English in the EU and the pursuit of clarity. Issues of translatability

The role of English within the European Union has long been a subject of debate, particularly in the aftermath of Brexit. The study explores how English has evolved from an official language of one Member State into a de facto lingua franca across EU institutions and communication networks, giving rise to what has been termed Euro-English. Attention is paid to the issues of clarity and translatability that accompany this linguistic shift, with particular reference to the European Commission’s Fight the FOG campaign and its How to Write Clearly guidelines. It is shown that efforts to promote plain and accessible English, while fostering transparency, also reveal tensions between linguistic diversity and the dominance of English. The discussion highlights how the pursuit of clarity in multilingual contexts inevitably involves questions of identity, legitimacy, and balance between simplification and precision. Ultimately, the need for clarity, readability, and accurate translation is framed as an ongoing challenge in the construction of a shared European communicative space.