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Paraphrasing, Summarizing, Synthesizing

The document discusses paraphrasing, which is rewriting the ideas of another person in one's own words. It provides techniques for paraphrasing such as changing parts of speech, using synonyms, altering word order, and varying sentence structure and connecting words. The purpose of paraphrasing is to support one's own views using the work of others. When paraphrasing, the meaning must remain the same while changing the words and structure.

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86 views

Paraphrasing, Summarizing, Synthesizing

The document discusses paraphrasing, which is rewriting the ideas of another person in one's own words. It provides techniques for paraphrasing such as changing parts of speech, using synonyms, altering word order, and varying sentence structure and connecting words. The purpose of paraphrasing is to support one's own views using the work of others. When paraphrasing, the meaning must remain the same while changing the words and structure.

Uploaded by

Kübra Topçu
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is writing the ideas of another person in


your own words. Paraphrasing is useful when you are
using the work of others to support your own view. When
paraphrasing, you need to change the words and the
structure but keep the meaning the same.

Paraphrasing/ Study the example below:


Source
Rewriting It has long been known that Cairo is the most populous
city on earth, but no-one knew exactly how populous it
was until last month.
Paraphrase
Although Cairo has been the world's most heavily
populated city for many years, the precise population was
not known until four weeks ago.
Techniques for Paraphrasing
1. Change a word from one part of speech to another
Original: The pollution caused by cars has a serious effect on the
environment.
Paraphrase: The pollution that cars cause seriously affects the
environment.

2. Use synonyms
Original: A leading German company has started a new program to
reduce costs.
Paraphrase: A top German firm has launched a new program to cut costs.
Techniques for Paraphrasing
3. Change word order
Original: The government reported that malaria kills more than one million
people annually.
Paraphrase: Every year, more than a million people are killed by malaria.

4. Change the sentence structure and use different connecting words


Original: The students couldn’t concentrate. There was a lot of noise in the
corridor.
Paraphrase: Due to the noise in the corridor, the students had difficulty in
concentrating.
Summarizing
A summary is a shortened version of a text. It contains the main points in the text and is
written in your own words. It is a mixture of reducing a long text to a short text and
selecting relevant information.
Study the example below:
 
Source
There are times when the night sky glows with bands of color. The bands may begin as
cloud shapes and then spread into a great arc across the entire sky. They may fall in folds
like a curtain drawn across the heavens. The lights usually grow brighter, then suddenly
dim. During this time the sky glows with pale yellow, pink, green, violet, blue, and red.
These lights are called the Aurora Borealis. Some people call them the Northern Lights.
Scientists have been watching them for hundreds of years. They are not quite sure what
causes them. In ancient times, people were afraid of the Lights. They imagined that they
saw fiery dragons in the sky. Some even concluded that the heavens were on fire.

Summary
The Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, are bands of color in the night sky. Ancient
people thought that these lights were dragons on fire, and even modern scientists are
not sure what they are.
A tornado is a powerful, twisting
windstorm. It begins high in the air,
among the winds of a giant storm cloud.
People who have watched a tornado’s
howling winds reach down from the sky
have said it’s the most frightening thing
Study the they have ever seen. In some parts of the
United States, these windstorms are
example called twisters or cyclones.

Tornadoes are frightening, powerful,


twisting windstorms sometimes called
twisters or cyclones that start in giant
storm clouds.
Synthesizing
A synthesis is a combination, usually a shortened version, of several
texts made into one. It contains the important points in the text and is
written in your own words. To make a synthesis you need to find
suitable sources, and then to select the relevant parts in those sources.
You will then use your paraphrase and summary skills to write the
information in your own words.
• “The examination system in schools and
universities must be changed. It is very unfair. A
young person’s future can be decided on a single
day, when he or she may be ill or experiencing
other problems.” (Jonathan Myers)

• “It is almost impossible to change the exam


Study the system. If students are judged on homework, they
may cheat. If they are judged on class work, the

example
teacher may give better grades to favourite
students. Therefore, we need to keep the exam
system.” (Angela Smith)

Jonathan Myers claims that the examination system


has to be changed as it is unfair to evaluate students
only on a single day, whereas Angela Smith says the
total opposite and thinks that exams show a
student’s real progress.
You are Great!

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