What is Paraphrasing
Paraphrasing is a restatement of a text in another form or other words. It is performed by means of our personal words to express other people's messages or ideas. When we paraphrase, we preserve the basic idea and information of the original text.
How to Paraphrase Effectively
When you write a paper, you use some information that you have read in books, journals, on the Internet, etc. Your teacher might have told you, "Use your own words." In other words, even when you use someone else's information, you are not allowed to use the words they wrote. You have to use your own. You have to say the same thing in a different way. This is called paraphrasing.
For example, if the book you are reading from says, "John Adams, who was involved in winning independence for the United States, was the second President." You cannot write those words in your paper. You cannot even write, "John Adams, a man involved in winning independence for the United States, was its second President." One way that you could re-write it is to say, "The second American President, John Adams, was also influential in gaining freedom for the country."
However, in spite of being told to use your own words, you might not know how to do it. There are a variety of techniques you can use. You can change the words for words of similar meaning; you can change the grammar; you can change the grammar or grammatical forms. In this reading, you will learn about ways that you can paraphrase.
Methods of Paraphrasing
Before you even begin to paraphrase, you need to make certain that you understand what you are reading. If you do not understand the text, you cannot paraphrase it.
There are many different ways or methods. By using these methods you can change sentences to paraphrase the information. You will probably not use all of them in the same sentence, but you can use the ones that are appropriate for certain contexts. Read about each type of change and study the examples.
We will discuss the following methods of paraphrasing:
- Using Synonyms
- Using Idiomatic Expressions
- Combining Different Techniques: Changing to a Phrase and Adding Synonyms, Phrases or Short Definitions
- Using Negatives or Opposite Expressions
- Changing Word Order
- Changing Parts of Speech
- Changing from Quoted Speech to Indirect Speech
- Combining or Separating Sentences
- Using Different Grammatical Structure, Voice, Tense and Singular-Plural
- Changing Transitions
- Using a Series of Adjectives
- Using Number Tricks
1. Using Synonyms
A synonym is a word or phrase that has almost the same meaning as another word or phrase. For example, 'smart', 'clever' and 'intelligent' are all synonyms because they can have almost the same meaning in most contexts. This allows us to paraphrase, i.e. to replace a word for a synonym (another words with a similar meaning).
If two things are equivalent, they are almost equal to each other, although they might not be the same in different locations. For example, the British 'prime minister' is equivalent to the United States 'president' because both the 'prime minister' and 'president' are the most powerful people in their country.
Examples:
A hotel employee will carry Brenda's bags.
A bell boy will carry Brenda's luggage.
A porter will carry Brenda's suitcases.
Movies can be divided into three categories.
Movies can be divided into three types.
The way a person dresses affects the impression that other people have.
The way a person dresses influences the image that other people have.
There is little chance that the situation will improve.
There is little possibility that the circumstances will get better.
2. Using Idiomatic Expressions
We should keep in mind that idiomatic expressions usually have special meanings and implications which can differ from their literal meaning.
Examples:
John kicked the bucket.
John died.
Out of the blue, the door opened and the little boy entered the chamber.
Suddenly, the little boy opened the door and came into the assembly room.
He saw red.
He was angry.
3. Combining Different Techniques: Changing to a Phrase and Adding Synonyms, Phrases or Short Definitions
Examples:
David ate lunch and took a nap.
After he ate lunch, David took a nap.
After eating lunch, David slept a little.
The house that is across the street is old.
The house across the street is old.
The house on the other side of the street is old.
The dwelling on the other side of the road is ancient.
4. Using Negatives or Opposite Expressions
Another way to paraphrase is to change a positive expression into a negative expression, or a negative expression into a positive expression.
Examples:
Rather than building a traditional memorial, the city built a park.
The city did not build a traditional memorial; instead it built a park.
Mary was disappointed, because the movie wasn't very good.
Mary wasn't satisfied, because the movie wasn't very good.
Japan is not a small country, compared to European countries.
Japan is a large country, compared to European countries.
Peter wanted some candy, but there wasn't any in the bowl.
Peter wanted some candy, but the bowl was empty.
5. Changing Word Order
It is possible to change the word order in a sentences without changing its meaning.
Examples:
Because I slept too late, I missed my first class.
I missed my first class because I slept too late.
The most effective way to build your English skill is to study regularly.
The most effective way of building your English skill is to do studying on a regular basis.
In order to pass that exam, I had to study very hard.
I had to study very hard in order to pass that exam.
Terry wanted more books, but he could not afford them.
Terry could not afford more books, even though he wanted them.
If you are going to Toronto for Christmas, be sure to take warm clothes.
Be sure to take warm clothes, if you are going to Toronto for Christmas.
Even though the weather was good, David was in a bad mood.
David was in a bad mood, even though the weather was good.
I had no money, so I borrowed some.
I borrowed some money, because I had none.
6. Changing Parts of Speech
You can also change parts of speech. If the sentence uses a noun, you can rewrite the sentence to use the verb or adjective form of the word.
Examples:
The two men signed the document.
The two men put their signatures on the document.
Jane is an accurate typist.
Jane types accurately.
The organization needs to find a solution for this problem.
The organization needs to solve this problem.
After he ate lunch, David took a nap.
After eating lunch, David took a nap.
After having eaten lunch, David took a nap.
The poor economy has been the cause of high unemployment.
The poor economy has caused high unemployment.
If you eat rabbit, you will find its taste like chicken.
