How To Paraphrase:
An essential skill for writing Research Papers
A paraphrase is...
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Using your own words to express essential information and ideas from someone else.
A more detailed restatement than a summary, which focuses concisely on a single main idea.
Paraphrasing is a valuable skill because...
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It helps you control the temptation to quote too much.
Thinking through the paraphrase process helps you to fully understand the original.
Steps to Effective Paraphrasing
1. Read the original passage until you understand its full meaning.
2. Set the original aside, and write your paraphrase on separate paper.
3. Check your version with the original to make sure that you have accurately restated all the essential
information in a new form.
4. Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or phraseology you have borrowed exactly from the
source.
5. Record the source (including the page number) with your paraphrase so that you can credit it easily if
you decide to incorporate the material into your paper.
What does a good Paraphrase look like?
The original passage:
Students frequently overuse direct quotation in taking notes, and as a result they overuse quotations in the final
[research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter.
Therefore, you should strive to limit the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes.
Lester, James D. Writing Research Papers. 2nd ed. (1976): 46-47.
A legitimate paraphrase:
In research papers students often quote excessively, failing to keep quoted material down to a desirable level.
Since the problem usually originates during note taking, it is essential to minimize the material recorded
verbatim (Lester 46-47).
An acceptable summary:
Students should take just a few notes in direct quotation from sources to help minimize the amount of quoted
material in a research paper (Lester 46-47).
A plagiarized version:
Students often use too many direct quotations when they take notes, resulting in too many of them in the final
research paper. In fact, probably only about 10% of the final copy should consist of directly quoted material. So
it is important to limit the amount of source material copied while taking notes.
Practicing with Paraphrasing, Summary, and Quotes
Passage 1
We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be
demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was "well timed" in
the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the
word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This "Wait" has almost always meant
"Never." We must come to see, with one of our distinguished jurists, that "justice too long delayed is justice
denied."
King, Dr. Martin Luther. "Letter from a Birmingham Jail." 16 April 1963. African Studies Center, University
of Pennsylvania. N. P. Web. 21 January 2014.
Paraphrase Example:
Dr. Martin Luther King believes that the Negro people of his time have waited long enough for freedom. He
explains that when people have been told to wait for so many years without seeing any result, they give up hope
that change will ever happen. He argues that “Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be
demanded by the oppressed” (King, n.p.)
Summary Example:
Dr. Martin Luther King believes that the Negro community of his time has waited long enough for freedom, and
if they want to see changes happen in regards to racial equality, they must demand freedom from those in power
(King, n.p.).
Quotation example:
“We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be
demanded by the oppressed,” said King in his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” (n.p.).
*Note: Quotes more than 3 lines long should be put into ‘Block Quote’ format. Use these sparingly.
Important tips to remember:
1. Every time you use quotation marks, you must include an in-text citation immediately after.
2. Every time you use the author’s exact words, with the exception of titles or facts, you must use
quotation marks to show that those words came from someone else.
3. Every paragraph of your paper, except for the intro and conclusion, must contain information
from your sources and therefore must also contain an in-text citation showing where the
information came from.
4. Every source on your works cited page must also appear in your paper as an in-text citation.