diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index e0f58be1e0ffec1cf0b1a1a65312afb1eff2dbb4..7b0031d87d614906396ee85b81c6f6ec97d94ef3 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -24,13 +24,13 @@ Please report unacceptable behavior to spring-code-of-conduct@pivotal.io.
 
 #### Discuss
 
-If you have a question, check StackOverflow using
+If you have a question, check Stack Overflow using
 [this list of tags](https://spring.io/questions), organized by Spring project.
-Find an existing discussion or start a new one if necessary.
+Find an existing discussion, or start a new one if necessary.
 
 If you suspect an issue, perform a search in the
 [GitHub issue tracker](https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/issues), using a few different keywords.
-When you find related issues and discussions, prior or current, it helps you to learn and
+When you find related issues and discussions, prior or current, it helps you to learn, and
 it helps us to make a decision.
 
 #### Create a Ticket
@@ -40,14 +40,14 @@ and the conversations that result from it provide a continuous flow of ideas.
 
 Before you create a ticket, please take the time to [research first](#discuss).
 
-If creating a ticket after a discussion on StackOverflow, please provide a self-sufficient description in the ticket, independent of the details on StackOverflow. We understand this is extra work but the issue tracker is an important place of record for design discussions and decisions that can often be referenced long after the fix version, for example to revisit decisions, to understand the origin of a feature, and so on.
+If creating a ticket after a discussion on Stack Overflow, please provide a self-sufficient description in the ticket, independent of the details on Stack Overflow. We understand this is extra work, but the issue tracker is an important place of record for design discussions and decisions that can often be referenced long after the fix version — for example to revisit decisions, to understand the origin of a feature, and so on.
 
-When ready create a ticket in the [GitHub issue tracker](https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/issues).
+Once you're ready, create a ticket in the [GitHub issue tracker](https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/issues).
 
 #### Ticket Lifecycle
 
 When an issue is first created, it is flagged `waiting-for-triage` waiting for a team
-member to triage it. Within a day or two, the issue will then be reviewed and the team
+member to triage it. Within a day or two, the issue will then be reviewed, and the team
 may ask for further information if needed. Based on the findings, the issue is either
 assigned a fix version or declined.
 
@@ -80,12 +80,12 @@ otherwise using succinct, lower-case, dash (-) delimited names, such as `fix-war
 1. Choose the granularity of your commits consciously and squash commits that represent
 multiple edits or corrections of the same logical change. See
 [Rewriting History section of Pro Git](https://git-scm.com/book/en/Git-Tools-Rewriting-History)
-for an overview of streamlining commit history.
+for an overview of streamlining the commit history.
 
 1. Format commit messages using 55 characters for the subject line, 72 characters per line
 for the description, followed by the issue fixed, e.g. `Closes gh-22276`. See the
 [Commit Guidelines section of Pro Git](https://git-scm.com/book/en/Distributed-Git-Contributing-to-a-Project#Commit-Guidelines)
-for best practices around commit messages and use `git log` to see some examples.
+for best practices around commit messages, and use `git log` to see some examples.
 
 1. List the GitHub issue number in the PR description.
 
@@ -115,15 +115,15 @@ source code into your IDE.
 The wiki pages
 [Code Style](https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/wiki/Code-Style) and
 [IntelliJ IDEA Editor Settings](https://github.com/spring-projects/spring-framework/wiki/IntelliJ-IDEA-Editor-Settings)
-defines the source file coding standards we use along with some IDEA editor settings we customize.
+define the source file coding standards we use along with some IDEA editor settings we customize.
 
 ### Reference Docs
 
-The reference documentation is in the [src/docs/asciidoc](src/docs/asciidoc) directory and, in
+The reference documentation is in the [src/docs/asciidoc](src/docs/asciidoc) directory, in
 [Asciidoctor](https://asciidoctor.org/) format. For trivial changes, you may be able to browse,
 edit source files, and submit directly from GitHub.
 
-When making changes locally, use `./gradlew asciidoctor` and then browse the result under
+When making changes locally, execute `./gradlew asciidoctor` and then browse the result under
 `build/asciidoc/html5/index.html`.
 
 Asciidoctor also supports live editing. For more details read