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How to Write a Summary | Guide & Examples

Published on November 23, 2020 by Shona McCombes . Revised on May 31, 2023.

Summarizing , or writing a summary, means giving a concise overview of a text’s main points in your own words. A summary is always much shorter than the original text.

There are five key steps that can help you to write a summary:

• Read the text
• Break it down into sections
• Identify the key points in each section
• Write the summary
• Check the summary against the article

Writing a summary does not involve critiquing or evaluating the source . You should simply provide an accurate account of the most important information and ideas (without copying any text from the original).

Table of contents

When to write a summary, step 1: read the text, step 2: break the text down into sections, step 3: identify the key points in each section, step 4: write the summary, step 5: check the summary against the article, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about summarizing.

There are many situations in which you might have to summarize an article or other source:

• As a stand-alone assignment to show you’ve understood the material
• To keep notes that will help you remember what you’ve read
• To give an overview of other researchers’ work in a literature review

When you’re writing an academic text like an essay , research paper , or dissertation , you’ll integrate sources in a variety of ways. You might use a brief quote to support your point, or paraphrase a few sentences or paragraphs.

But it’s often appropriate to summarize a whole article or chapter if it is especially relevant to your own research, or to provide an overview of a source before you analyze or critique it.

In any case, the goal of summarizing is to give your reader a clear understanding of the original source. Follow the five steps outlined below to write a good summary.

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You should read the article more than once to make sure you’ve thoroughly understood it. It’s often effective to read in three stages:

• Scan the article quickly to get a sense of its topic and overall shape.
• Read the article carefully, highlighting important points and taking notes as you read.
• Skim the article again to confirm you’ve understood the key points, and reread any particularly important or difficult passages.

There are some tricks you can use to identify the key points as you read:

• Start by reading the abstract . This already contains the author’s own summary of their work, and it tells you what to expect from the article.
• Pay attention to headings and subheadings . These should give you a good sense of what each part is about.
• Read the introduction and the conclusion together and compare them: What did the author set out to do, and what was the outcome?

To make the text more manageable and understand its sub-points, break it down into smaller sections.

If the text is a scientific paper that follows a standard empirical structure, it is probably already organized into clearly marked sections, usually including an introduction , methods , results , and discussion .

Other types of articles may not be explicitly divided into sections. But most articles and essays will be structured around a series of sub-points or themes.

Now it’s time go through each section and pick out its most important points. What does your reader need to know to understand the overall argument or conclusion of the article?

Keep in mind that a summary does not involve paraphrasing every single paragraph of the article. Your goal is to extract the essential points, leaving out anything that can be considered background information or supplementary detail.

In a scientific article, there are some easy questions you can ask to identify the key points in each part.

If the article takes a different form, you might have to think more carefully about what points are most important for the reader to understand its argument.

In that case, pay particular attention to the thesis statement —the central claim that the author wants us to accept, which usually appears in the introduction—and the topic sentences that signal the main idea of each paragraph.

Now that you know the key points that the article aims to communicate, you need to put them in your own words.

To avoid plagiarism and show you’ve understood the article, it’s essential to properly paraphrase the author’s ideas. Do not copy and paste parts of the article, not even just a sentence or two.

The best way to do this is to put the article aside and write out your own understanding of the author’s key points.

Examples of article summaries

Let’s take a look at an example. Below, we summarize this article , which scientifically investigates the old saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

Davis et al. (2015) set out to empirically test the popular saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.” Apples are often used to represent a healthy lifestyle, and research has shown their nutritional properties could be beneficial for various aspects of health. The authors’ unique approach is to take the saying literally and ask: do people who eat apples use healthcare services less frequently? If there is indeed such a relationship, they suggest, promoting apple consumption could help reduce healthcare costs.

The study used publicly available cross-sectional data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants were categorized as either apple eaters or non-apple eaters based on their self-reported apple consumption in an average 24-hour period. They were also categorized as either avoiding or not avoiding the use of healthcare services in the past year. The data was statistically analyzed to test whether there was an association between apple consumption and several dependent variables: physician visits, hospital stays, use of mental health services, and use of prescription medication.

Although apple eaters were slightly more likely to have avoided physician visits, this relationship was not statistically significant after adjusting for various relevant factors. No association was found between apple consumption and hospital stays or mental health service use. However, apple eaters were found to be slightly more likely to have avoided using prescription medication. Based on these results, the authors conclude that an apple a day does not keep the doctor away, but it may keep the pharmacist away. They suggest that this finding could have implications for reducing healthcare costs, considering the high annual costs of prescription medication and the inexpensiveness of apples.

However, the authors also note several limitations of the study: most importantly, that apple eaters are likely to differ from non-apple eaters in ways that may have confounded the results (for example, apple eaters may be more likely to be health-conscious). To establish any causal relationship between apple consumption and avoidance of medication, they recommend experimental research.

An article summary like the above would be appropriate for a stand-alone summary assignment. However, you’ll often want to give an even more concise summary of an article.

For example, in a literature review or meta analysis you may want to briefly summarize this study as part of a wider discussion of various sources. In this case, we can boil our summary down even further to include only the most relevant information.

Using national survey data, Davis et al. (2015) tested the assertion that “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” and did not find statistically significant evidence to support this hypothesis. While people who consumed apples were slightly less likely to use prescription medications, the study was unable to demonstrate a causal relationship between these variables.

Citing the source you’re summarizing

When including a summary as part of a larger text, it’s essential to properly cite the source you’re summarizing. The exact format depends on your citation style , but it usually includes an in-text citation and a full reference at the end of your paper.

You can easily create your citations and references in APA or MLA using our free citation generators.

APA Citation Generator MLA Citation Generator

Finally, read through the article once more to ensure that:

• You’ve accurately represented the author’s work
• You haven’t missed any essential information
• The phrasing is not too similar to any sentences in the original.

If you’re summarizing many articles as part of your own work, it may be a good idea to use a plagiarism checker to double-check that your text is completely original and properly cited. Just be sure to use one that’s safe and reliable.

If you want to know more about ChatGPT, AI tools , citation , and plagiarism , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• ChatGPT vs human editor
• ChatGPT citations
• Is ChatGPT trustworthy?
• Using ChatGPT for your studies
• What is ChatGPT?
• Chicago style
• Paraphrasing

 Plagiarism

• Types of plagiarism
• Self-plagiarism
• Avoiding plagiarism
• Academic integrity
• Consequences of plagiarism
• Common knowledge

A summary is a short overview of the main points of an article or other source, written entirely in your own words. Want to make your life super easy? Try our free text summarizer today!

A summary is always much shorter than the original text. The length of a summary can range from just a few sentences to several paragraphs; it depends on the length of the article you’re summarizing, and on the purpose of the summary.

You might have to write a summary of a source:

• As a stand-alone assignment to prove you understand the material
• For your own use, to keep notes on your reading
• To provide an overview of other researchers’ work in a literature review
• In a paper , to summarize or introduce a relevant study

To avoid plagiarism when summarizing an article or other source, follow these two rules:

• Write the summary entirely in your own words by paraphrasing the author’s ideas.
• Cite the source with an in-text citation and a full reference so your reader can easily find the original text.

An abstract concisely explains all the key points of an academic text such as a thesis , dissertation or journal article. It should summarize the whole text, not just introduce it.

An abstract is a type of summary , but summaries are also written elsewhere in academic writing . For example, you might summarize a source in a paper , in a literature review , or as a standalone assignment.

All can be done within seconds with our free text summarizer .

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

McCombes, S. (2023, May 31). How to Write a Summary | Guide & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved June 9, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/working-with-sources/how-to-summarize/

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How to Write a Summary (Examples Included)

Ashley Shaw

Have you ever recommended a book to someone and given them a quick overview? Then you’ve created a summary before!

Summarizing is a common part of everyday communication. It feels easy when you’re recounting what happened on your favorite show, but what do you do when the information gets a little more complex?

Written summaries come with their own set of challenges. You might ask yourself:

• What details are unnecessary?
• How do you put this in your own words without changing the meaning?
• How close can you get to the original without plagiarizing it?
• How long should it be?

The answers to these questions depend on the type of summary you are doing and why you are doing it.

A summary in an academic setting is different to a professional summary—and both of those are very different to summarizing a funny story you want to tell your friends.

One thing they all have in common is that you need to relay information in the clearest way possible to help your reader understand. We’ll look at some different forms of summary, and give you some tips on each.

Let’s get started!

What Is a Summary?

How do you write a summary, how do you write an academic summary, what are the four types of academic summaries, how do i write a professional summary, writing or telling a summary in personal situations, summarizing summaries.

A summary is a shorter version of a larger work. Summaries are used at some level in almost every writing task, from formal documents to personal messages.

When you write a summary, you have an audience that doesn’t know every single thing you know.

When you want them to understand your argument, topic, or stance, you may need to explain some things to catch them up.

Instead of having them read the article or hear every single detail of the story or event, you instead give them a brief overview of what they need to know.

Academic, professional, and personal summaries each require you to consider different things, but there are some key rules they all have in common.

Let’s go over a few general guides to writing a summary first.

1. A summary should always be shorter than the original work, usually considerably.

Even if your summary is the length of a full paper, you are likely summarizing a book or other significantly longer work.

2. A summary should tell the reader the highlights of what they need to know without giving them unnecessary details.

3. It should also include enough details to give a clear and honest picture.

For example, if you summarize an article that says “ The Office is the greatest television show of all time,” but don’t mention that they are specifically referring to sitcoms, then you changed the meaning of the article. That’s a problem! Similarly, if you write a summary of your job history and say you volunteered at a hospital for the last three years, but you don’t add that you only went twice in that time, it becomes a little dishonest.

4. Summaries shouldn’t contain personal opinion.

While in the longer work you are creating you might use opinion, within the summary itself, you should avoid all personal opinion. A summary is different than a review. In this moment, you aren’t saying what you think of the work you are summarizing, you are just giving your audience enough information to know what the work says or did.

Now that we have a good idea of what summaries are in general, let’s talk about some specific types of summary you will likely have to do at some point in your writing life.

An academic summary is one you will create for a class or in other academic writing. The exact elements you will need to include depend on the assignment itself.

However, when you’re asked for an academic summary, this usually this means one of five things, all of which are pretty similar:

• You need to do a presentation in which you talk about an article, book, or report.
• You write a summary paper in which the entire paper is a summary of a specific work.
• You summarize a class discussion, lesson, or reading in the form of personal notes or a discussion board post.
• You do something like an annotated bibliography where you write short summaries of multiple works in preparation of a longer assignment.
• You write quick summaries within the body of another assignment . For example, in an argumentative essay, you will likely need to have short summaries of the sources you use to explain their argument before getting into how the source helps you prove your point.

Regardless of what type of summary you are doing, though, there are a few steps you should always follow:

• Skim the work you are summarizing before you read it. Notice what stands out to you.
• Next, read it in depth . Do the same things stand out?
• Put the full text away and write in a few sentences what the main idea or point was.
• Go back and compare to make sure you didn’t forget anything.
• Expand on this to write and then edit your summary.

Each type of academic summary requires slightly different things. Let’s get down to details.

How Do I Write a Summary Paper?

Sometimes teachers assign something called a summary paper . In this, the entire thing is a summary of one article, book, story, or report.

To understand how to write this paper, let’s talk a little bit about the purpose of such an assignment.

A summary paper is usually given to help a teacher see how well a student understands a reading assignment, but also to help the student digest the reading. Sometimes, it can be difficult to understand things we read right away.

However, a good way to process the information is to put it in our own words. That is the point of a summary paper.

A summary paper is:

• A way to explain in our own words what happened in a paper, book, etc.
• A time to think about what was important in the paper, etc.
• A time to think about the meaning and purpose behind the paper, etc.

Here are some things that a summary paper is not:

• A review. Your thoughts and opinions on the thing you are summarizing don’t need to be here unless otherwise specified.
• A comparison. A comparison paper has a lot of summary in it, but it is different than a summary paper. In this, you are just saying what happened, but you aren’t saying places it could have been done differently.
• A paraphrase (though you might have a little paraphrasing in there). In the section on using summary in longer papers, I talk more about the difference between summaries, paraphrases, and quotes.

Because a summary paper is usually longer than other forms of summary, you will be able to chose more detail. However, it still needs to focus on the important events. Summary papers are usually shorter papers.

Let’s say you are writing a 3–4 page summary. You are likely summarizing a full book or an article or short story, which will be much longer than 3–4 pages.

Imagine that you are the author of the work, and your editor comes to you and says they love what you wrote, but they need it to be 3–4 pages instead.

How would you tell that story (argument, idea, etc.) in that length without losing the heart or intent behind it? That is what belongs in a summary paper.

