A linguistic irritant XXXII

If you're writing a math textbook, consider your audience.  Many students taking algebra don't need or want it to sound more daunting than it already does.  I remember the first day of an algebra class in which the textbook's instructions read, "Give the simplest name of the value of each expression."  I would have given simpler instructions, such as "Solve."  The teacher agreed and told the class, "This book can make everything sound like the most terrible task ever.  Why don't they just say, 'Give the answer?'"