paraphrasing vs plagiarism examples

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A Guide to Plagiarism and Paraphrasing

According to the joint research efforts of Dr. Donald McCabe and the International Center for Academic Integrity , nearly 30% of university students admit to having cheated in some way on an exam.

Understanding how and when to cite sources is a critical skill for students to learn. Whether you borrow someone’s ideas from a textbook, blog post, or academic journal, you must give proper credit while representing the source’s ideas fairly and coherently.

This guide covers:

• Paraphrasing
• Plagiarism checkers, citation managers, and writing tools

The Purdue Global Writing Center defines plagiarism as “using another's words, ideas, results, or images without giving appropriate credit to that person, therefore, giving the impression that it is your own work.”

Types of Plagiarism

University of Oxford notes eight common forms of plagiarism:

• Verbatim plagiarism: Copying someone else’s work word for word.
• Cutting and pasting from web pages without clear acknowledgement: Pulling information off the internet without referencing it and without including it in the bibliography.
• Paraphrasing: Paraphrasing so closely so that the copy is almost an exact match to the original.
• Collusion: In group projects, or projects in which you received help, failing to properly attribute the assistance or failure to follow the project’s rules.
• Inaccurate citation: Failing to cite correctly, according to the conventions of your discipline.
• Failure to acknowledge assistance: Failing to clearly acknowledge all assistance that has contributed to your work (ordinary proofreading and help from a tutor or supervisor is excepted).
• Use of material written by professional agencies or other people: Using material that was written by a professional agency or another person, even if you have the consent of the person who wrote it.
• Auto-plagiarism (also known as self-plagiarism): Reusing work that you’ve previously submitted or published; presenting that information as new when you’ve already gotten credit for the work.

A new concern revolves around AI and copying directly from chat, composition, and visual tools. Using prompts to generate content for assignments and passing it off as your own contribution is considered plagiarism. Various organizations use AI software to check for submissions generated by a chatbot.

Also, keep in mind that AI tools may produce inaccurate and unreliable information. While there may be valid use cases for informal AI-generated brainstorming, this is a complex and evolving topic. Be sure to verify the policy expressed by your school, professors, or professional organizations for recent developments.

It’s important to note that plagiarism can be intentional or unintentional. Unintentional plagiarism occurs when a student unknowingly cites a source inaccurately or improperly. Intentional plagiarism, on the other hand, is when a student chooses not to cite a source or tries to pass off someone else’s ideas as their own.

Consequences of Plagiarism

The consequences of plagiarism vary by institution, but it could get you expelled or dropped from a course. In less severe instances, plagiarism — both intentional and unintentional — may result in a grade penalty, course failure, or suspension. Beyond the academic consequences, plagiarism also tarnishes your reputation and minimizes your integrity. Whether you’re in school or the working world, plagiarism is not a good look.

How to Avoid Plagiarism

The key to avoiding plagiarism is learning how to incorporate research into your writing. According to the Purdue Global Writing Center , you can do this in the following ways:

• Quoting: If you don’t want to alter a source, use quotation marks to enclose all verbatim phrases.
• Summarizing: If you find multiple relevant points in a lengthy text, simplify them into your own condensed synopsis.
• Paraphrasing: If you want to use a source’s information, restate it in your own words.

Whether you’re quoting, summarizing, or paraphrasing, don’t forget to cite all sources.

What Is Paraphrasing?

Paraphrasing is using your own words to convey the meaning of an excerpt. It shows your reader that you did your research and understand the content. While students may understand that they need to cite sources, many struggle with paraphrasing the ideas of others into their own words. However, like many aspects of writing, effective paraphrasing is a skill developed over time.

How to Approach Paraphrasing

The goal of paraphrasing is to translate the original work into your own wording and sentence structure. The best way to approach this is to focus on the meaning of the text, forcing you to interact with its purpose and context.

Paraphrasing Tips

A good way to judge your understanding of material is to see if you can explain it to someone else. Once you have this level of understanding, it’s easier to create effective paraphrases — changing the language and structure of a passage becomes more manageable.

Here are some tips to help you paraphrase:

• Reread the passage until you fully understand its meaning.
• Write your own summary of the passage without referencing the original.
• Check that your summary accurately captures the context of the original passage.
• Document the source information following your summary, whether it’s an endnote or footnote.

Remember that you still need to cite your paraphrases, but your follow-up analysis and discussion points belong to you.

What Requires Citation?

Any time you use information that isn’t common knowledge or you didn’t come up with yourself, you must cite it. The following requires citation, usually through in-text citation or a reference list entry:

• Quotes: If you are quoting the actual words someone said, put the words in quotation marks and cite the source.
• Information and ideas: If you obtain ideas or information from somewhere else, cite it — even if you paraphrase the original content.
• Illustrations: If you use someone else’s graphic, table, figure, or artwork, you must credit the source. These may also require permission and a copyright notice.
• Photographs: If you use your own photography or an image that allows use without attribution, no citation is required. In other cases, add a note below the image and a corresponding reference citation.

Common Knowledge Exception

You don’t need to cite information that’s considered common knowledge in the public domain — as long as you reword the well-known fact. According to the Purdue Global Writing Center , information must have the following traits to be considered common knowledge:

• The reader would already be aware of it.
• It’s a widely accepted fact; for example, there are 24 hours in a day.
• It’s accessible via common information sources.
• It originates from folklore or a well-known story.
• It’s commonly acknowledged in your field and known by your audience.

Why Citation Is Important

The importance of citation goes beyond the avoidance of plagiarism. According to the Purdue Global Writing Center’s Plagiarism Information page, citation:

• Distinguishes new ideas from existing information
• Reinforces arguments regarding a particular topic
• Allows readers to find your sources and conduct additional research
• Maintains ethical research and writing
• Ensures attribution of ideas, avoiding plagiarism

Additionally, proper citation enhances your credibility with readers, displays your critical thinking skills, and demonstrates your strong writing ability.

Plagiarism Prevention and Writing Resources

It takes time to develop strong writing and paraphrasing skills. Thinking of writing as more of a discussion than a report may help you develop your skills. Remember that it’s not about reporting and repeating information; it’s about expanding on ideas and making them your own.

Below are some tools to help you avoid plagiarism, accurately cite sources, and improve your writing as you develop your own unique voice.

Plagiarism Checkers

• DupliChecker
• Grammarly's Plagiarism Checker
• Plagiarism Detector

Citation Managers

• Academic Writer
• Grammarly’s Free Citation Generator

>> Read: Apps and Extensions to Help You With APA Citations

Writing Tools

Check out purdue global’s writing center resources.

The Purdue Global Writing Center can help guide students through the paper writing process — from avoiding plagiarism to proper paraphrasing to getting the right citations.

Students may access this resource from the Purdue Global campus homepage . Click “My Studies,” followed by “Academic Success Center.”

From there, students have several options:

• Ask a writing tutor
• Connect with a tutor for a one-on-one session
• Browse the Study Studio
• Watch webinars

Students can check out the Using Sources & APA Style page , which includes several resources to guide students through the process of formatting a document and citing sources in the American Psychological Association (APA) style. The Plagiarism Information page offers a tutorial designed to help students identify instances of plagiarism and understand how to avoid them.

See Notes and Conditions below for important information.

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Paraphrasing vs Plagiarism (vs “Paraphrasing Plagiarism”)

• Posted on November 10, 2021 December 16, 2021

If you’ve done a fair share of writing, academically or otherwise, you’ve likely heard of both plagiarizing and paraphrasing. You’ve probably combed over essays or reports for accurate information and correct citations, but somehow someone always spot something you missed.

It can be confusing to avoid plagiarism with so many types out there and without a clear outline of the rules. Even more so when paraphrasing plagiarism sits on a fine line between what’s allowed and what’s not.

What Is Plagiarism?

Most people have a basic understanding of plagiarism : copying someone else’s words or work without crediting the original author or owner.

If you were to borrow a direct quotation from a famous film character and claim it as your own idea, chances are no one would believe you. But, that doesn’t change the fact that it would be considered plagiarism.

We tend to hear about plagiarism in terms of written works, but it covers all manner of works. A general guideline is to consider copyright. If it can be copyrighted, it can be plagiarized.

What is Copyright?

Copyright is the legal protection of intellectual property. Therefore, only the  copyright owner has the legal right to reproduce or allow the reproduction of their work.