How Do I Write Useful Academic Notes?

Sometimes, you need to write a summary for yourself in the form of notes or for your classmates in the form of a discussion post.

You might not think you need a specific approach for this. After all, only you are going to see it.

However, summarizing for yourself can sometimes be the most difficult type of summary. If you try to write down everything your teacher says, your hand will cramp and you’ll likely miss a lot.

Yet, transcribing doesn’t work because studies show that writing things down (not typing them) actually helps you remember them better.

So how do you find the balance between summarizing the lessons without leaving out important points?

There are some tips for this:

• If your professor writes it on the board, it is probably important.
• What points do your textbooks include when summarizing information? Use these as a guide.
• Write the highlight of every X amount of time, with X being the time you can go without missing anything or getting tired. This could be one point per minute, or three per five minutes, etc.

How Do I Create an Annotated Biography?

An annotated bibliography requires a very specific style of writing. Often, you will write these before a longer research paper . They will ask you to find a certain amount of articles and write a short annotation for each of them.

While an annotation is more than just a summary, it usually starts with a summary of the work. This will be about 2–3 sentences long. Because you don’t have a lot of room, you really have to think about what the most important thing the work says is.

This will basically ask you to explain the point of the article in these couple of sentences, so you should focus on the main point when expressing it.

Here is an example of a summary section within an annotation about this post:

“In this post, the author explains how to write a summary in different types of settings. She walks through academic, professional, and personal summaries. Ultimately, she claims that summaries should be short explanations that get the audience caught up on the topic without leaving out details that would change the meaning.”

Can I Write a Summary Within an Essay?

Perhaps the most common type of summary you will ever do is a short summary within a longer paper.

For example, if you have to write an argumentative essay, you will likely need to use sources to help support your argument.

However, there is a good chance that your readers won’t have read those same sources.

So, you need to give them enough detail to understand your topic without spending too much time explaining and not enough making your argument.

While this depends on exactly how you are using summary in your paper, often, a good amount of summary is the same amount you would put in an annotation.

Just a few sentences will allow the reader to get an idea of the work before moving on to specific parts of it that might help your argument.

What’s the Difference Between Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Using Quotes?

One important thing to recognize when using summaries in academic settings is that summaries are different than paraphrases or quotes.

A summary is broader and more general. A paraphrase, on the other hand, puts specific parts into your own words. A quote uses the exact words of the original. All of them, however, need to be cited.

Let’s look at an example:

Take these words by Thomas J. Watson:

”Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure. You are thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn’t as all. You can be discouraged by failure—or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because, remember, that’s where you will find success.”

Let’s say I was told to write a summary, a paraphrase, and a quote about this statement. This is what it might look like:

Summary: Thomas J. Watson said that the key to success is actually to fail more often. (This is broad and doesn’t go into details about what he says, but it still gives him credit.)

Paraphrase: Thomas J. Watson, on asking if people would like his formula for success, said that the secret was to fail twice as much. He claimed that when you decide to learn from your mistakes instead of being disappointed by them, and when you start making a lot of them, you will actually find more success. (This includes most of the details, but it is in my own words, while still crediting the source.)

Quote: Thomas J. Watson said, ”Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure. You are thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn’t at all. You can be discouraged by failure—or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because, remember, that’s where you will find success.” (This is the exact words of the original with quotation marks and credit given.)

Avoiding Plagiarism

One of the hardest parts about summarizing someone else’s writing is avoiding plagiarism .

That’s why I have a few rules/tips for you when summarizing anything:

1. Always cite.

If you are talking about someone else’s work in any means, cite your source. If you are summarizing the entire work, all you probably need to do (depending on style guidelines) is say the author’s name. However, if you are summarizing a specific chapter or section, you should state that specifically. Finally, you should make sure to include it in your Work Cited or Reference page.

2. Change the wording.

Sometimes when people are summarizing or paraphrasing a work, they get too close to the original, and actually use the exact words. Unless you use quotation marks, this is plagiarism. However, a good way to avoid this is to hide the article while you are summarizing it. If you don’t have it in front of you, you are less likely to accidentally use the exact words. (However, after you are done, double check that you didn’t miss anything important or give wrong details.)

3. Use a plagiarism checker.

Of course, when you are writing any summary, especially academic summaries, it can be easy to cross the line into plagiarism. If this is a place where you struggle, then ProWritingAid can help.

Just use our Plagiarism Report . It’ll highlight any unoriginal text in your document so you can make sure you are citing everything correctly and summarizing in your own words.

Find out more about ProWritingAid plagiarism bundles.

Along with academic summaries, you might sometimes need to write professional summaries. Often, this means writing a summary about yourself that shows why you are qualified for a position or organization.

In this section, let’s talk about two types of professional summaries: a LinkedIn summary and a summary section within a resume.

How Do I Write My LinkedIn Bio?

LinkedIn is all about professional networking. It offers you a chance to share a brief glimpse of your professional qualifications in a paragraph or two.

This can then be sent to professional connections, or even found by them without you having to reach out. This can help you get a job or build your network.

Your summary is one of the first things a future employer might see about you, and how you write yours can make you stand out from the competition.

Here are some tips on writing a LinkedIn summary :

• Before you write it, think about what you want it to do . If you are looking for a job, what kind of job? What have you done in your past that would stand out to someone hiring for that position? That is what you will want to focus on in your summary.
• Be professional . Unlike many social media platforms, LinkedIn has a reputation for being more formal. Your summary should reflect that to some extent.
• Use keywords . Your summary is searchable, so using keywords that a recruiter might be searching for can help them find you.
• Focus on the start . LinkedIn shows the first 300 characters automatically, and then offers the viewer a chance to read more. Make that start so good that everyone wants to keep reading.
• Focus on accomplishments . Think of your life like a series of albums, and this is your speciality “Greatest Hits” album. What “songs” are you putting on it?

How Do I Summarize My Experience on a Resume?

Writing a professional summary for a resume is different than any other type of summary that you may have to do.

Recruiters go through a lot of resumes every day. They don’t have time to spend ages reading yours, which means you have to wow them quickly.

To do that, you might include a section at the top of your resume that acts almost as an elevator pitch: That one thing you might say to a recruiter to get them to want to talk to you if you only had a 30-second elevator ride.

If you don’t have a lot of experience, though, you might want to skip this section entirely and focus on playing up the experience you do have.

Outside of academic and personal summaries, you use summary a lot in your day-to-day life.

Whether it is telling a good piece of trivia you just learned or a funny story that happened to you, or even setting the stage in creative writing, you summarize all the time.

How you use summary can be an important consideration in whether people want to read your work (or listen to you talk).

Here are some things to think about when telling a story:

• Pick interesting details . Too many and your point will be lost. Not enough, and you didn’t paint the scene or give them a complete idea about what happened.
• Play into the emotions . When telling a story, you want more information than the bare minimum. You want your reader to get the emotion of the story. That requires a little bit more work to accomplish.
• Focus. A summary of one story can lead to another can lead to another. Think about storytellers that you know that go off on a tangent. They never seem to finish one story without telling 100 others!

To wrap up (and to demonstrate everything I just talked about), let’s summarize this post into its most essential parts:

A summary is a great way to quickly give your audience the information they need to understand the topic you are discussing without having to know every detail.

How you write a summary is different depending on what type of summary you are doing:

• An academic summary usually gets to the heart of an article, book, or journal, and it should highlight the main points in your own words. How long it should be depends on the type of assignment it is.
• A professional summary highlights you and your professional, academic, and volunteer history. It shows people in your professional network who you are and why they should hire you, work with you, use your talents, etc.

Being able to tell a good story is another form of summary. You want to tell engaging anecdotes and facts without boring your listeners. This is a skill that is developed over time.

Take your writing to the next level:

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Ashley Shaw is a former editor and marketer/current PhD student and teacher. When she isn't studying con artists for her dissertation, she's thinking of new ways to help college students better understand and love the writing process. You can follow her on Twitter, or, if you prefer animal accounts, follow her rabbits, Audrey Hopbun and Fredra StaHare, on Instagram.

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Everything You Need To Know About Writing a Summary

Wondering why summary writing is important? Knowing how to compose one is an essential skill not just for students but for anyone who wants to understand and communicate complex ideas clearly. In this post, we’ll provide five easy steps and more to teach you how to write a summary.

Table of Contents

What is a summary, how to write a summary in five easy steps, example of a summary, tips on writing a good summary.

Mastering the art of summary writing is crucial, but do you know why? Well, you might be surprised to learn that knowing how to craft one can help you become a better learner and communicator. If you have yet to sharpen this skill set, don’t worry. Below, we’ll go through five easy steps to write a good summary , complete with examples and tips.

Let’s begin!

A summary is a concise distillation of a larger body of work that briefly but thoroughly encapsulates its main ideas and essential points. It is designed to give the reader a clear understanding of the original project without needing to read it in full.  

Being able to restate in your own words what you’ve just read is a sign that you’ve truly absorbed and understood the information. In contrast, merely memorizing facts is not a good indication of comprehension. In other words, if you can’t concisely summarize something, you haven’t fully grasped the concept.

The word summary is a noun that refers to the “concise but comprehensive rewriting of an original body of work.”

• I had to write a summary of one of Mark Twain’s stories.

The verb form of this word is to summarize , which means “to provide a summary of something.”

• She missed the presentation, so I summarized it for her.

Now that we’ve reviewed what a summary entails, let’s get to the fun part: writing one!

Keep in mind that summaries can encompass a wide range of subjects, including books, articles, movies, meetings, and more. Also, a summarization isn’t necessarily always confined to writing; you can verbally summarize something, too. However, the steps below are designed to help you compose a written summary.

1. Read and take notes. 

First things first: Read or watch the original work you’ll be summarizing. While you do, take brief pauses and explain to yourself what you just read or watched. As the main ideas start becoming clear to you, take notes. This will make the writing process easier.

2. Start with an introductory sentence.

In academic and formal contexts, summaries typically begin with an introductory sentence that states the work’s title and author. This sets the stage for the reader by immediately identifying what is being discussed. However, if the work has already been identified, it may not be necessary to start with the title and author. For example, if you’re in a class that is currently discussing Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, then you may not need to include that information in the introduction.

3. Explain the main points.

Identify and elaborate on the main arguments or messages, and seek supporting evidence, topic sentences, or thesis statements .

It’s also a good idea to focus on the what, how, and why:

• What are the key ideas or events?
• How do they develop throughout the work?
• Why are they important to the work’s overall message?

Remember, be selective in what you include. Summaries are about the bigger picture, not the small details. 

4. Organize your summary to ensure a smooth flow.

Your summary should be coherent and easy to read. Therefore, you should use transition words to ensure logical progression from one idea to the next. It’s best to structure your summary similarly to the original work. Despite being a condensed version, it should still stand on its own as a cohesive piece of writing. In other words, ensure that there is a clear beginning, middle, and end.

5. Conclude by restating the author’s thesis. 

Finish your summary with a clear statement that effectively captures the author’s main argument or purpose. Keep in mind that the conclusion of a summary should not introduce new information but instead provide a sense of closure. This will leave the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the original text.

Imagine you’re taking a class on Shakespeare, and you’re assigned to write a one-paragraph summary of Romeo and Juliet. It should be similar to the following example:

“Romeo and Juliet” is a tragic play that tells the story of two young, star-crossed lovers. It begins with a street brawl between servants from the wealthy Montague and Capulet families and ends with two shocking deaths that ultimately reconcile a long-time feud. Romeo, a Montague, falls in love with Juliet, a Capulet, at a masquerade ball. Despite their families’ conflict, they marry in secret. After Romeo is banished for avenging the death of his friend, Juliet fakes her death to be with him. The plan goes awry, leading to Romeo and Juliet’s actual deaths. When the families learn of the tragic sequence of events, they decide to end their bitter feud once and for all.

It’s important to note that the length of the summary depends on the assignment’s instructions. It is possible to write a longer summary of Romeo and Juliet, if needed, by providing some more details and elaborating on the play’s themes.

How Long Should a Summary Be?

Some guidelines suggest that summaries should be 10%-30% of the original work, so it often depends on the complexity of the text and the intended purpose. If you’re writing a summary for school and are unsure how long it should be, ask your instructor for clarification.

As you work on your summary, keep the following tips in mind:

Take notes as you read.

We already mentioned this, but it’s worth reiterating. Taking notes as you read the original work is an easy way to simplify the summary writing process. The notes don’t have to be extensive; they just have to help you remember the important points.

Use your own words.

Don’t just copy and paste from the original work. Instead, analyze it and restate it. Imagine you and a friend just read an article. You understand it, but your friend doesn’t. You wouldn’t just reread it, hoping that a second reading would miraculously become clearer, right? No, you’d reword it. That’s precisely what you have to do when writing a summary.

