Wikipedia:Vague introductions

This is an essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints.

Shortcuts WP:VAI WP:VAGUELEAD

This page in a nutshell: Explain the subject of the article concisely in the lead. The lead should summarize the contents of the article.

A vague introduction is an article lead (WP:LEAD) that begins with non-definitive or otherwise equivocal language, such that only reveals and discusses a concept's ambiguities or peculiarities, rather than its actual substance.

Examples of the wording in such introductions often resemble the form:

• "There is no clear definition of [subject]..."
• "There is no one agreed upon definition of [subject]."
• "Experts do not all agree upon a definition of [subject]..."
• "[Subject] has many definitions"

Philosophy articles are particularly susceptible to such vague language for several reasons:

1. Editors in philosophical subjects may be too polarized to find an agreeable definition
2. The concepts are typically designed to be abstract and therefore are too often misunderstood to begin with.
3. Editors in philosophical subjects seek to preserve or amplify known ambiguities rather than attempt to resolve them

The solution may require having separate leads for each major meaning assigned to the topic, rather than using a Cuisinart and blending all the concepts into one paragraph. The most dominant meaning should be given the first paragraph, but no significant usage should be completely omitted from the new lead.