While many authors, artists, composers, and creators might choose to file the paperwork to claim the copyright of their work, you don’t need to make it official. Copyright is intrinsic. The second you complete your poem or compose a new song, you are the copyright owner.

Copyright law can vary depending on the country. Although there is no such thing as international copyright, most countries offer some protections for foreign works.

In the US, copyright protection lasts for the duration of the author’s life plus 70 years. Additionally, work for hire, anonymous, or pseudonymous lasts 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation. As creation and publication are different standards, the protection defaults to whichever is shorter.

What if an artist borrowed a section of Starry Night, such as using the sky portion over an original cityscape? Imagine the artist doesn’t have malicious intent but rather the intention to pay homage to an inspirational creator.

While writing your original novel, what if you include a paragraph or chapter that plays off ‘Riddles in the Dark’ from The Hobbit? Of course, Gollum and Bilbo aren’t in the scene, but your characters similarly exchange riddles.

Van Gogh died in 1890, so he no longer owns the copyright. Therefore, works by Van Gogh are in the  public domain , meaning the general public may use or recreate them without obtaining permission.

Public domain includes works with expired copyrights, public works intended for general public use, and short phrases. For example, “Beam me up,” most associated with Star Trek is free to use.

However, if you were to try to quote an entire line of dialogue from Star Trek, such as including names and phrases more extended than a sentence, you would be infringing copyright. Using that brief three-word phrase might pay homage to your favorite show, but quoting an exchange of dialogue with Scotty and Kirk would be plagiarism.

As for the second homage example, J.R.R. Tolkien died in 1973, which means his estate still has legal rights. Therefore, if you were to imitate the scene or chapter without permission or crediting Tolkien, the homage would be plagiarism.

Taking it a step further, let’s assume you credit Tolkien for inspiring the scene in the author’s notes at the end of your book. It would not be plagiarism if you wrote a scene where two characters exchanged riddles trying to win a prize. However, it would be plagiarism if those two characters were in a cave, one of them promising not to kill the other if they win.

The difference is that plagiarism is when you copy the presentation of an idea. For example, no one owns the concept of riddles or games, which means your homage might paraphrase the idea of riddles-to-the-death, but not the exact words. However, it’s not homage when you place characters in a strikingly similar situation and connotation for more than a phrase or scene.

Types of Plagiarism

There are many  types of plagiarism . Some sources disagree about the amount, as some break down more specific categories while others generalize. Here we’ll discuss the general types with clarification on how they might divide into subcategories.

Word for word plagiarism is the simplest, most familiar type. Notably, copying, at any length, from a direct sentence to a direct paragraph would be verbatim plagiarism.

Mosaic or patchwork plagiarism falls under verbatim. However, mosaic plagiarism includes instances where the writer mentioned the quoted work earlier, but it is not directly connected.

For example, if you were discussing The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields,” you might mention the title in the first paragraph of your essay. Then, you open the third paragraph with lyrics from the song. You know you’re quoting the music, and Beatles fans know, but you need your essay to acknowledge the use within direct proximity.

For a correct example:

‘Always, no sometimes, think it’s me / But you know I know when it’s a dream,’ is an iconic lyric from “Strawberry Fields.”

Self-Plagiarism

If you own the work, you can recreate it. However, the same isn’t true when you’re submitting work. For example, if you write an essay about Hamlet in high school, presenting the same paper for a university class is self-plagiarism.

Legal action is rarely necessary for self-plagiarism  unless you promised an original work and breached a contract.

Accidental Plagiarism

When a citation isn’t precise, it is still plagiarism, even if the intention was to credit another creator. Crucial to avoiding this type of plagiarism is understanding your preferred manual of style.

Generally, Associated Press (AP) applies to journalism, Chicago for publishing/business, American Psychological Association (APA) for academic writing, and Modern Language Association (MLA) for humanities disciplines.

Accidental plagiarism  includes inaccurate citation, failure to acknowledge, attribution or inaccurate source plagiarism, and paraphrasing.

What Is Paraphrasing Plagiarism?

Paraphrasing is not always plagiarism. Effective paraphrasing requires an understanding of the topic or quote well enough to express it originally. It is a form of summarizing or rephrasing that clarifies the meaning of another author’s words in your own words.

A common pitfall of paraphrasing is copying a sentence or direct quote, then the writer tweaks a few words, rewords sentences, or replaces original words with synonyms. Choosing to modify rather than rewrite from scratch is paraphrasing plagiarism.

For an example of paraphrasing plagiarism: Imagine you’re writing that Hamlet essay. During your research, you read an inspiring analysis. If you copy phrases or sentences directly from that analysis, you would be plagiarising. Likewise, rewording a metaphor or sentence you liked would be paraphrasing plagiarism.

However, you could quote a phrase and include a citation. Alternatively, you could write an original interpretation of that idea.

How to Avoid Paraphrasing Plagiarism

The first step to avoid paraphrasing plagiarism is never to copy and paste. However, if while reading your notes over and over, you’ve lost track of where your original words begin, and the quotation ends, a paraphrasing plagiarism tool can catch mistakes that slip through the cracks.

Avoiding plagiarism can be tricky without extra eyes. However, whether your writing process involves meticulous text citation or you sometimes lose track of your source material, a plagiarism checker can save your hard work from accidental plagiarism, including incorrect paraphrasing.

Focus on making your writing the best it can be without stressing over plagiarism. Check out Quetext’s plagiarism checker , which recognizes plagiarism lightning-fast and generates any missed citations.

Sign Up for Quetext Today!

Click below to find a pricing plan that fits your needs.

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Paraphrasing vs Plagiarism: Differences with Examples

• Smodin Editorial Team
• February 21, 2023

Paraphrasing and plagiarism are two essential aspects of any research work or study. In the contemporary world, where ethical laws highly protect intellectual and research work, it is rare for people to directly quote someone’s work in its original form. 

When Should You Paraphrase?

Of course, maintaining the work’s ethical value and confidentiality is crucial to maintaining the quality of the research conducted. One tends to tweak and modify the words and restructures any phrase. In layman’s language, this is known as paraphrasing, which is done to avoid infringement on the owner’s rights. Every academic student and researcher should be knowledgeable about the meaning of paraphrasing. One must ensure that the purpose of the restated words is not changed in paraphrasing. This is where paraphrasing tools (Smodin’s Paraphrasing Tool) come into play and act as a lifesaver for any academic student. It is common to paraphrase whether you are writing an essay, an article, a thesis, or a research paper. It helps in delivering your ideas more effectively and coherently.

Should Plagiarism Be Used?

Paraphrasing is done where a direct quotation is irrelevant to the academic paper. While it is essential to paraphrase words, the lack of it leads to plagiarism. Plagiarism is something that every research student must be wary of and never do intentionally, as it can subjugate one’s work to harsh critique by peers. Furthermore, it can even be considered illegal and against research ethics. The very backbone of research is work that is free from any hints of plagiarism, and following the code of conduct is vital for the success of one’s written work. Not only does plagiarism tarnish the tonality of the writing, but it also ruins the writing structure and authenticity. So any time you add someone’s work to your paper, make sure you credit the author properly so that the work is not mistaken for your own in any way, shape, or form. 

Mostly, plagiarism happens by mistake due to the need for the right tools to paraphrase one’s written work. Thankfully, many online tools can help you translate effectively and detect plagiarism that might be “plaguing” your document. Using these tools is encouraged by academic institutions to make your writing error-free. So now that it is evident why these terms are crucial let us understand with examples what the two terms mean and the critical differentiation between them. One must ensure that paraphrasing and plagiarism are distinct so that the quality of the paper is excellent. 

What is Paraphrasing?

Simply put, paraphrasing means conveying somebody’s ideas in words that are entirely your own. According to Cambridge Dictionary, “paraphrasing” means “to repeat something written or spoken using different words, often in a humorous form or in a simpler and shorter form that makes the original meaning clearer.” Thus, even though it might be tempting to paraphrase a quote or a passage, you must be careful that it does not get considered plagiarism. In other words, you should use more synonyms and refrain from using original words and concepts. You can, however, use generic terms such as global warming and globalisation as they are commonly understood and accepted. 

For example , let us take a look at this fact related to the human body:

Original phrase: At birth, infants have about 300 bones. However, some of these bones get fused as they grow older; eventually leading to only 206 bones by the time they attain adulthood.

Paraphrasing: Babies are born with approximately 300 bones in their body, but as they turn older and reach adulthood, the bones tend to amalgamate and decrease to just 206.

