes disrupting the client’s own meaning-making. By removing those influences and staying rigorously close to the client’s language, Grove found that clients were able to access deeper patterns, resources, and insights in their own time and in their own way.

A LIVING PRACTICE

Clean Language is not owned by any one organisation or individual. It continues to evolve through practice, dialogue, and application in diverse contexts. Different schools, traditions, and interpretations exist, reflecting the richness and adaptability of the approach. What unites these variations is a shared commitment to:

  • Respect for the client’s experience
  • Careful use of language
  • Ethical, reflective practice

LEARN MORE

If you’re curious to explore further, you may want to:

  • Learn about training and learning pathways
  • Connect with practitioners and trainers
  • Explore research and applications of Clean Language
  • Join the ICLA community in this ongoing work

Clean Language begins with listening — and continues through practice.

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CLEAN LANGUAGE PRINCIPLES

A person is ‘being clean’ when they:

  1. Preserve others’ experience precisely as they express it (including metaphors and non-verbals)

and

  1. Refrain from introducing concepts, metaphors, judgements, evaluations or assumptions

and

  1. Invite others to attend to their experience without intending to change it

and

  1. Only introduce words that do not suggest new content.

Clean Language Principles © 2025 by Leaders in Clean
Developed by a core contributor group within the Leaders in Clean community.
Licensed under CC BY 4.0