similarities of direct quoting and paraphrasing

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Quoting vs. Paraphrasing vs. Summarizing

If you’ve ever written a research essay, you know the struggle is real. Should you use a direct quote? Should you put it in your own words? And how is summarizing different from paraphrasing—aren’t they kind of the same thing?

Knowing how you should include your source takes some finesse, and knowing when to quote directly, paraphrase, or summarize can make or break your argument. Let’s take a look at the nuances among these three ways  of using an outside source in an essay.

What is quoting?

The concept of quoting is pretty straightforward. If you use quotation marks, you must use precisely the same words as the original , even if the language is vulgar or the grammar is incorrect. In fact, when scholars quote writers with bad grammar, they may correct it by using typographical notes [like this] to show readers they have made a change.

“I never like[d] peas as a child.”

Conversely, if a passage with odd or incorrect language is quoted as is, the note [sic] may be used to show that no changes were made to the original language despite any errors.

“I never like [sic] peas as a child.”

The professional world looks very seriously on quotations. You cannot change a single comma or letter without documentation when you quote a source. Not only that, but the quote must be accompanied by an attribution, commonly called a citation. A misquote or failure to cite can be considered plagiarism.

When writing an academic paper, scholars must use in-text citations in parentheses followed by a complete entry on a references page. When you quote someone using MLA format , for example, it might look like this:

“The orphan is above all a character out of place, forced to make his or her own home in the world. The novel itself grew up as a genre representing the efforts of an ordinary individual to navigate his or her way through the trials of life. The orphan is therefore an essentially novelistic character, set loose from established conventions to face a world of endless possibilities (and dangers)” (Mullan).

This quote is from www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/orphans-in-fiction , which discusses the portrayal of orphans in Victorian English literature. The citation as it would look on the references page (called Works Cited in MLA) is available at the end of this guide.

What is paraphrasing?

Paraphrasing means taking a quote and putting it in your own words.

You translate what another writer has said into terms both you and your reader can more easily understand. Unlike summarizing, which focuses on the big picture, paraphrasing is involved with single lines or passages. Paraphrasing means you should focus only on segments of a text.

Paraphrasing is a way for you to start processing the information from your source . When you take a quote and put it into your own words, you are already working to better understand, and better explain, the information.

The more you can change the quote without changing the original meaning , the better. How can you make significant changes to a text without changing the meaning?

Here are a few paraphrasing techniques:

• Use synonyms of words
• Change the order of words
• Change the order of clauses in the sentences
• Move sentences around in a section
• Active – passive
• Positive – negative
• Statement-question

Let’s look at an example. Here is a direct quote from the article on orphans in Victorian literature:

“It is no accident that the most famous character in recent fiction – Harry Potter – is an orphan. The child wizard’s adventures are premised on the death of his parents and the responsibilities that he must therefore assume. If we look to classic children’s fiction we find a host of orphans” (Mullan).

Here is a possible paraphrase:

It’s not a mistake that a well-known protagonist in current fiction is an orphan: Harry Potter. His quests are due to his parents dying and tasks that he is now obligated to complete. You will see that orphans are common protagonists if you look at other classic fiction (Mullan).

What differences do you spot? There are synonyms. A few words were moved around. A few clauses were moved around. But do you see that the basic structure is very similar?

This kind of paraphrase might be flagged by a plagiarism checker. Don’t paraphrase like that.

Here is a better example:

What is the most well-known fact about beloved character, Harry Potter? That he’s an orphan – “the boy who lived”. In fact, it is only because his parents died that he was thrust into his hero’s journey. Throughout classic children’s literature, you’ll find many orphans as protagonists (Mullan).

Do you see that this paraphrase has more differences? The basic information is there, but the structure is quite different.

When you paraphrase, you are making choices: of how to restructure information, of how to organize and prioritize it.  These choices reflect your voice in a way a direct quote cannot, since a direct quote is, by definition, someone else’s voice.

Which is better: Quoting or paraphrasing?

Although the purpose of both quoting and paraphrasing is to introduce the ideas of an external source, they are used for different reasons. It’s not that one is better than the other, but rather that quoting suits some purposes better, while paraphrasing is more suitable for others.

A direct quote is better when you feel the writer made the point perfectly and there is no reason to change a thing. If the writer has a strong voice and you want to preserve that, use a direct quote.

For example, no one should ever try to paraphrase John. F. Kenney’s famous line: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”

However, think of direct quotes like a hot pepper: go ahead and sprinkle them around to add some spice to your paper, but… you might not want to overdo it.

Conversely, paraphrasing is useful when you want to bring in a longer section of a source into your piece, but you don’t have room for the full passage . A paraphrase doesn’t simplify the passage to an extreme level, like a summary would. Rather, it condenses the section of text into something more useful for your essay. It’s also appropriate to paraphrase when there are sentences within a passage that you want to leave out.

If you were to paraphrase the section of the article about Victorian orphans mentioned earlier, you might write something like this:

Considering the development of the novel, which portrayed everyday people making their way through life, using an orphan as a protagonist was effective. Orphans are characters that, by definition, need to find their way alone. The author can let the protagonist venture out into the world where the anything, good or bad, might happen (Mullan).

You’ll notice a couple of things here. One, there are no quotation marks, but there is still an in-text citation (the name in parentheses). A paraphrase lacks quotation marks because you aren’t directly quoting, but it still needs a citation because you are using a specific segment of the text. It is still someone else’s original idea and must be cited.

Secondly, if you look at the original quote, you’ll see that five lines of text are condensed into four and a half lines. Everything the author used has been changed.

A single paragraph of text has been explained in different words—which is the heart of paraphrasing.

What is summarizing?

Next, we come to summarizing. Summarizing is on a much larger scale than quoting or paraphrasing. While similar to paraphrasing in that you use your own words, a summary’s primary focus is on translating the main idea of an entire document or long section.

Summaries are useful because they allow you to mention entire chapters or articles—or longer works—in only a few sentences. However, summaries can be longer and more in-depth. They can actually include quotes and paraphrases. Keep in mind, though, that since a summary condenses information, look for the main points. Don’t include a lot of details in a summary.

In literary analysis essays, it is useful to include one body paragraph that summarizes the work you’re writing about. It might be helpful to quote or paraphrase specific lines that contribute to the main themes of such a work. Here is an example summarizing the article on orphans in Victorian literature:

In John Mullan’s article “Orphans in Fiction” on bl.uk.com, he reviews the use of orphans as protagonists in 19 th century Victorian literature. Mullan argues that orphans, without family attachments, are effective characters that can be “unleashed to discover the world.” This discovery process often leads orphans to expose dangerous aspects of society, while maintaining their innocence. As an example, Mullan examines how many female orphans wind up as governesses, demonstrating the usefulness of a main character that is obligated to find their own way.

This summary includes the main ideas of the article, one paraphrase, and one direct quote. A ten-paragraph article is summarized into one single paragraph.

As for giving source credit, since the author’s name and title of the source are stated at the beginning of the summary paragraph, you don’t need an in-text citation.

How do I know which one to use?

The fact is that writers use these three reference types (quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing) interchangeably. The key is to pay attention to your argument development. At some points, you will want concrete, firm evidence. Quotes are perfect for this.

At other times, you will want general support for an argument, but the text that includes such support is long-winded. A paraphrase is appropriate in this case.

Finally, sometimes you may need to mention an entire book or article because it is so full of evidence to support your points. In these cases, it is wise to take a few sentences or even a full paragraph to summarize the source.

No matter which type you use, you always need to cite your source on a References or Works Cited page at the end of the document. The MLA works cited entry for the text we’ve been using today looks like this:

Mullan, John. Orphans in Fiction” www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/orphans-in-fiction.  Accessed 20. Oct. 2020

————–

See our related lesson with video:  How to Quote and Paraphrase Evidence

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Direct Quotes vs. Paraphrasing vs. Summarizing: Know the Difference

• Written By Lorraine Roberte
• Updated: February 22, 2024

Knowing the differences between direct quotes, paraphrasing, and summarizing is crucial no matter your occupation, from business owner to content marketer.

Why? Because it can prevent you from accidentally plagiarizing in the work you do for yourself and from breeching best practices.

Incorporating a mixture of these elements in your content can also help you tell a better story, so your audience keeps reading.

Direct quotes vs. paraphrasing vs. summarizing — understanding the difference

We’re breaking down the differences between direct quotes vs. paraphrasing and summarizing and how you can use them in your writing.

From press releases for your business to engaging blog posts for your target audience, you can make your writing more interesting by including trustworthy sources.

Direct quotes

Direct quotes include the exact words that someone said, with quotation marks and name attribution. They’re especially common when  writing about people .

Example: “Elon Musk said in a tweet that Starlink’s satellite broadband service coverage will be available on ‘most of Earth by end of year,’ although he noted that ‘cellular will always have the advantage in dense urban areas.'”

When to use direct quotes

According to the  APA style guide , you’ll need to use direct quotes when:

• Copying an exact definition
• The author’s words are memorable and succinct
• Responding or reacting to someone’s exact words

How to use direct quotes

In general, direct quotes are written verbatim. But you can make these small changes without alerting your readers:

• Changing the first letter of the quote to an upper or lowercase so that the quotation matches the context sentence’s syntax. Can also modify the punctuation at the end of the quote.
• Swapping single quotation marks to double quotation marks and vice versa
• Omitting footnote or endnote number references

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is when you restate someone else’s words, but not word for word.

Example (original quote): “It’s risky trusting employees as much as we do. Giving them as much freedom as we do. But it’s essential in creative companies where you have much greater risk from lack of innovation.” — Reed Hastings, Netflix CEO and co-founder . 

Example (paraphrase): “Netflix’s CEO and co-founder, Reed Hastings, feels that micromanaging workers can stifle innovation in creative businesses.”

When to paraphrase

It can be helpful to paraphrase if you want to keep your writing more conversational. It’s also useful when breaking up direct quotes or explaining the original source in simpler terms. That way, the information better fits the tone and style of your writing.

How to paraphrase

Paraphrasing involves putting a section of the source information entirely into your own words while staying true to its original meaning. You can link to the source in the place that makes the most sense, such as “report” for an industry report.

You can keep from  plagiarizing when paraphrasing  by using synonyms for words mentioned in the source. It’s important to restate phrases differently (even if they’re just a few words) to avoid the same sentence structure. If you don’t, you could still be plagiarizing, despite crediting the source.

If you use exact words from the original material while paraphrasing, you must put the word or words in quotes. The exception is generic terms that are difficult to find synonyms for.

Summarizing

When you summarize, you use your own words to describe the critical points of what someone else said or that you heard or read in a source.

Example (original quote): “In a diverse population of older patients who were hospitalized for acute decompensated heart failure, an early, transitional, tailored, progressive rehabilitation intervention that included multiple physical-function domains resulted in greater improvement in physical function than usual care.” —  Study in the New England Journal of Medicine

Example (summary): “A recent study shows physical rehabilitation programs to be helpful for older populations with hospitalizations from heart failure.”

When to summarize

Summaries are excellent at giving readers the key insights they need from a longer text when proving your point. They also add context while keeping at a manageable length whatever  type of article  you’re writing.

How to summarize

You don’t need to include any quotes or attribution when summarizing, just a brief overview that often links back to the original material for more details. It may also introduce essential points from the original text, allowing readers to understand the source without clicking through it.

Now that you know the difference between direct quotes, paraphrasing, and summarizing, you can confidently write content for your business.

Need help creating engaging blog posts for your business? Talk to a content specialist at ClearVoice today about your needs.

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Referencing with Direct Quote, Paraphrase, or Summary

Stephanie Ojeda Ponce

There are different ways you might make references to a source in your own writing. The main ways are described below.

Direct Quotes

A direct quote might be most familiar to you—using quotation marks (“ ”) to indicate the moments that you’re borrowing, when you reproduce an author’s words verbatim in your own writing. Use a direct quote if someone else wrote or said something in a distinctive or particular way and you want to capture their words exactly. Direct quotes are good for establishing credibility and providing evidence.

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is similar to the process of summary. When we paraphrase, we process information or ideas from another person’s text and put them in our own words. The main difference between paraphrase and summary is scope: if summarizing means rewording and condensing, then paraphrasing means rewording without drastically altering length. However, paraphrasing is also generally more faithful to the spirit of the original; whereas a summary requires you to process and invites your own perspective, a paraphrase ought to mirror back the original idea using your own language.

Paraphrasing is helpful for establishing background knowledge or general consensus, simplifying a complicated idea, or reminding your reader of a certain part of another text. It is also valuable when relaying statistics or historical information, both of which are usually more fluidly woven into your writing when spoken with your own voice.

Summary, as discussed earlier in this chapter, is useful for “broadstrokes” or quick overviews, brief references, and describing the state of knowledge. When you summarize, you reword and condense another author’s writing. Be aware, though, that summary also requires individual thought: when you reword, it should be a result of you processing the idea yourself, and when you condense, you must think critically about which parts of the text are most important.

Below, you can see three examples of these three tools. Consider how the direct quote, the paraphrase, and the summary each could be used to achieve different purposes.

Original Passage

“It has been suggested (again rather anecdotally) that giraffes do communicate using infrasonic vocalizations (the signals are verbally described to be similar—in structure and function—to the low-frequency, infrasonic “rumbles” of elephants). It was further speculated that the extensive frontal sinus of giraffes acts as a resonance chamber for infrasound production. Moreover, particular neck movements (e.g. the neck stretch) are suggested to be associated with the production of infrasonic vocalizations” (Baotic et al., 2015) .

