Paraphrasing, also called indirect citation or idea citation, allows you to quote an idea borrowed from an author by reformulating it in his words. The provenance of this idea should always be clearly identified using a citation method.
A paraphrase should:
- bring back the author’s ideas without distorting them
- be formulated in your own words
- be seamlessly integrated into your text
- be attributed to the author both in the text and in the list of references
The easiest way to paraphrase is to rewrite a piece of text from memory after reading it several times. Then you have to compare the original text and the paraphrase to make sure that the ways of expressing the idea are not the same. If so, the paraphrase should be changed.
Here are some tips for improving your paraphrases. The examples are presented according to the author-date method. You can use the https://paraphrasingtool.site to complete all the elements listed below: It’s an online paraphrasing tool that help writers to summarize content, replace words with synonyms, and change the sentence structures without losing the meaning of the phrase.
Replace some words with synonyms
When paraphrasing, the choice of words (nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, etc.) is important. The synonyms used must have roughly the same meaning as those in the original text and harmonize with your text. It is important to understand the meaning of a word and to check it in the dictionary if necessary.
Please note: we should not replace every word of the original passage with a synonym, but simply the most important words, and we should ensure that the author’s idea is respected.
Example
Original text phrase
In this context where common working areas are minimized, the organization of labor relations does not seem to have benefited from a detailed reflection on how to make the design teams and the management teams cooperate, harming the proper functioning. lessons.
Paraphrasing
This research has shown that a work climate where social interaction is limited does not favor a detailed analysis of how to make the design teams and the management teams work together. The professors conclude that the course of the lessons is negatively influenced (Racette&Bourdage-Sylvain, 2018, p. 127).
Change Sentence Structure
The sentences are rewritten in new forms to create a paraphrase. Here are some examples of common changes:
- Replace link words by consulting a connector table such as that of the Multidictionary
- Change the location of part of the sentence
- Split a sentence
Warning: we must ensure that the sentence (s) are constructed respecting the rules of grammar and that the author’s idea is respected.
Example
Original text phrase
The testimonies collected express the common experience of isolation in which any migrant can recognize themselves, but no project has been put in place to establish a feeling of community.
Paraphrasing
No project has been put in place to establish a sense of community. However, the common experience of isolation in which any migrant can identify was expressed through the testimonies collected (Grangeon, 2017).
Change the category of the word
When paraphrasing, the parts of speech that are created from the different categories of words in the language (nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs…) can sometimes be transformed by changing the category of a word. It is about replacing a noun by a verb, an adjective by a noun, a verb by a noun, etc. This change will undoubtedly alter the order of the words in the sentence.
Warning: we must ensure that the sentence (s) are constructed respecting the rules of grammar and that the author’s idea is respected.
Example
Original text phrase
This athlete visited Canada in 1978.
Paraphrasing
This athlete’s visit to Canada took place in 1978 (Zidan, 2012).
Summarize Author’s Idea
Summarize part of a text
Sometimes an idea is deployed in several sentences or even several pages. A summary can be a good way to incorporate this into the text.
Example
Sentences from the original text
Employees consent to this system, despite the protection of the Act respecting labor standards (LNT), because of the importance of reputation in an environment where placement is constant. In doing so, the Iron Triangle imposes more effective professional ethics than direct authority, because it is self-imposed. It immediately excludes having recourse to the protection of labor laws, because their mobility is based on their reputation.
Paraphrase
Legault (2014) concludes that workers’ concern about their reputation in a field where mobility is the norm encourages them not to resort to the protection of labor laws.