Plagiarism: Infants have about 300 bones at the time of birth . These bones get fused as they grow older, leaving them with just 206 bones in total by the time they attain adulthood .

From this, we can clearly understand the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing. 

In the first example (paraphrasing) , the text has been paraphrased effectively as there is the usage of synonyms (amalgamate, babies, etc.) Also, the translated text has restated words, and their meaning does not change.

In the second example (plagiarism) , a lot of plagiarism occurs as the writer has used exact words from the original text without quotation marks. Additionally, the actual words have been used, and there are a lot of duplicities.

What is Plagiarism?

Using parts of another person’s work and passing it across as your own, intentionally or unintentionally, is plagiarism. Exposure can even lead to a bad grade or cause extreme critique amongst one’s peers, as it is a morally unethical practice. Research allows no room for plagiarized work and can tamper the reputation of the one whose work is “stolen”. One can avoid such instances with the help of many online tools such as DupliChecker, Copyscape, and Plagiarism Detector. However, it is best to understand what plagiarism is and how to avoid it manually, as getting exposed can have serious consequences. 

When it comes to providing a proper citation, your local library’s help can help a lot. Also, online software and tools like Zotero, Ref Works, EndNote, and Mendeley can go a long way in ensuring that credit is provided wherever it may be due. It also helps to develop an understanding of the passage and understand the text after reviewing it thoroughly. By doing this, there will be little confusion, eliminating the need for plagiarism.

Types of Plagiarism

Paraphrasing vs plagiarism is a rather broad and versatile topic. There are several types of plagiarism, and having an understanding of each one of them is vital in academics and research. According to the Harvard College Writing Program, these are as follows:

• Verbatim Plagiarism: This means copying someone’s work word by word.
• Mosaic Plagiarism: Taking parts of text from various sources without crediting the author.
• Inadequate Paraphrase: Paraphrasing that still has duplicity. 
• Uncited Paraphrase: Sufficiently copying another person’s work without giving credit.
• Uncited Quotation: Lack of reference material on a quotation cited from an external source.
• Using Another Student’s Work: Misusing someone’s ideas by completely copying them and taking all the credit for their work.

Thus, it is always handy to use RefWorks and Zotero to keep a proper log of all the citations and references used in your research paper or thesis. By doing so, you can go a long way in maintaining your work’s originality and ethical quality. 

Is Paraphrasing The Same As Plagiarism?

Paraphrasing is not the same as plagiarism, as the former encompasses proper citations, quotation marks, and references wherever necessary. However, paraphrasing might count as plagiarism in cases where:

• If your text is copied too closely to the original text, it is considered plagiarism. Yes, even if you provide proper citations. Thus, you are encouraged to use restated wording after grasping the passage’s meaning.
• Paraphrasing can also be considered plagiarism if you do not provide credit to the original writer.

When is Paraphrasing Not the Same as Plagiarism?

Although the lines between the two concepts may seem blurred, there are instances where paraphrasing and plagiarism are not similar such as the following:

•  If you do not copy the original author’s work, word by word, and provide adequate citations, then paraphrasing is not considered the same as plagiarism.

How to Paraphrase Without Plagiarism?

To paraphrase without getting acquitted of plagiarism, follow the given tips:

• Keep the Original Text at Bay

Once you have read the original text, leave it aside when it is time to write. By doing so, you can avoid confusion and hesitation. Also, use different coloured pens and highlighters while gathering sources for citing. 

• Gather a Genuine Understanding

Read the text a couple of times till you have acquired an understanding of it by heart. If you understand the concept, it will be a walk in the park for you to paraphrase it later in your words. 

• Adequately Cite The Sources

Be mindful of the various writing styles, such as the APA and the MLA. Follow the manual’s guidelines and use the format that is in the latest edition. Always use adequate citations and quotations in your writing.

• Use Anti-Plagiarism Tools

If you are a student, you can benefit from anti-plagiarism tools such as Copyscape and DupliChecker. These tools will allow you to escape accidental plagiarism. You can also use Grammarly’s Plagiarism Tool, which is one of the best.

Smodin’s Paraphrasing Tool

Another excellent paraphrasing tool is Smodin’s paraphrasing tool . Using this tool, you can rewrite any passage using as little as five words. It restates your text with good grammar and ensures high quality simultaneously. Smodin’s paraphrasing tool also comes packaged with a citation generator and a plagiarism checker. In short, it is your one-stop solution for all research-related papers.

On A Final Note

Paraphrasing is essential in any work to convey an original text in one’s own words. Smodin’s Paraphrasing Tool, Grammarly , CopyScape, and, DupliChecker are all handy tools for writing a top-notch academic paper. So check them out through the links given in this article.

The Sheridan Libraries

• Avoiding Plagiarism
• Sheridan Libraries

Paraphrasing & Summarizing

• What is Plagiarism?
• School Plagiarism Policies
• Common Knowledge
• Minimizing Your Plagiarism Risk
• Student Help
• Helping Prevent Plagiarism in Your Classroom
• Avoiding Plagiarism Course
• Course FAQs

To help the flow of your writing, it is beneficial to not always quote but instead put the information in your own words. You can paraphrase or summarize the author’s words to better match your tone and desired length. Even if you write the ideas in your own words, it is important to cite them with in-text citations or footnotes (depending on your discipline’s citation style ). 

Definitions

• Paraphrasing allows you to use your own words to restate an author's ideas.
• Summarizing allows you to create a succinct, concise statement of an author’s main points without copying and pasting a lot of text from the original source.

What’s the difference: Paraphrasing v. Summarizing

Explore the rest of the page to see how the same material could be quoted, paraphrased, or summarized. Depending on the length, tone, and argument of your work, you might choose one over the other. 

• Bad Paraphrase
• Good Paraphrase
• Reread: Reread the original passage until you understand its full meaning.
• Write on your own: Set the original aside, and write your paraphrase on a note card.
• Connect: Jot down a few words below your paraphrase to remind you later how you envision using this material.
• Check: Check your rendition with the original to make sure that your version accurately expresses all the essential information in a new form.
• Quote: Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or phraseology you have borrowed exactly from the source.
• Cite: Record the source (including the page) on your note card or notes document so that you can credit it easily if you decide to incorporate the material into your paper.

Explore the tabs to see the difference between an acceptable and unacceptable paraphrase based on the original text in each example.

Original Text

“Business communication is increasingly taking place internationally – in all countries, among all peoples, and across all cultures. An awareness of other cultures – of their languages, customs, experiences and perceptions – as well as an awareness of the way in which other people conduct their business, are now essential ingredients of business communication” (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59). 

More and more business communication is taking place internationally—across all countries, peoples, and cultures.  Awareness of other cultures and the way in which people do business are essential parts of business communication (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59)

Compare the Original and Paraphrase

Too much of the original is quoted directly, with only a few words changed or omitted. The highlighted words are too similar to the original quote: 

More and more business communication is taking place internationally —across all countries, peoples, and cultures .  Awareness of other cultures and the way in which people do business are essential parts of business communication (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59)

Original Text 

“Business communication is increasingly taking place internationally – in all countries, among all peoples, and across all cultures. An awareness of other cultures – of their languages, customs, experiences and perceptions – as well as an awareness of the way in which other people conduct their business, are now essential ingredients of business communication” (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59).

The importance of understanding the traditions, language, perceptions, and the manner in which people of other cultures conduct their business should not be underestimated, and it is a crucial component of business communication (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p. 59).

The original’s ideas are summarized and expressed in the writer’s own words with minimal overlap with the original text's language:

The importance of understanding the traditions, language, perceptions, and the manner in which people of other cultures conduct their business should not be underestimated, and it is a crucial component of business communication (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p. 59).

• Bad Summary
• Good Summary
• Find the main idea: Ask yourself, “What is the main idea that the author is communicating?”
• Avoid copying: Set the original aside, and write one or two sentences with the main point of the original on a note card or in a notes document.
• Connect: Jot down a few words below your summary to remind you later how you envision using this material.

Business communication is worldwide, and it is essential to build awareness of other cultures and the way in which other people conduct their business. (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59). 

Compare the Original and Summary

Too much of the original is quoted directly, with only a few words changed or omitted. The highlighted words are too similar to the original text:

Business communication is worldwide, and it is essential to build awareness of other cultures and the way in which other people conduct their business . (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59). 

In a world that is increasingly connected, effective business communication requires us to learn about other cultures, languages, and business norms (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59). 