Baotic, A., Sicks, F. & Stoeger, A.S. (2015). Nocturnal ‘Humming’ Vocalizations: Adding a Piece of the Puzzle of Giraffe Vocal Communication. BioMed Central Research Notes Vol . 8, no. 425. US National Library of Medicine. doi: 10.1186/s13104-015-1394-3.

This section has been adapted from  Chapter Five: Summary and Response  in  EmpoWORD: A Student-Centered Anthology and Handbook for College Writers  by Shane Abrams, licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Referencing with Direct Quote, Paraphrase, or Summary Copyright © 2023 by Stephanie Ojeda Ponce is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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25 Quoting, Summarizing, and Paraphrasing

Shane Abrams; Liz Delf; Rob Drummond; and Kristy Kelly

Shane Abrams Adapted by Liz Delf, Rob Drummond, and Kristy Kelly

Finding your position, posture, and perspective.

As you begin drafting your research essay, remember the conversation analogy: by using other voices, you are entering into a discussion that is much bigger than just you, even bigger than the authors you cite. However, what you have to say is important, so you are bringing together your ideas with others’ ideas from a unique interpretive standpoint. Although it may take you a while to find it, you should be searching for your unique position in a complex network of discourse.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself as you consider this:

• How would I introduce this topic to someone who is completely unfamiliar?
• What are the major viewpoints on this topic? Remember that very few issues have only two sides.
• With which viewpoints do I align? With which viewpoints do I disagree? Consider agreement (“Yes”), disagreement (“No”), and qualification (“Yes, but…”).
• What did I know about this issue before I began researching? What have I learned so far?
• What is my rhetorical purpose for this project? If your purpose is to argue a position, be sure that you feel comfortable with the terms and ideas discussed in the previous section on argumentation.

Situating Yourself Using Your Research

While you’re drafting, be diligent and deliberate with your use of other people’s words, ideas, and perspectives. Foreground your thesis (even if it’s still in progress), and use paraphrases, direct quotes, and summary in the background to explain, support, complicate, or contrast your perspective.

Depending on the work you’ve done to this point, you may have a reasonable body of quotes, summaries, and paraphrases that you can draw from. Whether or not you’ve been collecting evidence throughout your research process, be sure to return to the original sources to ensure the accuracy and efficacy of your quotes, summaries, and paraphrases.

A direct quote uses quotation marks (“ ”) to indicate where you’re borrowing an author’s words verbatim in your own writing. Use a direct quote if someone else wrote or said something in a distinctive or particular way and you want to capture their words exactly.

Direct quotes are good for establishing ethos and providing evidence. Quoting is a good choice when how something is said matters; it gives readers a sense of the tone, style, and perspective of the original source.

In a humanities essay, you will be expected to use some direct quotes; however, too many direct quotes can overwhelm your thesis and actually undermine your sense of ethos. Your research paper should strike a balance between quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing—and articulating your own perspective!

Summarizing

Summarizing refers to the action of boiling down an author’s ideas into a shorter version in your own words. Summary demonstrates your understanding of a text, but it also can be useful in giving background information or making a complex idea more accessible.

Paraphrasing

When we paraphrase, we are processing information or ideas from another person’s text and putting them in our own words. The main difference between paraphrase and summary is scope: if summarizing means rewording and condensing, then paraphrasing means rewording without drastically altering length. However, paraphrasing is also generally more faithful to the spirit of the original; whereas a summary requires you to process and invites your own perspective, a paraphrase ought to mirror back the original idea using your own language.

Paraphrasing is helpful for establishing background knowledge or general consensus, simplifying a complicated idea, or reminding your reader of a certain part of another text. It is also valuable when relaying statistics or historical information, both of which are usually more fluidly woven into your writing when spoken with your own voice.

Whether you are quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing, you must always include an appropriate citation; see chapters 29, “Deconstructing Plagiarism,” and 30, “Giving Credit Where It’s Due: Why and How to Cite Your Sources,” for more on how to do this ethically.

Each of these three tactics should support your argument: you should integrate quotes, paraphrases, and summary with your own writing. Below, you can see three examples of these tools. Consider how the direct quote, paraphrase, and summary could each be used to achieve different purposes:

It has been suggested (again rather anecdotally) that giraffes do communicate using infrasonic vocalizations (the signals are verbally described to be similar—in structure and function—to the low-frequency, infrasonic “rumbles” of elephants). It was further speculated that the extensive frontal sinus of giraffes acts as a resonance chamber for infrasound production. Moreover, particular neck movements (e.g. the neck stretch) are suggested to be associated with the production of infrasonic vocalizations. (Baotic et al. 3)

There are infinite ways to bring evidence into your discussion. For now, let’s revisit a formula that many students find productive as they find their footing in research writing:

front-load + quote/paraphrase/summarize + (cite) + explain/elaborate/analyze

This might feel formulaic and forced at first, but following these steps will ensure that you give each piece of evidence thorough attention.

What might this look like in practice?

[1] Humans and dolphins are not the only mammals with complex systems of communication. As a matter of fact, [2] some scientists have “speculated that the extensive frontal sinus of giraffes acts as a resonance chamber for infrasound production” ( [3] Baotic et al. 3). [4] Even though no definitive answer has been found, it’s possible that the structure of a giraffe’s head allows it to create sounds that humans may not be able to hear. This hypothesis supports the notion that different species of animals develop a sort of “language” that corresponds to their anatomy.

Humans and dolphins are not the only mammals with complex systems of communication. As a matter of fact,

some scientists have “speculated that the extensive frontal sinus of giraffes acts as a resonance chamber for infrasound production”

(Baotic et al. 3).

• Explain/elaborate/analyze

Even though no definitive answer has been found, it’s possible that the structure of a giraffe’s head allows it to create sounds that humans may not be able to hear. This hypothesis supports the notion that different species of animals develop a sort of “language” that corresponds to their anatomy.

Extended Quotes

A quick note on block quotes: sometimes you may find it necessary to use a long direct quote from a source. For instance, if there is a passage that you plan to analyze in-depth or throughout the course of the entire paper, you may need to reproduce the whole thing. You may have seen other authors use block quotes in the course of your research. In the middle of a sentence or paragraph, the text will break into a long direct quote that is indented and separated from the rest of the paragraph.

There are occasions when it is appropriate for you to use block quotes too, but they are rare. Even though long quotes can be useful, quotes long enough to block are often too long. Using too much of one source all at once can overwhelm your own voice and analysis, distract the reader, undermine your ethos, and prevent you from digging into a quote. It’s typically a better choice to

• abridge (omit words from the beginning or end of the quote or from the middle using an ellipsis […]),
• break up (split one long quote into two or three shorter quotes that you can attend to more specifically), or
• paraphrase a long quote, especially because that gives you more space for the last step of the formula above.

If, in the rare event that you must use a long direct quote, one that runs more than four lines on a properly formatted page, follow the guidelines from the appropriate style guide. In MLA format, block quotes (1) are indented one inch from the margin, (2) are double-spaced, (3) are not in quotation marks, and (4) use original end punctuation and an in-text citation after the last sentence. The paragraph will continue after the block quote without any indentation.

Readerly Signposts

Signposts are phrases and sentences that guide a reader’s interpretation of the evidence you are about to introduce. Readerly signposts are also known as “signal phrases” because they give the reader a warning of your next move. In addition to foreshadowing a paraphrase, quote, or summary, though, your signposts can be active agents in your argumentation.

Before using a paraphrase, quote, or summary, you can prime your reader to understand that evidence in a certain way. For example, let’s take the imaginary quote “The moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”

• [X] insists, “The moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”
• Some people believe, naïvely, that “the moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”
• Common knowledge suggests that “the moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”
• [X] posits that “the moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”
• Although some people believe otherwise, the truth is that “the moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”
• Although some people believe that “the moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick,” it is more likely that…
• Whenever conspiracy theories come up, people like to joke that “the moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”
• The government has conducted many covert operations in the last century: “The moon landing was faked in a sound studio by Stanley Kubrick.”

What does each signpost do to us, as readers, encountering the same quote?

The original chapter, Interacting with Sources by Shane Abrams, is from EmpoWord: A Student-Centered Anthology and Handbook for College Writers

Discussion Questions

• What is the value of bringing in sources that you disagree with?
• Paraphrasing can be a difficult point for student writers. What makes it challenging?
• Find an example of a scholarly article in your major. Skim through and count how many quotes and paraphrases/summaries it contains (they should all have citations, which makes them easy to find). What did you learn? Share in class. Why might there be variation across the disciplines?
• Using the table below, create a signpost for each of the quotes in the left column that reflects the posture in the top row.
• Downloadable copy

Works Cited

Baotic, Anton, Florian Sicks, and Angela S. Stoeger. “Nocturnal ‘Humming’ Vocalizations: Adding a Piece of the Puzzle of Giraffe Vocal Communication.” BioMed Central Research Notes , vol. 8, no. 425, 2015, pp. 1–11.

Quoting, Summarizing, and Paraphrasing Copyright © 2022 by Shane Abrams; Liz Delf; Rob Drummond; and Kristy Kelly is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

Chapter 4: Summarizing the Work of Others

Summarizing v.s. Direct Quotation v.s. Paraphrasing

When to direct quote, paraphrase, or summarize, direct quotes.

A direct quote might be most familiar to you—using quotation marks (“ ”) to indicate the moments that you’re borrowing, when you reproduce an author’s words verbatim in your own writing. Use a direct quote if someone else wrote or said something in a distinctive or particular way and you want to capture their words exactly. Direct quotes are good for establishing credibility and providing evidence.

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is similar to the process of summary . When we paraphrase, we process information or ideas from another person’s text and put them in our own words. The main difference between paraphrase and summary is scope: if summarizing means rewording and condensing, then paraphrasing means rewording without drastically altering length. However, paraphrasing is also generally more faithful to the spirit of the original; whereas a summary requires you to process and invites your own perspective, a paraphrase ought to mirror back the original idea using your own language.

Paraphrasing is helpful for establishing background knowledge or general consensus, simplifying a complicated idea, or reminding your reader of a certain part of another text. It is also valuable when relaying statistics or historical information, both of which are usually more fluidly woven into your writing when spoken with your own voice.

Summary, as discussed earlier in this chapter, is useful for “broadstrokes” or quick overviews, brief references, and describing the state of knowledge. When you summarize, you reword and condense another author’s writing. Be aware, though, that summary also requires individual thought: when you reword, it should be a result of you processing the idea yourself, and when you condense, you must think critically about which parts of the text are most important.

Below, you can see three examples of these three tools. Consider how the direct quote, the paraphrase, and the summary each could be used to achieve different purposes.

Original Passage

“It has been suggested (again rather anecdotally) that giraffes do communicate using infrasonic vocalizations (the signals are verbally described to be similar—in structure and function—to the low-frequency, infrasonic “rumbles” of elephants). It was further speculated that the extensive frontal sinus of giraffes acts as a resonance chamber for infrasound production. Moreover, particular neck movements (e.g. the neck stretch) are suggested to be associated with the production of infrasonic vocalizations” (Baotic et al., 2015) .

The video below highlights additional citations conventions worth noting that are demonstrated in the examples above (see Chapter 7 for more details on citing sources).

This section has been adapted from Chapter Five: Summary and Response  in  EmpoWORD: A Student-Centered Anthology and Handbook for College Writers by Shane Abrams, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Baotic, A., Sicks, F. & Stoeger, A.S. (2015). Nocturnal ‘Humming’ Vocalizations: Adding a Piece of the Puzzle of Giraffe Vocal Communication. BioMed Central Research Notes Vol . 8, no. 425. US National Library of Medicine. doi: 10.1186/s13104-015-1394-3.

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An author reiterates a main idea, argument, or detail of a text in their own words without drastically altering the length of the passage(s) they paraphrase. Contrast with summary.

An author reiterates the main ideas, arguments, and details of a text in their own words, condensing a longer text into a smaller version. Contrast with paraphrase.

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Quoting and Paraphrasing

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College writing often involves integrating information from published sources into your own writing in order to add credibility and authority–this process is essential to research and the production of new knowledge.

However, when building on the work of others, you need to be careful not to plagiarize : “to steal and pass off (the ideas and words of another) as one’s own” or to “present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.”1 The University of Wisconsin–Madison takes this act of “intellectual burglary” very seriously and considers it to be a breach of academic integrity . Penalties are severe.

These materials will help you avoid plagiarism by teaching you how to properly integrate information from published sources into your own writing.

1. Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed. (Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, 1993), 888.

How to avoid plagiarism

When using sources in your papers, you can avoid plagiarism by knowing what must be documented.

Specific words and phrases

If you use an author’s specific word or words, you must place those words within quotation marks and you must credit the source.

Information and Ideas

Even if you use your own words, if you obtained the information or ideas you are presenting from a source, you must document the source.

Information : If a piece of information isn’t common knowledge (see below), you need to provide a source.

Ideas : An author’s ideas may include not only points made and conclusions drawn, but, for instance, a specific method or theory, the arrangement of material, or a list of steps in a process or characteristics of a medical condition. If a source provided any of these, you need to acknowledge the source.

Common Knowledge?

You do not need to cite a source for material considered common knowledge:

General common knowledge is factual information considered to be in the public domain, such as birth and death dates of well-known figures, and generally accepted dates of military, political, literary, and other historical events. In general, factual information contained in multiple standard reference works can usually be considered to be in the public domain.

