Citation: Reporting Verbs
What are reporting verbs and when should I use them?
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 ‘reporting’ verbs to present
the information.
In addition to helping you to avoid plagiarizing others’ work, reporting verbs help you to
strengthen your argument and to help the reader understand the relevance of the
sources you are using in your writing.
Below is a table of other useful reporting verbs that you might use with citations. Please
note, however, that these verbs are not all interchangeable!
Before selecting a verb it is vital that you carefully read the source and clearly
understand the author’s claim(s).
When you have chosen a verb, ask yourself whether that is really what the author
intended. You must make sure that you report others’ work accurately.
• argue
• analyze
• believe
• claim
• compare
• comment
• concede
• conclude
• criticize
• define
• demonstrate
• describe
• discuss
• dispute
• estimate
• observe
• point out
• predict
• recognize
• report
• show
• state
• stipulate
• suggest
• validate
• verify
• evaluate
• illustrate
• indicate
• investigate
The MLA style emphasizes the use of the simple present tense or present perfect tense
when you are discussing an author’s ideas or writing.
For example,
• Harrison evaluates…
• White demonstrates…
• Lee has suggested…
Reporting verbs are also a way for you, the writer, to show your ‘attitude’ towards the
source of information you are citing. These attitudes are either ‘positive’, ‘negative’ or
‘neutral’.
Do you agree with what the author has said? If so, use reporting verbs with a ‘positive’
meaning to them. Here are some reporting verbs that tend to be ‘positive’:
• Acknowledges
• Affirms
• Certifies
• Explains
• Identifies
• Observes
Do you disagree with what the author has said? In this case, you can use a ‘negative’
reporting verb to indicate this. Here is a sample of some reporting verbs usually
understood as being ‘negative’:
• Accuses
• Claims
• Guesses
• Proclaims
• Expects
• Hopes
Perhaps you don’t feel positive or negative about the source you are citing. In this
situation, you should use a ‘neutral’ reporting verb. Here is a small sample of ‘neutral’
reporting verbs:
• Adds
• Concludes
• Describes
• Feels
• Maintains
• Says
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 and papers.
Source:
http://www.port.ac.uk/departments/studentsupport/ask/resources/handouts/referencingandcitation/filetodownload,32781,en.pdf
http://www.ilc.cuhk.edu.hk/english/gepdf/Reporting%20verbs_guidelines.pdf