Avoiding Plagiarism - Paraphrasing
In writing papers, you will paraphrase more than you will quote. For a report or research paper, you may need to gather background information that is important to the paper but not worthy of direct quotation. Indeed, in technical writing direct quotation is rarely used.
Exactly what does "paraphrase" mean?
It means taking the words of another source and restating them, using your own vocabulary. In this way, you keep the meaning of the original text, but do not copy its exact wording.
Because of their unique perspective, Americans fear globalization less than anyone else, and as a consequence they think about it less than anyone else. When Americans do think about globalization, they think of the global economy as an enlarged version of the American economy.
According to Lester Thurow (1993) Americans fear globalization less than people from other countries and as a consequence spend less time thinking about it. Indeed, Americans see globalization as an enlarged version of their own economy.
The writer has used Thurow's exact words without enclosing them in quotation marks. S/he has only substituted synonyms here and there. Even though Thurow is credited with a citation, this would be considered plagiarism.
Lester Thurow (1993) maintains that because Americans see globalization simply as a bigger form of their own economy, they are less concerned about it than is the rest of the world.
The writer has kept the meaning of the original passage without copying words or structure. Words like globalization and Americans are generic terms (i.e., terms that are commonly used for the concept they illustrate - it is difficult to find synonyms for them). Thus you may use these words without placing them in quotation marks.
What strategies can I use to paraphrase?
Use synonyms for all words that are not generic. Words like world, food, or science are so basic to our vocabulary that is difficult to find a synonym.
Like drought, excess rainfall and flooding can also contribute to epidemics of waterborne infectious diseases, in this case due to poor sanitation resulting from runoff from overwhelmed sewage lines or the contamination of water by livestock.
(Source: Shuman, E., M.D. (2010, March 25). Global climate change and infectious diseases. New England Journal of Medicine; 362, 12, 1061-1063. Retrieved from nejm.org at MIT Libraries.)
An overabundance of rainfall can also be a factor in spreading infectious diseases carried by water, usually as a result of overflowing sewers and pollution from farm animals (Shuman, 2010).
When there is an overabundance of rainfall, two situations can occur: sewers can overflow and water can become polluted by the presence of livestock, both of which can lead to outbreaks of waterborne diseases (Shuman, 2010).
(Source: Venkat Narayan, K.M., Ali, M.K., and Koplan, J. (2010, September 23). Global noncomunicable diseases – where worlds meet. The New England Journal of Medicine, 363; 13. 1196-1198. Retrieved from nejm.org at MIT Libraries.)
Researchers point out that in attempting to implement economic growth, industry is often favored over health: government may subsidize certain forms of agriculture and food production, contribute to tobacco consumption in nations where it owns the industry and otherwise promote growth of industries that pollute. (Venkat Narayan et. al, 2011).
(Source: Venkat Narayan, K.M., , Ali, M.K., and Koplan, J. (2010, September 23). Global noncomunicable diseases – where worlds meet. The New England Journal of Medicine, 363; 13. 1196-1198. Retrieved from nejm.org at MIT Libraries.)
A good paraphrase combines a number of strategies: the goal is to rephrase the information so that it appears in your words, not those of the author.
(Source: Siegel, B. (1986).
Love, Medicine and Miracles (p. 69). New York: Harper and Row.)
(Source: Siegel, B. (1986).
Love, Medicine and Miracles (p. 69). New York: Harper and Row.)
The writer had only substituted synonyms in certain places; in others the wording is exactly the same as that of the original.
Even though the writer mentions the original source in the introductory phrase, the result is plagiarism.
Although the writer has changed the structure of the sentence, key phrases have been taken directly from the original.
Even though the writer mentions the original source in the introductory phrase, the result is plagiarism.
Avoiding Plagiarism - Paraphrasing
In writing papers, you will paraphrase more than you will quote. For a report or research paper, you may need to gather background information that is important to the paper but not worthy of direct quotation. Indeed, in technical writing direct quotation is rarely used.
It means taking the words of another source and restating them, using your own vocabulary. In this way, you keep the meaning of the original text, but do not copy its exact wording.
Because of their unique perspective, Americans fear globalization less than anyone else, and as a consequence they think about it less than anyone else. When Americans do think about globalization, they think of the global economy as an enlarged version of the American economy.
According to Lester Thurow (1993) Americans fear globalization less than people from other countries and as a consequence spend less time thinking about it. Indeed, Americans see globalization as an enlarged version of their own economy.
The writer has used Thurow's exact words without enclosing them in quotation marks. S/he has only substituted synonyms here and there. Even though Thurow is credited with a citation, this would be considered plagiarism.
Lester Thurow (1993) maintains that because Americans see globalization simply as a bigger form of their own economy, they are less concerned about it than is the rest of the world.
The writer has kept the meaning of the original passage without copying words or structure. Words like globalization and Americans are generic terms (i.e., terms that are commonly used for the concept they illustrate - it is difficult to find synonyms for them). Thus you may use these words without placing them in quotation marks.
📌 Is Rewording Plagiarism?
Readers may not feel motivated towards a piece if the writer uses incorrect phrases or failing to appreciate the varied shades of meaning in the English language. Lester Thurow 1993 maintains that because Americans see globalization simply as a bigger form of their own economy, they are less concerned about it than is the rest of the world.
This version has synonyms and adds an extra preposition. Unfortunately, the alternatives "problematic" and "explain" tamper with the original meaning. Let's see how to paraphrase this paragraph properly:
Resources:
https://integrity.mit.edu/handbook/academic-writing/avoiding-plagiarism-paraphrasing
https://www.standoutessay.com/study-tools/free-paraphrasing-tool
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