Field-specific common knowledge is “common” only within a particular field or specialty. It may include facts, theories, or methods that are familiar to readers within that discipline. For instance, you may not need to cite a reference to Piaget’s developmental stages in a paper for an education class or give a source for your description of a commonly used method in a biology report—but you must be sure that this information is so widely known within that field that it will be shared by your readers.

If in doubt, be cautious and cite the source. And in the case of both general and field-specific common knowledge, if you use the exact words of the reference source, you must use quotation marks and credit the source.

Paraphrasing vs. Quoting — Explanation

Should i paraphrase or quote.

In general, use direct quotations only if you have a good reason. Most of your paper should be in your own words. Also, it’s often conventional to quote more extensively from sources when you’re writing a humanities paper, and to summarize from sources when you’re writing in the social or natural sciences–but there are always exceptions.

In a literary analysis paper , for example, you”ll want to quote from the literary text rather than summarize, because part of your task in this kind of paper is to analyze the specific words and phrases an author uses.

In research papers , you should quote from a source

• to show that an authority supports your point
• to present a position or argument to critique or comment on
• to include especially moving or historically significant language
• to present a particularly well-stated passage whose meaning would be lost or changed if paraphrased or summarized

You should summarize or paraphrase when

• what you want from the source is the idea expressed, and not the specific language used to express it
• you can express in fewer words what the key point of a source is

How to paraphrase a source

General advice.

• When reading a passage, try first to understand it as a whole, rather than pausing to write down specific ideas or phrases.
• Be selective. Unless your assignment is to do a formal or “literal” paraphrase, you usually don?t need to paraphrase an entire passage; instead, choose and summarize the material that helps you make a point in your paper.
• Think of what “your own words” would be if you were telling someone who’s unfamiliar with your subject (your mother, your brother, a friend) what the original source said.
• Remember that you can use direct quotations of phrases from the original within your paraphrase, and that you don’t need to change or put quotation marks around shared language.

Methods of Paraphrasing

• Look away from the source then write. Read the text you want to paraphrase several times until you feel that you understand it and can use your own words to restate it to someone else. Then, look away from the original and rewrite the text in your own words.
• Take notes. Take abbreviated notes; set the notes aside; then paraphrase from the notes a day or so later, or when you draft.

If you find that you can’t do A or B, this may mean that you don’t understand the passage completely or that you need to use a more structured process until you have more experience in paraphrasing.

The method below is not only a way to create a paraphrase but also a way to understand a difficult text.

Paraphrasing difficult texts

Consider the following passage from Love and Toil (a book on motherhood in London from 1870 to 1918), in which the author, Ellen Ross, puts forth one of her major arguments:

• Love and Toil maintains that family survival was the mother’s main charge among the large majority of London?s population who were poor or working class; the emotional and intellectual nurture of her child or children and even their actual comfort were forced into the background. To mother was to work for and organize household subsistence. (p. 9)

Children of the poor at the turn of the century received little if any emotional or intellectual nurturing from their mothers, whose main charge was family survival. Working for and organizing household subsistence were what defined mothering. Next to this, even the children’s basic comfort was forced into the background (Ross, 1995).

According to Ross (1993), poor children at the turn of the century received little mothering in our sense of the term. Mothering was defined by economic status, and among the poor, a mother’s foremost responsibility was not to stimulate her children’s minds or foster their emotional growth but to provide food and shelter to meet the basic requirements for physical survival. Given the magnitude of this task, children were deprived of even the “actual comfort” (p. 9) we expect mothers to provide today.

You may need to go through this process several times to create a satisfactory paraphrase.

Successful vs. unsuccessful paraphrases

Paraphrasing is often defined as putting a passage from an author into “your own words.” But what are your own words? How different must your paraphrase be from the original?

The paragraphs below provide an example by showing a passage as it appears in the source, two paraphrases that follow the source too closely, and a legitimate paraphrase.

The student’s intention was to incorporate the material in the original passage into a section of a paper on the concept of “experts” that compared the functions of experts and nonexperts in several professions.

The Passage as It Appears in the Source

Critical care nurses function in a hierarchy of roles. In this open heart surgery unit, the nurse manager hires and fires the nursing personnel. The nurse manager does not directly care for patients but follows the progress of unusual or long-term patients. On each shift a nurse assumes the role of resource nurse. This person oversees the hour-by-hour functioning of the unit as a whole, such as considering expected admissions and discharges of patients, ascertaining that beds are available for patients in the operating room, and covering sick calls. Resource nurses also take a patient assignment. They are the most experienced of all the staff nurses. The nurse clinician has a separate job description and provides for quality of care by orienting new staff, developing unit policies, and providing direct support where needed, such as assisting in emergency situations. The clinical nurse specialist in this unit is mostly involved with formal teaching in orienting new staff. The nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist are the designated experts. They do not take patient assignments. The resource nurse is seen as both a caregiver and a resource to other caregivers. . . . Staff nurses have a hierarchy of seniority. . . . Staff nurses are assigned to patients to provide all their nursing care. (Chase, 1995, p. 156)

Word-for-Word Plagiarism

Critical care nurses have a hierarchy of roles. The nurse manager hires and fires nurses. S/he does not directly care for patients but does follow unusual or long-term cases. On each shift a resource nurse attends to the functioning of the unit as a whole, such as making sure beds are available in the operating room , and also has a patient assignment . The nurse clinician orients new staff, develops policies, and provides support where needed . The clinical nurse specialist also orients new staff, mostly by formal teaching. The nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist , as the designated experts, do not take patient assignments . The resource nurse is not only a caregiver but a resource to the other caregivers . Within the staff nurses there is also a hierarchy of seniority . Their job is to give assigned patients all their nursing care .

Why this is plagiarism

Notice that the writer has not only “borrowed” Chase’s material (the results of her research) with no acknowledgment, but has also largely maintained the author’s method of expression and sentence structure. The phrases in red are directly copied from the source or changed only slightly in form.

Even if the student-writer had acknowledged Chase as the source of the content, the language of the passage would be considered plagiarized because no quotation marks indicate the phrases that come directly from Chase. And if quotation marks did appear around all these phrases, this paragraph would be so cluttered that it would be unreadable.

A Patchwork Paraphrase

Chase (1995) describes how nurses in a critical care unit function in a hierarchy that places designated experts at the top and the least senior staff nurses at the bottom. The experts — the nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist — are not involved directly in patient care. The staff nurses, in contrast, are assigned to patients and provide all their nursing care . Within the staff nurses is a hierarchy of seniority in which the most senior can become resource nurses: they are assigned a patient but also serve as a resource to other caregivers. The experts have administrative and teaching tasks such as selecting and orienting new staff, developing unit policies , and giving hands-on support where needed.

This paraphrase is a patchwork composed of pieces in the original author’s language (in red) and pieces in the student-writer’s words, all rearranged into a new pattern, but with none of the borrowed pieces in quotation marks. Thus, even though the writer acknowledges the source of the material, the underlined phrases are falsely presented as the student’s own.

A Legitimate Paraphrase

In her study of the roles of nurses in a critical care unit, Chase (1995) also found a hierarchy that distinguished the roles of experts and others. Just as the educational experts described above do not directly teach students, the experts in this unit do not directly attend to patients. That is the role of the staff nurses, who, like teachers, have their own “hierarchy of seniority” (p. 156). The roles of the experts include employing unit nurses and overseeing the care of special patients (nurse manager), teaching and otherwise integrating new personnel into the unit (clinical nurse specialist and nurse clinician), and policy-making (nurse clinician). In an intermediate position in the hierarchy is the resource nurse, a staff nurse with more experience than the others, who assumes direct care of patients as the other staff nurses do, but also takes on tasks to ensure the smooth operation of the entire facility.

Why this is a good paraphrase

The writer has documented Chase’s material and specific language (by direct reference to the author and by quotation marks around language taken directly from the source). Notice too that the writer has modified Chase’s language and structure and has added material to fit the new context and purpose — to present the distinctive functions of experts and nonexperts in several professions.

Shared Language

Perhaps you’ve noticed that a number of phrases from the original passage appear in the legitimate paraphrase: critical care, staff nurses, nurse manager, clinical nurse specialist, nurse clinician, resource nurse.

If all these phrases were in red, the paraphrase would look much like the “patchwork” example. The difference is that the phrases in the legitimate paraphrase are all precise, economical, and conventional designations that are part of the shared language within the nursing discipline (in the too-close paraphrases, they’re red only when used within a longer borrowed phrase).

In every discipline and in certain genres (such as the empirical research report), some phrases are so specialized or conventional that you can’t paraphrase them except by wordy and awkward circumlocutions that would be less familiar (and thus less readable) to the audience.

When you repeat such phrases, you’re not stealing the unique phrasing of an individual writer but using a common vocabulary shared by a community of scholars.

Some Examples of Shared Language You Don’t Need to Put in Quotation Marks

• Conventional designations: e.g., physician’s assistant, chronic low-back pain
• Preferred bias-free language: e.g., persons with disabilities
• Technical terms and phrases of a discipline or genre : e.g., reduplication, cognitive domain, material culture, sexual harassment

Chase, S. K. (1995). The social context of critical care clinical judgment. Heart and Lung, 24, 154-162.

How to Quote a Source

Introducing a quotation.

One of your jobs as a writer is to guide your reader through your text. Don’t simply drop quotations into your paper and leave it to the reader to make connections.

Integrating a quotation into your text usually involves two elements:

• A signal that a quotation is coming–generally the author’s name and/or a reference to the work
• An assertion that indicates the relationship of the quotation to your text

Often both the signal and the assertion appear in a single introductory statement, as in the example below. Notice how a transitional phrase also serves to connect the quotation smoothly to the introductory statement.

Ross (1993), in her study of poor and working-class mothers in London from 1870-1918 [signal], makes it clear that economic status to a large extent determined the meaning of motherhood [assertion]. Among this population [connection], “To mother was to work for and organize household subsistence” (p. 9).

The signal can also come after the assertion, again with a connecting word or phrase:

Illness was rarely a routine matter in the nineteenth century [assertion]. As [connection] Ross observes [signal], “Maternal thinking about children’s health revolved around the possibility of a child’s maiming or death” (p. 166).

Formatting Quotations

Short direct prose.

Incorporate short direct prose quotations into the text of your paper and enclose them in double quotation marks:

According to Jonathan Clarke, “Professional diplomats often say that trying to think diplomatically about foreign policy is a waste of time.”

Longer prose quotations

Begin longer quotations (for instance, in the APA system, 40 words or more) on a new line and indent the entire quotation (i.e., put in block form), with no quotation marks at beginning or end, as in the quoted passage from our Successful vs. Unsucessful Paraphrases page.

Rules about the minimum length of block quotations, how many spaces to indent, and whether to single- or double-space extended quotations vary with different documentation systems; check the guidelines for the system you’re using.

Quotation of Up to 3 Lines of Poetry

Quotations of up to 3 lines of poetry should be integrated into your sentence. For example:

In Julius Caesar, Antony begins his famous speech with “Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears; / I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him” (III.ii.75-76).

Notice that a slash (/) with a space on either side is used to separate lines.

Quotation of More than 3 Lines of Poetry

More than 3 lines of poetry should be indented. As with any extended (indented) quotation, do not use quotation marks unless you need to indicate a quotation within your quotation.

Punctuating with Quotation Marks

Parenthetical citations.

With short quotations, place citations outside of closing quotation marks, followed by sentence punctuation (period, question mark, comma, semi-colon, colon):

Menand (2002) characterizes language as “a social weapon” (p. 115).

With block quotations, check the guidelines for the documentation system you are using.

Commas and periods

Place inside closing quotation marks when no parenthetical citation follows:

Hertzberg (2002) notes that “treating the Constitution as imperfect is not new,” but because of Dahl’s credentials, his “apostasy merits attention” (p. 85).

Semicolons and colons

Place outside of closing quotation marks (or after a parenthetical citation).

Question marks and exclamation points

Place inside closing quotation marks if the quotation is a question/exclamation:

Menand (2001) acknowledges that H. W. Fowler’s Modern English Usage is “a classic of the language,” but he asks, “Is it a dead classic?” (p. 114).

[Note that a period still follows the closing parenthesis.]

Place outside of closing quotation marks if the entire sentence containing the quotation is a question or exclamation:

How many students actually read the guide to find out what is meant by “academic misconduct”?

Quotation within a quotation

Use single quotation marks for the embedded quotation:

According to Hertzberg (2002), Dahl gives the U. S. Constitution “bad marks in ‘democratic fairness’ and ‘encouraging consensus'” (p. 90).

[The phrases “democratic fairness” and “encouraging consensus” are already in quotation marks in Dahl’s sentence.]

Indicating Changes in Quotations

Quoting only a portion of the whole.

Use ellipsis points (. . .) to indicate an omission within a quotation–but not at the beginning or end unless it’s not obvious that you’re quoting only a portion of the whole.

Adding Clarification, Comment, or Correction

Within quotations, use square brackets [ ] (not parentheses) to add your own clarification, comment, or correction.

Use [sic] (meaning “so” or “thus”) to indicate that a mistake is in the source you’re quoting and is not your own.

Additional information

Information on summarizing and paraphrasing sources.