If you eat rabbit, you will find it tastes like chicken.
7. Changing from Quoted Speech to Indirect Speech
Changing from quoted speech to indirect speech is an effective way of paraphrasing because the verb tenses are inevitably adjusted. In addition, some pronouns are also changed. As a result of such changes, “I” becomes “she” and “am” becomes “was”. But that is not everything. You will still have to change other words.
Examples:
Brenda said, “I am ready for lunch.”
Brenda said, she was ready for lunch.
Brenda said, she felt like eating lunch now.
8. Combining or Separating Sentences
Long sentences can be divided, and short sentences can be combined with other short sentences. You may combine two or three simple sentences if one verb and adjective can be found that expresses (or refers to) the same meaning.
Examples:
Dogs make nice pets. Cats are good pets too. Many people like birds and fish.
Dogs, cats, birds, and fish are popular pets.
Ireland is a wonderful country, which has beautiful scenery, friendly people, and an interesting history.
Ireland is a wonderful country. It has beautiful scenery, friendly people, and an interesting history.
Ireland is a wonderful country. It has beautiful scenery, friendly people, and an interesting history.
Ireland, which is a wonderful country, has beautiful scenery, friendly people, and an interesting history.
Elizabeth I was the daughter of Henry VIII. She is one of England 's most famous queens.
Elizabeth I, who was the daughter of Henry VIII, was one of England 's most famous queens.
This book is about a woman who pretended to be a man to join the army in World War II. It is one of Brenda 's favorite books.
This book, which is one of Brenda 's favorites, is about a woman who pretended to be a man to join the army in World War II.
If you go to London, you should be sure to visit Westminster Abbey, where many of the kings and queens of England, as well as other famous people, are buried.
If you go to London, you should be sure to visit Westminster Abbey. Many kings and queens of England are buried there. Other famous people are buried there, too.
9. Using Different Grammatical Structure, Voice, Tense and Singular-Plural
You can paraphrase by changing the grammatical structure of a sentence. You can change active voice into passive voice or vice versa. You can change nouns into verbs or verbs into adjectives or adverbs.
Examples:
The dog bit the man.
The man was bitten by the dog.
A hotel employee will carry Brenda's bags.
Brenda's bags will be carried by a hotel employee.
To improve English, you should learn new vocabulary on a daily basis.
To improve English, new vocabulary should be learned on a daily basis.
It is not unusual for June to be a rainy month here.
June is often a rainy month here.
It is thought that this new plan will save money.
Many people think that this new plan will save money.
Various languages are spoken in this country.
The people of this country speak various languages.
David studied Japanese, and, as a result, he translated for our visitors from Japan.
David could translate for our visitors from Japan, because he had studied Japanese.
Bob got married four times and had eight children.
Bob had four wives and was the father of eight.
10. Changing Transitions
Changing the transitions in sentences is a quick way to change key words. You should apply a few other paraphrasing techniques until the sentence has no more than two words in the same order as the original sentence.
Examples:
Although it was raining, Bob walked to work.
It was raining, but Bob walked to work.
It was raining; however, Bob walked to work.
11. Using a Series of Adjectives
Instead of using the conjunction “and,” you can take advantage of the special adjective order characteristic of English. Please pay attention to the fact that the writer used the verb have to replace the possessive apostrophe.
John’s car is old and dangerous.
John has a dangerous old car.
12. Using Number Tricks
There are some creative ways to paraphrase numbers. You will be able to paraphrase very effectively if you know that dual and couple mean two, trio means three, double means twice, a baker’s dozen is thirteen, a century is a hundred years, 72 hours is three days, and 53 hundred is another way to say 5,300. You can change 1,200 to 12 hundred or twelve hundred. In addition, you can use half, quarters, and thirds creatively.
One hundred = a century (one century)
One thousand = a millennium
Five hundred years = half a millennium
10 years = a decade (one decade)
Thirty years = three decades
One and a half years = 18 months (eighteen months)
Twenty = one score
One and a half hours = 90 minutes
Twelve = a dozen (one dozen).
Study the Following Examples
Study the following sentences and explain the techniques that have been used. Suggest some other ways of paraphrasing (give your ideas):
1. Gone with the Wind, which was published in 1936, covered 12 years of the life of a woman named Scarlett O'Hara during and after the Civil War. It began when she was 16 year old and tells the story of her love for two men.
Published in 1936, Gone with the Wind was the story of Scarlett O'Hara and the two men she loved. It covers Scarlett’s life from the time she was 16 until she was 28, during the Civil War and the years that followed.
2. While California's cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco are probably better known, California is fortunate enough to have a great deal of beautiful scenery, both in its mountains and along its coast.
California might be well known for its cities, but it also has beautiful mountain and ocean landscapes.
3. The Internet is a vast treasure house of knowledge, but it does not have any central organization, and so it can be difficult to find information, if you are not familiar with it.
A great deal of information is available on the Internet. However, because the information is not well organized, people who are not used to using the Internet may have difficulty finding the information they want.
4. Americans consider someone who looks them in the eye to be honest. A person who looks down or looks away, in contrast, is suspected of being dishonest.
For people from the US, not looking someone in the eye is an indication of not telling the truth, while meeting a person’s eyes is a sign that they are telling the truth.
Some of the above examples were retrieved from Paraphrasing. S. Kathleen Kitao, Kenji Kitao, www.msbandas.weebly.com/uploads/2/6/1/6/26160238/paraphrasing.doc
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