Do not include opinions or interpretations.

A summary’s purpose is to restate the original text concisely. Avoid writing about your opinions or judgments about the work, and do not include elaborate interpretations.

Ensure proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

You can follow all the steps above and even ensure you abide by these tips. But if your summary is riddled with errors, it won’t be as effective. A simple way to ensure flawless spelling, grammar, and punctuation is to use LanguageTool as your personal writing assistant. Not only will it correct any mistakes, but it will also enhance your style. Plus, it supports more than thirty languages and dialects, so whether you’re writing in your native tongue or your second language, your instructors will be utterly impressed with your prose.

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Summary: Using it Wisely

What this handout is about.

Knowing how to summarize something you have read, seen, or heard is a valuable skill, one you have probably used in many writing assignments. It is important, though, to recognize when you must go beyond describing, explaining, and restating texts and offer a more complex analysis. This handout will help you distinguish between summary and analysis and avoid inappropriate summary in your academic writing.

Is summary a bad thing?

Not necessarily. But it’s important that your keep your assignment and your audience in mind as you write. If your assignment requires an argument with a thesis statement and supporting evidence—as many academic writing assignments do—then you should limit the amount of summary in your paper. You might use summary to provide background, set the stage, or illustrate supporting evidence, but keep it very brief: a few sentences should do the trick. Most of your paper should focus on your argument. (Our handout on argument will help you construct a good one.)

Writing a summary of what you know about your topic before you start drafting your actual paper can sometimes be helpful. If you are unfamiliar with the material you’re analyzing, you may need to summarize what you’ve read in order to understand your reading and get your thoughts in order. Once you figure out what you know about a subject, it’s easier to decide what you want to argue.

You may also want to try some other pre-writing activities that can help you develop your own analysis. Outlining, freewriting, and mapping make it easier to get your thoughts on the page. (Check out our handout on brainstorming for some suggested techniques.)

Why is it so tempting to stick with summary and skip analysis?

Many writers rely too heavily on summary because it is what they can most easily write. If you’re stalled by a difficult writing prompt, summarizing the plot of The Great Gatsby may be more appealing than staring at the computer for three hours and wondering what to say about F. Scott Fitzgerald’s use of color symbolism. After all, the plot is usually the easiest part of a work to understand. Something similar can happen even when what you are writing about has no plot: if you don’t really understand an author’s argument, it might seem easiest to just repeat what he or she said.

To write a more analytical paper, you may need to review the text or film you are writing about, with a focus on the elements that are relevant to your thesis. If possible, carefully consider your writing assignment before reading, viewing, or listening to the material about which you’ll be writing so that your encounter with the material will be more purposeful. (We offer a handout on reading towards writing .)

How do I know if I’m summarizing?

As you read through your essay, ask yourself the following questions:

• Am I stating something that would be obvious to a reader or viewer?
• Does my essay move through the plot, history, or author’s argument in chronological order, or in the exact same order the author used?
• Am I simply describing what happens, where it happens, or whom it happens to?

A “yes” to any of these questions may be a sign that you are summarizing. If you answer yes to the questions below, though, it is a sign that your paper may have more analysis (which is usually a good thing):

• Am I making an original argument about the text?
• Have I arranged my evidence around my own points, rather than just following the author’s or plot’s order?
• Am I explaining why or how an aspect of the text is significant?

Certain phrases are warning signs of summary. Keep an eye out for these:

• “[This essay] is about…”
• “[This book] is the story of…”
• “[This author] writes about…”
• “[This movie] is set in…”

Here’s an example of an introductory paragraph containing unnecessary summary. Sentences that summarize are in italics:

The Great Gatsby is the story of a mysterious millionaire, Jay Gatsby, who lives alone on an island in New York. F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote the book, but the narrator is Nick Carraway. Nick is Gatsby’s neighbor, and he chronicles the story of Gatsby and his circle of friends, beginning with his introduction to the strange man and ending with Gatsby’s tragic death. In the story, Nick describes his environment through various colors, including green, white, and grey. Whereas white and grey symbolize false purity and decay respectively, the color green offers a symbol of hope.

Here’s how you might change the paragraph to make it a more effective introduction:

In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald provides readers with detailed descriptions of the area surrounding East Egg, New York. In fact, Nick Carraway’s narration describes the setting with as much detail as the characters in the book. Nick’s description of the colors in his environment presents the book’s themes, symbolizing significant aspects of the post-World War I era. Whereas white and grey symbolize the false purity and decay of the 1920s, the color green offers a symbol of hope.

This version of the paragraph mentions the book’s title, author, setting, and narrator so that the reader is reminded of the text. And that sounds a lot like summary—but the paragraph quickly moves on to the writer’s own main topic: the setting and its relationship to the main themes of the book. The paragraph then closes with the writer’s specific thesis about the symbolism of white, grey, and green.

How do I write more analytically?

Analysis requires breaking something—like a story, poem, play, theory, or argument—into parts so you can understand how those parts work together to make the whole. Ideally, you should begin to analyze a work as you read or view it instead of waiting until after you’re done—it may help you to jot down some notes as you read. Your notes can be about major themes or ideas you notice, as well as anything that intrigues, puzzles, excites, or irritates you. Remember, analytic writing goes beyond the obvious to discuss questions of how and why—so ask yourself those questions as you read.

The St. Martin’s Handbook (the bulleted material below is quoted from p. 38 of the fifth edition) encourages readers to take the following steps in order to analyze a text:

• Identify evidence that supports or illustrates the main point or theme as well as anything that seems to contradict it.
• Consider the relationship between the words and the visuals in the work. Are they well integrated, or are they sometimes at odds with one another? What functions do the visuals serve? To capture attention? To provide more detailed information or illustration? To appeal to readers’ emotions?
• Decide whether the sources used are trustworthy.
• Identify the work’s underlying assumptions about the subject, as well as any biases it reveals.

Once you have written a draft, some questions you might want to ask yourself about your writing are “What’s my point?” or “What am I arguing in this paper?” If you can’t answer these questions, then you haven’t gone beyond summarizing. You may also want to think about how much of your writing comes from your own ideas or arguments. If you’re only reporting someone else’s ideas, you probably aren’t offering an analysis.

What strategies can help me avoid excessive summary?

• Read the assignment (the prompt) as soon as you get it. Make sure to reread it before you start writing. Go back to your assignment often while you write. (Check out our handout on reading assignments ).
• Formulate an argument (including a good thesis) and be sure that your final draft is structured around it, including aspects of the plot, story, history, background, etc. only as evidence for your argument. (You can refer to our handout on constructing thesis statements ).
• Read critically—imagine having a dialogue with the work you are discussing. What parts do you agree with? What parts do you disagree with? What questions do you have about the work? Does it remind you of other works you’ve seen?
• Make sure you have clear topic sentences that make arguments in support of your thesis statement. (Read our handout on paragraph development if you want to work on writing strong paragraphs).
• Use two different highlighters to mark your paper. With one color, highlight areas of summary or description. With the other, highlight areas of analysis. For many college papers, it’s a good idea to have lots of analysis and minimal summary/description.
• Ask yourself: What part of the essay would be obvious to a reader/viewer of the work being discussed? What parts (words, sentences, paragraphs) of the essay could be deleted without loss? In most cases, your paper should focus on points that are essential and that will be interesting to people who have already read or seen the work you are writing about.

But I’m writing a review! Don’t I have to summarize?

That depends. If you’re writing a critique of a piece of literature, a film, or a dramatic performance, you don’t necessarily need to give away much of the plot. The point is to let readers decide whether they want to enjoy it for themselves. If you do summarize, keep your summary brief and to the point.

Instead of telling your readers that the play, book, or film was “boring,” “interesting,” or “really good,” tell them specifically what parts of the work you’re talking about. It’s also important that you go beyond adjectives and explain how the work achieved its effect (how was it interesting?) and why you think the author/director wanted the audience to react a certain way. (We have a special handout on writing reviews that offers more tips.)

If you’re writing a review of an academic book or article, it may be important for you to summarize the main ideas and give an overview of the organization so your readers can decide whether it is relevant to their specific research interests.

If you are unsure how much (if any) summary a particular assignment requires, ask your instructor for guidance.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Barnet, Sylvan. 2015. A Short Guide to Writing about Art , 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Corrigan, Timothy. 2014. A Short Guide to Writing About Film , 9th ed. New York: Pearson.

Lunsford, Andrea A. 2015. The St. Martin’s Handbook , 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Zinsser, William. 2001. On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction , 6th ed. New York: Quill.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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• How to Write a Summary

Proficient students understand that  summarizing , identifying what is most important and restating the text (or other media) in your own words, is an important tool for college success.

After all, if you really know a subject, you will be able to summarize it. If you cannot summarize a subject, even if you have memorized all the facts about it, you can be absolutely sure that you have not learned it. And, if you truly learn the subject, you will still be able to summarize it months or years from now.

Proficient students may monitor their understanding of a text by summarizing as they read. They understand that if they can write a one- or two-sentence summary of each paragraph after reading it, then that is a good sign that they have correctly understood it. If they can not summarize the main idea of the paragraph, they know that comprehension has broken down and they need to use fix-up strategies to repair understanding.

Summary Writing Format

• When writing a summary, remember that it should be in the form of a paragraph.
• A summary begins with an introductory sentence that states the text’s title, author and main point of the text as you see it.
• A summary is written in your own words.
• A summary contains only the ideas of the original text. Do not insert any of your own opinions, interpretations, deductions or comments into a summary.
• Identify in order the significant sub-claims the author uses to defend the main point.
• Copy word-for-word three separate passages from the essay that you think support and/or defend the main point of the essay as you see it.
• Cite each passage by first signaling the work and the author, put “quotation marks” around the passage you chose, and put the number of the paragraph where the passages can be found immediately after the passage.
• Using source material from the essay is important. Why? Because defending claims with source material is what you will be asked to do when writing papers for your college professors.
• Write a last sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of the main point.

Example Summary Writing Format

In the essay Santa Ana , author Joan Didion’s main point is ( state main point ). According to Didion “… passage 1 …” (para.3). Didion also writes “… passage 2 …” (para.8). Finally, she states “… passage 3 …” (para. 12) Write a last sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of the main point.

• Provided by : Lumen Learning. Located at : http://lumenlearning.com/ . License : CC BY: Attribution
• Authored by : Paul Powell. Provided by : Central Community College. Project : Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Authored by : Elisabeth Ellington and Ronda Dorsey Neugebauer. Provided by : Chadron State College. Project : Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Table of Contents

Instructor Resources (Access Requires Login)

• Overview of Instructor Resources

An Overview of the Writing Process

• Introduction to the Writing Process
• Introduction to Writing
• Your Role as a Learner
• What is an Essay?
• Reading to Write
• Defining the Writing Process
• Videos: Prewriting Techniques
• Thesis Statements
• Organizing an Essay
• Creating Paragraphs
• Conclusions
• Editing and Proofreading
• Matters of Grammar, Mechanics, and Style
• Peer Review Checklist
• Comparative Chart of Writing Strategies

Using Sources

• Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Avoiding Plagiarism
• Formatting the Works Cited Page (MLA)
• Citing Paraphrases and Summaries (APA)
• APA Citation Style, 6th edition: General Style Guidelines

Definition Essay

• Definitional Argument Essay
• How to Write a Definition Essay
• Critical Thinking
• Video: Thesis Explained
• Effective Thesis Statements
• Student Sample: Definition Essay

Narrative Essay

• Introduction to Narrative Essay
• Student Sample: Narrative Essay
• "Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell
• "Sixty-nine Cents" by Gary Shteyngart
• Video: The Danger of a Single Story
• How to Write an Annotation
• Writing for Success: Narration

Illustration/Example Essay

• Introduction to Illustration/Example Essay
• "She's Your Basic L.O.L. in N.A.D" by Perri Klass
• "April & Paris" by David Sedaris
• Writing for Success: Illustration/Example
• Student Sample: Illustration/Example Essay

Compare/Contrast Essay

• Introduction to Compare/Contrast Essay
• "Disability" by Nancy Mairs
• "Friending, Ancient or Otherwise" by Alex Wright
• "A South African Storm" by Allison Howard
• Writing for Success: Compare/Contrast
• Student Sample: Compare/Contrast Essay

Cause-and-Effect Essay

• Introduction to Cause-and-Effect Essay
• "Cultural Baggage" by Barbara Ehrenreich
• "Women in Science" by K.C. Cole
• Writing for Success: Cause and Effect
• Student Sample: Cause-and-Effect Essay

Argument Essay

• Introduction to Argument Essay
• Rogerian Argument
• "The Case Against Torture," by Alisa Soloman
• "The Case for Torture" by Michael Levin
• How to Write a Summary by Paraphrasing Source Material
• Writing for Success: Argument
• Student Sample: Argument Essay
• Grammar/Mechanics Mini-lessons
• Mini-lesson: Subjects and Verbs, Irregular Verbs, Subject Verb Agreement
• Mini-lesson: Sentence Types
• Mini-lesson: Fragments I
• Mini-lesson: Run-ons and Comma Splices I
• Mini-lesson: Comma Usage
• Mini-lesson: Parallelism
• Mini-lesson: The Apostrophe
• Mini-lesson: Capital Letters
• Grammar Practice - Interactive Quizzes
• De Copia - Demonstration of the Variety of Language
• Style Exercise: Voice

Narrative Essay

How to write a summary.

