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Paraphrased

What Exactly is Paraphrased Plagiarism?

Paraphrasing is when you still use parenthetical notation to indicate that the idea or concept came from an outside source, but the language is fully original to you, the essay writer. Many students misunderstand paraphrasing. "To put in your own words" may have served you well as a definition for paraphrasing in the past, but it is not specific enough for this collegiate skill. When you paraphrase a source, you must change more than the vocabulary choices. You must also change the original syntax. Syntax refers to the order or pattern of words constructing a sentence.

If you change the words in a source but borrow the syntax, you are still plagiarizing.

Source: "When physicians meet with patients, they are often rushed" (O'Neill 7).

Student's Plagiarized Attempt to Paraphrase: When doctors meet with clients, they are often in a hurry (O'Neill 7).

The student plagiarizes the syntax by imitating the structure of the complex sentence, starting with the same subordinating conjunction, "when," and retaining the same subject/verb structure.

For a fuller discussion of avoiding paraphrased plagiarism, refer to pages 100-101 in Research Strategies for a Digital Age
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