How to Avoid Plagiarism

• Use quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing, to include another writer’s words or ideas into your paper.
• Credit the author by citing that source with an in-text citation in the body of your paper.
• Then include a full citation of that source, on the Works Cited or Reference page, which is the last page of your paper.

Quoting:

• To copy the author's exact words
• Should be enclosed in quotation marks "like this"
• Use an in-text citation right after the quote
• Use when the author said it best
• Don't use too often

Paraphrasing:

• Explain the meaning of the author's ideas, in your own words
• Use an in-text citation right after the paraphrase
• Then after the paraphrase and citation, add your own ideas or comments

Summarizing:

• Explain only the author's main points, in your own words
• Will be a lot shorter than original text
• Use an in-text citation right after the summary

Source: Quoting, Paraphrasing, & Summarizing from the Ashford University Writing Center