Paraphrasing

CHAPTER

1.6

Paraphrasing means changing the wording of a text so that it is

significantly different from the original source, without changing
the meaning. Effective paraphrasing is a key academic skill
needed to avoid the risk of plagiarism: it demonstrates your
understanding of a source. This unit focuses on techniques for
paraphrasing as part of the note-making and summarising
process.

1 The elements of effective paraphrasing

Paraphrasing and summarising are normally used together in essay writing,
but while summarising aims to reduce information to a suitable length,
paraphrasing attempts to restate the relevant information. For example,
the following sentence:

There has been much debate about the reasons for the
industrial revolution happening in eighteenth-century Britain,
rather than in France or Germany.

could be paraphrased:

Why the industrial revolution occurred in Britain in the

eighteenth century, instead of on the continent, has been the
subject of considerable discussion.
 51 1.6 Paraphrasing

1EEE Note that an effective paraphrase usually:

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3 • has a different structure to the original
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• has mainly different vocabulary
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6 • retains the same meaning
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• keeps some phrases from the original that are in common use
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e.g. ‘industrial revolution’ or ‘eighteenth century’
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2 2 Practice A
EEE3
4 I Read the text below and then evaluate the three paraphrases (1=best),
5 giving reasons.
62222
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82 2.1 THE CAUSES OF THE INDUSTRIAL
9
REVOLUTION
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1 Allen (2009) argues that the best explanation for the British
2 location of the industrial revolution is found by studying
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demand factors. By the early eighteenth century high wages
4
5EEE and cheap energy were both features of the British economy.
6 Consequently, the mechanisation of industry through such
7 inventions as the steam engine and mechanical spinning was
8 profitable because employers were able to economise on
9 labour by spending on coal. At that time, no other country
30 had this particular combination of expensive labour and
1
abundant fuel.
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(a) A focus on demand may help to explain the UK origin of the
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industrial revolution. At that time workers’ pay was high, but
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energy from coal was inexpensive. This encouraged the
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development of mechanical inventions based on steam power,
8
which enabled bosses to save money by mechanising
9
production (Allen, 2009).
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1 (b) The reason why Britain was the birthplace of the industrial
2 revolution can be understood by analysing demand in the
36222 early 1700s, according to Allen (2009). He maintains that,
52 Part 1 The writing process

uniquely, Britain had the critical combination of cheap energy

from coal and high labour costs. This encouraged the adoption
of steam power to mechanise production, thus saving on
wages and increasing profitability.
(c) Allen (2009) claims that the clearest explanation for the UK
location of the industrial revolution is seen by examining
demand factors. By the eighteenth century cheap energy and
high wages were both aspects of the British economy. As a
result, the mechanisation of industry through inventions such
as the steam engine and mechanical spinning was profitable
because employers were able to save money on employees by
spending on coal. At that time, Britain was the only country
with significant deposits of coal.

3 Techniques for paraphrasing

(a) Changing vocabulary by using synonyms:
argues > claims/ eighteenth century > 1700s/ wages > labour
costs/ economise > saving

NB. Do not attempt to paraphrase every word, since some have no

true synonym, e.g. demand, economy, energy

(b) Changing word class:

explanation (n.) > explain (v.) / mechanical (adj.) > mechanise
(v.) / profitable (adj.) > profitability (n.)
(c) Changing word order:
. . . the best explanation for the British location of the industrial
revolution is found by studying demand factors.
> A focus on demand may help explain the UK origin of the
industrial revolution.

䉴 See Units 3.2 Academic vocabulary and 3.11 Synonyms

 53 1.6 Paraphrasing

1EEE 4 Practice B
2
3 I Read the following text and then practise the techniques illustrated
4 above.
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4.1 FOUR WHEELS GOOD
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The growth of the car industry parallels the development of
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modern capitalism. It began in France and Germany, but took
1
2 off in the United States. There Henry Ford adapted the moving
EEE3 production line from the Chicago meat industry to motor
4 manufacturing, thus inventing mass production. In the 1920s
5 Alfred Sloan’s management theories helped General Motors to
62222 become the world’s dominant car company. After the second
7
world war the car makers focused on the styling of their
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9 products to encourage more frequent model changes. From
20 the 1970s there was criticism of the industry due to the
1 inefficiency of most vehicles, which used petrol wastefully. At
2 the same time, trades unions became increasingly militant in
3 defence of their members’ jobs. Today the industry owns
4 some of the most famous brands in the world. However, many
5EEE
car makers are currently threatened by increased competition
6
7 and saturated markets.
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1 I (a) Find synonyms for the words underlined.
2 (i) The growth of the car industry parallels the development of
3 modern capitalism.
4
5 Example: The rise of the automobile industry matches the
6 progress of contemporary capitalism.
7 (ii) It began in France and Germany, but took off in the United
8 States.
9
40 (iii) There Henry Ford adapted the moving production line from the
1 Chicago meat industry to motor manufacturing, thus inventing
2 mass production.
36222
54 Part 1 The writing process

I (b) Change the word class of the underlined words, and then re-write
the sentences.