The original’s ideas are summarized and expressed in the writer’s own words with minimal overlap:

In a world that is increasingly connected, effective business communication requires us to learn about other cultures , languages , and business norms (Chase, O’Rourke & Wallace, 2003, p.59). 

No matter what the source or style, you need to cite it both in-text and at the end of the paper with a full citation! Write down or record all the needed pieces of information when researching to ensure you avoid plagiarism. 

Cheat Sheet

• Paraphrasing and Summarizing Download this helpful cheat sheet covering "Paraphrasing and Summarizing."
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• Last Updated: Aug 7, 2023 2:00 PM
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Academic Integrity at MIT

A handbook for students, search form, 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.

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.

Change the structure of the sentence.

Change the voice from active to passive and vice versa.    

Change clauses to phrases and vice versa.

Change parts of speech.

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.

Example 4: Using Multiple Strategies to Paraphrase

Example 5: Unacceptable Paraphrase

Prevent plagiarism, run a free plagiarism check.

• Knowledge Base
• The 5 Types of Plagiarism | Explanations & Examples

The 5 Types of Plagiarism | Explanations & Examples

Published on 2 July 2019 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on 13 April 2023 by Jack Caulfield.

Plagiarism comes in many forms, some more severe than others—from rephrasing someone’s ideas without acknowledgement to stealing a whole essay. These are the five most common types of plagiarism:

• Global plagiarism means passing off an entire text by someone else as your own work.
• Verbatim plagiarism means directly copying someone else’s words.
• Paraphrasing plagiarism means rephrasing someone else’s ideas to present them as your own.
• Patchwork plagiarism means stitching together parts of different sources to create your text.
• Self-plagiarism means recycling your own past work.

Except for global plagiarism, these types of plagiarism are often accidental, resulting from failure to understand how to properly quote, paraphrase, and cite your sources. If you’re concerned about accidental plagiarism, a plagiarism checker , like the one from Scribbr, can help.

Table of contents

Global plagiarism: plagiarising an entire text, verbatim plagiarism: copying words directly, paraphrasing plagiarism: rephrasing ideas, patchwork plagiarism: stitching together sources, self-plagiarism: plagiarising your own work, frequently asked questions about plagiarism.

Global plagiarism means taking an entire work by someone else and passing it off as your own.

For example, if you get someone else to write an essay or assignment for you, or if you find a text online and submit it as your own work, you are committing global plagiarism.

Because it involves deliberately and directly lying about the authorship of a work, this is one of the most serious types of plagiarism, and it can have severe consequences .

Avoiding this kind of plagiarism is straightforward: just write your own essays!

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

Verbatim plagiarism, also called direct plagiarism, means copying and pasting someone else’s words into your own work without attribution.

This could be text that’s completely identical to the original or slightly altered. If the structure and the majority of the words are the same as in the original, this counts as verbatim plagiarism, even if you delete or change a couple of words.

In academic writing, you can and should refer to the words of others. To avoid verbatim plagiarism, you just need to quote the original source by putting the copied text in quotation marks and including an in-text citation . You can use the free Scribbr Citation Generator to create correctly formatted citations in MLA or APA Style .

Generate accurate citations with Scribbr

Most plagiarism checkers can easily detect verbatim plagiarism.

Example of verbatim plagiarism

Paraphrasing means rephrasing a piece of text in your own words. Paraphrasing without citation is the most common type of plagiarism.

Paraphrasing, like quoting, is a legitimate way to incorporate the ideas of others into your writing. It only becomes plagiarism when you rewrite a source’s points as if they were your own. To avoid plagiarism when paraphrasing, cite your sources just as you would when quoting.

If you translate a piece of text from another language without citation, this is also a type of paraphrasing plagiarism. Translated text should always be cited; you’re still using someone else’s ideas, even if they’re in a different language.

Example of paraphrasing

Patchwork plagiarism, also called mosaic plagiarism, means copying phrases, passages, and ideas from different sources and putting them together to create a new text.

This can include slightly rephrasing passages while keeping many of the same words and much of the same structure as the original, and inserting your own words here and there to stitch the plagiarised text together. Make sure to cite your sources whenever you quote or paraphrase to avoid plagiarism.

This type of plagiarism requires a little more effort and is more insidious than just copying and pasting from a source, but plagiarism checkers like Turnitin can still easily detect it.

Example of patchwork plagiarism

Self-plagiarism means reusing work that you’ve previously submitted or published. It amounts to academic dishonesty to present a paper or a piece of data as brand new when you’ve already gotten credit for the work.

The most serious form of self-plagiarism is to turn in a paper you already submitted for a grade to another class. Unless you have explicit permission to do so, this is always considered self-plagiarism.

Self-plagiarism can also occur when you reuse ideas, phrases or data from your previous assignments. Reworking old ideas and passages is not plagiarism as long as you have permission to do so and you cite your previous work to make their origins clear.

Scribbr’s Self-Plagiarism Checker

Online plagiarism scanners don’t have access to internal university databases and therefore can’t check your document for self-plagiarism.

Using Scribbr’s Self-Plagiarism Checker , you can upload your previous work and compare it to your current document. The checker will scan the texts for similarities and flag any passages where you might have self-plagiarized.

Global plagiarism means taking an entire work written by someone else and passing it off as your own. This can include getting someone else to write an essay or assignment for you, or submitting a text you found online as your own work.

Global plagiarism is one of the most serious types of plagiarism because it involves deliberately and directly lying about the authorship of a work. It can have severe consequences for students and professionals alike.

Verbatim plagiarism means copying text from a source and pasting it directly into your own document without giving proper credit.

If the structure and the majority of the words are the same as in the original source, then you are committing verbatim plagiarism. This is the case even if you delete a few words or replace them with synonyms.

If you want to use an author’s exact words, you need to quote the original source by putting the copied text in quotation marks and including an   in-text citation .

Paraphrasing without crediting the original author is a form of plagiarism , because you’re presenting someone else’s ideas as if they were your own.

However, paraphrasing is not plagiarism if you correctly reference the source . This means including an in-text referencing and a full reference , formatted according to your required citation style (e.g., Harvard , Vancouver ).

As well as referencing your source, make sure that any paraphrased text is completely rewritten in your own words.

Patchwork plagiarism , also called mosaic plagiarism, means copying phrases, passages, or ideas from various existing sources and combining them to create a new text. This includes slightly rephrasing some of the content, while keeping many of the same words and the same structure as the original.

While this type of plagiarism is more insidious than simply copying and pasting directly from a source, plagiarism checkers like Turnitin’s can still easily detect it.

To avoid plagiarism in any form, remember to reference your sources .

Yes, reusing your own work without citation is considered self-plagiarism . This can range from resubmitting an entire assignment to reusing passages or data from something you’ve handed in previously.

Self-plagiarism often has the same consequences as other types of plagiarism . If you want to reuse content you wrote in the past, make sure to check your university’s policy or consult your professor.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

Streefkerk, R. (2023, April 13). The 5 Types of Plagiarism | Explanations & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 22 April 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/preventing-plagiarism/types-of-plagiarism/

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Study Skills

Good academic practice and avoiding plagiarism.

• Introduction
• Taking good notes
• Managing your time

Paraphrasing

• Summarising
• Common knowledge
• Referencing styles
• Referencing tools
• Understanding plagiarism
• Final thoughts

Creative Commons

To write academic work successfully you need to read round the subject and organise your ideas into a coherent argument. It is very important to reference your sources each time you include an idea or an argument from your reading, whether you have summarised the information, quoted it directly or paraphrased it. Effective quotation and use of source materials can show credibility and authority in writing you produce, as well as providing opposing views against which you can comment. Anything you cite should clearly support your conclusions. A paraphrase should be a restatement of the meaning of the original text in your own words and not simply changing some words or sentences around. Expressing ideas in your own words will strongly support your argument and show your tutor how well you understand the original material.

• Arts and Humanities example
• Social Sciences example
• STEM example

Below is an excerpt from a book with two examples of paraphrasing, one good and one bad. Look at both examples and choose which is the good example and your reasons why. Click the button to reveal the answer.

Original text

From: butler, j. (2004) undoing gender . abington: routledge..

