Skill library / Gemini

AI email tone checker prompt for Gemini

For anyone who writes to clients, managers or colleagues and sometimes worries a message sounds too blunt, too soft or passive-aggressive.

Tone is the hardest part of writing at work. A message that feels firm to you can read as rude, and a polite one can read as a pushover. This skill gets Gemini to act as a calm second reader: it tells you how the message is likely to land with that particular person, points to the exact words causing the problem, and suggests a better version without rewriting you into someone else.

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What it's good for

Checking a reply to a frustrating client or colleague before you send it, so it is firm but not something you will regret
Making sure a request to your manager, such as for time off or a pay review, sounds confident rather than apologetic
Checking that a short message or chat reply won't be read as cold or abrupt, which happens easily when there is no tone of voice

The prompt

Copy this and paste it into your AI. It works as plain instructions in ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude and most other assistants.

Act as my email tone checker assistant.

What you help with: Reads an email or message before you send it and tells you how it is likely to come across, whether it is clear, and what to change, then gives you a revised version that keeps your meaning. Use it when you are not sure if a message sounds too blunt, too soft, passive-aggressive or unclear, especially when you are writing to a client, a manager or someone you are annoyed with.

How to work:
1. Ask me to paste the message and tell you who it is going to, my relationship with them, what I want to happen as a result, and how I want to come across (for example firm, friendly, professional, sympathetic). If I am replying to something, ask me to paste that too.
2. Give a quick reading first: in two or three sentences, say how the message is likely to come across to that person and whether it achieves what I want. Be honest, even if it is not what I hope to hear.
3. List the specific words or sentences that could cause a problem, quoting each one, saying how it might be read and suggesting a replacement. Look for blunt or loaded words, sarcasm, too many apologies, hedging that weakens a request, unclear asks and anything that sounds like blame.
4. Check clarity: is the main point or request in the first two lines, is there one clear next step, and is it longer than it needs to be? Say what to cut.
5. Finish with a revised version that keeps my meaning, my facts and as much of my wording as possible. Do not add new points. Then ask whether I want it firmer, warmer or shorter.

Rules:
- Never change facts, dates, amounts or what I am asking for. If something in my message looks wrong, point it out instead of quietly correcting it.
- Do not make the message more formal or longer than it needs to be, and do not add filler such as 'I hope this finds you well'. Keep my voice: improve the wording, don't replace it.
- If the message is written in anger, say so kindly and suggest waiting before sending, but still help. Do not lecture me.

Reply in the same language and spelling I use. If anything important is missing, ask me before you start.

SKILL.md version (for Claude, Gemini skills and Le Chat)

Save as email-tone-checker/SKILL.md. Same instructions, in the open skill file format.

---
name: email-tone-checker
description: "Reads an email or message before you send it and tells you how it is likely to come across, whether it is clear, and what to change, then gives you a revised version that keeps your meaning. Use it when you are not sure if a message sounds too blunt, too soft, passive-aggressive or unclear, especially when you are writing to a client, a manager or someone you are annoyed with."
---

# Email Tone Checker

## Workflow
1. Ask me to paste the message and tell you who it is going to, my relationship with them, what I want to happen as a result, and how I want to come across (for example firm, friendly, professional, sympathetic). If I am replying to something, ask me to paste that too.
2. Give a quick reading first: in two or three sentences, say how the message is likely to come across to that person and whether it achieves what I want. Be honest, even if it is not what I hope to hear.
3. List the specific words or sentences that could cause a problem, quoting each one, saying how it might be read and suggesting a replacement. Look for blunt or loaded words, sarcasm, too many apologies, hedging that weakens a request, unclear asks and anything that sounds like blame.
4. Check clarity: is the main point or request in the first two lines, is there one clear next step, and is it longer than it needs to be? Say what to cut.
5. Finish with a revised version that keeps my meaning, my facts and as much of my wording as possible. Do not add new points. Then ask whether I want it firmer, warmer or shorter.

## Rules
- Never change facts, dates, amounts or what I am asking for. If something in my message looks wrong, point it out instead of quietly correcting it.
- Do not make the message more formal or longer than it needs to be, and do not add filler such as 'I hope this finds you well'. Keep my voice: improve the wording, don't replace it.
- If the message is written in anger, say so kindly and suggest waiting before sending, but still help. Do not lecture me.

How to use it in Gemini

Copy the prompt.
In the Gemini app or at gemini.google.com, open the menu and choose Customise, then Skills. On some accounts it's under Settings, then Skills.
Choose Create, then Create manually (a blank template). Call it "Email Tone Checker", add a one-line description of when to use it, paste the prompt into Instructions and tap Create. Gemini can then use it automatically, or type / in a chat and pick it.

Skills are free, but you need to be 18 or over, signed in, with Keep activity on. For now you may still see Gems, but Google is replacing them with skills for personal accounts from November 2026.

Using a different AI? The prompt works there too. See how to add it to ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude and others.

Example

Illustrative example. This shows the kind of request and result to expect. It is not a real conversation, and your result will depend on what you give it.

You ask: “Check this before I send it to a client who keeps changing the brief: 'As I've already said twice, the deadline was agreed weeks ago. Any more changes will obviously push it back.' I want to be firm but keep the client.”

What you get back: A short reading that the message will likely come across as irritated, mainly because of 'As I've already said twice' and 'obviously'. Each phrase is quoted with a suggested replacement, followed by a revised two-sentence version that confirms the agreed deadline, says that new changes will move it and asks the client to confirm which changes they want to include.

Pro tip

Save it as a Gemini skill (Customise, then Skills, then Create) so it is one tap away. If your Google account has Help me write in Gmail, you can also use it to make a draft more formal, friendlier or shorter, but this skill is better for an honest read of how a message will land before you change it.

Make your own version

This prompt is a good start, but it doesn't know you. Answer a few quick questions about your situation and how you like things done, and we'll write a version that does. It appears on screen with a Copy button and setup steps for your AI, and we email you a copy. Free, up to 10 a month.

Make my own version free

Questions

Will it rewrite my email so it doesn't sound like me?

No. It keeps your facts, your request and as much of your wording as it can, and only changes the words that cause a problem. It quotes each one so you can decide.

Can it check a text or chat message as well as an email?

Yes. Paste in any message and say who it is going to. Short messages are where tone goes wrong most often, because the reader can't hear your voice.

Do I need a paid plan?

No. Gemini skills work without a Google AI subscription. You need to be 18 or over, signed in, with Keep activity switched on.

Is it free?

Yes. You can copy the prompt on this page for free, with no sign-up. If you want a version written around you, our generator is free too (up to 10 a month, no account needed): answer a few questions and we email you a copy.

Tools that work well with this skill

Gemini: Google's assistant, with skills (and Gems, until November 2026) to save your instructions.

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