Proficient students understand that  summarizing , identifying what is most important and restating the text (or other media) in your own words, is an important tool for college success.

After all, if you really know a subject, you will be able to summarize it. If you cannot summarize a subject, even if you have memorized all the facts about it, you can be absolutely sure that you have not learned it. And, if you truly learn the subject, you will still be able to summarize it months or years from now.

Proficient students may monitor their understanding of a text by summarizing as they read. They understand that if they can write a one- or two-sentence summary of each paragraph after reading it, then that is a good sign that they have correctly understood it. If they can not summarize the main idea of the paragraph, they know that comprehension has broken down and they need to use fix-up strategies to repair understanding.

Summary Writing Format

• When writing a summary, remember that it should be in the form of a paragraph.
• A summary begins with an introductory sentence that states the text’s title, author and main point of the text as you see it.
• A summary is written in your own words.
• A summary contains only the ideas of the original text. Do not insert any of your own opinions, interpretations, deductions or comments into a summary.
• Identify in order the significant sub-claims the author uses to defend the main point.
• Copy word-for-word three separate passages from the essay that you think support and/or defend the main point of the essay as you see it.
• Cite each passage by first signaling the work and the author, put “quotation marks” around the passage you chose, and put the number of the paragraph where the passages can be found immediately after the passage.
• Using source material from the essay is important. Why? Because defending claims with source material is what you will be asked to do when writing papers for your college professors.
• Write a last sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of the main point.

Example Summary Writing Format

In the essay Santa Ana , author Joan Didion’s main point is ( state main point ). According to Didion “… passage 1 …” (para.3). Didion also writes “… passage 2 …” (para.8). Finally, she states “… passage 3 …” (para. 12) Write a last sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of the main point.

• Provided by : Lumen Learning. Located at : http://lumenlearning.com/ . License : CC BY: Attribution
• Authored by : Paul Powell. Provided by : Central Community College. Project : Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Authored by : Elisabeth Ellington and Ronda Dorsey Neugebauer. Provided by : Chadron State College. Project : Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative. License : CC BY: Attribution

What Is a Summary In Writing? (Explained + 40 Examples)

In my 20+ years of writing essays, research articles, short stories, blog posts, and books, I’ve summarized thousands of times.

Here is my summary answer about “What is a summary in writing?”

A summary in writing is the craft of distilling vast oceans of text into droplets of essence, a skill as crucial as it is challenging . At the core, summary writing is the distillation of essential points from a larger text, preserving the original message and intent. It balances brevity and clarity.

As contradictory as it might sound, there is a lot more to say about summary in writing.

The Essence of Summarization

Table of Contents

Over the years, I’ve learned that a successful summary does two things well—it provides clarity to the reader and respects the original work’s integrity.

Brevity and clarity are the twin pillars of a good summary.

My mantra, “As short as possible and as long as necessary,” and a favorite quote I align with—attributed to Einstein—”Things should be as simple as possible, but no simpler,” encapsulate my approach to summaries.

Achieving this balance is more an art than a science, a dance between being concise and being clear.

My guideline—keeping things as short as necessary but as long as needed—is a testament to this balancing act.

It’s about not just shrinking text size but ensuring every word counts, every sentence conveys meaning, and the essence of the text is untouched.

Types of Summaries

Below are some common types of summaries you need to know:

• Descriptive Summaries: These provide an overview of the main points of a text, without offering analysis or interpretation. Descriptive summaries focus on summarizing the content in a clear and concise manner, making them useful for providing an overview or introduction to a topic.
• Analytical Summaries: Analytical summaries go beyond simply recounting the main points of a text; they also analyze and evaluate the content. These summaries often delve into the author’s arguments, evidence, and conclusions, offering insights into the text’s significance and implications.
• Informative Summaries: Informative summaries aim to convey the most important information from a text, often condensing complex ideas into simpler language. These summaries are commonly used in academic writing, where the goal is to provide readers with a clear understanding of the text’s main points.
• Critical Summaries: Critical summaries involve not only summarizing the content of a text but also critiquing it. Writers may highlight strengths and weaknesses, identify biases or gaps in the argument, and offer their own perspective on the text’s merits or limitations.
• Abstracts: Abstracts are concise summaries of longer documents, such as research papers or articles. They typically include a brief overview of the purpose, methodology, results, and conclusions of the study, allowing readers to quickly grasp the key findings and significance of the research.

Crafting the Perfect Summary

Summarizing is not a random act but a structured process.

It starts with a thorough reading, understanding the text’s main arguments, themes, and nuances.

Then, identifying the core elements that are indispensable to the message.

The challenge is to weave these elements into a cohesive, shorter narrative that stands on its own while reflecting the original text’s spirit.

Personal Insights and Techniques

Through trial and error, I’ve honed specific techniques that aid in summarization:

• Highlighting Key Points: As I read, I highlight or note down crucial information and standout ideas.
• Structuring the Summary: I create a rough outline, deciding the order of points based on their relevance and the original work’s flow.
• Rewriting with Precision: This step involves rewriting the highlighted points in my own words, ensuring clarity and conciseness without diluting the message.

Template for Writing a Summary

Crafting a summary can be simplified by following a structured template.

While each summary may vary in complexity and content, this general template provides a framework to guide your summarization process:

• Introduction: Begin by introducing the text and its author, providing necessary context for the summary. Identify the main topic or thesis of the text and briefly outline its purpose and significance.
• Main Points: Summarize the main points or arguments presented in the text, focusing on the most essential information. Use concise language and avoid unnecessary details or tangents.
• Supporting Details: Provide supporting evidence or examples to reinforce the main points of the text. Select key quotations, statistics, or anecdotes that best illustrate the author’s ideas.
• Analysis: Analyze the text’s content, identifying any underlying themes, patterns, or implications. Consider the author’s purpose, audience, and rhetorical strategies, and evaluate the effectiveness of their argument or message.
• Conclusion: Conclude the summary by summarizing the overall message or takeaway of the text. Reflect on the significance of the text’s content and its relevance to the broader context or field of study.

Here is a great video on how to summarize in writing:

The Role of Experience in Writing Summaries

Experience plays a critical role in mastering summarization.

In my life, I’ve learned that every word in a summary must earn its place. This discernment comes from practice and familiarity with a wide range of texts.

It comes down to what words and ideas to leave in and what to leave out.

Experience has taught me when to cut deeper and when to allow a bit more space for explanation or narrative, always guided by the principle of making things as simple as possible but no simpler.

Original Research and Testing

My curiosity led me to conduct a series of experiments comparing different summarization techniques across various text types.

I assessed the outcomes based on reader comprehension, retention, and feedback.

The Impact of Testing Different Techniques

My research involved comparing various summarization strategies to identify the most effective approaches for different text types.

This hands-on testing revealed that the audience’s needs significantly influence the summary’s structure and content.

For instance, summaries intended for academic audiences prioritized accuracy and conciseness, while those for a general audience often leaned towards engaging narratives and essential takeaways.

Findings and Insights

One key insight from this research was the importance of adaptability.

A one-size-fits-all approach to summarization doesn’t work.

Tailoring the summary to the text type and intended audience increases effectiveness and satisfaction. Additionally, iterative testing highlighted the value of feedback in refining summaries.

Incorporating reader feedback into the summarization process can significantly enhance clarity and relevance.

40 Examples of Summaries

In the spirit of showing rather than telling, let’s dissect examples of summaries from various genres.

For brevity’s sake, I’ll categorize these examples and provide insights into what makes each effective.

Research Articles/Essays

• The Impact of Climate Change on Coastal Ecosystems: Summarizes key findings on the degradation of coastal ecosystems due to rising temperatures, including potential long-term effects and mitigation strategies.
• Technological Advancements in Renewable Energy: Details the latest advancements in solar and wind energy technologies, highlighting efficiency improvements and the path toward sustainable energy solutions.
• Behavioral Economics and Consumer Decision Making: Explores how psychological factors influence economic decisions, offering insights into improving marketing strategies and consumer education.
• The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: Discusses the integration of AI in diagnostics and patient care, emphasizing potential benefits and ethical considerations.
• Educational Reforms and Student Outcomes: Analyzes the impact of recent educational reforms on student performance and equity, suggesting further research directions and policy implications.
• Microplastics in Marine Environments: Examines the sources, distribution, and ecological impacts of microplastics, proposing methods for reduction and cleanup.
• Mental Health in the Workplace: Investigates the correlation between workplace environment and employee mental health, recommending strategies for creating supportive work cultures.
• Sustainable Agriculture Practices: Reviews sustainable farming techniques and their effectiveness in promoting biodiversity, soil health, and food security.
• The Influence of Social Media on Political Discourse: Evaluates how social media platforms have transformed political communication, voter behavior, and public opinion formation.
• Advances in Alzheimer’s Research: Presents recent breakthroughs in understanding the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease, with a focus on potential therapeutic targets and preventive measures.

Work Reports

• Annual Marketing Strategy Review: Summarizes the performance of last year’s marketing campaigns, key metrics achieved, lessons learned, and strategies for the upcoming year.
• Quarterly Sales Report: Details sales performance by region and product line, comparing results against targets, analyzing trends, and suggesting actionable insights for improvement.
• Customer Satisfaction Survey Analysis: Compiles findings from recent customer surveys, highlighting areas of strength and opportunities for service enhancement.
• IT Infrastructure Upgrade Project Summary: Outlines the objectives, progress, challenges, and next steps in the company’s IT infrastructure overhaul, including budget and timeline updates.
• Employee Training Program Evaluation: Reviews the outcomes of the latest employee training initiatives, assessing effectiveness in skill development and impact on performance.
• Competitor Analysis Report: Provides an overview of key competitors’ strategies, market positioning, product offerings, and potential threats or opportunities.
• Supply Chain Optimization Study: Summarizes findings from a study on supply chain efficiencies, identifying bottlenecks and recommending solutions for cost reduction and speed.
• Risk Management Assessment: Evaluates the company’s exposure to various risks, including financial, operational, and reputational risks, proposing mitigation strategies.
• Sustainability Initiatives Progress Report: Tracks the progress of corporate sustainability efforts, including environmental impact reductions, community engagement, and sustainability goals.
• New Product Development Update: Offers a snapshot of the development stages, challenges encountered, market research findings, and estimated launch timeline for a new product.
• The Echo of the Ocean : A novel about a marine biologist uncovering a groundbreaking discovery about sea life communication, while navigating personal challenges and ethical dilemmas.
• Futures Past : A science fiction saga exploring the consequences of time travel on human history, ethics, and personal identity through intertwined narratives.
• Mind Over Matter : A non-fiction exploration of the power of the human mind to overcome physical limitations, featuring real-life stories of resilience and scientific insights.
• The Last Emperor’s Secret – Historical fiction set in ancient China, revolving around a palace conspiracy, hidden treasures, and the quest for truth.
• Green Horizons : An environmental science book discussing innovative solutions to climate change, from renewable energy to conservation strategies, aimed at a general audience.
• Heartstrings : A collection of short stories delving into the complexities of human relationships, love, loss, and redemption, across diverse cultures and situations.
• Digital Frontiers : Examines the digital revolution’s impact on society, economy, and individual lives, offering insights into future trends and ethical considerations.
• Culinary Journeys : A travelogue that takes readers on a gastronomical tour around the world, exploring the history and stories behind iconic dishes and ingredients.
• The Art of Innovation : A guide to fostering creativity and innovation in the workplace, with case studies from leading companies and practical tips for teams.
• Voices of the Forest : A fantasy novel featuring a young hero’s adventure in a mystical forest, battling dark forces to save their homeland with the help of enchanted creatures.

