Have you ever struggled to rephrase your assignments?
Or perhaps, have your content been flagged for plagiarism even when you thought you had written concepts in your own words?
Honestly speaking, rephrasing can be a challenging task.
Isn’t it?
However, it’s an essential skill for students to write unique assignments.
There are countless rephrasing mistakes students make daily. Knowing about them can help you avoid these mistakes.
This guide is all about common rephrasing mistakes that students commit in their academic assignments. Let’s dive into them & learn how to avoid them to make your assignments unique.
What is rephrasing & why does it matter?
Before taking a glimpse of these mistakes, let’s look at what rephrasing is & why it is important.
Rephrasing means rewording a sentence, paragraph, or even the whole text without changing the meaning of the original. It simply means rewriting the same idea or thought into a different set of words, phrases, or sentences.
Rephrasing allows you to:
- Simplify complex language
- Improve text’s clarity & understanding
- Enhance readability & accessibility
- Eliminate plagiarism
- Avoid repetition & redundancy
- Change the tone or style of the text
Avoid these rephrasing mistakes to craft a unique assignment
Mistake#1: Changing a few words
One of the most common mistakes the students make is only changing a few words of the original sentence.
The end results?
Your assignment will be flagged as plagiarism.
For example:
Original
“The rapid growth of technology has transformed the way we communicate.”
Poor rephrasing
“The fast growth of technology changed the way we communicate.”
This rephrased sentence is too close to the original sentence. Try to rewrite it in such a way that this sentence should be completely worded differently but have the same meaning as the original one.
See below:
Better rephrasing
“Technological progress has drastically changed our ways of communication.”
Mistake 2: Loss of the original meaning
While rephrasing, some students change the meaning of the original text. This mostly happens when you don’t completely understand the text you are trying to paraphrase.
Let’s have a look at the example:
Original
“Climate change poses a significant threat to biodiversity.”
Poor rephrasing
“The weather changes are a big risk to animals.”
The meaning has been distorted here.
Climate change refers to the change of temperatures & weather over a long period of time, while biodiversity refers to all living things on earth, not just animals.
A better rewording would be:
Better rephrasing
“The impact of climate change endangers a wide variety of species.”
Mistake#3: Complicating the sentence
Academic writing needs to be clear & concise. In order to avoid accidental plagiarism, students actually overcomplicate the sentence.
And guess what?
This makes the sentence hard to read or even impossible to understand. Here is an example:
Original
“Effective communication is the key to successful teamwork.”
Poor rephrasing
“The ability to communicate in an efficient manner is of utmost importance to the achievement of collaborative efforts.”
While this reworded sentence is grammatically correct, it’s really wordy.
Better rephrasing
“Good communication is essential for excellent teamwork.”
Mistake#4: Misapplication of synonyms
Substitution of words by their synonyms is a very general way of rephrasing sentences, but it may not work if the synonyms do not fit in the context. Let us see how:
Original
“The economic downturn has led to a decrease in consumer spending.”
Poor rephrasing
“The financial decline has caused a drop in buyer expenditure.”
While “financial decline” & “economic downturn” mean the same thing, they are not exactly interchangeable.
Plus, “buyer expenditure” does not quite sound right here.
Better rephrasing
“The recession has resulted in reduced consumer spending.”
Mistake#5: Ignoring Academic Tone
While writing an assignment, you should follow the academic tone, even when rephrasing. Using colloquial terms or slang can reduce the credibility of your text. Take a look at the example:
Original
“Researchers found a significant correlation between sleep & cognitive performance.”
Poor rephrasing
“Scientists discovered a big link between sleeping & brain work.”
The informal tone of the rephrased sentence is not fit for an assignment or academic work. Instead, a better way would be:
Better rephrasing
“Scientists identified a strong connection between sleep & cognitive function.”
Mistake#6: Missing some key information
While rephrasing text for an assignment, you need to maintain the vital information.
If this information were not provided, context would be completely lost, & the quality of your text would be lower. Look at this example:
Original
“According to a 2019 study by Harvard University, regular exercise improves mental health by reducing anxiety & depression.”
Poor rephrasing
“Harvard’s 2019 study shows exercise is good for mental health.”
This rephrased text doesn’t contain the key details on how exercise improves mental health. The complete rephrased sentence would be as follows:
Better rephrasing
“A 2019 study by Harvard University finds that regular exercise works to enhance mental health by alleviating symptoms of anxiety & depression.”
Practical tips for effective rephrasing
Follow these tips to rephrase assignments like an expert:
i. Understand the material
Before diving into the rephrasing phase, you need to understand the original text. This way, you’ll be able to manage to retain the original meaning expressed in your words.
ii. Use multiple sources
It would be best to utilize various sources for your write-up. This allows you to gain a complete understanding of the topic. Additionally, it will provide you with different perspectives, letting you rephrase more efficiently.
iii. Use an online sentence rephraser
An online sentence rephraser utilizes smart AI algorithms to rephrase sentences, paragraphs, & even entire assignments in the shortest possible time without damaging the original meaning & context. You need to visit the tool, put your text into it, & let the tool do the rest.
A good sentence rephraser substitutes words with appropriate synonyms, changes the sentence structure, & eliminates the fluff without changing the intended meaning. This way, you can learn the best way to rephrase sentences for your assignments.
iv. Keep practicing
Any skill is like that; the more you practice, the better at it you become. Start rephrasing sentences in your readings & then go back to the original sentences to check if you can do justice to them by capturing the right meaning.
v. Read aloud
Read aloud your rephrased sentences to check if they clearly sound natural. This step will help you find areas within the text that need a tweak.
The Final Word
Rephrasing lets students showcase their understanding of the subject & avoid plagiarism.
Equipped with the knowledge of common errors such as changing a couple of words, losing overall meaning, making overly complicated sentences, using incorrect synonyms, completely ignoring academic tone, & missing important details will enhance the quality of your assignments.
Remember to understand the content, work with multiple sources, use good sentence rephraser tools, practice regularly, & read the work aloud.
Implementing the above strategies will not only help you to rephrase content effectively but also raise your academic writing to the next level.