“If a decade or two ago, gender discrimination applied tacitly to women,, that no longer serves as the exclusive framework for understanding its contemporary usage. Discrimination against women continues - especially poor women and women of colour, if we consider the differential levels of poverty not only in the United States, but globally - so this dimension of gender discrimination remains crucial to acknowledge. But gender now also means gender identity, a particularly salient issue in the politics and theory of transgenderism and transsexuality." (Butler, 2004 p.28)

Below is an excerpt from a book with two examples of paraphrasing, one good and one bad. Look at both examples and decide which which is the good example and your reasons why. Click the button to reveal the answer.

From: Varian, H. (2014) Intermediate Microeconomics: a modern approach . 9 th ed. Norton.

“Another kind of tax or subsidy that the government might use is a lump-sum tax or subsidy. In the case of a tax, this means that the government takes away some fixed amount of money, regardless of the individual’s behavior. Thus a lump-sum tax means that the budget line of a consumer will shift inward because his money income has been reduced. Similarly, a lump-sum subsidy means that the budget line will shift outward. Quality taxes and value taxes tilt the budget line one way or the other depending on which good is being taxed, but a lump-sum tax shifts the budget line inward.” (Varian, 2014 p.28)

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10 days ago

What is Accidental Plagiarism

What is one way to avoid plagiarism, is paraphrasing plagiarism.

The line between paraphrasing and plagiarism has become increasingly blurred. The quick and short answer is no, paraphrasing isn’t plagiarism . Paraphrasing involves rewording someone else’s ideas in your own words, while plagiarism is the process of passing off those ideas as your own without proper acknowledgment. We will further discuss what sets them apart, the importance of citation, and how to paraphrase effectively without crossing into the territory of plagiarism. Knowing the self plagiarism definition will keep you safe from accidentally plagiarizing.

How to Define Paraphrasing and Plagiarism?

It is the same case as the difference between paraphrasing and summarizing . Paraphrasing and plagiarism might seem similar at first glance, but there are clear distinctions between the two. Paraphrasing requires understanding the original text and then expressing it in your own words, along with a citation to the original source.

Plagiarism, on the other hand, involves using someone else’s work without giving them credit, and it doesn’t matter intentionally or accidentally. The intent behind paraphrasing is to use existing information to support your own ideas or arguments, not to steal credit.

Let’s take a look at how paraphrasing works with the help of examples.

Correct Paraphrasing

Proper paraphrasing means taking the original text and rewriting it in your own words, so that you keep the original meaning whilemaking significant changes in wording and sentence structure. This practice not only shows respect for the original author’s work but also demonstrates your own understanding and ability to engage with the content:

Incorrect paraphrasing

On the flip side, bad paraphrasing happens when the rewording is too close to the original text, without adequate citation or proper alteration in structure and vocabulary. You might want to use a plagiarism checker detector to be extra sure.

Don’t plagiarize! Try our Free Plagiarism Checker just to be sure

How to paraphrase without plagiarizing.

The process of paraphrasing without falling into the trap of plagiarism is straightforward yet requires attention to detail. By following these steps, you can rest assured your paraphrased work is both original and respectful of the source material:

• 📖 Read and Understand : Before attempting to paraphrase, take the time to thoroughly read and comprehend the original text. It’s crucial to grasp not just the surface-level meaning but also the underlying themes and nuances. Ask yourself what the key messages are and how they relate to your work or study.
• ✍️ Reword : Armed with a deep understanding of the text, begin to express the ideas in your own unique words. We advise you to avoid simply swapping out words with synonyms; instead, think about how you would explain the concept to someone who knows nothing about the topic. This step is about internalizing the information and then articulating it in a way that reflects your voice and perspective.
• 🔄 Structure Differently : Look at the structure of the original text and then alter it significantly in your paraphrase. If the original text follows a particular order or layout, try reorganizing the points or changing the focus of the sentences. This could mean converting active sentences to passive ones, rearranging the flow of arguments, or combining and splitting sentences to convey the same points differently.
• 🔀 Use Synonyms Wisely : While synonyms can be useful in paraphrasing, it’s important to use them judiciously. Simply replacing every word with a synonym without considering context can lead to inaccuracies or awkward phrasing. Select synonyms that fit the context and maintain the original meaning. Be particularly mindful of technical terms or specific concepts where synonyms might not be appropriate.
• 📌 Cite the Source : Perhaps the most critical step in avoiding plagiarism is to properly cite the original source. Even when paraphrasing, it’s essential to give credit to the author or creator of the original ideas. This not only respects intellectual property but also strengthens your own work by showing your engagement with existing literature or research. Follow the citation style recommended for your field or by your instructor, whether it’s APA, MLA, Chicago, or another format.

By going through these detailed steps, you’ll be able to paraphrase effectively and avoid plagiarism. Yes, it takes a bit of work, but getting penalized for plagiarism is far worse than spending an hour or two perfecting your text.

What defines the difference between original text and plagiarized content when it comes to paraphrasing?

The quality of information processing distinguishes between original content and plagiarism when paraphrasing.

Is paraphrasing considered illegal?

Paraphrasing itself is not illegal. However, it’s essential to understand the distinction between proper paraphrasing and simple word substitution.

What are some common mistakes to avoid when paraphrasing?

Common mistakes include maintaining the author’s sentence structure too closely, making only minor changes, and failing to use quotation marks for direct phrases.

Can paraphrasing effectively avoid plagiarism?

Yes, paraphrasing is a legitimate method to incorporate others’ ideas into your work, provided it’s done thoughtfully and with proper attribution.

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Plagiarism and Paraphrasing: What’s the Difference?

All good research is built on the work of those who studied in the field previously, and so it is natural to refer to and even paraphrase their work when writing a research paper. But researchers and students must always be cautious to make sure that their writing clearly distinguishes plagiarism and paraphrasing. The line between plagiarism and paraphrasing is not always clear, and can become blurry if writers are not careful. Due to the serious real-life consequences and ethical breach that plagiarism can cause, it is critical for academics, students, and researchers to know how to distinguish plagiarism and paraphrasing. Let’s look at what constitutes plagiarism and paraphrasing, and learn some tips on how to tell the difference.

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is copying someone else’s original work and pretending it is your own. There are different types of plagiarism. Most of us are familiar with direct plagiarism, which means copying another person’s writing word-for-word. Incorrect paraphrasing, where instead of using their own words, a writer simply changes one or two words from the original text, is one of the most common types of plagiarism. Mosaic plagiarism, where writers transfer whole phrases and sentences directly from other sources and mix them together, is similar. Of course, both types of plagiarism can be the result of writers trying to steal the work of others. However, many writers commit paraphrasing or mosaic plagiarism unintentionally. This is because they have difficulty understanding the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing.

What is Paraphrasing?

Paraphrasing means to rephrase something in your own words. “In your own words” means explaining an idea or concept using your own phrasing and vocabulary, not the phrasing and vocabulary of the original author. A good paraphrase should be both original and accurate, reflecting the ideas of the source without copying them directly. There are multiple strategies that writers can use to paraphrase, including:

• Change the sentence structure • Use synonyms • Change parts of speech • Rewrite phrases and clauses and vice versa

If you are having trouble learning how to paraphrase, it can be helpful to think of paraphrasing as similar to summarizing someone else’s thoughts or ideas. You can imagine that you have been asked to explain an idea or thought, but you don’t have the source text with you. Rather than having the original idea or concept memorized and repeating it word for word, you would use your own words for the explanation. This is paraphrasing. In fact, you can practice by doing this exercise with a friend or colleague. While paraphrasing is more detailed than a short summary, paraphrasing is not taking someone else’s writing and substituting one or two synonyms. There are many examples of plagiarism vs paraphrasing available if you are still unsure whether your writing constitutes plagiarism and paraphrasing.

How Can I Tell the Difference between Plagiarism and Paraphrasing?

There are several ways to tell the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing. When you are trying to paraphrase, you must always:

• Refer to the source. This means that you should introduce your paraphrase by mentioning the author and/or the title, and then cite that source in your footnotes or bibliography. For example, you could begin your paraphrase with “According to Tyler Ryan, plagiarism is…” • Make sure you are really rephrasing and not just changing one or two words. Many people think that if they just substitute some synonyms and change one or two connecting words, they have successfully paraphrased someone’s writing. Advanced plagiarism detection tools can spot this easily. A good paraphrasing will also change the sentence structure, change parts of speech, and rewrite phrases as clauses.  • Use quotation marks when appropriate. If you are paraphrasing the writing of an author who is explaining their original idea with unique terminology, it’s fine to add in the exact terminology with quotation marks.  • Cite, cite, cite your sources. Using a reference manager can make it easier for you to always remember when and where to cite your source text.

