📝 Created by: El Arby Ameur | 📅 August 2026 | 🌐 lesson.tn
🔄 Paraphrasing in Academic Writing: Techniques and Examples
What is paraphrasing?
Restating a source's idea in your own words while keeping the original meaning. Must be cited.
Techniques
1. Change synonyms: "important" → "significant"
2. Change sentence structure: Active to passive: "Researchers conducted a study" → "A study was conducted by researchers"
3. Change word form: "analysis" (noun) → "analyze" (verb)
4. Combine or split sentences
5. Change order of information
Examples
Original: "Global warming is causing sea levels to rise at an alarming rate." Paraphrase: "Sea levels are increasing rapidly as a result of global warming."
⚠️ Avoid "patchwriting" (changing only a few words). Put the original away and rewrite from memory.