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). (2000). Retrieved January 7, 2002, from http://www.bartleby.com/61/ Bazerman, C. (1995). The informed writer: Using sources in the disciplines (5th ed). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Leki, I. (1995). Academic writing: Exploring processes and strategies (2nd ed.) New York: St. Martin?s Press, pp. 185-211.

Leki describes the basic method presented in C, pp. 4-5.

Spatt, B. (1999). Writing from sources (5th ed.) New York: St. Martin?s Press, pp. 98-119; 364-371.

Information about specific documentation systems

The Writing Center has handouts explaining how to use many of the standard documentation systems. You may look at our general Web page on Documentation Systems, or you may check out any of the following specific Web pages.

If you’re not sure which documentation system to use, ask the course instructor who assigned your paper.

• American Psychological Assoicaion (APA)
• Modern Language Association (MLA)
• Chicago/Turabian (A Footnote or Endnote System)
• American Political Science Association (APSA)
• Council of Science Editors (CBE)
• Numbered References

You may also consult the following guides:

• American Medical Association, Manual for Authors and Editors
• Council of Science Editors, CBE style Manual
• The Chicago Manual of Style
• MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers
• Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association

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Paraphrasing, Summarising and Quoting

Much of the work you produce at university will involve the important ideas, writings and discoveries of experts in your field of study. Quoting, paraphrasing and summarising are all different ways of including the works of others in your assignments.

Paraphrasing and summarising allow you to develop and demonstrate your understanding and interpretation of the major ideas/concepts of your discipline, and to  avoid plagiarism.

Paraphrasing and summarising require analytical and writing skills which are crucial to success at university.

What are the differences?

Paraphrasing.

• does not match the source word for word
• involves putting a passage from a source into your own words
• changes the words or phrasing of a passage, but retains and fully communicates the original meaning
• must be attributed to the original source.

Summarising

• involves putting the main idea(s) into your own words, but including only the main point(s)
• presents a broad overview, so is usually much shorter than the original text
• match the source word for word
• are usually a brief segment of the text
• appear between quotation marks

What is a quotation?  

A quotation is an exact reproduction of spoken or written words. Quotes can provide strong evidence, act as an authoritative voice, or support a writer's statements. For example:

Bell and Bell (1993) point out in their study of Australian-American cultural relations: "culture is never simply imposed 'from above' but is negotiated through existing patterns and traditions." (Bell & Bell 1993, p. 9)

Use a quote:

• when the author's words convey a powerful meaning
• when the exact words are important
• when you want to use the author as an authoritative voice in your own writing
• to introduce an author's position you may wish to discuss
• to support claims in, or provide evidence for, your writing.

How to quote

Quoting should be done sparingly and support your own work, not replace it. For example, make a point in your own words, then support it with an authoritative quote.

• appear between quotation marks (" ")
• exactly reproduce text, including punctuation and capital letters.
• A short quotation often works well when integrated into a sentence.
• If any words need to be omitted for clarity, show the omission with an ellipsis ( ... ).
• If any words need to be added to the quotation, put them between square brackets ([ ]).
• Longer quotations (more than 3 lines of text) should start on a new line and be indented on both sides. 

What is paraphrasing?

Paraphrasing is a way of using different words and phrasing to present the same ideas. Paraphrasing is used with short sections of text, such as phrases and sentences.

A paraphrase offers an alternative to using direct quotations and allows you to integrate evidence/source material into assignments. Paraphrasing can also be used for note-taking and explaining information in tables, charts and diagrams.

When to paraphrase

Paraphrase short sections of work only i.e. a sentence or two or a short paragraph:

• as an alternative to a direct quotation
• to rewrite someone else's ideas without changing the meaning
• to express someone else's ideas in your own words

How to paraphrase

• Read the original source carefully. It is essential that you understand it fully.
• Identify the main point(s) and key words.
• Cover the original text and rewrite it in your own words. Check that you have included the main points and essential information.
• Ensure that you keep the original meaning and maintain the same relationship between main ideas and supporting points.
• Use synonyms (words or expression which have a similar meaning) where appropriate. Key words that are specialised subject vocabulary do not need to be changed.
• If you want to retain unique or specialist phrases, use quotation marks (“ “).
• Change the grammar and sentence structure. Break up a long sentence into two shorter ones or combine two short sentences into one. Change the voice (active/passive) or change word forms (e.g. nouns, adjectives).
• Change the order in which information/ideas are presented, as long as they still make sense in a different order.
• Identify the attitude of the authors to their subject (i.e. certain, uncertain, critical etc.) and make sure your paraphrase reflects this. Use the appropriate reporting word or phrase.
• Review your paraphrase to check it accurately reflects the original text but is in your words and style.
• Record the original source, including the page number, so that you can provide a reference.

What is a summary?

A summary is an overview of a text. The main aim of summarising is to reduce or condense a text to its most important ideas. Leave out details, examples and formalities. Summarising is a useful skill for making notes, writing an abstract/synopsis, and incorporating material in assignments.

When to summarise

Summarise long sections of work, like a long paragraph, page or chapter. 

• To outline the main points of someone else's work in your own words, without the details or examples.
• To include an author's ideas using fewer words than the original text.
• To briefly give examples of several differing points of view on a topic.
• To support claims in, or provide evidence for, your writing.

How to summarise

The amount of detail you include in a summary will vary according to the length of the original text, how much information you need, and how selective you are.

• Start by reading a short text and highlighting the main points.
• Reread the text and make notes of the main points, leaving out examples, evidence, etc.
• Rewrite your notes in your own words; restate the main idea at the beginning plus all major points.
• Transition signals in writing
• Quotations and paraphrases
• Punctuation
• Paraphrasing, summarising, quoting
• ^ More support

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8.2 Summarizing, Direct Quoting, & Paraphrasing

Summarizing.

Summarizing is when you describe or explain the central ideas, themes, or most important information found in a source. You might read a whole 5-page article about an issue, but in your research paper you just describe the main points of that article in one sentence. Or you read an entire chapter of a book and summarize it in one or two sentences. Summarizing is taking a lot of information and explaining it in as few words as possible. But because you are explaining what you learned from a source , you need to include an in-text citation within the summarizing sentence.

Example: Summarizing an Entire Book

In a paper, a summary of a book might look like this in APA style:

In their book Geek Girl Rising , Heather Cabot and Samantha Walravens, highlight success stories of women working in technology and provide inspiration for girls wanting to break into this male-dominated industry (2017).

Direct Quoting

A direct quote includes the exact word-for-word sentences or phrases that you found in a source. When you copy and paste text into your paper, you are directly quoting that source. A direct quote  must have quotation marks around it and it must include a citation to show the reader where those words came from.

Example: Direct Quote

Here is an example of a direct quote from a magazine article by Tracy Mayor in Computerworld  titled “Women in IT: How Deep is the Bench?”.

A direct quote from this source would be written as follows (MLA style):

“In contrast, the industry shift away from nuts and bolts and toward hybrid skill sets – including higher-level analytics, process and project management, and user-centric social and mobile computing – could open up opportunities for women to move laterally into tech departments from other specialties” (Mayor 18).

Paraphrasing

Example: Paraphrasing a Source

Here is an example of a paraphrase from a magazine article by L. Mundy in Atlantic  titled “ Why is Silicon Valley so awful to women? ”

In an APA Style paper, a paraphrase of page 71 of the source could be written as follows:

A former Facebook employee says the company does a good job of making it seem like a great place to work, a company that’s friendly and equitable to women, but she says women are often not included in social situations in which important company ideas and products are being introduced (Mundy, 2017, p. 71).

Paraphrasing is when you use your own words to explain something that you learned from a source. Paraphrasing can be a useful way to clearly explain the meaning of information you uncovered through your research. It’s a good way to describe what you’ve learned and also help the reader understand the significance of the information. It is NOT rearranging the words or replacing just a few words in the sentence. Paraphrasing is a common writing technique, but it’s also where many students unintentionally plagiarize.

Students unintentionally plagiarize because they:

• Take a sentence from a source and rearrange the words.
• Use the thesaurus tool to change a few words in a sentence.

To do a good job of paraphrasing, you have to make sure you are using only your words, not the author’s. First, read the original source and think about it. Make a few notes of what you think it means. After that, try explaining the author’s ideas in your own words. It’s helpful if you wait a little while between reading the source and trying to paraphrase it so that the author’s words aren’t quite so fresh in your mind. If there’s a word or phrase that you keep repeating when you try to paraphrase, then you probably should just quote it (with quotation marks and a citation).

Common Knowledge

Common knowledge is a term for facts that are generally well-known, not controversial, and easy to look up. When you state something that is common knowledge in your paper, you don’t have to include a citation because you are assuming that the reader already knows this information. Common knowledge can vary somewhat depending on who the audience for your research project is. If you aren’t sure whether something you are stating in your paper is common knowledge, always play it safe and include a citation.

Common knowledge examples (no citation required):

• Joseph Biden is the 46th president of the United States.
• The USA celebrates its independence from Britain on July 4th.
• Martin Luther King, Jr. played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement.

For more information about summarizing, direct quoting, and paraphrasing, check out tips from the Online Writing Lab (OWL) from Purdue University.

Digital Information Skills for Community College Researchers Copyright © 2022 by Serene Rock is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Erin Wright Writing

Writing-Related Software Tutorials

Direct Quotations and Paraphrasing Explained

By Erin Wright

Direct Quotations

Direct quotations present the original writer’s or speaker’s words verbatim. Direct quotations can be formatted as run-in or block quotations.

Run-In Quotations

Run-in quotations are woven into your text. They are usually prefaced or concluded with an independent clause or a noun and verb phrase (e.g., “Tom said,” “Jane says,”) identifying the speaker or writer.

Gerry stormed into the conference room: “The mandatory team meeting began at 3:00 p.m., but Joe didn’t show up.”

Susan said, “He went to the warehouse for supplies.”

“Well, he should have let us know,” replied Brian.

Kitchen blogger Bob Smith claims, “The new ACME dish soap will eliminate the need for electric dishwashers within five years.”

Run-in quotation fragments can also be incorporated into a sentence without an introductory phrase.

The researcher said his findings were “solid and represented the available data,” but admitted that “further study should be done if additional information comes to light.”

Visit “ How to Introduce Run-in Quotations ” for more information and detailed examples.

Block Quotations

Block quotations are longer quotations presented as blocks of text indented from your own writing.

You can find additional guidance in my three-part block quotation series:

Block Quotations, Part 1: How to Introduce Block Quotations

Block Quotations, Part 2: How to Format Block Quotations

Block Quotations, Part 3: Block Quotation Issues and Concerns

Paraphrasing

When paraphrasing, you include someone else’s content, although not their exact words, in your own writing while maintaining the original writer’s or speaker’s thought or idea. Because paraphrasing doesn’t represent your own thought or idea (even if you put a lot of thought into how to write the paraphrased content), the original writer or speaker must be credited either directly in the sentence and/or in a citation, endnote, or footnote to avoid plagiarism. 1

According to Professor Sniffledorf, the new rocket technology will allow humans to land on Mars in 2031.

The new rocket technology will allow humans to land on Mars in 2031 (Sniffledorf, 2017).

The in-text citation in the example above, “(Sniffledorf, 2017),” would be accompanied by a corresponding entry in your reference list documenting the author’s or speaker’s name, the source’s location (journal, book, website, etc.), the publisher, and the year of publication, as well as the page numbers, if applicable. Citation formatting varies by style guide, so consult your preferred guide if you are required to follow a specific style.

• The Chicago Manual of Style , 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 13.3; MLA Handbook , 8th ed. (New York: Modern Language Association, 2016), 57–58; Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 8.23–8.24.
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Video Transcripts: Paraphrasing Strategies: Comparing Paraphrasing and Quoting

Paraphrasing strategies: comparing paraphrasing and quoting.

Last updated 5/6/2020

Visual: Screen opens to a background image with a person typing on a laptop and a notebook and pencil, along with the Walden University Writing Center logo. The title Walden University Writing Center and tagline “Your writing, grammar, and APA experts” appears on the screen. The screen changes to show the series title “Paraphrasing Sources" and the video title "Comparing Paraphrasing & Quoting.”

Audio: Guitar music.

Visual: Slide changes to a mostly gray slide with the heading: "Paraphrasing: One form of evidence." Below the heading are two blue circles comparing quotation and paraphrase: 

• Identical to original
• Narrow (1+ lines)
• Quotation marks
• Author, year, page/paragraph #
• Your own words & sentence structure
• Shorter than original
• Author/year

Audio:  A quotation is where the wording you’re using is identical to the original source. You are using, word for word, the exact same thing that the original source said. In a paraphrase, you are going to change your wording, change the sentence structure, and still keep the same information, but you're going to put it into your own words.

There is a little bit of a difference in citation between a quotation and a paraphrase. When you cite a quotation, you use quotation marks, you use the author, the year, and then a page number or paragraph number. In a paraphrase, you give the author and the year, and you can choose to give a page number, but it is not required. 

One thing to keep in mind between paraphrasing and quoting is that we really want to be wary of using direct quotations too often. When you use a direct quotation, you're parroting someone else's information, kind of like a little parrot copies and imitates people's words. That is in essence what we're doing. When we use a direct quotation, we're not using our own words, we're using someone else's. It can be helpful to use someone else's words, but to do that often shows we're not critically engaging with the information. We're not really diving in and fully understanding it. I could copy and paste multiple quotations out of a source, but if I don't explain them, integrate them, or use them in any sort of way, why would anyone want to read my work? I’m simply repeating what someone else has already said. Be aware that quotations can be helpful, but you do really want to be wary of using them too often.

