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Avoiding Plagiarism: What is a paraphrase?

"A paraphrase restates another's idea . . . in your own words" (269).

"Paraphrasing is an effective writing strategy because it allows authors to summarize and synthesize information from one or more sources. . . . Published authors paraphrase their sources most of the time, rather than directly quoting the sources; student authors should emulate this practice by paraphrasing more than directly quoting" (269).

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. 7th ed., American Psychological Association, 2020

"You paraphrase appropriately when you represent an idea in your own words. . . . But readers will think that you plagiarize if they can match your words and phrasing with those of your source" (208).

"To avoid seeming to plagiarize, read the psssage, look away, think about it for a moment; then still looking away, paraphrase it in your own words. Then check whether you can run your finger along your sentence and find synonyms for the same ideas in the same order in your source. If you can, try again" (209).

Booth, Wayne C., et al. The Craft of Research. 4th ed., U of Chicago P, 2016