Short Stories

• The Last Light : A poignant tale about a lighthouse keeper’s final night before the automation of his lighthouse, reflecting on the changes and constants in life.
• Crossroads : Explores the moment a young man stands at a crossroad, literal and metaphorical, contemplating the diverging paths of his future.
• Echoes of War : Follows a veteran’s struggle with returning to civilian life, haunted by memories of the battlefield, and his journey towards healing.
• A Stitch in Time : A whimsical story about a seamstress who discovers her sewing machine can repair more than just clothes, mending broken hearts and dreams.
• The Glass Forest : Details an explorer’s discovery of a mysterious forest where trees are made of glass, symbolizing beauty and fragility.
• Shadows on the Moon : A science fiction piece about a colony on the moon dealing with the psychological effects of living in perpetual darkness and light.
• Invisible Ties : Explores the unseen connections between strangers on a crowded subway, each carrying their own stories and struggles.
• The Color of Autumn : Captures a painter’s attempt to paint the perfect autumn scene, reflecting on the impermanence of life and the enduring beauty of nature.
• Whispers in the Wind : Tells the story of a small village where the wind carries voices from the past, and a young girl learns the history of her ancestors.
• Ripples : A narrative about the impact of a single act of kindness, following its ripple effects through the lives of various people in a community.

The 5 Biggest Mistakes Writers Make When Summarizing

Summarizing is an art, but like any craft, it’s prone to pitfalls.

Here are the five most common mistakes writers make when summarizing, along with tips on how to avoid them.

Summarizing may seem straightforward, but it’s deceptively complex.

One of the biggest mistakes writers make is oversimplifying or overcomplicating the summary, leading to confusion or loss of crucial information.

Another common error is failing to capture the essence of the original text, resulting in a summary that misses the mark.

Additionally, inadequate understanding of the audience can lead to summaries that are either too technical or too simplistic for the intended readership. Lastly, neglecting to cite sources or provide proper attribution in summaries can result in accusations of plagiarism or intellectual dishonesty.

The 5 Biggest Mistakes

• Oversimplifying or Overcomplicating: Striking the right balance between brevity and clarity is key.
• Missing the Essence: Ensure the summary captures the core message and key points of the original text.
• Audience Misalignment: Tailor the summary to the audience’s knowledge level and interests.
• Lack of Attribution: Always cite sources and provide proper credit for ideas and information.
• Ignoring Structure and Flow: A well-structured summary enhances readability and comprehension.

Final Thoughts: What Is a Summary In Writing?

Summarization is more than a writing skill—it’s a critical thinking exercise that challenges you to understand deeply, analyze critically, and communicate effectively.

In my two decades of writing, I’ve seen firsthand how a well-crafted summary can open doors to understanding, make knowledge more accessible, and bridge the gap between complex ideas and a broader audience.

Read This Next:

• What Is TNR In Writing? (Explained w/ Examples)
• What Is Generative Writing? [Ultimate Guide + 100 Examples]
• What Is A Cold Open In Writing? (Tips, Examples, Guide)
• What Is A Universal Statement In Writing? (Explained)

Introduction

Goals and Goal Setting

Goals Common to All RST Writers

Other Goals to Consider

Defining My Own Goals

Advice about Assignments

Getting Started: Listing Topics to Write about in the Tutorial

Narrative One: Personal Piece on a Significant Experience

Narrative Two: Academic Piece on a Significant Experience

Summary/Response One

Summary/Response Two

Tutorial Evaluation Postscript

On Using the Resources for Writers

Generating and Developing Ideas

Finding/Expressing Main Ideas

Showing v. Telling Sentences

Focusing Topic Sentences

Thesis Statements

Reading Strategies

Assessing Your Reading Strategies

Summarizing

Writing Effective Summary and Response Essays

Discourse Analysis Worksheet

Trade Magazines

Selecting Readings

A summary is a concise paraphrase of all the main ideas in an essay. It cites the author and the title (usually in the first sentence); it contains the essay's thesis and supporting ideas; it may use direct quotation of forceful or concise statements of the author's ideas; it will NOT usually cite the author's examples or supporting details unless they are central to the main idea. Most summaries present the major points in the order that the author made them and continually refer back to the article being summarized (i.e. "Damon argues that ..." or "Goodman also points out that ... "). The summary should take up no more than one-third the length of the work being summarized.

The Response:

A response is a critique or evaluation of the author's essay. Unlike the summary, it is composed of YOUR opinions in relation to the article being summarized. It examines ideas that you agree or disagree with and identifies the essay's strengths and weaknesses in reasoning and logic, in quality of supporting examples, and in organization and style. A good response is persuasive; therefore, it should cite facts, examples, and personal experience that either refutes or supports the article you're responding to, depending on your stance.

Two Typical Organizational Formats for Summary/Response Essays:

1. Present the summary in a block of paragraphs, followed by the response in a block:

Intro/thesis Summary (two to three paragraphs) Agreement (or disagreement) Disagreement (or agreement) Conclusion

Note: Some essays will incorporate both agreement and disagreement in a response, but this is not mandatory.

2. Introduce the essay with a short paragraph that includes your thesis. Then, each body paragraph summarizes one point and responds to it, and a conclusion wraps the essay up.

Intro/thesis Summary point one; agree/disagree Summary point two; agree/disagree Summary point three; agree/disagree Conclusion

• Social Sciences

How to Write a Summary, Analysis, and Response Essay Paper With Examples

• Author: Virginia Kearney

Get tips on writing a summary, analysis, and response essay.

Dean Drobot via Canva Pro

Summary Writing Steps

A summary is telling the main ideas of the article in your own words.

These are the steps to writing a great summary:

• Read the article, one paragraph at a time.
• For each paragraph, underline the main idea sentence (topic sentence). If you can't underline the book, write that sentence on your computer or a piece of paper.
• When you finish the article, read all the underlined sentences.
• In your own words, write down one sentence that conveys the main idea. Start the sentence using the name of the author and title of the article (see format below).
• Continue writing your summary by writing the other underlined sentences in your own words. Remember that you need to change both the words of the sentence and the word order. For more information, see the video below.
• Don't forget to use transition words to link your sentences together. See my list of transition words below to help you write your summary more effectively and make it more interesting to read.
• Make sure you include the name of the author and article and use "author tags" (see list below) to let the reader know you are talking about what the author said and not your own ideas.
• Re-read your piece. Does it flow well? Are there too many details? Not enough? Your summary should be as short and concise as possible.

How to Write a Summary / Analysis / Response Essay

Sample Summary Outline

Author Tag : You need to start your summary by telling the name of the article and the author. Here are three examples of how to do that (pay close attention to the punctuation):

• In “How the Civil War Began," historian John Jones explains...
• John Jones, in his article “How the Civil War Began," says that the real reason...
• "How the Civil War Began," by historian John Jones, describes...

First Sentence: Along with including the article's title and author's name, the first sentence should be the main point of the article. It should answer the question: What is this essay about? (thesis). Example:

In "How the Civil War Began" by John Jones, the author argues that the real reason for the start of the Civil War was not slavery, as many believe, but was instead the clash of cultures and greed for cash.

Rest of Summary: The rest of your essay is going to give the reasons and evidence for that main statement. In other words, what is the main point the writer is trying to make, and what are the supporting ideas he or she uses to prove it? Does the author bring up any opposing ideas, and if so, what does he or she do to refute them? Here is a sample sort of sentence:

___________ is the issue addressed in “( article's title) ” by ( author's name) . The thesis of this essay is ___________ . The author’s main claim is ___________ and his/her sub claim is ___________ . The author argues ___________ . Other people argue ___________ . The author refutes these ideas by saying ___________ . His/her conclusion is ___________ .

How Often Do You Mention the Author?

You don't need to mention the author in every sentence of a summary, but you do need to make it clear when an idea is from the article and when it is your own idea. Usually, you want to be sure to tell the title of the article and the full name of the author in the first sentence of your summary. After that, use the author's last name or the title when you want to summarize something from the article or book. To avoid sounding too repetitious, you can substitute words in the table below.

Author Tag List

What About Multiple Authors?

For articles with 1–4 authors, cite all of the authors the first time you mention the article and title. Afterward, use "authors" or the last name of the first author and "et al." (which is Latin for "and others"). For articles with more than four authors, use the first and last name of the first author in the opening sentence and "et al." Then use the last name and "et al." or "authors" or some other plural throughout.

Sample Essays

• Men and Women in Conversation : Example response essay to Deborah Tannen's article about how divorce can be prevented if people learn the communication signals of the opposite gender.
• Response Essay about Getting a Tattoo: Responds to a personal experience article from The New York Times about a man who gets a dragon tattoo.
• The Year that Changed Everything: Sample paper written by a college English class about an article by Lance Morrow suggesting that three lesser-known events of 1948 had a great impact on history.

Recommended

Wellington House: Britain's WW1 Propaganda Bureau

Transition words list.

Questions for Analysis in a Summary How is this written? Who is the audience? Is it effectively written for that audience?

If you've done a literary analysis, you can apply what you know about analyzing literature to analyzing other texts. You will want to consider what is effective and ineffective. You will analyze what the author does that works and what doesn't work to support the author's point and persuade the audience to agree.

Analysis requires knowing who the author is trying to persuade and what he or she wants the audience to think, do, or believe.

By Thea Goldin Smith [CC-BY-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Using TRACE for Analysis

Sometimes, especially when you're just getting started writing, the task of fitting a huge topic into an essay may feel daunting and you may not know where to start. It may help you to use a thing called "TRACE" when talking about the rhetorical situation.

TRACE stands for Text, Reader, Author, Context, and Exigence:

Text , Reader , and Author are easy to understand. When writing the analysis, you need to think about what kind of text it is and what the author wanted to have the audience think, do, or believe. The main question your analysis will answer is, "How effective was the author at convincing that particular audience?" Context means several things: how the article fits into the history of discussion of that issue, the historical moment in time when the article is written, and the moment in time when a person reads the article. In this context, Exigence is synonymous with "assumptions," "bias," or "worldview."

Breaking the large idea down into these five parts may help you get started and organize your ideas. In your paper, you'll probably want to address three to five of these elements.

Ideas for How to Write Your Essay

Step-By-Step Sample

Each of the following elements can be one paragraph of your analysis. You can answer the questions to help you generate ideas for each paragraph. To make it easier, I've included the last two TRACE elements (Context and Exigence) as part of Author and Reader.

• How is the essay organized? What is effective or ineffective about the organization of the essay?
• How does the author try to interest the reader?
• How well does the author explain the main claims? Are these arguments logical?
• Do the support and evidence seem adequate? Is the support convincing to the reader? Does the evidence actually prove the point the author is trying to make?
• Who is the author? What do they know about this subject?
• What is the author's bias? Is the bias openly admitted? Does that make their argument more or less believable?
• Do the author's knowledge and background make them reliable for this audience?
• How does the author try to relate to the audience and establish common ground? Is it effective?
• How does the author interest the audience? Do they make the reader want to know more?
• Does the author explain enough about the history of this argument? Is anything left out?
• Who is the reader?
• How would they react to these arguments?
• How is this essay effective or ineffective for this audience?
• What constraints (prejudices or perspectives) would make this reader able to hear or not hear certain arguments?
• What is the exigence (events at this moment in time which affect the need for this conversation) that makes the audience interested in this issue?

Professional Sample SAR

Michael Crichton's "Let's Stop Scaring Ourselves" argues that we are overdoing caution and fear. See my sample reading response to this essay.

Sample Analysis Format

Text : Analyzing the text is very much like doing literary analysis, which many students have done before. Use all of your tools of literary analysis, including looking at the metaphors, rhythm of sentences, construction of arguments, tone, style, and use of language. Example:

The organization of " essay title " is effective/ineffective because ___________ . The essay's opening causes the reader to ___________ . The essay's style is ___________ and the tone is shown by ___________ . The language used is___________ . The essay's argument is constructed logically/illogically by ___________. The essay is organized by ___________ (give a very brief description of the structure of the essay, perhaps telling where the description of the problem is, where claims are made, and where support is located—in which paragraphs—and why this is effective or ineffective in proving the point) .

Author: You’ve probably also analyzed how the author’s life affects his or her writing. You can do the same for this sort of analysis. For example, in my sample reading the response about Michael Crichton's "Let's Stop Scaring Ourselves" article, students noted that the fact that Crichton is the author of doomsday thrillers like Andromeda Strain and Jurassic Park makes his argument that we shouldn't pay much attention to current doomsday scenarios like global warming rather ironic. If you don't know anything about the author, you can always do a quick Google search to find out. Sample format:

The author establishes his/her authority by ___________ . The author's bias is shown in ___________ . The author assumes an audience who ___________ . He/She establishes common ground with the audience by ___________ .

Reader: You can write this section by inferring who the intended reader is, as well as looking at the text from the viewpoint of other sorts of readers. For example,

Readers are interested in this issue because of the exigence of ___________. Constraints on the reader's reaction are ___________. I think the reader would react to this argument by ___________. I think that the author's ___________ is effective. ___________ is less effective because ___________ includes ___________. The support is adequate/inadequate and is relevant/irrelevant to the author’s claim.