Paraphrases, however, are always going to be stronger. When you can take information and put it into your own words, it really shows that you are critically using that text. You're understanding it and are able to rearticulate it in a new and a fresh way.

So those are some differences and similarities in how to cite quotations and paraphrases, but also keep in mind that in academic writing, in general, we prefer writers use paraphrases over quotations.

Visual: The screen changes to an ending slide with slide a background image with a person typing on a laptop and a notebook and pencil, along with the Walden University Writing Center logo. The email address [email protected] appears on the screen.

• Previous Page: Paraphrasing Sources: What Is Paraphrasing?
• Next Page: Paraphrasing Strategies: Paraphrasing Strategies
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6.06: Chapter 28: Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing Sources

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Chapter 28: Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing Sources

Rebekah bennetch, corey owen, and zachary keesey.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:

By now, you should be off to a good start with your formal research report. You have used rhetorical theory to plan out your message and you already have several sources that you want to use. The question we must now address is how you include those sources into your writing in a professional way?

Integrating Materials Into Your Report

Exercise #1: Interactive Video

Let’s begin with a video that provides an overview of the source integration process. Some of these practices are probably already be familiar to you.

The Source Integration Structure

A couple of things should stand out. The most obvious is that the paragraph is almost exclusively direct quotes . We have a little bit of the student’s input at the start and end of the paragraph, but there isn’t really anything substantial in-between the quotes.

Ultimately, the student didn’t incorporate all three elements for integrating sources that are recommended in the above video. As a reminder they are:

Let’s look at the same paragraph again, but highlight the three elements we have discussed. This will show you visually how the paragraph is arranged. We will use the following colors:

Idea from a Source

We do have some lead-in for the quotes, but almost no analysis is given. Yes, the quoted information may be relevant, but it is not immediately clear how it’s relevant to the writer’s main point because there is not enough analysis.

Students often mistakenly assume that their readers will figure out the relevance on their own, but that is not the case. It is not the reader’s job to interpret your writing for you. It is up to you to be as explicit as possible by connecting your sources to your argument.

Let’s look at a revised version of the above paragraph that does a better job incorporating a lead-in, a source, and analysis. We have color coded the three elements again so you can better see where they are in the paragraph:

Direct Quotes, Paraphrasing, and Summary

When writing in academic and professional contexts, you are required to engage with the words and ideas of other authors. Therefore, being able to correctly and fluently incorporate other writers’ words and ideas in your own writing is a critical writing skill. As you now know, there are three main ways to integrate evidence from sources into your writing:

• direct quotes
• paraphrasing

One important note that we haven’t mentioned is that you are required to include a citation anytime you are using another person’s words and/or ideas. This means that even if you do not quote directly, but paraphrase or summarize source content and express it in your own words, you still must give credit to the original authors for their ideas. Your RCM 200 instructor will be making sure you do this when they read your formal written report.

You have already seen citations in action is this textbook. Anytime we integrated content from another source you have seen a citation that looks something like this:

(Smith, 2020)

These citations are done using the American Psychology Association (APA) style. You will be expected to use this citation style in your own paper. However, if you are not sure how to do APA citation correctly, don’t worry. We will go into the specific mechanics of how to cite sources in the next chapter .

We will now walk you through each source integration method, giving you opportunities to practice each one. If at any point you’re confused, or unclear, don’t hesitate to ask your instructor for help. The University of Saskatchewan Writing Centre is also a great resource.

Direct Quotes

A direct quote is the word-for-word copy of someone else’s words and/or ideas. This is noted by quotation marks (” “) around those words. Using quotations to support your argument has several benefits over paraphrase and summary :

• Integrating quotations provide direct evidence from reliable sources to support your argument
• Using the words of credible sources conveys your credibility by showing you have done research into the area you are writing about and consulted relevant and authoritative sources
• Selecting effective quotations illustrates that you can extract the important aspects of the information and use them effectively in your own argument

However, be careful not to over-quote. As we saw in the above example, if you over-quote, you risk relying too much on the words of others and not your own.

Quotations should be used sparingly because too many quotations can interfere with the flow of ideas and make it seem like you don’t have ideas of your own.

So when should you use quotations?

• If the language of the original source uses the best possible phrasing or imagery, and no paraphrase or summary could be as effective; or
• If the use of language in the quotation is itself the focus of your analysis ( e.g., if you are analyzing the author’s use of a particular image, metaphor, or other rhetorical strategy).

How to Integrate Quotations Correctly

Integrating quotations into your writing happens on two levels: the argumentative level and the grammatical level.

The Argumentative Level

At the argumentative level, the quotation is being used to illustrate or support a point that you have made, and you will follow it with some analysis, explanation, comment, or interpretation that ties that quote to your argument.

As we mentioned earlier, this is where many students run into trouble. This is known as a “quote and run.” Never quote and run. This leaves your reader to determine the relevance of the quotation, and they might interpret it differently than you intended! A quotation, statistic or bit of data cannot speak for itself; you must provide context and an explanation for the quotations you use. As long as you use the three steps we listed above for integrating sources, you will be on the right track.

The Grammatical Level

The second level of integration is grammatical. This involves integrating the quotation into your own sentences so that it flows smoothly and fits logically and syntactically. There are three main methods to integrate quotations grammatically:

• Seamless Integration Method: embed the quoted words as if they were an organic part of your sentence. This means that if you read the sentence aloud, your listeners would not know there was a quotation.
• Signal Phrase Method: use a signal phrase (Author + Verb) to introduce the quotation, clearly indicating that the quotation comes from a specific source
• Colon Method: introduce the quotation with a complete sentence ending in a colon.

Let’s see this in action. Consider the following opening sentence (and famous comma splice) from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, as an example:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

Dickens, C. (2017). A tale of two cities . Alma Books Ltd. p. 5

Below are examples of the quote being integrated using the three methods.

1. Seamless Integration: embed the quotation, or excerpts from the quotation, as a seamless part of your sentence

Charles Dickens (2017) begins his novel with the paradoxical observation that the eighteenth century was both “the best of times” and “the worst of times” (p. 5).

2. Signal Phrase: introduce the author and then the quote using a signal verb (scroll down to see a list of common verbs that signal you are about to quote someone)

Describing the eighteenth century, Charles Dickens (2017) observes, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” (p. 5).

3. Colon: if your own introductory words form a complete sentence, you can use a colon to introduce and set off the quotation. This can give the quotation added emphasis.

Dickens (2017) defines the eighteenth century as a time of paradox: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” (p. 5).

The eighteenth century was a time of paradox: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” (Dickens, 2017, p. 5).

It’s important that you not rely on any one grammatical method in your own writing. Instead, try to use a balance of methods to make your writing seem more dynamic and varied.

Editing Quotations

When you use quotation marks around material, this indicates that you have used the exact words of the original author. However, sometimes the text you want to quote will not fit grammatically or clearly into your sentence without making some changes. Perhaps you need to replace a pronoun in the quote with the actual noun to make the context clear, or perhaps the verb tense does not fit. There are two main ways to edit a quotation to make it fit grammatically with your own sentence:

• Use square brackets : to reflect changes or additions to a quote, place square brackets around any words that have been changed or added.
• Use ellipses : ellipses show that some text has been removed. They can have either three dots (. . .) or four dots (. . . .). Three dots indicate that some words have been removed from the sentence; four dots indicate that a substantial amount of text has been deleted, including the period at the end of a sentence.

Let’s look at this in action using the quote below.

“ Engineers are always striving for success, but failure is seldom far from their minds. In the case of Canadian engineers, this focus on potentially catastrophic flaws in a design is rooted in a failure that occurred over a century ago. In 1907 a bridge of enormous proportions collapsed while still under construction in Quebec. Planners expected that when completed, the 1,800-foot main span of the cantilever bridge would set a world record for long-span bridges of all types, many of which had come to be realized at a great price. According to one superstition, a bridge would claim one life for every million dollars spent on it. In fact, by the time the Quebec Bridge would finally be completed, in 1917, almost ninety construction workers would have been killed in the course of building the $25 million structure”

Petroski, H. (2012). The obligation of an engineer. In To forgive design: Understanding failure (pp. 175-198). Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.4159/harvard.9780674065437

You are allowed to change the original words, to shorten the quoted material or integrate material grammatically, but only if you signal those changes appropriately with square brackets or ellipses:

Example 1: Petroski (2012) observed that “[e]ngineers are always striving for success, but failure is seldom far from their minds” (p. 175).

Example 2: Petroski (2012) recounts the story of a large bridge that was constructed at the beginning of the twentieth century in Quebec, saying that “by the time [it was done], in 1917, almost ninety construction workers [were] killed in the course of building the $25 million structure” (p. 175)

Example 3: “Planners expected that when completed the … bridge would set a world record for long-span bridges of all types” (Petroski, 2012, p. 175).

In summary, there are a lot of ways you can approach integrating quotes. You can even change certain elements of your quote as long you indicate this with proper punctuation.

Exercise #2: Integrating a Quote at the Grammatical Level

Below is an excerpt from William Zinsser’s “ Simplicity. ” After you read the excerpt, write your own sentences using all three integration methods we have discussed. Don’t forget, you can change the quotes slightly if you need to. Just ensure that you are using ellipses or square brackets to indicate this. Also, try to say something interesting about the words you are quoting. Don’t just say “Zinsser (1980) says ‘insert quote.'” Your sentence(s) should express your own ideas.

You’ll notice that there is no page number associated with this quote. That is because this version comes from a website, which does not have page numbers.

Once you are done, compare them to the examples below. If your approach is different that’s totally fine. If you’re not sure that you did it correctly, please check with your instructor.

Zinsser, W. K. (1980). Simplicity. In On writing well: An informal guide to writing nonfiction . Harper Perennial.

Paraphrase and Summary

Unlike direct quotes, which use a source’s exact wording, paraphrase and summary allow you to use your own words to present information. While the approach to using both methods is similar, the reason you will choose one over the other is different.

A paraphrase is typically more detailed and specific than a summary . It also retains the length of the original source.

A summary , on the other hand, is used when describing an entire source. For example, if you want to emphasize the main ideas of a source, but not go into a great detail, then a summary is usually best.

Exercise #3: Interactive Video

Watch the interactive video below on paraphrasing . It will explain when paraphrasing is preferable over direct quotes , how to correctly paraphrase a source, and how to combine a paraphrase and direct quote in the same sentence.

The video will stop at different points to test your knowledge. Make sure you answer the questions. Additionally, take note of the 5 steps for paraphrasing as you watch.

The original version of this chapter contained H5P content. You may want to remove or replace this element. Link to Original Video: tinyurl.com/paraprocess

As the video states, paraphrasing is when you put source text in your own words and alter the sentence structure to avoid using direct quotes . Paraphrasing is the preferred way of using a source when the original wording isn’t important. This way, you can incorporate the source’s ideas so they’re stylistically consistent with the rest of your document and thus better tailored to the needs of your audience. Also, paraphrasing a source into your own words proves your advanced understanding of the source text. The video lists five steps for paraphrasing a source. They are:

An In-Depth Look at Paraphrase

Students frequently overuse direct quotation [when] 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, J. D. (1976). Writing research papers: A complete guide . Pearson Scott Foresman.

Step 1: Read the Source Material Until You Fully Understand It

What are these three sentences about? What information do they give us?

They discuss how students rely too much on direct quotations in their writing. It also explains just how much of a final paper should include direct quotes . Seems clear enough, so lets move on to the next step.

Step 2: Take Notes and List Key Terms for Your Paraphrase

The key terms you come up with for your paraphrase will depend on what information you want to convey to the reader. For our purposes, let’s say you want to use Lester (1976) to highlight how much students over-quote in their papers. You may focus on the following key terms:

Step 3: Using Key Terms, Write Your Own Paraphrase Without Looking at Original

Lester (1976) advises against exceeding 10% quotation in your written work. Since students writing research reports often quote excessively because of copy-cut-and-paste note-taking, they should try to minimize using sources word for word (Lester, 1976).

This isn’t necessarily a perfect example of a paraphrase , but it is certainly a good start! Time to move on to the next step.

Step 4: Compare Your Paraphrase to the Original

Here is the original text with our paraphrase:

Original: Students frequently overuse direct quotation [when] 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.

Paraphrase : Lester (1976) advises against exceeding 10% quotation in your written work. Since students writing research reports often quote excessively because of copy-cut-and-paste note-taking, they should try to minimize using sources word for word (Lester, 1976).

Notice that, even though we only have three key terms, we didn’t have to repeat any two-word sequences from the original. This is because we have changed the sentence structure in addition to most of the words. This can definitely take a couple of tries, so if you don’t get it right away, that’s okay. If you’re still stuck, check in with your instructor or the University of Saskatchewan Writing Centre.

Step 5: Provide an In-Text Citation

We’ve already done this step twice in our paper: once at the start of our paper with “Lester (1976) advises…” and once at the end with “(Lester, 1976).” We’ll talk about how to do this more in-depth in the next chapter.

Common Plagiarism Issues with Paraphrase

As we mentioned in the previous section, when paraphrasing , it is important to change both the words and sentence structure of the original text. However, many students struggle with the first part. They will typically only substitute major words (nouns, verbs, and adjectives) here and there while leaving the source passage’s basic sentence structure intact. This inevitably leaves strings of words from the original untouched in the “paraphrased” version, which can be dangerous because including such direct quotation without quotation marks will be caught by the plagiarism- busting software that college instructors use these days.

