Mastering Paraphrasing for IELTS: Effective Techniques for Academic Writing
Paraphrasing is a vital skill for the IELTS exam. This guide will show you how to paraphrase effectively and improve your writing, especially for Task 1.
What is Paraphrasing?
Paraphrasing means rewording a sentence or phrase to maintain the same meaning while using different words. It’s one of the most important skills to develop before taking the IELTS test, especially for Writing and Speaking, but it will also help you in Reading and Listening.
When you master paraphrasing, you’re more likely to achieve the score you need. The mental process of paraphrasing also helps you understand the question better, which is why I always encourage my students to start their IELTS Writing Task 1 answers with a paraphrase of the question.
Example:
Original:
Paraphrasing is one of the most important skills to learn before doing your IELTS test.
Paraphrased:
Before taking the IELTS test, mastering paraphrasing is one of the most crucial things to do.
As shown, the paraphrased sentence uses synonyms (e.g., ‘important’ for ‘crucial’ and ‘before’ for ‘prior’) and changes the sentence structure. You can also swap the word order to create variety.
Four Key Methods for Paraphrasing
Here are four methods to help you paraphrase sentences effectively in the IELTS exam.
Method 1: Using Synonyms
Synonyms are words that have the same or similar meaning. You can replace words in the sentence with their synonyms to express the same idea in a different way.
Example:
Original: My car needs petrol.
Paraphrased: My vehicle requires fuel.
Notice how I replaced “car” with “vehicle” and “needs” with “requires”. While I didn’t replace every word, it’s important to use synonyms where possible.
Tip: Make sure the words you choose are exact synonyms. Misuse of synonyms can lead to confusion and mistakes.
Example:
Original: Violent crime is on the rise among teenagers.
Paraphrased: Violent offences are rising among young people.
Although “young people” is a synonym for “teenagers,” it’s too general. A better choice would be “adolescents” or “young people between the ages of 13-19.” Always be sure that the synonyms you choose fit the context.
Method 2: Changing the Word Order
Changing the word order can also help you paraphrase effectively. Just be careful, as it may require you to adjust other parts of the sentence for it to remain grammatically correct.
Example:
Original: As languages such as Spanish, Chinese, and English become more widely used, there is a fear that many minority languages may die out.
Paraphrased: There is a fear that many minority languages may die out, as languages such as Spanish, Chinese, and English become more widely used.
We’ve swapped the position of clauses while maintaining the same meaning.
You can also use relative clauses to rephrase adjectives and nouns:
Original: Learning to manage money is one of the key aspects of adult life.
Paraphrased: Learning to manage money is a key aspect of adult life.
Method 3: Changing the Form of the Word
You can change the form of a word, such as converting a noun to a verb or an adjective to an adverb, to paraphrase effectively.
Example:
Original: Longer life spans and improvements in the health of older people suggest that people over the age of sixty-five can continue to live full and active lives.
Paraphrased: Longer life spans and improvements in the health of older people are suggesting that people over the age of sixty-five can continue living full and active lives.
Here, we changed “suggest” (verb) to “are suggesting” (verb phrase) to paraphrase.
Method 4: Changing from Active to Passive
Using the passive voice is common in academic writing, and it can help you paraphrase sentences.
Example:
Active: The property developers invested $20 million in the development of the shopping centre.
Passive: $20 million was invested in the development of the shopping centre.
We switched the sentence from active to passive, which is often used to focus on the action rather than the person doing the action.
How Many Methods Should I Use?
You can use these methods separately or combine them for more varied and effective paraphrasing. It’s important not to overcomplicate things. Stick to the methods you feel 100% confident using and make sure your sentence is grammatically correct.
Next Steps
The key to paraphrasing is practice. Start by finding IELTS writing sample questions and practice paraphrasing them using these methods. As you practice, you’ll start noticing common phrases and patterns, making paraphrasing easier over time.
To see more examples of paraphrasing, use Google to compare how different writers express the same idea. This will give you a clearer understanding of how paraphrasing works in different contexts.