(i) In the 1920s Alfred Sloan’s management theories helped

General Motors to become the world’s dominant car company.
Example: In the 1920s, with help from the managerial theories
of Alfred Sloan, General Motors dominated the world’s car
companies.
(ii) After the second world war the car makers focused on the
styling of their products, to encourage more frequent model
changes.
(iii) From the 1970s there was criticism of the industry due to the
inefficiency of most vehicles, which used petrol wastefully.

I (c) Change the word order of the following sentences (other changes
may be needed).

(i) At the same time, trades unions became increasingly militant

in defence of their members’ jobs.
Example: At the same time increasingly militant trades unions
defended their members’ jobs.
(ii) Today the industry owns some of the most famous brands in
the world.
(iii) However, many car makers are currently threatened by
increased competition and saturated markets.

I (d) Combine all these techniques to paraphrase the paragraph as fully

as possible.
 55 1.6 Paraphrasing

1EEE 5 Practice C
2
3 I Use the same techniques to paraphrase the following text.
4
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6 5.1 THE PAST BELOW THE WAVES
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8 More than three million shipwrecks are believed to lie on the seabed, the result
9 of storms and accidents during thousands of years of sea-borne trading. These
10 wrecks offer marine archaeologists valuable information about the culture,
1
technology and trade patterns of ancient civilisations, but the vast majority have
2
been too deep to research. Scuba divers can only operate down to 50 metres,
EEE3
4 which limits operations to wrecks near the coast, which have often been
5 damaged by storms or plant growth. A few deep sea sites (such as the Titanic)
62222 have been explored by manned submarines, but this kind of equipment has been
7 too expensive for less famous subjects. However, this situation has been changed
82 by the introduction of a new kind of mini submarine: the automatic underwater
9
vehicle (AUV). This cheap, small craft is free moving and does not need an
20
1 expensive mother-ship to control it. Now a team of American archaeologists are
2 planning to use an AUV to explore an area of sea north of Egypt which was the
3 approach to a major trading port 4,000 years ago.
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36222 @ Paraphrasing>
 Summarising
CHAPTER

1.7

Making oral summaries is a common activity, for example when

describing a film or a book. In academic writing it is a vital skill,
allowing the writer to condense lengthy sources into a concise
form. Like most skills it becomes easier with practice, and this
unit explains the basic steps needed to achieve an accurate
summary.

1 What makes a good summary?

I Write a summary of one of the topics below in no more than 20 words.

(a) One of your parents

(b) A town or city you know well
(c) A film you have recently watched
 57 1.7 Summarising

1EEE I Compare your summary with others in your class. What is needed for a
2 good summary?
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•
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____________________________________________________________
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6 •
7 ____________________________________________________________
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9 •
10 ____________________________________________________________
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EEE3 2 Stages of summarising
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5 Summarising is a flexible tool. You can use it to give a one-sentence
62222 synopsis of an article, or to provide much more detail, depending on your
7 writing needs. But in every case the same basic steps need to be followed
82 in order to meet the criteria discussed in (1).
9
I Study the stages of summary writing below, which have been mixed
20
up. Put them in the correct order.
1
2 (a) Write the summary from your notes, re-organising the
3 structure if needed.
4
5EEE (b) Make notes of the key points, paraphrasing where possible.
6 (c) Read the original text carefully and check any new or difficult
7 vocabulary.
8
9 (d) Mark the key points by underlining or highlighting.
30 (e) Check the summary to ensure it is accurate and nothing
1 important has been changed or lost.
2
3
4 3 Practice A
5
6 I Read the following text (3.1) and the summaries (a)–(c).
7 Rate them 1 (best) – 3.
8
9 (a) Fruit crops have usually been picked by hand, as it is difficult
40 to mechanise the process. But in rich countries it has become
1 hard to find affordable pickers at the right time so fruit is often
2 wasted. Therefore intelligent machines have been developed
36222 that can overcome the technical problems involved, and also
provide the farmer with useful data about the plants.
58 Part 1 The writing process

3.1 MECHANICAL PICKERS

Although harvesting cereal crops such as wheat and barley has long been done
by large machines known as combine harvesters, mechanising the picking of fruit
crops such as tomatoes or apples has proved more difficult. Farmers have
generally relied on human labour to harvest these, but in wealthy countries it has
become increasingly difficult to find pickers willing to work for the wages farmers
are able to pay. This is partly because the demand for labour is seasonal, usually
in the autumn, and also because the work is hard and demanding. As a result, in
areas such as California part of the fruit harvest is often unpicked and left to rot.