Consider, for instance, the following poor attempt at a paraphrase of the Lester (1976) passage that substitutes words selectively. Like last time, we have included the original text with the incorrect paraphrase. We have also highlighted the unchanged words in yellow .

Original Quote: Students frequently overuse direct quotation [when] 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, 1976).

Poor Paraphrase: Students often overuse quotations when taking notes , and thus overuse them in research reports (Lester, 1976). About 10% of your final paper should be direct quotation. You should thus attempt to reduce the exact copying of source materials while note taking (Lester, 1976).

As you can see, several strings of words from the original are left untouched because the writer didn’t change the sentence structure of the original. Plagiarism -catching software, like Turnitin , specifically look for this kind of writing and produce Originality Reports to indicate how much of a paper is plagiarized. In this case, the Originality Report would indicate that the passage is 64% plagiarized because it retains 25 of the original words (out of 39 in this “paraphrase”) but without quotation marks around them.

Correcting this by simply adding quotation marks around passages such as “when taking notes, and” would be unacceptable because those words aren’t important enough on their own to warrant direct quotation . The fix would just be to paraphrase more thoroughly by altering the words and the sentence structure, as shown in the paraphrase a few paragraphs above.

Exercise #4: Paraphrase Practice

Now try it on your own. Below are three pieces of original text from the McCroskey, MacLennan, and Booth readings from this course. Try writing your own paraphrases for each one and compare them to the examples below. Note that the key words in the examples are highlighted. If your version is different that’s okay as long as you follow the steps we listed out. If you’re not sure if you’re paraphrase is correct, check with your instructor.

(1) “Rhetorical communication is goal-directed. It seeks to produce specific meaning in the mind of another individual. In this type of communication there is specific intent on the part of the source to stimulate meaning in the mind of the receiver” (McCroskey, 2015, p. 22).

(2) “The successful professional must therefore be able to present specialized information in a manner that will enable non-specialist readers to make policy, procedural, and funding decisions. In order to do this, a technical specialist’s communication, like that of any other professional, must establish and maintain credibility and authority with those who may be unfamiliar with technical subjects (MacLennan, 2009, p. 4)

(3) The common ingredient that I find in all of the writing I admire—excluding for now novels, plays and poems—is something that I shall reluctantly call the rhetorical stance, a stance which depends on discovering and maintaining in any writing situation a proper balance among the three elements that are at work in any communicative effort: the available arguments about the subject itself, the interests and peculiarities of the audience, and the voice, the implied character, of the speaker. I should like to suggest that it is this balance, this rhetorical stance, difficult as it is to describe, that is our main goal as teachers of rhetoric (Booth, 1963, p. 141).

The original version of this chapter contained H5P content. You may want to remove or replace this element.

Summarizing is one of the most important skills in professional communication. Professionals of every field must explain to non-expert customers, managers, and even co-workers the complex concepts on which they are experts, but in a way that those non-experts can understand. Adapting the message to such audiences requires brevity but also translating jargon-heavy technical details into plain, accessible language.

Fortunately, the process for summarizing is very similar to paraphrasing. Like paraphrasing, a summary is putting the original source in your own words. The main difference is that a summary is a fraction of the source length—anywhere from less than 1% to a quarter depending on the source length and length of the summary.

A summary can reduce a whole novel or film to a single-sentence blurb, for instance, or it could reduce a 50-word paragraph to a 15-word sentence. It can be as casual as a spoken overview of a meeting your colleague was absent from, or an elevator pitch selling a project idea to a manager. It can also be as formal as a memo report to your colleagues on a conference you attended on behalf of your organization.

When summarizing, you will follow the same process as a paraphrase, but with a few additional steps:

Here are some examples. Below are summaries for two very different sources: the Harry Potter franchise and the Nine Axioms reading you did a few weeks ago. There are three summaries for each source: one that is 45 words long, one that is 30 words long, and one that is 15 words long. What information is cut to make the summaries more succinct? Are there any important details lost between the different summaries ?

What’s Harry Potter about?

45 word summary : It’s about a British boy named Harry Potter who finds out he is a wizard. He goes to a magic school called Hogwarts where he becomes friends with Ron and Hermione. Together, they learn how to cast spells and fight an evil wizard named Voldemort.

30 word summary : It’s about a boy named Harry Potter who finds out he is a wizard. He goes to a school called Hogwarts where he learns magic and fights an evil wizard.

15 word summary : It’s about a boy named Harry who attends a magic school and fights evil wizards.

What are MacLennan’s Nine Axioms?

45 word summary : The Nine Axioms of Communication are nine interconnected principles that can help us design effective messages. They explain why communication works and, just as importantly, why it doesn’t. More specifically, they are tools that will help us identify effective communication strategies and diagnose communication problems.

30 word summary : They are nine interconnected principles of communication that MacLennan wrote to help us understand how communication works. They also help us identify effective communication strategies and diagnose any communication problems.

15 word summary : They’re nine principles that show how communication works, identify effective communication strategies, and diagnose problems.

Again, notice that neither summary goes into great detail about the topic. They just stress the main points. The Harry Potter summary doesn’t go into all the adventures that happen in the books, and the Nine Axioms summary doesn’t list out all Nine Axioms. Knowing what information to keep is essential in writing a good summary.

Now it’s your turn. Pick a movie, TV show, or book that you really like. Write three summaries about the thing you selected: one that is 45 words long, one that is 30 words long and one that is 15 words long. You don’t need to include a citation. For an extra challenge, try to make your summaries the exact number of words.

Once you are done, compare your three summaries. What is different between them? How did the different length requirements affect your writing? What elements did you have to cut? Why were those elements not as important?

Key Takeaways

• Avoiding plagiarism should always be a concern when you are doing research for a report. Even in the professional world, it’s important to make sure you are integrating your sources in an ethical way. Not doing so can result in fines and even termination from your job.
• Many students struggle with this on an organizational level. They tend to think they can just stack quotes on top of quotes and that will be enough, but it is definitely not!
• Instead, you should always use three things when integrating outside sources into your writing: a lead-in, the source, and analysis. Having a balance of all three will make your writing more persuasive.
• You can include ideas from a source in one of three ways: direct quotes, paraphrase, and summary.
• Direct quotes are best when the language of the original source is the best possible phrasing or imagery and a paraphrase/summary could not be as effective. It is also preferable if you are planning to analyze the specific language in the quotation (such as a metaphor or rhetorical strategy).
• Paraphrase is best when the original wording of a source is not important. This means that you can incorporate a source’s ideas in such a way that they’re stylistically consistent with the rest of your document. This allows you flexibility to better tailor your writing to the needs of your audience.
• Summary is best when you want to focus on only the main ideas of a source. The length of your summary will depend on your needs, but it’s not uncommon for a summary to be less than 1% to a quarter the length of the original source.

Dickens, C. (2017). A tale of two cities . Alma Books Ltd.

Attributions

This chapter is adapted from Technical Writing Essentials (on BCcampus ) by Suzan Last and Candice Neveu. It is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

This chapter is also adapted from Business Communications for Fashion (on openpress.usask.ca ) by Anna Cappuccitti. It is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License .

Paraphrasing vs. Quoting: What’s the Difference?

When you write your next research paper, you may ask, “when should I use paraphrasing vs. quoting?” This guide will help you know. 

The question of paraphrasing vs. quoting is important for writers. You must get this right in your writing to avoid plagiarism, create ethical written works, and make clear points.

Both paraphrasing and quoting are tools you can use to do this, but many writers do not know the difference between these two words. If you do not use them correctly and cite them appropriately, you could be guilty of plagiarism, which puts your academic or professional career at risk.  

Quoting and paraphrasing are fairly similar, and they even require similar citations. Yet there are subtle differences you must understand, so you give the proper credit to the source. This guide will help you understand the difference between paraphrasing and quoting, so you can use both of these tools correctly in your next written piece.

When editing for grammar, we also recommend taking the time to improve the readability score of a piece of writing before publishing or submitting.

Paraphrasing vs. Quoting: When to Use Which

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Paraphrasing and quoting are both processes to use another author’s work in your writing. They are confusing because they have different best-case uses. After you understand their differences, you will be able to decide how to use them in your writing.

What Is a Paraphrase?

A paraphrase is a restatement of an original author’s idea in your own words. It would help if you completely changed the wording from the source material to count it as a paraphrase. You may do so by changing the:

• Sentence structure

However, you must keep the main points the same and properly attribute the source material’s author in your writing based on the style guide assigned to your projects, such as MLA or APA. Check out our allegory vs. symbolism explainer.

Paraphrases are used when you want to restate a source and do not need to use the exact words to do so. It works well when you merge multiple sources into one written piece to

Paraphrases should make up the majority of your academic writing because you need to be able to convey the author’s ideas in your own words. Simply quoting many sources word-for-word does not show that you have truly understood the material and reached your conclusions.

Even though paraphrases are written in your own words, you will need to cite them when writing research papers and other types of academic writing. Failing to cite an idea from someone else and claiming it as your own violate copyright laws and is a form of plagiarism.

To cite a paraphrase, check the style guide or publication manual assigned to your project and add the citation appropriately. You might also be interested in our analogy vs. metaphor guide.

Paraphrasing can be a challenging skill to learn. To do it, you must be able to take someone else’s work and make it your own without changing the main ideas.

One tip that can make paraphrasing easier is reading the original text fully and closing it. Without opening it again, write your paraphrase. Then, look at the original text again to make sure the paraphrase seems unique but still conveys the right original thought.

What Is a Quote?

Quoting happens when you use the other author’s exact words. You change nothing of what they said, and you put the words in quotation marks or set them off with special indentation, depending on the length of the quote.

Quoting works best when using your ideas or restating an original idea would weaken the key points. It also works well when you need to create a sense of authority in your statement and lack that authority as the author. Some times when a quote is the best choice over a paraphrase include:

• When using statistics and data from an authoritative source
• When quoting a piece of literature in a literary analysis paper
• When defining a word from a trusted dictionary
• When including a court decision in a piece of writing

Over-quoting is a common mistake in academic writing, especially with inexperienced writers. It shows little academic prowess to string together a bunch of quotes with attribution and call it your work. Use quotation sparingly and in those instances when it is necessary to make the point you need to make.

Keep in mind that not all written works require a quote. For most papers, one to two quotes are all that is necessary, if any are necessary at all. The rest of the work should be your ideas or paraphrases.

Citing quotes is similar to citing paraphrases. You will use the APA, Chicago/Turabian, or MLA style citations. The main difference is that you must show that the piece is a quote.

Often, you will include in-text citations to introduce the quote. For example, you may say:

An example of simile can be seen in Alcott’s Little Women when the author writes, “. . . she tried to get rid of the kitten which had scrambled up her back and stuck like a burr just out of reach.” (Alcott, 183)

In this quote, the author’s name and the resource both show up in the dialogue, but the writer still uses proper parenthetical citations at the end of the quote. The quote itself has quotation marks, indicating it is a quote, and ellipses that show it starts in the middle of the author’s sentence.

If your quote is 40 words or longer, you will use a block quotation. Each style guide has its formatting for block quotations, but this style sets off the quote by indenting it and changing the spacing, which is visually different from the rest of the paper. Block quotations do not use quotation marks.

Citations for Quotes, Paraphrases, and Summaries

Whether you quote, paraphrase, or summarize a work, you will cite it in the same way. The citation style is based on the style guide for your work. The works you cite in the text also get included in the works cited or bibliography page at the end of the paper.

If you are writing a paper that requires APA style, then you will use in-text citations in the following format:

(Author’s last name, year of publication, page number)

If you put the author’s name in the actual text in APA style, you can omit it in the parenthesis. If the publication has no date, you put n.d. instead of the date. If there is not a page number, you can put some other identifier, such as paragraph number, chapter, section, or timestamp. However, this is only necessary for direct quotes. The page number or its substitutes are not necessary for paraphrases.

MLA style in-text citations follow this format:

(Author’s last name, page number)

Omit the page number for this format if it is unavailable in the source.

Chicago style requires a more complex citation format. It uses footnotes for both paraphrases and quotes. The first time you use a resource, you use this format for the footnote:

The author’s first and last name, title (publication city: Publisher, date), and the page number.

For additional citations using a previously listed resource, use this format:

Author last name, abbreviated title, page number.

Another consideration in this discussion is the idea of summarizing. Summarizing a work means condensing it to its main points. Typically, a summary is much shorter than the original work, while a paraphrase is fairly similar in length.

Like quotes and paraphrases, summaries require in-text citations in the expected format. You will choose to summarize if you are taking a large work, like a full book, report, or speech, and using most of its key points in your report.

The Issue of Common Knowledge

With quotes, paraphrases and summaries, you must cite the source any time you use someone’s ideas in your writing or quote someone directly. However, you do not have to cite something if it is considered common knowledge, even if you found the information in another work. As long as you are not taking a direct quote, if the fact is common knowledge does not require citation. 

According to MIT , something is common knowledge if it is “information that the average, educated reader would accept as reliable without looking it up.” For example, if you said that the sky is blue, you would not have to cite this because most people know and accept this as fact.

The idea of common knowledge becomes tricky when you are doing academic writing. Sometimes, a fact is a common knowledge to the chosen audience for your work. For example, laws of physics may not be something the average person knows, but a physicist or scientist would, and you may not have to cite the place you found the law if you are writing for an academic group.