Remember, if it is easy for someone to look at the original text and your paraphrase and see that they are nearly the same, then you have likely committed plagiarism vs paraphrasing. You can always ask a peer or colleague to read both your writing and the source text to see if you have sufficiently paraphrased. An online plagiarism checker will also indicate whether your writing is too similar to the original text or not.

Tips to Avoid Committing Plagiarism

The first and best way to make sure that you are paraphrasing properly instead of plagiarizing is to begin by citing your source. A proper paraphrase always introduces the original author and/or title of the text that it is being drawn from. However, just citing your source isn’t enough if you haven’t paraphrased sufficiently. Looking at examples of paraphrasing can help you learn more about the difference between paraphrasing and plagiarism. 

One great way to check that your paraphrasing hasn’t veered into plagiarism territory is to use a plagiarism checker on your writing. Online plagiarism checkers, like this one from Enago, can compare your paper against millions of others to see how similar they are. If you have attempted to paraphrase but your paraphrase is very close to the original, a plagiarism checker will detect and highlight the problem so that you can fix it. These days, publishing houses, academic journals, and college professors all use plagiarism checkers to make sure that students and authors are submitting original work. This is another reason it is crucial for you to use one too, so that you can preemptively solve any issues you might have with plagiarism and paraphrasing. Remember, the more you practice paraphrasing, the easier it will be to distinguish between plagiarism and paraphrasing. So practice your writing and make sure you run your papers through a plagiarism checker before submitting them for review!

Exploring the gray area: Understanding paraphrasing as a potential path to plagiarism

Five reasons that paraphrasing skills are the superheroes of strong literacy curriculum.

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In the labyrinthine world of academic writing, paraphrasing walks a thin line between being a useful tool and a potential pitfall, leading to plagiarism.

Often referred to as "patchwriting" or " mosaic plagiarism," the act of paraphrasing raises a fundamental question: What makes writing truly original in an era saturated with accessible information? Mark Twain's assertion that all ideas are merely reconfigurations of existing ones challenges us to consider the essence of originality. This blog ventures into the complex dynamics of paraphrasing, disentangling its legitimate use from its problematic misuse. We'll delve into what constitutes effective paraphrasing that respects academic integrity and when it veers into the territory of plagiarism.

Unpacking the art of paraphrasing

Paraphrasing serves as a bridge, translating complex or specialized topics into accessible and simplified language. It is also a way for a student or researcher to synthesize what they have read, putting text into their own words to A) better understand the topic at hand and B) support their writing with a sound, meaningfully reworded example from an outside source. The Office of Research Integrity within the US Department of Health & Human Services offers a compelling example, transforming a dense scientific explanation into a concise, digestible format. Below is the original content: “Because the intracellular concentration of potassium ions is relatively high, potassium ions tend to diffuse out of the cell. This movement is driven by the concentration gradient for potassium ions. Similarly, the concentration gradient for sodium ions tends to promote their movement into the cell. However, the cell membrane is significantly more permeable to potassium ions than to sodium ions. As a result, potassium ions diffuse out of the cell faster than sodium ions enter the cytoplasm. The cell therefore experiences a net loss of positive charges, and as a result the interior of the cell membrane contains an excess of negative charges, primarily from negatively charged proteins” (Martini & Bartholomew, 1997, p. 204).

Here is an appropriate paraphrase of the above material:

“A textbook of anatomy and physiology (Martini & Bartholomew, 1997, p. 204) reports that the concentration of potassium ions inside of the cell is relatively high and, consequently, some potassium tends to escape out of the cell. Just the opposite occurs with sodium ions.”

The Office of Research Integrity also gives an example of an inappropriate version of paraphrasing from the original text: “...This movement is triggered by the concentration gradient for potassium ions. Similarly, the concentration gradient for sodium ions tends to promote their movement into the cell. However, the cell membrane is much more permeable to potassium ions than it is to sodium ions. As a result, potassium ions diffuse out of the cell more rapidly than sodium ions enter the cytoplasm…” (Martini & Bartholomew, 1997, p. 204). You’ll note that the above “rewritten” example is basically a copy of the original, save for a few superficial alterations, including word deletions, synonym swaps, and additions.

Because most of the words and structure of the original paragraph remain the same, this paragraph would technically be considered plagiarism, despite the writer crediting the original authors. As the Office of Research Integrity puts it: “[M]aking only cosmetic modifications to others’ writing misleads the reader as to who the true author of the original writing really is." In this scenario, a student could instead ask for support in learning how to more accurately paraphrase the information or alternatively, use a direct quote with a correctly cited source to make it clear that this is not their content. Effective paraphrasing isn't just about avoiding plagiarism; it's about enhancing comprehension and adding value to the discourse.

The original thought conundrum

In the realm of academic discourse, Bloom's Taxonomy emerges as a crucial framework, offering a layered understanding of cognitive development. This taxonomy, a hierarchy starting from basic knowledge recall to the creation of new ideas, challenges us to consider the concept of 'original thought' in education. As we go from 'Remembering' and 'Understanding' through to 'Applying', 'Analyzing', and 'Evaluating', we reach the peak - 'Creating'. This final stage is where originality is presumed to flourish. However, this presents a conundrum: in an age where information is ubiquitous and influences are numerous, can any thought claim absolute originality? This paradox is especially relevant in a digital era saturated with ideas, where the difference between inspiration and replication becomes increasingly blurred. Bloom’s Taxonomy, therefore, not only maps out cognitive skills but also invites a deeper reflection on the nature and possibility of truly original thought in our modern knowledge ecosystem.

What’s the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing?

Plagiarism and paraphrasing, while seemingly similar, diverge significantly in intent and execution. Plagiarism is the act of passing off someone else's work or ideas as one's own while paraphrasing, in contrast, aims to rearticulate ideas for clarity while maintaining the essence of the original work. Paraphrasing becomes problematic when it strays into the realm of plagiarism, often manifested in the failure to properly attribute sources, bring new insights to the table, or to uphold academic integrity. To wholly uphold academic integrity is to commit to honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility, and courage. It is a holistic concept that must be backed up by institutional policies, curriculum, teaching interventions, assessment design, and feedback loops that strengthen a student’s bond to learning. In an earlier post, we explored the ways in which paraphrasing may become problematic. The following three examples are situations that may cause challenges around paraphrasing expectations:

• When a student does not understand the purpose behind paraphrasing, they may not see the importance of attributing what they've paraphrased and therefore overlook doing so . Educators must take great care in building a culture of academic integrity and explaining to students how cited, well-paraphrased passages not only enhance their writing (and also provide variety in an essay that would otherwise be all quotations), they uphold integrity by recognizing an author’s original work.
• When a student does not have the foundational literacy skills to paraphrase, it may lead them to unintentionally plagiarize. In a suspected case of academic misconduct, an educator must ascertain if it is a skill deficit or deliberate plagiarism. From there, strengthening a student’s literary comprehension skills and basic academic writing skills can help bolster their confidence and ability to paraphrase. Turnitin’s Draft Coach can also be used to help students write accurate citations in Microsoft® Word for the web and Google Docs™.
• When a student knowingly and purposely uses short-cut solutions in place of their own skills, it’s a sign that action must be taken. Paraphrasing tools, also known as word spinners, alter existing text with the purpose of evading plagiarism detection software. This deeply impacts learning because they prevent students from understanding how to truly paraphrase.

Steering clear of paraphrasing pitfalls

Avoiding paraphrasing plagiarism is a nuanced skill, requiring a blend of accurate citation, original sentence structuring, and a deep understanding of the source material. There are many ways to avoid paraphrasing plagiarism while still paraphrasing to summarize work and communicate topics more clearly and holistically. Ways to avoid plagiarizing include:

• Correct citation of sources
• Quoting and summarizing texts accurately
• Writing with your own sentence structures
• Understanding text and content clearly before paraphrasing

There is also a helpful paraphrasing strategy called the 4R’s: Read, Restate, Recheck, and Repair.

• Read: Did you understand the passage?
• Restate: Did you restate important points in your own words?
• Recheck: Did you include all of the important details?
• Repair: Did you correct any misinformation?

In addition to the above, the following sections delve into key elements to keep in mind and practical strategies to master this skill, ensuring that paraphrasing enriches, rather than diminishes, academic integrity.

