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Key Points Paraphrasing when reading helps you:
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What is paraphrasing?
Paraphrasing is using your own words to express the words or ideas of another author or source whilst still preserving the original meaning. Different to a summary, which is frequently made of a complete text (an article, or a chapter in a book), a paraphrase is a short section (one or two sentences, or a paragraph) from the original text. Not only that paraphrasing helps you avoid plagiarism, but the mental processes that occur when you paraphrase can also help you understand the full meaning of the text.
How do I paraphrase?
1. Read the text and make notes of the key points (don’t write down whole sentences).
2. Put the text away and explain the information in your own words, using your notes as a guide.
3. Compare your paraphrase with the original text. You should have covered the main ideas, but not explained them in the same words.
4. Add in the reference. Even though you are not borrowing any language, you will still need to cite the source to indicate that you are borrowing ideas.
Paraphrase strategies
When explaining the information in your own words, you can do a combination of the following:
Watch this quick video demonstration of using some of these strategies
Q: Do I need a reference if I paraphrase?
A: Yes, you do. Even though you are not borrowing any language, you will still need to cite the source to indicate that you are borrowing ideas.
Q: If I follow the original sentence structure while replacing occasional words with synonyms, am I paraphrasing?
A: No, you are not. Replacing occasional words with synonyms only is not sufficient to prevent plagiarism. You also need to use other paraphrasing techniques like varying the structure of the original sentence, etc.
