Proper Paraphrasing Techniques: How to Reword Sources Without Plagiarizing

Paraphrasing is the most misunderstood writing skill in academic settings. Students think it's simple: read something, change the words, cite it. Done. Wrong. That approach produces patchwriting—which is plagiarism. True paraphrasing requires genuine intellectual processing. It's harder than quoting, but it's also more valuable. Let's learn how to do it right.

What Paraphrasing Actually Is

Paraphrasing is expressing someone else's ideas in your own words, in your own style, with your own examples, while still citing the original source. It's not changing 30% of the words. It's not keeping the structure and using synonyms. It's fundamentally reprocessing the information so that it's genuinely yours—while acknowledging it originated from someone else.

The goal of paraphrasing: Show that you've understood the material deeply enough to explain it differently, in a way that fits your essay, your audience, and your argument.

The Five-Step Paraphrasing Process

Step 1: Read the Source Multiple Times

Don't speed-read. Don't skim. Read the material thoroughly until you genuinely understand the concept. If you're paraphrasing a paragraph, read it 2-3 times. If it's a research paper, read it more than once.

Take notes on the main idea, supporting points, and key examples. But write these notes in your own words, not in the author's words. This is where paraphrasing begins—in your comprehension.

Step 2: Close the Source and Wait

This is the critical step most students skip. Put the source document away. Don't look at it. Wait at least 30 minutes, preferably longer. Read something else. Let your mind process the material.

Why does this matter? Because if you write while looking at the source, you'll unconsciously match its structure and vocabulary. Stepping away creates distance that forces genuine reformulation. When you return to writing, you won't have the source's exact phrasing echoing in your head.

Step 3: Write From Memory Without Referencing

Write your paraphrase as if you're explaining the concept to a friend who hasn't read the source. Don't look at the original. Don't have it open in another tab tempting you. Write what you remember, in the way you'd naturally explain it.

This is where your genuine voice emerges. You'll use different sentence structures. You might organize the ideas differently. You'll use examples that make sense to you. This is authentic paraphrasing.

Step 4: Compare to the Original

Now retrieve the source and compare your paraphrase to the original. Check:

• Do the key ideas match? (They should)
• Is the structure completely different? (It should be)
• Are the sentences constructed differently? (They should be)
• Do you use different examples or include only some of the author's examples? (This is good)
• Would a plagiarism detector flag this? (It shouldn't if you did this right)

If your paraphrase reads too similarly to the original, go back to Step 3 and rewrite it. Make it more different.

Step 5: Cite the Source

Add the citation. In-text citation to make clear where this idea came from. The citation transforms your paraphrased idea from plagiarism into proper academic borrowing.

Example with MLA:
"Research demonstrates that students who start assignments early experience less anxiety and produce higher-quality work" (Smith 45).

Original source might have said: "Early initiation of academic assignments correlates significantly with reduced psychological distress and enhanced output caliber."

Same idea. Completely different expression. Properly cited. This is legitimate paraphrasing.

What NOT to Do When Paraphrasing

❌ Patchwriting (Synonyms Only)

Bad paraphrase: "Social media has turned into a significant form of communication in our modern world" (paraphrased from: "Social media has become an important method of communication in contemporary society")

This is patchwriting. You changed "turned into" to "become," "significant" to "important," and "modern world" to "contemporary society." The structure is identical. The meaning is unchanged. A plagiarism detector would flag this, and your professor would too.

❌ Changing Only a Few Words

Original: "Climate change poses unprecedented threats to global food security by disrupting agricultural patterns, reducing crop yields, and forcing mass migration of farming communities."

Bad attempt: "Climate change creates significant dangers to worldwide food security by disrupting farming patterns, reducing harvest yields, and causing mass relocation of agricultural populations."

Still too close. Same structure. Same order of ideas. Just swapped synonyms.

❌ Keeping the Original Structure

If your paraphrase follows the same organization, same examples in the same order, same transitions—it's too close to the original, even if the wording is different.

❌ Using a Thesaurus as Your Main Tool

Some students open a thesaurus and systematically replace words. This produces patchwriting, not paraphrasing. Real paraphrasing doesn't come from a thesaurus; it comes from understanding the concept and explaining it yourself.

When to Quote Instead of Paraphrase

Honest talk: sometimes you shouldn't paraphrase. Sometimes you should quote directly.

Quote when:

• The author's exact phrasing is particularly powerful or memorable
• The authority of the original author matters more than your restatement
• You want to debate what the author said
• You're analyzing the language itself

Paraphrase when:

• You want to simplify complex information
• The exact phrasing doesn't matter; only the idea does
• You're integrating multiple sources on the same topic
• You want to maintain your paper's voice and flow

Common Paraphrasing Mistakes and Fixes

Mistake #1: Paraphrasing While Reading

The problem: You're reading and your fingers are on the keyboard. You start writing a paraphrase while the source is open. You end up copying the structure.

The fix: Read first. Write later. Create physical or temporal distance between reading and writing.

Mistake #2: Only Changing Obvious Words

The problem: You change adjectives and verbs but keep nouns, structure, and examples the same.

The fix: Reorganize ideas. Use different examples. Change the structure. Make it genuinely different.

Mistake #3: Not Citing the Paraphrase

The problem: You paraphrase properly but forget to cite. That's plagiarism regardless of how original your phrasing is.

The fix: Add the citation immediately. Every paraphrase needs attribution.

Mistake #4: Paraphrasing Too Much

The problem: Your entire paper is paraphrased sources. Even with citations, this shows you're summarizing rather than analyzing.

The fix: Keep paraphrases to 20-30% of your paper. Use quotes strategically. Add your own analysis. Show your thinking.

Paraphrasing Multiple Sources

When paraphrasing several sources on the same topic, make sure each paraphrase is distinct. Don't create a paragraph that's a mishmash of paraphrased sources that sound alike. Each should show individual processing.

Also: use signal phrases to clarify who said what.

Good: "According to Smith, climate change impacts food security through three mechanisms: disrupted weather patterns, reduced yields, and forced migration. Johnson adds that cultural factors also determine which communities are most vulnerable to these effects."

This shows you've understood each source separately and can integrate them thoughtfully.