How to Write a Response

Generally, your response will be the end of your essay, but you may include your response throughout the paper as you select what to summarize and analyze. Your response will also be evident to the reader by the tone that you use and the words you select to talk about the article and writer. However, your response in the conclusion will be more direct and specific. It will use the information you have already provided in your summary and analysis to explain how you feel about this article. Most of the time, your response will fall into one of the following categories:

• You will agree with the author and back your agreement up with logic or personal experience.
• You will disagree with the author because of your experience or knowledge (although you may have sympathy with the author's position).
• You will agree with part of the author's points and disagree with others.
• You will agree or disagree with the author but feel that there is a more important or different point that needs to be discussed in addition to what is in the article.

How will this article fit into your own paper? How will you be able to use it?

Response answers: What do you think? Does this article persuade you?

Questions to Help You

Here are some questions you can answer to help you think about your response:

• What is your reaction to the essay?
• What common ground do you have with the author? How are your experiences the same or different from the author's and how has your experience influenced your view?
• What in the essay is new to you? Do you know of any information the article left out that is relevant to the topic?
• What in this essay made you re-think your view?
• What does this essay make you think about? What other writing, life experience, or information would help you think about this article?
• What do you like or dislike about the essay and/or the ideas in the essay?
• How much of your response is related to your personal experience? How much is related to your worldview? How is this feeling related to the information you know?
• How will this information be useful for you in writing your essay? What position does this essay support? Or where might you use this article in your essay?

Sample Format

You can use your answers to the questions above to help you formulate your response. Here is a sample of how you can put this together into your essay (for more sample essays, see the links above):

Before reading this article, my understanding of this topic was ___________. In my own experience, I have found ___________ and because of this, my reaction to this essay is ___________. Interestingly, I have ___________ as common ground with the author/audience . What was new to me is ___________. This essay makes me think ___________. I like/dislike ___________ in the essay. I will use this article in my research essay for ___________.

This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.

Questions & Answers

Question: I have to summarize and respond to an article. How would I start my thesis?

Answer: Your thesis is the main idea of the article and your main response to it.

Question: What is a strong opening for a response essay in letter form?

Answer: After the salutation, you need to write your main thesis in a roadmap form. Usually, you either agree, disagree or agree with parts and disagree with other parts. Alternatively, your response could talk about how the text made you reflect on something in your own experience.

Question: What should the conclusion to a SAR paper be?

Answer: In a SAR paper, the conclusion should usually be your response to the article. That means that you will tell the reader what you think about it, including whether you liked it, what you learned from it, how it reminded you of something in your own experience, or how it changed your thinking.

Question: When writing an analysis paragraph do you still use the seven sentence paragraph format?

Answer: It is always a good idea to talk to your instructor about the requirements for your particular essay. In general, an analysis paragraph can have the same format as other types of paragraphs. The first sentence would be the topic sentence and state your main analysis of the essay. That would be followed by examples from the essay to support that main point. For example, if your topic sentence stated, "The essay is effective because of the tone, word choice, and effective examples used by the author," your following sentences would explain and give examples from the essay that prove that point. Sometimes, you will include in the topic sentence what was done ineffectively, but you can also do that as a separate paragraph. The number of sentences would depend on the information you wanted to use to explain and illustrate your analysis.

Question: What if there are two authors of an article or book? Do I have to use both their names or just one of them and the article or book title?

Answer: If both authors are listed on the cover, I would use both names when you first mention the article. Afterward, it would be easier to refer to them by saying "the authors" or using "the article."

Question: How can I summarize an essay?

Answer: The best way to summarize an essay is to start by quickly reading it through. After you read it once, write down what you think the main idea of the author is (or pick the one sentence which seems to tell the main point or thesis of the article). Next, read it again more slowly. This time, underline or highlight the main topic sentence in each paragraph. Then, re-write each of these sentences in their own words either on a hard copy of the essay or in a Word document. Now you can take all of those re-written topic points and use those as the basis of your summary. Re-read all of those sentences, and you should have all of the main ideas of the essay. If you realize there is something missing, then you will have to write that in. However, you aren't finished yet because your summary needs to flow like a smooth paragraph. So take what you've written and re-write it to have the sentences make sense and flow together. Use my Easy Words for Starting Sentences article to help you use the transition words that show the linking of ideas (next, furthermore, moreover, however, on the one hand, not only, but also). If you want to do a really exceptional job, once you have finished your summary, you should go back and look at the original article one last time. Compare your summary with the article and ask yourself these questions:

Have I made the main point of the article clear?

Do I explain what the author of the article wanted the reader to think, do, or believe?

Do I give all the main reasons for the author to write this article?

Question: How do you write an opinion analysis?

Answer: You might want to discuss this with your instructor, but I suspect that "opinion analysis" is just a different way of saying "analysis and response." The response part is really having you give your opinion of the essay. You can do an analysis without first doing a summary. Just follow the instructions in this article. You may also want to see: How to Write an Analysis Response: https://hubpages.com/academia/How-to-Write-an-Anal...

Question: How do you write an analysis on an article that informs?

Answer: Your analysis would examine how well the analysis is done:

How well does the author explain the concepts?

Do they define terms and make sure the audience understands?

Is the order of information clear?

Is there anything missing in the explanation?

Does the information include everything needed for the audience to understand the issue or subject?

Question: How is writing a thesis different from a summary article?

Answer: A summary means you are telling the main idea of someone else's article, book, or other text. A thesis is your idea and the main point of your essay. If you are writing a summary and response paper, you will need to say what the main idea is of the article you are summarizing and then your thesis would be your response to that article. Here are some types of thesis responses you could make:

1. The article by James John is interesting and insightful, but it uses too much detail to describe each point, and I became bored and unconvinced that he had the right solution to the problem of XX.

2. James John's article was garbled and difficult to read, but I found that his main thesis got right to the point and actually gave me insights I could apply to my life in the area of XX.

3. Although I thought James John's article was somewhat simplistic and short, I found that many of his examples resonated with my own experiences and made me think about his ideas for several days, giving me insights about how I could have better responded when XX.

Question: Can I use quotes in a main idea?

Answer: It is always better to summarize or paraphrase rather than using quotes to state the main idea of your paper or the summary. See my article on when a quotation is appropriate: https://hubpages.com/academia/Examples-of-Summary-...

Question: We have to write an analysis in 6 to 7 sentences. How can I keep my analysis that short?

Answer: You will need to focus on just a few aspects of the article and make sure the evidence for your point is included briefly in each sentence. The first sentence should be your main thesis about how the article is effective (and if applicable, what is ineffective). Use a couple of sentences to elaborate on what is effective and a couple to show what is ineffectively done. End with a conclusion of how the article is useful to readers.

Question: I have to summarize and evaluate an essay. How can I evaluate efficiently?

Answer: Read your article and before you begin your summary, make a table. On one side of the table, write out the main points of the article. On the second side, write what you think about the main points. In the middle, write what you thought about whether the author argued effectively for each point or not. That table should make the writing easier.

Question: How can I analyze primary sources in the area of History?

Answer: You analyze primary sources in the same way that you would analyze any other text. You look at how the way it is written influences the meaning (tone, voice, word choice and examples etc.). You also would consider how the text in context with the time that it is written in comparison to our current historical and political situation.

Question: How do I write an essay on two topics that seem alike, but are different?

Answer: You are probably referring to a comparative essay when you need to explain the similarities and differences between two different topics. There are two main ways to do this

1. Talk about the similarities in one section and then the differences in another.

2. Thematically: Use different topics to organize the paper and then within each topic, discuss the similarities and differences of each of the two topics. For example, if you are discussing the similarities and differences between two types of cars, you could use the criteria of how well they drive, interior space, safety record, repair record, and choices in colors.

Question: How do you cite an article if it has multiple authors?

Answer: You can either use the first author and then add "et al." which means "and others." However, if there are just two authors, you might want to include both full names the first time you reference the article and then use just both last names in the author tags.

© 2011 Virginia Kearney

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on July 02, 2020:

Hi Deepa! I am so very glad that you are finding this helpful as you teach your children. I have over 100 articles to help teach English writing. Please come back and I hope I can help you again! Blessings to you!

Deepa on July 01, 2020:

Very Use ful .Thank you.

Deepa Immanuel on July 01, 2020:

For the first time ,I am seeing such a valuable information on Analysis of Essays.Now I find it easy to help my children in their work .Thank you so much.

Me on May 28, 2020:

Wow this article is so helpful. Thank you so much! Especially the examples and the questions were incredibly helpful.

CATHERINE on April 16, 2020:

This was the most informative and helpful guide.

moses on February 16, 2020:

very informative.Thanks

melai on June 09, 2019:

I so love it!!!

thank you very much!!!

Moose Kekeao on February 18, 2019:

Very useful and helpful information. Thank you.

Phiri Stanford on February 14, 2019:

This has been profoundly helpful. Thanks a lot!

Ludwina on January 31, 2019:

I found it more clearly and help for the ged test

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on November 19, 2018:

Hi Anthony--I'm so glad you've found this helpful. My 100 articles on writing have been written from my experience in teaching students how to write and trying to explain more clearly than the textbook. I could have taken my articles and written my own textbook but by posting them here on HubPages, they are searchable by Google and people can find the information they need.

Anthony on November 18, 2018:

This is awesome. I have never seen this kind of information been put in textbook, but it is here. Thank you.

Polycarp Udoh on October 28, 2018:

Wow... Insightful. Thank you for making it easier for freshers like us.

S.Y on October 10, 2018:

SOOOOOO HELPFUL!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU FOR SAVING MY CONFUSED FRESHMAN SELF

[email protected] on September 30, 2018:

Thank you so much... This is really very helpful :)

Q_Q on September 20, 2018:

Thank you so much. This is a really helpful material

ibrahima barry on April 17, 2018:

This is a very helpful material. Thanks so very much!

James on March 04, 2018:

I found this pretty helpful. Thanks!

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on February 14, 2018:

Hi Rezvan, to prepare for your exam, you should practice following the steps I show you here and you should read all of my example articles. You can also look at my article about summary and response. You should ask your instructor whether your analysis is supposed to include a personal response. Sometimes, the "response" part is included in the analysis. If it is not, that can be a good way to start the article, by talking about your expectations before reading and then how you thought after reading. What did you think this was going to be about? Or judging from the title, what would most people think this is about? That can be a good way to introduce your paper, especially if the topic turns out to be a surprise. Another simple way is just to state the main idea of the article in one sentence. A third introduction would explain the context of the publishing of the article or the cultural circumstances that most people would know about that topic.

Rezvan on February 14, 2018:

Hi Virginia,

Thank you so much for the amazing information. I have a question for you.

I have an exam in 2 days that will ask me to write to summarize and analyze" an article. I wonder how it looks like to have both a summary and analysis! I am a bit confused about how to structure it and how to start my introduction.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on February 06, 2018:

I'm not sure how you can do a personal response without using a personal pronoun. However, if that is your assignment, you can say: This article makes the reader feel... The author is believable because.... The current situation of ..... would remind a reader that....

Somok on February 06, 2018:

I have to write a response essay today, and I cannot use personal pronoun like I, You, We, Us. I’m so confused

Imtiaz Ali on December 14, 2017:

i am very thankful to you.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on November 15, 2017:

Hi Karen! I'm so glad that this information helped you. I hope you will share this with other students. I know that many English instructors are graduate students who are not terribly experienced teachers and have a lot of work to do in their own studies. After over 20 years of focusing on teaching writing, I wanted to share what I had learned from my students about how to write these essays more clearly and easily. Most of my information comes from working with students and analyzing their essays to see what worked best.

Karen Kenny on November 14, 2017:

Once again, thank you! I wish I would've seen these articles at the beginning of my English class! You provide the type of information that I can easily follow. I have an instructor for my class this semester that has not made herself available for classes or who bothers to answer emails or texts. Had I known about this site, I think I would've done just fine taking my class online!

Sofia on November 01, 2017:

It helped me too much ! thank you from Italy

Ashley on October 25, 2017:

I really enjoyed this page and found the examples very helpful!

ling on October 05, 2017:

Appreciated for your effort!

It does helped me a lot!

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on September 17, 2017:

Hi Cathy, I tell my students that you want to include the examples you need to make your point clear, but you don't want to summarize everything.

Cathy on September 17, 2017:

Hello, Thank you so much for your guide. Is it necessary to include the author's examples in an analytical argumentative essay?

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on August 16, 2017:

Rodsy, I'm so glad that this has helped you. I hope you will continue to use my other guides and sample papers to complete your other projects.