The role of text spinners in paraphrasing plagiarism

Text spinners, or article spinners, present a new hurdle in the realm of paraphrasing plagiarism. These tools, designed to disguise copied content as original, exacerbate the issue by blurring the lines between legitimate paraphrasing and deceptive rewriting. “Simply put,” says Christine Lee, “when students use word spinners, they aren’t producing their own original work. Original work means that even when paraphrasing, students regenerate the ideas of another person into their own words and voice to express their own understanding of concepts.” Educators need to understand the emerging trends in misconduct and academic integrity so that they can build awareness around them, educate students on their misuse, and mitigate any threats to an institution's reputation to ensure authentic student learning.

How to effectively teach paraphrasing

Educators bear the responsibility of guiding students through the maze of paraphrasing. This entails instilling respect for academic integrity, teaching proper citation techniques, and encouraging the development of independent thought. To start, it is imperative to highlight examples of accurate paraphrasing and how it differs from quotations and summarizing. As quoted in an earlier Turnitin post, according to the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL):

• Quotations must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of the source. They must match the source document word for word and must be attributed to the original author.
• Paraphrasing involves rewording a passage from source material into your own words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original source because there is no creation of new ideas. Paraphrased material is usually shorter than the original passage, taking a somewhat broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.
• Summarizing involves putting the main idea(s) into your own words, including only the main point(s). Once again, it is necessary to attribute summarized ideas to the original source because no new ideas have been introduced. Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source material.

And while there are myriad ways for educators to approach and teach this highly important skill, the following are a few resources that can support thoughtful plagiarism education and practice:

• Explain the course’s or institution’s policy on academic integrity clearly and early in the semester. Outline course and assignment expectations explicitly, including appropriate use and misuse of AI tools. By building a culture of integrity that is clearly defined, students can more deeply understand the value of accurate paraphrasing and citations, as well as understand the consequences of misconduct.
• Dive into Turnitin’s Paraphrasing Pack , eleven out-of-the-box resources developed by veteran educators that are ready to be implemented in the classroom. It features everything from research strategies and student checklists for paraphrasing to lesson presentations and printable graphic organizers.
• Explore all of the resources that support academic integrity in the age of AI , including valuable assets that help students to better understand how and when to use AI tools ethically.
• Conduct a candid conversation with a student if their work appears to have similarities to other texts without proper paraphrasing or citation, or if inappropriate usage of AI tools is suspected. These dialogues often transform a moment of misconduct into an opportunity for learning by determining if there is a skill deficit that can be readily addressed. The data housed in the Similarity Report, including instances of synonym swapping, as well as Turnitin’s AI writing detection tool, can both serve as jumping off points for these essential conversations.

Maintaining academic integrity while paraphrasing

While building that culture of academic integrity and teaching skills is the first step, educators know that oftentimes it’s necessary to take another step, one that will confirm or refute that the student’s work is solely their own. It may be as simple as a remarkably sophisticated sentence structure or vocabulary choice, but educators tend to recognize when a student misrepresents something that is not their work, as their own. That next step is as simple as reviewing Turnitin’s newly enhanced Similarity Report, which has a streamlined workflow to show both the Similarity Score and the AI writing score. While AI continues to evolve, so too does the students’ use of AI tools. Turnitin’s AI writing score may indicate the use of AI paraphrasing tools to modify AI-generated content. Educators have no “extra clicks” as AI paraphrasing detection is built seamlessly into the existing workflow that educators already use and trust. As before, this score is to inform the educator of the likelihood that the student tried to use AI paraphrasing tools as a shortcut; whether intentional plagiarism or not is determined by the educator and the student during formative discussions surrounding their work. Then, next steps to help a student to revise can be taken. Check out this infographic that defines the key differences between human- powered paraphrasing and AI paraphrasing tools, as well as the role an AI paraphrasing detector can play in this process.

In sum: How to skillfully paraphrase and avoid plagiarism

The skill of paraphrasing is foundational in academic writing, serving as a safeguard against the pitfalls of plagiarism and academic misconduct. When a student fails to master this skill, they risk inadvertently crossing the line from legitimate use of sources to plagiarism, a serious breach of academic integrity. Effective paraphrasing involves more than just altering a few words; it requires a deep understanding of the original text and the ability to express its essence in a new, original form while maintaining the core message. This process must be coupled with accurate citations and the appropriate use of quotes to credit the original authors. Without these critical components, a student's work can easily fall into the realm of academic dishonesty. Thus, learning to paraphrase correctly is not just about avoiding plagiarism; it's about respecting the intellectual labor of others, upholding the values of academic integrity, and contributing genuinely to the scholarly conversation.

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6.4 Paraphrase and Summary versus Plagiarism

Learning objectives.

• Understand the difference between paraphrasing or summarizing and plagiarism.
• Demonstrate how to give proper credit to sources that are quoted verbatim, and sources whose ideas are paraphrased or summarized.
• Demonstrate your ability to paraphrase in one or more written assignments.

Even if you are writing on a subject you know well, you will usually get additional information from other sources. How you represent others’ ideas, concepts, and words is critical to your credibility and the effectiveness of your document. Let’s say you are reading a section of a document and find a point that relates well to your current writing assignment. How do you represent what you have read in your work? You have several choices.

One choice is simply to reproduce the quote verbatim , or word for word, making sure that you have copied all words and punctuation accurately. In this case, you will put quotation marks around the quoted passage (or, if it is more than about fifty words long, inset it with wider margins than the body of your document) and give credit to the source. The format you use for your source citation will vary according to the discipline or industry of your audience; common formats include APA (American Psychological Association), MLA (Modern Language Association), and CMS (Chicago Manual of Style).

Another common strategy in business writing is to paraphrase , or rewrite the information in your own words. You will relate the main point, but need to take care not to copy the original. You will give credit where credit is due, but your citation will be more informal, such as “A Wall Street Journal article dated July 8, 2009, described some of the disagreements among G-8 nations about climate change.” Here are several steps that can help you paraphrase a passage while respecting its original author:

• Read the passage out loud, paying attention to the complete thought rather than the individual words.
• Explain the concept in your own words to a friend or colleague, out loud, face-to-face.
• Write the concept in your own words, and add one or more illustrative examples of the concept that are meaningful to you.
• Reread the original passage and see how your version compares with it in terms of grammar, word choice, example, and conveyance of meaning.
• If your writing parrots the original passage or merely substitutes synonyms for words in the original, return to step one and start over, remembering that your goal is to express the central concepts, not to “translate” one word into another.
• When you are satisfied that your expression of the concept can stand on its own merit, include it in your document and cite the original author as the source of the idea.

Summarizing information is another common way of integrating information into your original work that requires care and attention to detail. To summarize is to reduce a concept, idea, or data set to its most basic point or element. You may have a literature survey to summarize related information in the field under consideration, or a section on background to serve a similar purpose. Suppose you are reporting on a business situation and it occurs to you that one of Shakespeare’s plays has a plot that resembles your situation. You may wish to summarize the Shakespeare play in a few sentences before drawing parallels between it and your current situation. This may help readers to remember and understand your report. Regardless of how or where you incorporate a summary within your document, give attention to its original context and retain its essential meaning free of distortion in the new context of your writing.

Because summarizing is an act of reductionism, some of the original richness in detail that surrounds the original will be necessarily lost. Think of a photograph you have taken in the past that featured several people you know. Using a software program that allows you to modify and manipulate the image, draw a box around only one face. Delete the rest of the contents of the photo so only the information in the box remains. Part of the photo is intact, and one person has become the focal point for the image, but the context has been lost. In the same way, if you focus on one statistic, one quote, or one idea and fail to capture its background you will take the information out of context. Context is one of the eight components of communication, and without it, the process breaks down. While you cannot retain all the definition and detail of the original context in a brief summary, effort to represent the essential point within its context is essential or you risk distortion of the original meaning.

Unlike quoting or paraphrasing, summarizing is something you can—and will—also do to the material you have written. You may start your document with a summary of the background that gives the document purpose. Formal business reports often begin with an executive summary, and scientific articles usually begin with an abstract; both of these serve as a brief preview of the information in the full document. You may write a brief internal summary after each main discussion point in a lengthy document; this will serve to remind your reader of the discussion to date and to establish the context for the upcoming point. Finally, a summary is a very common, and often effective, way to conclude a document. Ending your writing with a summary helps your reader to remember your main points.