There are several obvious reasons why developing mechanical pickers is

challenging. Fruit such as grapes or strawberries comes in a variety of shapes
and does not always ripen at the same time. Outdoors, the ground conditions
can vary from dry to muddy, and winds may move branches around. Clearly each
crop requires its own solution: machines may be towed through orchards by
tractors or move around by themselves using sensors to detect the ripest fruit.

This new generation of fruit harvesters is possible due to advances in computing

power and sensing ability. Such devices will inevitably be expensive, but will
save farmers from the complexities of managing a labour force. In addition, the
more intelligent pickers should be able to develop a database of information on
the health of each individual plant, enabling the grower to provide it with fertiliser
and water to maintain its maximum productivity.

(b) Developing machines that can pick fruit such as tomatoes or

apples is a challenging task, due to the complexity of locating
ripe fruit in an unpredictable outdoor environment, where
difficult conditions can be produced by wind or water. But
recent developments in computing ability mean that growers
can now automate this process, which should save them
money and increase their profits.
(c) Strawberries and grapes are the kind of crops that have always
been hand-picked. But many farmers, for example in
California, now find it increasingly difficult to attract enough
pickers when the fruit is ripe. However, computing advances
have produced a solution to this problem, which will save
farmers from worrying about the pickers, and also collect vital
data.
 59 1.7 Summarising

1EEE 4 Practice B
2
3 I Read the following text and underline the key points.
4
5
6 4.1 WEALTH AND FERTILITY
7
8 For most of the past century an inverse correlation between human fertility and
9 economic development has been found. This means that as a country got richer,
10 the average number of children born to each woman got smaller. While in the
1
poorest countries women often have eight children, the rate fell as low as 1.3 in
2
EEE3 some European countries such as Italy, which is below the replacement rate.
4 Such a low rate has two likely negative consequences: the population will fall in
5 the long term, and a growing number of old people will have to be supported by
62222 a shrinking number of young. But a recent study by researchers from
7 Pennsylvania University suggests that this pattern may be changing. They related
82
countries’ fertility rates to their human development index (HDI), a figure with a
9
maximum value of 1.0, which assesses life expectancy, average income and
20
1 education level. Over 20 countries now have an HDI of more than 0.9, and in a
2 majority of these the fertility rate has started to increase, and in some is
3 approaching two children per woman. Although there are exceptions such as
4 Japan, it appears that ever higher levels of wealth and education eventually
5EEE translate into a desire for more children.
6
7
8
9 䉴 See Unit 1.5 Finding key points and note-making
30
1 I Complete the notes of the key points below.
2
3 (a) Falling levels of fertility have generally been found ___________
4 ___________________________________________________________
5
6 (b) In some, number of children born ___________________________
7 ___________________________________________________________
8
9 (c) Two results: smaller populations and ________________________
40 ___________________________________________________________
1
2 (d) Recent research claims that _________________________________
36222 ___________________________________________________________
60 Part 1 The writing process

(e) Comparison of HDI (human development index: _____________

_______________________________________) with fertility found
that in most highly rated (+0.9) countries, ___________________
__________________________________________________________

I Join the notes together and expand them to make the final summary.
Check that the meaning is clear and no important points have been left
out. Find a suitable title.

This summary is about 35 per cent of the original length, but it could be
summarised further.

I Summarise the summary in no more than 20 words.

 61 1.7 Summarising

1EEE 5 Practice C
2
3 I Summarise the following text in about 50 words.
4
5
6 5.1 THE LAST WORD IN LAVATORIES?
7
8 Toto is a leading Japanese manufacturer of bathroom ceramic ware, with annual
9 worldwide sales of around $5 bn. One of its best-selling ranges is the Washlet
10
lavatory, priced at up to $5,000 and used in most Japanese homes. This has
1
features such as a heated seat, and can play a range of sounds. This type of toilet
2
EEE3 is successful in its home market since many flats are small and crowded, and
4 bathrooms provide valued privacy. Now Toto hopes to increase its sales in
5 Europe and America, where it faces a variety of difficulties. European countries
62222 tend to have their own rules about lavatory design, so that different models have
7 to be made for each market. Although Toto claims that its Washlet toilet uses less
82
water than the average model, one factor that may delay its penetration into
9
20 Europe is its need for an electrical socket for installation, as these are prohibited
1 in bathrooms by most European building regulations.
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