Some questions that can help you decide if something is common knowledge include:

• Who is my intended audience?
• What does my intended audience know?
• Is this an accepted fact in my field or niche?
• Is there a specific fact or statistic being cited, or just general knowledge they already know?

After answering these questions, you might have a better idea of whether or not your information is common knowledge. If it is, then you don’t have to cite it. If you are not sure, go ahead and cite it. Better to cite too often than to end up being guilty of plagiarism.

Paraphrasing and quoting both have a place in academic writing. However, quoting, which refers to using another writer’s exact words, needs to be sparse in your work. Writing a work primarily of quotes is not really writing; it’s just taking other people’s work and putting it together in a new format.

Paraphrasing is far more common. Paraphrasing keeps the original meaning of the work but changes the wording into your own words. This strategy shows that you have understood the meaning of the works you cite but have pulled that out and used it to support your ideas and thesis statement. Most of your academic writing should be paraphrased, supporting your thoughts, ideas, and conclusions.

Regardless of whether you are quoting or paraphrasing, you will need to cite your sources for any idea you use that is not common knowledge or your idea. If in doubt, cite your source to avoid falling victim to plagiarism, leading to academic dismissal or a failing grade on your project.

FAQs about Paraphrasing vs. Quoting

When paraphrasing something, you reword it but keep the main idea in place. The structure of the sentences and the words themselves must be different. When you quote something, you use the writer’s actual words word-for-word, placing the quote within quotation marks or blocking text.

No, but summarizing and paraphrasing are similar. You are condensing the original work into its main points when you summarize. When paraphrasing, you restate the work in your own words without condensing. Both require citations, and both are good strategies to use in an academic or research paper.

Grammarly is one of our top grammar checkers. Find out why in this Grammarly review .

Nicole Harms has been writing professionally since 2006. She specializes in education content and real estate writing but enjoys a wide gamut of topics. Her goal is to connect with the reader in an engaging, but informative way. Her work has been featured on USA Today, and she ghostwrites for many high-profile companies. As a former teacher, she is passionate about both research and grammar, giving her clients the quality they demand in today's online marketing world.

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Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Quoting

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These resources provide lesson plans and handouts for teachers interested in teaching students how to avoid plagiarism. The resources ask students to practice summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting. The resources with titles that include "Handout" provide handouts that are free to print for your students by using the print option in your web browser. The "Handout" resources correspond with the resource listed above it.

Time Estimate

Activate students’ schemata regarding the similarities and differences among summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting.

Chalkboard/whiteboard

Computer Lab Option Materials

Digital projector

Write the words Summarizing , Paraphrasing and Quoting along the top of the whiteboard.

Elicit from students the rules they know related to each writing strategy.

Add additional information as needed. The board may appear as follows:

Computer Lab Option

Rather than using the whiteboard, one may choose to open up and project the above table in a word processing program, like Microsoft Word, completing the table as answers are elicited from students.

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• Citation Styles

Quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing: what’s the difference?

When you write a research paper, you’re required to include evidence from scholarly sources in order to prove your thesis. In this post, we discuss the three most common ways to include source material in your research paper: quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing.

What is quoting?

When you quote, you use exact words from a source in between quotation marks. You may want to quote directly from a source when the information is particularly complex or when the quote expresses an idea or point in a way that perfectly captures the situation, concept, or thought.

If you’re using a quote that is more than four lines, you should include the material as a block quote. To learn more about how to quote, take a look at our tips for integrating quotes into a research paper. Always include an in-text citation after the quoted material.

What is paraphrasing?

When you paraphrase, you re-write borrowed material in your own words. Paraphrasing requires you to change the words of the quote without changing their meaning.

Paraphrases are typically shorter than the quotes that they restate and always require an in-text citation that credits the original source material.

What is summarizing?

A summary provides an overview of an idea or topic. You might wish to summarize parts of a source if you’re writing a literature review as part of a longer research paper.

Summarizing requires you to sum up the key points of a text, argument, or idea. A summary will be shorter than the original material. Even if you’re not using any of the source’s exact words in your summary, you still need to include an in-text citation.

How do you know when to quote, paraphrase, or summarize material?

Quotes, paraphrases, and summaries are simply different ways of presenting borrowed information. However, there are definitely situations in which one mode may be better than another.

When to use quotes

While it’s a myth that you should avoid using quotes as much as possible in a research paper, you do need to ensure that you are using them effectively. Turning in a paper full quotes is certainly not a good idea, but quotes can be useful if:

• you are trying to make a particularly complex point
• you intend to analyze or interpret a quote’s language
• you need to provide a definition of something
• a quote perfectly encapsulates an idea that is important to your argument

When to paraphrase

Paraphrasing allows you to confirm that you fully understand a quote’s meaning and to explain that content in your own words. There may be several reasons why you would choose to paraphrase a passage, rather than quote it. You might use paraphrase if:

• the material is relatively easy to describe
• you don’t wish to break up the flow of your writing with quotes
• you don’t intend to provide analysis of the information
• you want to combine material from several sources

When to summarize

Summary allows you to synthesize a larger amount of information from a single source or multiple sources. An effective summary will highlight the key points of a text in a concise manner. In a research paper, you’ll primarily use summary in the literature review or state-of-the-field section.

Examples of quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing

Quoting example.

When you quote, you should always try to “sandwich” the quote in your own words. You can also break up longer quotes with ellipses, or with snippets like “Smith explains.” For instance, in the example below, the writer uses her own words to lead into, and out of, the quotes.

Jenna Lay claims that “Catholic women resisted any easy demarcation between a Catholic medieval past and a Protestant, reformed present in both their religious practices and their print and manuscript books,” an argument that can be extended to include entire Catholic families (16). However, despite the fact that scholars such as Patton, Lay, and Jennifer Summit have argued that “we stand to learn much when we determine […] whether the early modern collector of a medieval devotional book was a Catholic or Protestant,” few studies have explored in any depth how Catholics used their books in the post-Reformation period.

Paraphrasing example

In the example below, the writer succinctly paraphrases one of the main points of a book chapter. Even though there are no direct quotes, she still includes an in-text, parenthetical citation at the end of the paraphrase.

Elizabeth Patton, in her research on Catholic women’s bookscapes, contends that the staunchest Catholic families maintained textual networks in which they circulated books that were banned in Protestant England, including copies of medieval devotional manuscripts (117).

Summarizing example

In the following summary, the writer uses her own words to provide a concise, yet thorough, summary of an article’s purpose and use of evidence. Again, although no direct quotes are included, the writer adds an in-text citation at the end of the example.

To establish the importance of this main point, Raghavan and Pargman firstly explore two related paradigms in sustainable HCI research: sustainable computing and computing for sustainability. The latter, they argue, has been simultaneously under- and overdeveloped and offers little in the way of practical solutions for how computing can lessen humans’ ecological impact. As a result, they focus on computing for sustainability and explore how disintermediation can catalyze solutions across several key categories, including value, class, labor, and social control. Importantly, they note that policy solutions have failed to fully address the relationship between computing and sustainability (1-2).

In-text citations for quotes, paraphrases, and summaries

Whether you’re quoting exact words from a text, paraphrasing a quote in your own words, or summarizing someone else’s work, you’ll need to include in-text citations for any borrowed material.

You can use BibGuru to create in-text citations in MLA , APA , or any major citation style . Most in-text citations are in the form of parenthetical citations . It’s always a good idea to consult your assignment guidelines, or your instructor, to find out which citation style is required for your paper.

Frequently Asked Questions about quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing

When you quote, you use exact words from a source in between quotation marks. When you paraphrase, you re-write borrowed material in your own words.

Paraphrasing requires you to change the words of the quote without changing their meaning.

Summarizing requires you to sum up the key points of a text, argument, or idea. A summary will be shorter than the original material. Even if you’re not using any of the author’s exact words in your summary, you still need to include an in-text citation.

When you quote, you should always try to “sandwich” the quote in your own words. You can also break up longer quotes with ellipses or with snippets like “Smith explains.” For instance, in the example below, the writer uses her owd words to lead into, and out of, the quote.

Paraphrasing allows you to confirm that you fully understand a quote’s meaning and to explain that content in your own words.

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11.2: Quoting and Paraphrasing

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WHAT IS QUOTING AND PARAPHRASING?

When you are asked to write about or analyze text(s), you will use quotes and paraphrases from them. What is the difference between quoting and paraphrasing?

• Quoting: Is using the direct language from another person either in full sentences or groups of words and putting the borrowed language between quotation marks.
• Paraphrasing: Is putting the ideas or arguments of another person entirely into your own words.

WHY QUOTE VERSUS PARAPHRASE?

Before you use a quotation, decide if you can use your own words (paraphrase) to express the author's ideas. If you include too many quotations, readers form the impression that you cannot think for yourself. However, in text-based writing, you will want to include some quotes, so you keep your analysis of the text central to your discussion. Use quotations when…

• the original language is as important as the ideas it contains , that is, when the author’s words are so articulate or expressive that they deserve to be preserved.
• the original language is concise, and a paraphrase would be too wordy.
• the original language is from an established authority who could lend extra credibility to your claims.
• the original language itself is the object of analysis , a situation that happens most commonly when writing about literature.

HOW DO I PROPERLY QUOTE AND PARAPHRASE?

• When you quote, you want to enclose all borrowed language between quotation marks and then provide an in-text citation that cites the source. In MLA formatting, the in-text citation generally includes the author’s last name and the page number in parenthesis after the quote (Garcia 21). See Chapter 5: MLA Conventions for more detail.
• When you paraphrase, you are deciding that an author's ideas but not his/hers exact words are important to your point. A paraphrase should not change the ideas, but it can eliminate or change words, often in order to condense a long sentence that contains details unnecessary to your point. Even though you are not quoting, you still need to credit the source you are paraphrasing by making it clear in the context of your discussion or by citing it as you would a quote.

Example: Quoting and Paraphrasing

Original: The solidarity that characterizes communities does not mean, however, that all is unity and harmony within. Many commentators err, I think, by insisting that absence of conflict, like the family conflict we all know, is real, though it differs from, say, market competition, in being mediated by emotional bonds. (from "The Meanings of Community" by Thomas Bender, page 67.)

Quote : According to Bender, "The solidarity that characterizes communities does not mean, however, that all is unity and harmony within" (67).

Paraphrase : While some people believe a lack of conflict characterizes community, Bender asserts that some communities may have and need conflict.

Partial Paraphrase : Unlike other forms of conflict, though, Bender believes that family conflict is "mediated by emotional bonds” (67).

Practice: QUOTING, PARAPHRASING, AND PARTIAL PARAPHRASING EXERCISE

In writing you will use a mixture of direct quotations, paraphrases and partial paraphrases. Using the original quotations below, create one of each type:

Quote 1: "In my teaching I never concealed my political views: my detestation of war and militarism, my anger at racial inequality, my belief in a democratic socialism, in a rational and just distribution of the world's wealth. I made clear my abhorrence of any kind of bullying, whether by powerful nations over weaker ones, governments over their citizens, employers over employees, or by anyone on the Right or Left, who thinks they have a monopoly on the truth." (from Howard Zinn's book You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train , page 7).

Paraphrase:

Partial Paraphrase:

Quote 2: "The eye-for-an-eye philosophy, the impulse to defend oneself when attacked, has always been held as the highest measure of American manhood. We are a nation that worships the frontier tradition, and our heroes are those who champion justice through violent retaliation against injustice. It is not simple to adopt the credo that moral force has as much strength and virtue as the capacity to return a physical blow; or that to refrain from hitting back requires more will and bravery than the automatic reflexes of defense." (from Martin Luther King's book Why We Can't Wait , page 24).

Potential answers for QUOTING, PARAPHRASING, AND PARTIAL PARAPHRASING EXERCISE

Quote 1: Howard Zinn

Quote: Howard Zinn conveys to his students his strong convictions that no one has the right to oppress another under any circumstance, “I made clear my abhorrence of any kind of bullying, whether by powerful nations over weaker ones, governments over their citizens, employers over employees, or by anyone on the Right or Left, who thinks they have a monopoly on the truth” (7). Paraphrase: Zinn shares his support of equality for all people and his anti-oppression viewpoints with his students. Partial Paraphrase: Zinn fearlessly shares his controversial political views such as his “detestation of war and militarism” (7). Quote 2: Martin Luther King, Jr.

Quote: King looks to our historical background in the U.S. to understand why we are a people so driven by violence: “ We are a nation that worships the frontier tradition, and our heroes are those who champion justice through violent retaliation against injustice” (24).

Paraphrase: King asserts it is harder to practice non-violence in the U.S. where we admire people who are willing to commit violence.

Partial Paraphrase: King sadly observes that the “highest measure of American manhood” (24) is a person’s willingness to commit violent revenge.

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Paraphrasing vs. Verbatim Quoting: Similarities and Differences

When it comes to incorporating the words and ideas of others into our own writing, there are two main techniques that we can use: paraphrasing and verbatim quoting. Both methods have their merits and can be effective in different situations. In this article, we will explore the similarities and differences between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting, and the factors that may influence which method is most appropriate to use.

Paraphrasing involves restating the original source material in our own words, while still expressing the same meaning. This technique allows us to convey the information and ideas of the original source while putting it into our own voice and style. Paraphrasing is often used to clarify complex concepts or ideas, simplify language, or provide a concise summary of a longer passage.