Plagiarism is neither paraphrasing nor summarizing information from other works. Plagiarism is representing another’s work as your own. Professional standards, which are upheld in all fields from architecture to banking to zoology, all involve the elements of authenticity and credibility. Credit is given where credit is due, authorities in the field are appropriately cited or referenced, and original writing is expected to be exactly that. Patch writing , or the verbatim cut-and-paste insertion of fragments, snippets, or small sections of other publications into your own writing without crediting the sources, is plagiarism. Wholesale copying of other works is also plagiarism. Both destroy your professional credibility, and fail to uphold common professional standards.

Colleges and universities have policies against plagiarism, and within business and industry, the negative impact on credibility and careers often exceeds any academic punishment. There is no shame in quoting someone else’s work while giving credit, nor in paraphrasing a point correctly or summarizing the research results of a study you did not perform; but there are significant consequences to representing other’s ideas as your own.

Aside from the fear of punishment, a skilled business writer should recognize that intellectual theft is wrong. You may be tempted to borrow a sentence; however, know your document will be represented in many ways across time, and more than one career has been destroyed by plagiarism discovered years after the fact. The accomplished business writer should take as a compliment the correct citation and reference of their work. The novice business writer should learn by example but refrain from cut and paste strategies to complete a document.

In a world where most modern documents are accessible in some form online, the ability to cross-reference information with a couple of key strokes makes plagiarism a self-defeating solution when better alternatives exist. Quote and give credit, link to related documents with permission, paraphrase and summarize with citation, but do not plagiarize.

Key Takeaway

There is nothing wrong with quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing with credit to your original source, but presenting someone else’s work as if it were your own is plagiarism.

• Select a piece of writing such as an essay from a Web site, a book chapter, or a newspaper or magazine article. Write a paraphrase of a portion of it. Write a brief summary of the entire piece. Note the difference between the two techniques. Giving credit to the original piece, discuss your paraphrase and summary with your classmates.
• Find an example of an advertisement you perceive as particularly effective and write a one-sentence summary. Share the advertisement and your one-sentence summary with the class.
• Find an example of an advertisement you perceive as particularly ineffective and write a one-sentence summary. Share the advertisement and your one sentence review with the class.
• Find a case where plagiarism or misrepresentation had consequences in the business world. Share your findings and discuss with classmates.

Business Communication for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Citation Practices and Avoiding Plagiarism: Examples of Paraphrase

• Getting Started
• Understanding a Citation
• Penn's Plagiarism Policy
• Examples of Quotation
• Examples of Paraphrase
• Examples of Common Knowledge
• Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism
• Copyright This link opens in a new window
• Citation Management Tools This link opens in a new window
• Citation Styles
• Explore More and Practice

Paraphrases—rewordings of text—need to be cited. Paraphrasing without providing a citation is plagiarism. Even paraphrases with citations can be instances of plagiarism if they are so similar to the original that the paraphraser claims credit for the original author's language.

A paraphrase that avoids plagiarism:

• cites the source of the material being paraphrased.
• differs enough from the original that it doesn't require quotation marks.

Paraphrase Examples

Wines drunk at Greek tables did not always come from Greece itself. The wine snobbery of the time extolled the merits of wines from the slopes of Mount Lebanon, from Palestine, Egypt and Magna Graecia-Greater Greece, i.e., southern Italy. The ten litres a day drunk by the famous wrestler Milo of Croton was a wine famous in Calabria, where Milo lived: this wine, Ciro, is still made.

from Maguelone Toussaint-Samat's A History of Food (Cambridge: Blackwell, 1992. 263).

Wines drunk by Greeks were not always made in Greece itself. The wine snobs of that period celebrated wines from Mount Lebanon, Palestine, and Egypt. The famous wrestler Milo of Croton, who consumed ten liters of wine a day, drank wine made in Calabria outside of Greece; this wine, Ciro, is still made.

This paraphrase plagiarizes in two ways:

1. By having no citation, the paraphrase misleads readers into believing that the ideas, facts and sense of the passage are a result of the author's own research and knowledge.

2. The language of the paraphrase is too similar to the original. Even if the author had provided a citation, some instructors would consider this plagiarism.

Not Plagiarism:

Although Greeks were picky about their wine, they enjoyed wine from outside Greece. Upstanding Greeks enjoyed wine from many of Greece's local trading partners—including Palestine, Egypt and southern Italy. One story tells of the famous wrestler Milo of Croton, who consumed ten liters of foreign wine daily (Toussaint-Samat 263).

This paraphrase cites the original and rephrases its words to create an original construction.

Paraphrase that Uses Too Much of the Original Language

Up, up, up, groping through clouds for what seemed like an eternity....No amount of practice could have prepared them for what they encountered. B-24s, glittering like mica, were popping up out of the clouds all over the sky.

from Thomas Childers. Wings of morning: the story of the last American bomber shot down over Germany in World War II , Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley (1990), 83. 

Up, up, up he went, until he got above the clouds. No amount of practice could have prepared the pilot and crew for what they encountered-B-24s, glittering like mica, were popping up out of the clouds over here, over there, everywhere.

This comes from The Wild Blue: The Men and Boys Who Flew the B-24s over Germany  by Stephen E. Ambrose. Ambrose cites but does not quote Childers' original work despite using its imagery and language.  Ambrose should have either used Childers' passage as a direct quotation or modified his own passage so that it consisted of his own language.

Not Plagiarism

 Despite their training, the pilot and crew's experience was surreal and surprising, seeing for the first time "B-24s, glittering like mica, ... popping up out of the clouds all over the sky" (Ambrose 83).

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How to Avoid Plagiarism

• Defining Plagiarism
• Proper vs. Improper Paraphrasing
• Writing Skills

Improper Paraphrasing

Improper paraphrasing is a very common form of plagiarism. This occurs when one lifts a direct phrase from another work and changes just a few words - and then claims the work as wholly their own. Learning how to properly paraphrase is a very important component of good writing. But, remember, just because you have properly paraphrased does not mean that you do not need to cite the source of the original idea. Paraphrasing is simply a way of putting someone else's ideas into your own words - it does not make the idea your own.

Examples of Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing is when you take an original idea from an author's work and reword, or rephrase, it so that the words are your own. It is important to remember that no matter how successful you are at paraphrasing, only the words are your own. When you paraphrase you must give credit through a citation for the author's original idea.

Original Phrase

"Western law begins with two major subgroups. One contains the legal systems of the European continent. Although there are many differences among European legal systems, they are all descended from the law of the Roman Empire and were influenced by the procedures of Medieval Roman Catholic canon law."

Dorothy H. Bracey, Exploring Law and Culture 31 (2006).

If you want to use this exact language in a paper, or any other work for a course, you must use quotation marks and provide a citation. If you want to use the idea, but not necessarily the author's words, you can paraphrase - but remember, you need to really need to explain the idea in your own words for it to be properly paraphrased; and don't forget the citation! 

Western law has two major subgroups. One is the legal systems of Europe. There are differences between the European legal systems, but they are all descended from the Roman Empire and influenced by the procedures of the Medieval Roman Catholic law.

With or without a citation, the above phrase is plagiarism. Changing a few words and omitting others is not enough for proper paraphrasing. You must really understand what the phrase means and then put it in your own words. 

Proper Paraphrasing

At first glance, it can seem like the legal traditions of European countries are all very different. However, as part of one of the larger subgroups of Western law, European legal systems largely share a common origin in the Roman Empire and Medieval Roman Catholic Church law.

This is an example of proper paraphrasing (and citation). The original phrase has been reworded and the original idea is being attributed to the original author.

Help With Paraphrasing

If you feel like you need help with paraphrasing, there are some very good resources online. Purdue University has an online writing lab (the OWL) that offers tips on how to paraphrase as well as a quiz to see if you really understand how to paraphrase. This is an important skill to practice in order to avoid plagiarism. 

• Purdue's OWL instructions on how to paraphrase
• Purdue's OWL paraphrase exercise

Checklist From the OWL

6 Steps to Effective Paraphrasing

• Reread the original passage until you understand its full meaning.
• Set the original aside, and write your paraphrase on a note card.
• Jot down a few words below your paraphrase to remind you later how you envision using this material. At the top of the note card, write a key word or phrase to indicate the subject of your paraphrase.
• Check your rendition with the original to make sure that your version accurately expresses all the essential information in a new form.
• Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or phraseology you have borrowed exactly from the source.
• Record the source (including the page) on your note card so that you can credit it easily if you decide to incorporate the material into your paper.

Taken from Purdue Online Writing Lab, Paraphrase: Write It in Your Own Words

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