FIND YOUR
REPORTING
VERB
These reporting verbs have been put into
three categories: strong, neutral, and
tentative. Each verb has its own shade of
meaning. Using the correct word relies on
you making a correct interpretation of
what the source is saying.
Strong reporting verbs are used when the source makes strong arguments and
claims.
asserts
asserts,, argues
argues,, applauds
applauds,, claims
claims,, emphasizes
emphasizes,, contends
contends,,
Strong
maintains
maintains,, theorizes
theorizes,, supports
supports the
the view
view that
that,, denies
denies,, negates
negates,,
refutes
refutes,, rejects
rejects,, challenges
challenges,, strongly
strongly believes
believes that
that,, counters
counters
the
the view
view/
/argument
argument that
that,, persuades
persuades,, affirms
affirms,, proves
proves,,
contends
contends,, etc
etc..
Neutral reporting verbs are used when the source primarily reports without
making a strong claim. Also, these verbs are used when you explain a source’s
methodology.
Neutral
Tentative verbs are used when a source suggests or speculates without certainty.
suggests
suggests,, speculates
speculates,, intimates
intimates,, hypothesizes
hypothesizes,, proffers
proffers,,
implies
implies,, proposes
proposes,, posits
posits the
the view
view that
that,, questions
questions the
the view
view
Tentative
that
that,, postulates
postulates,, wonders
wonders,, considers
considers,, hopes
hopes,, doubts
doubts,, supposes
supposes,,
guesses
guesses,, brings
brings up
up,, hints
hints,, mentions
mentions,, introduces
introduces,, conjectures
conjectures,,
contemplates
contemplates,, surmises
surmises,, studies
studies,, etc
etc..
EXAMPLE WORDS
&
PHRASES
Academic writing requires you to use citations to refer to the original source when you have
used someone else’s ideas or concepts in your writing. One of the most common ways to
incorporate these citations into your writing is to use these reporting verbs to present the
information. Keep in mind that there are many more reporting verbs you can use to more fully
express how you feel about the sources you are using in your essays, theses, and dissertations.
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