Rodsy Karim Taseen on August 16, 2017:

Thank you so much for making it easy. Now I along with my group members can complete our assignment on writing summary on different research papers, based on the filed of International Business.

Rory on June 18, 2017:

Thank you so much! I really appreciate the effort put into your work. :) this will really help me now and in future.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on May 26, 2017:

Hi, Chloe! It would depend in part what sort of assignment you've been given. Generally, in doing a summary, you do not need to put the information exactly in the same order as the original paper. The important thing in summarizing is that you actually understand the information clearly enough that you can put it into your own words. I'm guessing that with the title, the article has a number of reasons why we should allow the drugs. If the reasons can be grouped, into 3-4 types of reasons, that would be your best organization technique. For example, I can image that the reasons to allow performance enhancing drugs are probably:

We can't prevent athletes from getting around the rules.

We have better athletic contests if we allow drugs.

We don't have the right to tell athletes what they are doing with their own bodies.

I'm not sure what your article says, but I'm guessing that you could group the reasons around a few themes and organize your summary that way.

Chloe on May 26, 2017:

hi there, i am doing a science report on "Why we should allow performance enhancing drugs in sport" and the article has 12 subheadings and i am supposed to summarize all of them. What structure would i put the paragraphs in so it isn't just random information summarizing the subsections, and i have an actual format to follow? Thank you :)

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on May 20, 2017:

Hi, Brad! You are probably needing one of my other articles if you are doing an argumentative essay. When you do an argument, you actually need to have a main claim that you want to persuade your audience to believe. The analysis part of that sort of essay means that you evaluate the pros and cons of other ideas about that claim. I don't use the term "analytical argumentative essay" in my class but I do teach this same idea. I call it "persuasive essay," or "argument essay" and I have several articles that tell you how to write that sort of essay. Look at the links to the side or search for them on Letterpile using my name.

brad on May 20, 2017:

Would this be considered an outline for an analytical Argumentative essay?

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on April 16, 2017:

Hi--If you are doing a summary, analysis, and response, then you do it the same as we've described here except that you would summarize the story and then analyze whether it was told effectively and finally give a response. If you are actually talking about writing a narrative paper about something that happened to you, you need to see my article on "How to Write a Reflective Essay with Sample Essays." Search for it on Letterpile or on my profile page.

cletusoe12 @gmail.com on April 16, 2017:

How can I write a story of a personal encounter in an accident. In narrative essay. Please can you give me example?

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on April 02, 2017:

Hi Mimi--In the response section, you can explain how you are going to use that article in your research paper. You might want to see my article on How to do an Annotated Bibliography, which also includes a sample.

Glad this is helpful to you Flor. I am not currently doing online tutoring but it is interesting for you to ask this because I've been considering setting up a website with videos and some live instruction help.

Flor on April 02, 2017:

what a great way to explain you have used here. Are you interested in doing tutoring online? I would love to have the opportunity to be tutor by you.

Mimi on April 02, 2017:

Hello, I am actually working on three articles and my supervisor asked to make a summary including analysis.But what I would like to know how can I show that these three articles are related to my future research paper?how can I analyze them?can you please help me?

Shelbee on January 31, 2017:

I love the way this website gives steps and examples. I love how you can distinguish all of this into your on understanding. All of this explaining is a great source for anything. You have to love everything about this site. This is the best.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on December 15, 2016:

Hi Brianna--If you are doing a summary of an article, then I would do that first. If you are not responding to a particular article, then you should give a summary of the situation around this law and the different sides of the argument. Then pose a question which is interesting to you. Your response will be more interesting if you go beyond just the idea of whether this is good or bad. Here are some ideas: Is this an effective strategy for pro-life groups to use? Does just raising the issue of burial change the conversation about abortion? Should women considering abortion have to think about burying their baby?

Brianna on December 14, 2016:

How can I come up with a theme for my response paper. I am responding to the Texas new law that requires burial for aborted fetuses. Any ideas?

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on December 07, 2016:

Thanks for letting me know Seza! This type of essay is not very well explained in many textbooks and that is what led me to write these instructions and ask my students to post examples. Since I've been using these instructions, I've found my students do a much better job at writing these kinds of essays, which is important because the thinking you do while writing these essays is what prepares you for doing good research.

Seza on December 07, 2016:

This post has been of great help for me and my friends. Thank you very much.

Tessa on November 28, 2016:

Excellent lesson. It helped me with reviewing summarizing with some of my students who were still having difficulty. I especially liked the chart. However, please change adjective to adverbs.

Thanks for the information

L.M. H. on September 28, 2016:

Very good insight on "analysis" description.

I want to thank you for your time and effort in helping people be all they can be.

Keep up the great work

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on September 28, 2016:

Thanks Singapore! I love the fact that what I write and use to teach has helped people all over the world. I'm approaching 8 million views now!

Singapore on September 28, 2016:

Thanks from Singapore! It's for literature :)

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on September 13, 2016:

Thanks Simon! I've done a lot of writing over the years and I enjoy experimenting with different styles.

Simon on September 13, 2016:

I like the style of your post writing. It's very rare to find something like this

Abdullah on September 09, 2016:

This my second semester in the university and I have to write. Analysis essay I find your site very helpful for me. Really thank you

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on May 26, 2016:

Hi Ercan! Since I started writing online in 2008, I've been amazed to see people from all over the world reading my work and being helped by the information I've developed for my students at college here in the United States. Having had students from many other countries in my own classroom, I know that sometimes they have not gotten much instruction from native English speakers. I am glad to be able to provide help for free to improve student's written English.

Ercan Öztoktay on May 25, 2016:

Thanks so much from turkey

John on March 04, 2016:

My first time to write a summary of a 4-page research paper, this useful article really helped me, thanks :)

Bruk on February 08, 2016:

I don't know why I should go to school. This is the right place. It's helping me in my English composition 2 class.thank you.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on November 19, 2015:

Hi Ed, I'm not sure what your instructor means by writing with authority. They may mean they want you to quote reliable, authoritative sources. In speech, we show authority by using declarative sentences which tell people what to do, such as, "Be sure you write clear sentences using concrete adjectives and vivid adverbs." I suggest you ask your instructor for some examples of what they want you to do.

Ed on November 19, 2015:

Hello Professor Lynne. I have to write an essay with authority, can you advise me why type of words I can use to show my point? By the way the topic is dealing Information Technology.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on June 04, 2015:

Thanks yakul for your comment. As a writer, I know I am always learning and improving too!

Matty Fernandez on March 05, 2015:

I have to turn in a summary page for Critical Thinking. You've helped me lots!

Please follow me.

Christy Maria on January 20, 2015:

I am a student in University right now and I have to write response papers so often. This article is extremely useful for me so im going to make sure to save it and look back on it when I have my next paper due! Thankyou

Najat from Rottherdam - NL on November 04, 2014:

i like your hub, great sharing, i love the instructions

greeting from Hijama

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on October 23, 2014:

Aesta--glad to know this helped you. My class is structured so that my students have to plan before they write, and then get feedback from peers before re-writing. Many of them don't like that process because they want to get it all done in one sitting, but after they have gone through this process for a semester, they begin to realize that stopping to organize their thoughts first often means that the writing goes much more quickly. In the end, it takes less time!

Mary Norton from Ontario, Canada on October 22, 2014:

Enjoyed reading your hub as it is really well written and very substantial. I need to digest this information and start applying this in my work. I often just write spontaneously, no outline, and I organize this after. Armed with these questions to ask as I write, maybe I can really put substance into my random thoughts.

Lloyd Jenkins on September 22, 2014:

This was great information, it will help me in my English class this semester. Organization is key in writing a good summary and response.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on January 29, 2014:

Organised Kaos--do you really live in Tasmania? That seems like a fairy tale place to me. Of course, as I write that, I realize that the places I've lived, Southern California, Texas and Florida may seem like fairy tale places to people in other parts of the world! Good luck on your college career. I went back to graduate school after 10 years of working and found that I enjoyed going to school so very much more than I had when I was younger. I actually enjoyed the chance to learn things. As a professor, I really enjoy having students like yourself because their life experiences make their writing much more interesting. Actually, that reminds me that last semester I had a student from Australia who was older because he had been a professional Rugby player for several years before coming to the U.S. to go to college and play American football. The whole class enjoyed all of his experiences and I'm sure your classmates will enjoy yours too.

Anne from Hobart, Tasmania ~ Australia.(The little bit broken off the bottom of AUS) on January 29, 2014:

Thanks for a great hub. Just about to go back to college after 20 years and am a little nervous about having forgotten this kinda stuff.

Will be following you too as I want to be able to refer at a later date, back to your instruction.

Many thanks.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on October 07, 2013:

How interesting Maddie--thanks for letting me know. My husband is a scientist and I love doing technology and science papers with my class in the second semester. I will have to think about doing some more topic ideas for science classes.

Maddie (: on October 07, 2013:

I'm doing this for science

Anarkali Suits on November 22, 2012:

“Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly -- they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.”

Avafdree on July 16, 2012:

This page is a great method to connect to others. Congratulations on a job well achieved. I am anticipating your next

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on February 22, 2012:

B. Leekley--absolutely! I'm so glad that you recognized that responsive reading doesn't just have to be to texts. Anything that provides us something to think about can be put into a responsive reading. You've reminded me that I need to add my own Hub which responded to a Harvard Study on the effect of going to 4th of July celebrations to my links.

Brian Leekley from Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA on February 22, 2012:

Thank you for this interesting and helpful hub. I have bookmarked it. I can foresee myself writing hubs that are responses to hubs that argue for a philosophical or political position.

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on February 11, 2012:

I'm glad! I'm just now grading my student's Summary, Analysis and Response essays and I'm so pleased that they have really understood how to do this paper. I'm hoping my directions this semester have been clearer. We did two days of peer editing, which I think helped. This paper is similar to the Reading Response paper, and both of these Hubs are are the very top in number of hits, so I think that many people have trouble on these essays and the textbooks don't always describe them well.

mlc816 on February 11, 2012:

Many thanks Virginia..you made things a lot simpler for me!

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on January 14, 2012:

johnsdfd--good question. Yes--I should add that to the hub. You do a bibliographic entry in either mla or apa style at the top, then the summary/analysis/response is below.

htodd from United States on January 14, 2012:

Great post virginialynne..Thanks

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on January 11, 2012:

Glad I helped you nico! My class is just starting on this essay now and so I was looking at my Hubviews and very surprised to find this one had over 3,000! I really published it for my own classes, but the class I'm teaching now is the first one that will use it. Guess there are a lot of other people out there needing help!

Virginia Kearney (author) from United States on October 03, 2011:

Thanks! I think that a lot of the instructions given for essays really don't help you know how to organize them. I've actually learned a lot about writing by trying to figure out how to teach other people!

Rose Clearfield from Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 16, 2011:

Well written. I like how you break everything down.

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College and high school students (as well as maybe some middle schoolers) will often face the task of summarizing a book, article, video, or anything they’ve seen/read. Sometimes, you will have to create summaries for yourself, so that you understand the material better. Other times though, you will have to write summary essays, the main purpose of which is to give others an overview of the original source. In both cases, summaries look somewhat the same: they are concise, contain only the most crucial points, and pass on the key idea or essence of the initial material, be it a movie or a book. To serve that purpose, summaries need to be well-written and we will show you exactly how to summarize an essay in the most effective format.

The Key Parts of a Summary: Structure

As a student, you know that most writing tasks have guidelines. You also most probably know that, if you are asked to write a certain type of writing, it has a specific structure and format. See, that’s why you can’t write summaries at random too. 

Thus, before starting the writing process, let’s first figure out what structure this type of writing has. This will allow you to create a summary essay outline that will make it easy for you to include all the essential information and will guide you throughout the writing process as well. 

Here’s what you absolutely have to include in your essay summary:

• Introduction + thesis, which will provide readers with all the necessary details about the work (title, author, etc) and its key idea
• Body paragraphs that support the main point of the essay and therefore include all the necessary details that show how the author justifies their claims
• Conclusion paragraph, which is usually one sentence that may rephrase the main idea and which is called to tie everything together.

You can use our checklist below to help you track down whether you included all the necessary components:

Writing a Summary Essay: Detailed Guide

Before jumping straight to writing, let’s see what we now know about these special summaries:

• What is a summary essay? – Check✅ It’s a concise overview of the essay you’ve read that communicates the key ideas of the material.
• What parts does a summary essay have? – Another check✅ Introduction, with details about the essay + thesis statement; body, with the summary of the main points; conclusion, which wraps up the key idea of the essay.
• How to write a Summary? – ⚠️This one we will break down further in this paragraph.

