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GCSE English Language · key term
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as explaining an issue or persuading readers to act.
Used by AQA, Edexcel, OCR and Eduqas
Paper 2
What a writer aims to achieve, such as informing, recording an experience or persuading readers.
Revise: Reading 19th-century non-fictionFor example, an opening such as ‘Sir, I write to request…’ signals a formal relationship and a particular purpose, rather than a private conversation.
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as explaining a viewpoint, persuading readers or arguing a case.
Identify the precise issue, audience, purpose and form before planning. From June 2026, failing to address the task’s focus directly caps AO5 at 12/24.
Identify the form, audience and purpose before planning: your response must fit all three.
Read the introduction to each extract: its author, date and text type can help you understand its situation and purpose.
Create a free account to keep every note you open and track your progress.
What a writer aims to achieve, such as explaining a viewpoint, persuading a reader or giving advice.
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as explaining a position or persuading readers to act.
Paper 2
What a writer aims to achieve, such as informing, persuading, explaining or entertaining.
Revise: Reading 20th- and 21st-century non-fictionPurpose: why has the writer written this? A text may inform readers about conditions, describe an experience and persuade them that something is wrong. Purposes often work together.
What a writer intends to achieve: for example, helping readers understand an issue or convincing them to take action.
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as explaining an issue or persuading someone to act.
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as informing listeners or persuading them to change their views.
What a writer wants a text to achieve, such as explaining information or helping a reader decide what to do.
Paper 1, Paper 2
What a writer wants a text to achieve, such as informing, explaining, advising or persuading.
Revise: Reading 19th-century non-fictionThe form is the kind of text; the purpose is what it aims to achieve. These are connected, but they are not interchangeable.
What a writer aims to achieve, such as persuading readers to accept a view, explaining an idea or presenting something as unpleasant.
What a writer aims to achieve, such as persuading readers to support a change or helping them understand an idea.
The effect a writer intends to achieve, such as informing a reader, explaining an idea, offering advice or persuading someone to act.
What a writer wants a text to achieve, such as informing, advising or persuading.
Paper 1
The reason a text is written, such as to inform, persuade, instruct, advise or entertain.
Revise: Reading 19th-, 20th- and 21st-century non-fictionA text’s form is the kind of writing it is. Its purpose is what the writer wants to achieve. Its audience is whom it addresses.
What a writer intends to achieve, such as explaining an idea or persuading readers to act.
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as persuading an audience to act or explaining why something happens.
What a writer aims to achieve, such as explaining an idea, informing readers or persuading them to act.
Component 2
What a writer aims to achieve, such as informing, explaining, persuading, entertaining or recording an experience.
Revise: Reading 19th- and 21st-century non-fictionOnline texts may combine words with photographs, captions or other features: ‘online’ describes their medium, not a single purpose. A text combining different modes of communication, such as words and images, is multi-modal.
The intended effect of a text on its reader, such as informing, explaining, advising or persuading.
What a writer wants a text to achieve, such as informing, explaining, advising, entertaining or persuading.
What a writer intends a text to achieve, such as informing, requesting or persuading.
What a writer aims to achieve through a text, such as explaining an issue or persuading readers to act.
What a writer wants a text to achieve, such as explaining information or helping readers make a decision.
