What are reporting verbs?
A reporting verb is any verb that introduces what someone said, found, acknowledged, or recommended. In aviation English — especially in investigation reports and regulatory correspondence — these verbs carry considerable weight. They tell the reader not just that something was said, but how it was said and what it implies. Choosing between stated, acknowledged, and revealed is not a stylistic preference; each describes a different communicative act.
During the NTSB hearings on the Boeing MD-11 engine pylon failure in Louisville, every reporting verb shaped the reader’s interpretation: Boeing acknowledging that replacement had been framed as advisory is a very different thing from Boeing stating a technical fact.
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