Paraphrasing: Techniques and Practice Notes
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Fredie was tasked to write an essay. He produced an excellent one, but the information he presented was copied and pasted from other sources.
Marie called out the plagiarism. Fredie replied that there is no need to rewrite something that is already perfectly good.
Core issue: avoiding plagiarism by reexpressing ideas in your own words while giving proper credit.
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Paraphrasing
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Paraphrasing defined as the art of taking information or ideas that other people have written about and expressing them in your own words.
It is a restatement of ideas.
Paraphrase should be similar in length to the original or slightly shorter.
It should stick to the author's intended meaning.
Wording and sentence structure must change from the original.
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Paraphrasing is to say the same thing in another way using your own words.
The only way to accomplish paraphrasing is by reading, understanding, and restating in your own words.
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Paraphrasing Techniques (overview)
Multiple techniques exist to paraphrase effectively while preserving meaning.
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Technique 1: Change to Synonyms
Replace original words with synonyms that carry the same meaning.
Example replacement: The stallion was content with the mare -> The stallion was happy with the mare.
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When you cannot find a suitable synonym, replace the original word with a definition or a descriptive paraphrase.
Example: The stallion was content with the mare -> The male horse was happy with the female horse.
Note that some words should not be changed as they carry specific connotations or usage.
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Technique 2: Change Word Forms
Use an adverb instead of an adjective (eg, accurate -> accurately).
Use a verb to replace a noun (eg, accurate typist -> the person types accurately).
Example: Angela is an accurate typist -> Angela types accurately.
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Technique 3: Change from a Clause to a Phrase
Clause: a group of words that contains a subject and a verb.
Phrase: a group of words without a subject-verb component.
Examples:
After he ate lunch, Sean took a nap -> After eating lunch, Sean took a nap.
The house that is across the street is old -> The house across the street is old.
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Technique 4: Change from Quoted Speech to Indirect Speech
Example: A statement originally quoted can be transformed into indirect speech.
Kyle said that he was ready for lunch.
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Technique 5: Change from Active Voice to Passive Voice
Active voice: the subject performs the action.
Passive voice: the subject receives the action.
Example: Jomar chased Carmille -> Carmille was chased by Jomar.
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Additional note on word replacement with synonyms and reorganization
Example sequence:
Your bags will be carried by the hotel employee.
Your luggage will be picked up by a bell boy.
A hotel employee will carry your bags.
Your bags will be carried by the hotel employee.
The ideas show multiple paraphrase options while preserving meaning.
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Technique 6: Interpret meaning by identifying underlying meaning of a statement
Example: Athena said, I am so famished.
Possible interpretations:
Athena is hungry.
The plant interpretations shown in the list are not correct for this statement; the intended underlying meaning is hunger, not plant dehydration.
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Technique 7: Change transitional words
Example:
Although it was raining, Vincy walked to work.
It was raining, but Vincy walked to work.
It was raining; however, Vincy walked to work.
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Technique 7 continued: combine transitional word changes with other paraphrasing methods
Example:
Although it was raining, Vincy walked to work.
Despite the rain, Vincy went to work on foot.
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Technique 8: Combine techniques
Original: The house that is across the street is old.
Paraphrase chain:
The house across the street is old.
The dwelling on the other side of the street is old.
The dwelling on the other side of the road is ancient.
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Note on citations
Paraphrasing needs to include citations
We must acknowledge the works and ideas of our source
Ethical practice: credit original authors to avoid plagiarism
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Practice instructions
Identify which option is the correct paraphrase of the given statements
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Question 1: Carl Balagosa didn't arrive in time to see Lucy.
Options:
a. Carl Balagosa didn't meet Lucy because he arrived late.
b. Lucy came too late so he couldn't see Carl Balagosa.
c. Carl Balagosa came too early so he wasn't able to see Lucy.
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Answer to Question 1
Correct paraphrase: a. Carl Balagosa didn't meet Lucy because he arrived late.
Rationale: preserves original meaning with a restated structure
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Question 2: "Leave my house or I'll call the police," the lady said to the man.
Options:
a. The lady told the man to leave the house and call the police.
b. The lady wanted the man to leave the house and call the police.
c. The lady threatened to call the police if he didn't leave the house.
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Answer to Question 2
Correct paraphrase: c. The lady threatened to call the police if he didn't leave the house.
Rationale: preserves intent and conditional consequence; indirect speech implies threat
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Question 3: He last had his eyes tested 10 months ago.
Options:
a. He hasn't had his eyes tested for 10 months.
b. He has to have his eyes tested within 10 months.
c. He tested his eyes every month for 10 months.
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Answer to Question 3
Correct paraphrase: a. He hasn't had his eyes tested for 10 months.
Rationale: conveys the same time frame in present perfect form
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The data were collected using interviews and questionnaires.
Paraphrase: Questionnaires and interviews were utilized in the data collection process.
Notes: demonstrates content equivalence with different structure and word choices
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The data were collected using interviews and questionnaires (original) vs Questionnaires and interviews were utilized in the data collection process (paraphrase)
Emphasizes that multiple paraphrase forms can express the same method of data collection
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Students who use planners or schedulers are more organized.
Paraphrase: Learners who are more organized utilize schedulers or planners.
Observation: simple noun phrase to verb phrase shift and reorder while preserving meaning
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Additional paraphrase for planning tools: Learners who are more organized utilize schedulers or planners.
Reinforces the idea that paraphrase can be achieved by substituting synonyms and reordering
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Original paragraph on social media impact
Summary: Social media has transformed how people communicate by enabling instant sharing and long distance connection; however, the constant connectivity has increased anxiety, social comparison, and reduced face to face interaction, especially among teenagers. Experts worry that heavy use may negatively affect emotional and mental well being and interpersonal relationships.
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Paraphrased version of the same content
Paraphrase: Social media has changed how people connect by letting them share ideas instantly and reach others across distances. While it offers convenience, being constantly online has contributed to more anxiety, frequent comparisons with others, and less real world interaction, especially in teenagers. Experts are concerned that too much use may harm emotional and mental health and weaken how people relate to one another.
Significance: demonstrates clear paraphrase while preserving the original meaning and impact