On the other hand, verbatim quoting involves directly copying the original source material word for word, enclosing it in quotation marks. This technique is useful when we want to highlight the exact wording of the original source, preserve the author’s unique style, or provide evidence to support our arguments. Verbatim quotes are especially effective when the language used by the original author is particularly powerful or memorable.

While paraphrasing and verbatim quoting have their distinct characteristics, there are also some similarities between the two methods. Both techniques require a deep understanding of the original source material, as well as the ability to analyze and synthesize information effectively. In addition, both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting require proper citation to give credit to the original author and avoid plagiarism.

It is important to note that both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting have their place in academic and professional writing. The choice of which method to use depends on the purpose of our writing, the intended audience, and the nature of the source material.

By understanding the similarities and differences between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting, we can make informed choices when incorporating external information into our own work, ensuring that we are effectively communicating our ideas while respecting the ideas and words of others.

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Understanding Paraphrasing and Verbatim Quoting: Key Definitions

When it comes to incorporating information from other sources into your writing, it’s important to understand the concepts of paraphrasing and verbatim quoting. These techniques allow you to effectively present the ideas of others while maintaining proper attribution and avoiding plagiarism. Let’s explore the key definitions of paraphrasing and verbatim quoting:

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing involves restating someone else’s ideas or information in your own words. It is a valuable skill in academic writing as it demonstrates your understanding of the original source while allowing you to present the information in a way that suits your own writing style. The goal of paraphrasing is to convey the same meaning as the original source, but with different wording and sentence structure.

When paraphrasing, it is essential to avoid copying the original source word-for-word and to use your own language and sentence structure. Additionally, proper citation must still be provided to give credit to the original author.

Verbatim Quoting

Verbatim quoting involves directly using the exact words and phrases from a source, enclosed within quotation marks. This technique is useful when you want to capture the precise wording of the original author or when the specific language of the source is particularly important to your argument or analysis. Verbatim quoting allows you to present evidence or support for your ideas by directly quoting from credible sources.

When using verbatim quotes, it is important to accurately reproduce the original source text, including punctuation and capitalization. Any modifications, such as omitting or inserting words, should be indicated using square brackets or ellipses, respectively. Proper citation is necessary to attribute the quoted material to its original author.

Key Differences

The key difference between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting lies in the level of similarity to the original source. Paraphrasing involves rephrasing the ideas in your own words, while verbatim quoting uses the exact words from the original source. Paraphrasing allows you to present the same information with different wording and sentence structure, while verbatim quoting retains the original language and phrasing.

While paraphrasing allows for more flexibility and integration of the source material into your own writing, verbatim quoting is more suited for capturing the original author’s specific words and phrases. Both techniques require proper citation to give credit to the original author and avoid plagiarism.

Paraphrasing: A Closer Look at Rewording and Restating

Paraphrasing is the act of rewording or restating someone else’s ideas or words in your own language, while maintaining the original meaning. It involves taking the information from the source and presenting it in a different form without changing the message. Paraphrasing is an essential skill used in academic writing, research, and other professional contexts.

When paraphrasing, it is important to understand the original text and its key points. This process requires careful reading and comprehension, as well as the ability to convey the main ideas in a clear and concise way. Paraphrasing allows you to express the same information using different words and sentence structures, while avoiding plagiarism.

One common technique in paraphrasing is to use synonyms or different expressions to replace specific words or phrases from the original text. This helps to maintain the meaning while providing a fresh perspective. Additionally, paraphrasing may involve restructuring sentences or changing the order of ideas to create a more coherent flow of information.

• Benefits of Paraphrasing:
• Enhances understanding: Paraphrasing requires a deep understanding of the source material, enabling you to grasp the concepts and ideas in a meaningful way.
• Improves writing skills: Paraphrasing allows you to develop your writing skills by practicing how to express ideas in your own words while maintaining clarity and coherence.
• Strengthens critical thinking: Through paraphrasing, you engage with the source material more actively, evaluating the information and presenting it from a different perspective.
• Avoids plagiarism: Paraphrasing ensures that you are not copying someone else’s work verbatim and helps you credit the original author by providing proper citations.

Paraphrasing is an effective tool for summarizing, simplifying complex ideas, or explaining information in a way that is easier for the audience to understand. By expressing the content in your own words, you can also add your own insights or interpretations, making the information more personalized and engaging for your readers.

In conclusion, paraphrasing is a valuable skill that allows you to restate someone else’s ideas in your own words, while maintaining the original meaning. It is a useful technique for academic writing, research, and professional communication, offering benefits such as improved understanding, writing skills, critical thinking, and avoiding plagiarism.

Verbatim Quoting: Examining Directly Quoting Text

Verbatim quoting is the act of directly copying and preserving the exact wording of a source in quotation marks. It is an important tool in academic writing and research that allows writers to maintain the integrity and precision of the original author’s words.

When using verbatim quoting, it is crucial to follow the guidelines for accurate and ethical use of quotations. This includes clearly indicating that the text is taken directly from the source and providing appropriate citation to give credit to the original author.

Verbatim quoting can be used to:

• Highlight important or memorable phrases or statements
• Provide evidence or support for arguments
• Engage with and analyze the language used by the author

However, it is essential to use verbatim quotes judiciously and selectively. Over-reliance on direct quotes can make the writing seem unoriginal and lack original analysis. Writers should strive to balance verbatim quotes with their own interpretations and insights.

When using verbatim quotes, it is important to consider the following:

• Quotations should be accurate and faithfully reproduce the original wording and punctuation.
• Long quotes should be indented or set apart from the rest of the text to distinguish them visually.
• Quotations should be integrated smoothly into the writer’s own sentence structure and flow.
• When necessary, it is acceptable to modify a quote slightly for clarity or grammatical correctness, but such changes should be clearly indicated using brackets or ellipses.

In conclusion, verbatim quoting is a valuable tool in academic writing that allows writers to directly convey the words and intentions of the original author. However, it should be used judiciously and ethically, and always accompanied by proper citation to give credit and respect to the source.

Similarities: Overlapping Elements in Paraphrasing and Verbatim Quoting

While paraphrasing and verbatim quoting are distinct approaches to incorporating information from sources into one’s own work, there are certain elements that overlap between the two methods:

• Source Attribution: Both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting require proper attribution of the original source. This is necessary to give credit to the original author and avoid plagiarism.
• Accuracy: Whether paraphrasing or using a verbatim quote, it is important to accurately convey the information from the source. The meaning and intent of the original text should be preserved.
• Contextualization: Both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting necessitate providing context for the information being presented. This helps the audience understand the relevance and significance of the quoted or paraphrased material.

Additionally, both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting should be used ethically and responsibly. Care should be taken to ensure that the original author’s ideas are accurately represented, and any changes made during paraphrasing or selection of verbatim quotes should not distort the original meaning.

Differences: Contrasting Approaches and Techniques

Paraphrasing and verbatim quoting are two distinct approaches to incorporating information from external sources into a written work. While both methods serve to support arguments and provide evidence, they differ in their approach and techniques.

1. Language Usage

One significant difference between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting lies in their use of language. Paraphrasing involves expressing someone else’s ideas or information in your own words, while verbatim quoting involves directly copying the original text word for word. Paraphrasing allows for greater flexibility in how the information is presented, whereas verbatim quoting maintains the original language and wording.

2. Expression and Interpretation

Paraphrasing and verbatim quoting also differ in how they allow for expression and interpretation. Paraphrasing provides an opportunity to interpret the original text and express ideas in the author’s own voice. It allows for better integration of the information into the overall flow and tone of the piece. Verbatim quoting, on the other hand, provides a direct representation of the original author’s words, which allows for less interpretation and expression in the author’s voice.

3. Length and Precision

The length and precision of the information can also vary between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting. Paraphrasing often involves condensing and summarizing the original text to convey the main ideas concisely. It allows for flexibility in deciding which details to include or omit. Verbatim quoting, however, maintains the original length and precision of the source text, making it useful when it is crucial to capture the exact wording or when specific details need to be preserved.

4. Citations and References

Finally, the requirements for citations and references differ between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting. Paraphrasing requires attributing the ideas and information to the original source but does not necessarily require quotation marks. Verbatim quoting, on the other hand, requires the use of quotation marks to indicate a direct quotation, in addition to the citation and reference.

In summary, paraphrasing involves expressing ideas in one’s own words, allowing for interpretation and flexibility in language usage. Verbatim quoting, on the other hand, directly copies the original text, maintaining its language and wording. The techniques used for paraphrasing and verbatim quoting differ in terms of expression, length, and citations, offering writers various options for incorporating external information into their works.

Use Cases: When to Choose Paraphrasing or Verbatim Quoting

When it comes to deciding whether to use paraphrasing or verbatim quoting in your writing, there are certain use cases where one option may be more suitable than the other. Consider the following scenarios:

Preserving the original wording: If the exact wording of the source material is important or contributes to the emphasis or impact of your point, verbatim quoting is the preferred method. This is particularly useful when analyzing specific language or discussing the author’s writing style or tone.

Focusing on the meaning and ideas: When the emphasis is on conveying the main ideas or concepts from the source material rather than the specific wording, paraphrasing is a suitable choice. Paraphrasing allows you to express the ideas in your own words, demonstrating your understanding of the topic.

Reducing the length: Paraphrasing can be useful when you need to condense and simplify information from the source material, especially if space is limited or you want to present the information in a more concise manner.

Blending multiple sources: If you want to combine information from multiple sources, paraphrasing allows you to integrate different perspectives and ideas into a cohesive argument or discussion. Verbatim quoting can be used selectively to highlight specific points or support certain statements.

Avoiding plagiarism: Both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting are effective ways to avoid plagiarism. Paraphrasing involves rephrasing the original content in your own words, while verbatim quoting involves using the exact words of the source and properly citing the author. Both methods require appropriate citation to give credit to the original author.

Ultimately, the decision to use paraphrasing or verbatim quoting depends on the specific requirements of your writing task and the message you want to convey. It is important to consider the purpose, tone, and target audience of your work to determine which method best suits your needs.

Effectiveness and Accuracy: Evaluating the Results

When it comes to paraphrasing and verbatim quoting, evaluating the effectiveness and accuracy of the results is crucial. Both methods have their own advantages and limitations, and understanding how they impact the overall quality of the text is important.

Effectiveness:

Paraphrasing can be highly effective in conveying the author’s ideas in a more concise and clear manner. By using one’s own words and sentence structure, the paraphrased text can be better tailored to the target audience or the desired tone of the writing. It allows for better integration of the ideas into the flow of the overall text.

On the other hand, verbatim quoting can be effective when it is necessary to maintain the exact wording and style of the original source. This is particularly important in cases where the author’s words carry a significant impact or when it is important to provide evidence or support for an argument.

Paraphrasing requires a deep understanding of the original source material in order to accurately convey the intended meaning. It involves interpreting and rephrasing the information in a way that captures the essence of the original text. When done properly, paraphrasing can maintain the accuracy of the information while presenting it in a new form.

Verbatim quoting, on the other hand, ensures the highest level of accuracy as it preserves every word and phrase from the original source. It allows readers to directly access the author’s exact words, ensuring that there is no room for interpretation or misrepresentation.

Evaluating the Results:

When evaluating the results, it is important to consider the purpose and objectives of the writing. If the goal is to summarize or explain complex ideas, paraphrasing may be more effective. However, if the intention is to present evidence or support arguments, verbatim quoting may be necessary to maintain accuracy and credibility.

Additionally, evaluating readability and coherence is essential. Paraphrased text should flow smoothly and seamlessly within the overall writing, without disrupting the reader’s comprehension. Verbatim quoting, while accurate, may result in a text that feels disjointed and less fluent.

Furthermore, the appropriate use of citations and references must be considered. Paraphrasing requires proper attribution and citation to acknowledge the original source, while verbatim quoting relies on quotation marks and accurate referencing to avoid plagiarism and maintain academic integrity.

In conclusion, both paraphrasing and verbatim quoting have their own strengths in terms of effectiveness and accuracy. The choice between the two methods depends on the specific requirements of the writing and the overall goals of the author. By carefully evaluating the results, writers can ensure that their text is both effective in conveying ideas and accurate in representing the original source material.

Question and answer:

What is the difference between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting.

Paraphrasing and verbatim quoting are two different methods of incorporating another person’s ideas or words into your own writing. Paraphrasing involves rephrasing the original source material in your own words, while verbatim quoting means directly copying the source word-for-word.

Which method is more preferable: paraphrasing or verbatim quoting?

The choice between paraphrasing and verbatim quoting depends on the context and purpose of your writing. Paraphrasing is often preferred when you want to summarize or restate an idea in a more concise or accessible manner. Verbatim quoting is useful when you want to provide direct evidence or support for your arguments, or when you want to preserve the original language or style of the source.

Are there any situations where verbatim quoting is necessary?

Verbatim quoting is necessary when you need to provide accurate evidence or quotations from a source. This is particularly important in academic writing, legal documents, or when reporting statements made by someone in an interview or speech. In these cases, it is crucial to use quotation marks and provide proper attribution to the original source.

Can paraphrasing be considered plagiarism?

Paraphrasing can be considered plagiarism if it is not done properly. Plagiarism occurs when you present someone else’s ideas or words as your own without proper attribution. To avoid plagiarism when paraphrasing, it is important to rephrase the original material in your own words and to provide proper citations or references to the original source.

The Art of Paraphrasing: Avoiding Plagiarism

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