One would think that the guide to writing a summary couldn’t be that complex: just read the text, sit down, and write. However, if you scroll through the writing guide below, you will see that there are nuances.

Read & Study

First things first, get to know what the essay is about. Read through it carefully. If it helps you, take notes as you read, marking the most important arguments and ideas that need mentioning in your essay. A good thing is you can get a feeling for the author’s style, tone, and mood, and try to identify the main claims they made.

Divide & Outline

After you are done reading, break down the essay into several sections. Breaking the text into several parts will make the material easier to grasp. With their help, you can also create a rough outline of what your summary will look like.

Identify Key Ideas

Read each part you divided the essay into once more. This time, highlight some of the key points. Mark areas you want to refer to in your summary, as well as those that shouldn’t be included in your essay. If you are struggling with this part of the process, you can try using an AI summary generator for some help. During this stage, you should also be able to identify the general message and the essence of the essay.

Create an Introduction

You now have all the necessary details to be able to begin summarizing. Start with an introduction with an opening line that includes the name of the author and the title of their essay. Follow that information with a rather broad overview of the content of the work you will be summarizing. Sometimes, if it is important to understand the essay, you may present here the author’s background as well. And don’t forget the thesis statement that transmits the purpose/point of the work.

Move on to the Body

In the main body paragraphs, state the ideas you’ve chosen while reading the text. Expand on them by including one or more examples from the original text. Don’t forget to include citations if you do that. Our citation generator can give a hand with that.

Quick Citations for Your Convenience

Also, in this part, you can mention any supportive points given in the original text. These could be examples, or stories (but brief or rephrased) that the author originally mentioned.

Finish with a Conclusion & References

Phew, we are at the finish line now. All that is left is to write a concluding paragraph, which is usually around 2-3 sentences tops. Here you need to basically rewrite the thesis statement, once again emphasizing the main purpose or claim of the original source. After that, don’t forget to include a properly formatted reference of the original source to acknowledge the writer. It is not always a requirement but it is especially needed if you include quotes in the text of your summary.

Review & Proofread

Okay, the hardest part is left behind. You can now read through what you’ve written. Make sure everything sounds logical and clear. Pay attention to grammatical and punctuation mistakes. Try reading it aloud or giving it to somebody else to read it for you. This will help you pinpoint places that need improvement and maybe throughout 1 or 2 unnecessary details.

Dos and Don’ts of Summary Essay Writing

Look at you, knowing all this about writing an essay summary. Good for you! And what’s more, you can basically complete any type of summary now, just switching up its content. However, we are not done with teaching you yet. We got the basics settled, so now it’s time to get to the advanced stuff. These are the dos and don’ts that will serve as boosters for your writing. Keeping these tips in mind will help you craft your summaries more quickly and will largely reduce the proofreading time.

Essay Summary Example for Inspiration

Here’s a simple example of a summary of an essay that can serve as a sample and inspiration for your work:

How do you write a summary of an essay?

If you want to create a good summary, start by carefully reading. You need to understand its main ideas and arguments. Then, in your own words, write a brief overview that captures the essay’s central theme and key points. Don’t forget to include the author’s thesis statement and the evidence they use to support their argument. Keep your summary short and focused, avoiding any personal opinions or unnecessary details. 

How do I summarize my essay?

In case it’s your own essay you want to summarize, you should follow the same steps: identify your main argument, outline the supporting points, and then communicate this information in a short overview that gives a clear idea of your essay’s content.

What are the 5 parts of a summary?

Even though we mentioned only 3 major parts of the summary in our article, most summaries can be broken down into 5 aspects: introduction, thesis, body, conclusion, and references. Each of these is important for creating an all-inclusive summary.

What are the rules for summary essay?

Okay, let’s go over the basic summary rules once again. The summary should be short (around ¼ of the original) and concise (include only the most essential information without repetition). Additionally, this writing type should follow a logical structure, meaning you need to uncover the important facts in the same order as they are presented in the essay. Lastly, essay summaries should be independent. The readers chose to look through the summary because they didn’t want to read the whole text. Hence, they need to be able to learn everything important mentioned in the original.

What words should you start a summary essay with?

Usually, a summary of an essay starts with an introductory sentence that includes the name of the author, the title of the work, and the general idea of the text as you perceive it. Remember, you should describe everything in your own words, both to avoid plagiarism and to show your understanding of the material.

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What Is a Written Summary?

• An Introduction to Punctuation

Examples of Summaries

Steps in composing a summary, characteristics of a summary, a checklist for evaluating summaries.

• On the Summary App Summly

The Lighter Side of Summaries

• Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia
• M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester
• B.A., English, State University of New York

A summary, also known as an abstract, precis , or synopsis , is a shortened version of a text that highlights its key points. The word "summary" comes from the Latin, " sum ."

A Summary of the Short Story "Miss Brill" by Katherine Mansfield "'Miss Brill' is the story of an old woman told brilliantly and realistically, balancing thoughts and emotions that sustain her late solitary life amidst all the bustle of modern life. Miss Brill is a regular visitor on Sundays to the Jardins Publiques (the Public Gardens) of a small French suburb where she sits and watches all sorts of people come and go. She listens to the band playing, loves to watch people and guess what keeps them going, and enjoys contemplating the world as a great stage upon which actors perform. She finds herself to be another actor among the so many she sees, or at least herself as 'part of the performance after all.' One Sunday Miss Brill puts on her fur and goes to the Public Gardens as usual. The evening ends with her sudden realization that she is old and lonely, a realization brought to her by a conversation she overhears between a boy and a girl, presumably lovers, who comment on her unwelcome presence in their vicinity. Miss Brill is sad and depressed as she returns home, not stopping by as usual to buy her Sunday delicacy, a slice of honey-cake. She retires to her dark room, puts the fur back into the box and imagines that she has heard something cry." -K. Narayana Chandran.

A Summary of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" "One way of discovering the overall pattern of a piece of writing is to summarize it in your own words. The act of summarizing is much like stating the  plot of a play. For instance, if you were asked to summarize the story of Shakespeare's 'Hamlet,' you might say:

It's the story of a young prince of Denmark who discovers that his uncle and his mother have killed his father, the former king. He plots to get revenge, but in his obsession with revenge he drives his sweetheart to madness and suicide, kills her innocent father, and in the final scene poisons and is poisoned by her brother in a duel, causes his mother's death, and kills the guilty king, his uncle.

This summary contains a number of dramatic elements: a cast of characters (the prince; his uncle, mother, and father; his sweetheart; her father, and so on), a scene (Elsinore Castle in Denmark), instruments (poisons, swords), and actions (discovery, dueling, killing)." -Richard E. Young, Alton L. Becker, and Kenneth L. Pike.

The primary purpose of a summary is to "give an accurate, objective representation of what the work says." As a general rule, "you should not include your own ideas or interpretations." -Paul Clee and Violeta Clee

"Summarizing condenses in your own words the main points in a passage:

• Reread the passage, jotting down a few keywords.
• State the main point in your own words and be objective. Don't mix your reactions with the summary.
• Check your summary against the original, making sure that you use  quotation marks  around any exact phrases that you borrow." -Randall VanderMey, et al.

"Here...is a general procedure you can use [for composing a summary]:

Step 1 : Read the text for its main points. Step 2 : Reread carefully and make a descriptive outline . Step 3 : Write out the text's thesis or main point. Step 4 : Identify the text's major divisions or chunks. Each division develops one of the stages needed to make the whole main point. Step 5 : Try summarizing each part in one or two sentences. Step 6: Now combine your summaries of the parts into a coherent whole, creating a condensed version of the text's main ideas in your own words." -(John C. Bean, Virginia Chappell, and Alice M. Gillam, Reading Rhetorically . Pearson Education, 2004)

"The purpose of a summary is to give a reader a condensed and objective account of the main ideas and features of a text. Usually, a summary has between one and three paragraphs or 100 to 300 words, depending on the length and complexity of the original essay and the intended audience and purpose. Typically, a summary will do the following:

• Cite the author and title of the text. In some cases, the place of publication or the context for the essay may also be included.
• Indicate the main ideas of the text. Accurately representing the main ideas (while omitting the less important details) is the major goal of the summary.
• Use direct quotations of keywords, phrases, or sentences. Quote the text directly for a few key ideas; paraphrase the other important ideas (that is, express the ideas in your own words).
• Include author tags. ("According to Ehrenreich" or "as Ehrenreich explains") to remind the reader that you are summarizing the author and the text, not giving your own ideas.
• Avoid summarizing specific examples or data unless they help illustrate the thesis or main idea of the text.
• Report the main ideas as objectively as possible. Do not include your reactions; save them for your response. -(Stephen Reid,  The Prentice Hall Guide for Writers , 2003)

"Good summaries must be fair, balanced, accurate, and complete. This checklist of questions will help you evaluate drafts of a summary:

• Is the summary economical and precise?
• Is the summary neutral in its representation of the original author's ideas, omitting the writer's own opinions?
• Does the summary reflect the proportionate coverage given various points in the original text?
• Are the original author's ideas expressed in the summary writer's own words?
• Does the summary use attributive tags (such as 'Weston argues') to remind readers whose ideas are being presented?
• Does the summary quote sparingly (usually only key ideas or phrases that cannot be said precisely except in the original author's own words)?
• Will the summary stand alone as a unified and coherent piece of writing?
• Is the original source cited so that readers can locate it?" -John C. Bean

On the Summary App  Summly

"Upon hearing, in March of [2013], reports that a 17-year-old schoolboy had sold a piece of software to Yahoo! for $30 million, you might well have entertained a few preconceived notions about what sort of child this must be...The app [that then 15-year-old Nick] D'Aloisio designed, Summly , compresses long pieces of text into a few representative sentences. When he released an early iteration, tech observers realized that an app that could deliver brief, accurate summaries would be hugely valuable in a world where we read everything—from news stories to corporate reports—on our phones, on the go...There are two ways of doing natural language processing: statistical or semantic,' D'Aloisio explains. A semantic system attempts to figure out the actual meaning of a text and translate it succinctly. A statistical system—the type D'Aloisio used for Summly— doesn't bother with that; it keeps phrases and sentences intact and figures out how to pick a few that best encapsulate the entire work. 'It ranks and classifies each sentence, or phrase, as a candidate for inclusion in the summary. It's very mathematical. It looks at frequencies and distributions, but not at what the words mean." -Seth Stevenson.

"Here are some...famous works of literature that could easily have been summarized in a few words:

• 'Moby-Dick:' Don't mess around with large whales, because they symbolize nature and will kill you.
• 'A Tale of Two Cities:' French people are crazy.
• Every poem ever written: Poets are extremely sensitive.

Think of all the valuable hours we would save if authors got right to the point this way. We'd all have more time for more important activities, such as reading newspaper columns." -Dave Barry.

"To summarize: It is a well-known fact that those people who must want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it. To summarize the summary: Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job. To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem." -Douglas Adams.

• K. Narayana Chandran,  Texts and Their Worlds II . Foundation Books, 2005)
• Richard E. Young, Alton L. Becker, and Kenneth L. Pike,  Rhetoric: Discovery and Change . Harcourt, 1970
• Paul Clee and Violeta Clee,  American Dreams , 1999.
• Randall VanderMey, et al.,  The College Writer , Houghton, 2007
• Stephen Reid,  The Prentice Hall Guide for Writers , 2003
• John C. Bean, Virginia Chappell, and Alice M. Gillam  Reading Rhetorically . Pearson Education, 2004
• Seth Stevenson, "How Teen Nick D'Aloisio Has Changed the Way We Read."  Wall Street Journal Magazine , November 6, 2013
• Dave Barry,  Bad Habits: A 100% Fact-Free Book . Doubleday, 1985
• Douglas Adams,  The Restaurant at the End of the Universe . Pan Books, 1980
• Questions for Each Level of Bloom's Taxonomy
• Reading Speed
• Critical Analysis in Composition
• How and When to Paraphrase Quotations
• 5 Easy Summarizing Strategies for Students
• How to Find the Main Idea
• Amphiboly in Grammar and Logic
• How to Find the Implied Main Idea
• How to Boost Reading Comprehension With Reciprocal Teaching
• An Overview of Classical Rhetoric
• 20 Creative Study Methods
• How to Summarize a Plot
• Definition and Examples of Text in Language Studies
• How to Find the Stated Main Idea
• How to Write a Critical Essay

Summarizing

by jleemcga | Aug 18, 2023 | Resources for Students , Writing Resources

What is summarizing?

A summary of a text is a short overview of the main ideas written in your own words. While paraphrasing involves expressing specific ideas or details from a larger text in your own words, we generally summarize whole texts (whether it is an essay, article, chapter, book, et cetera). So, in order to ensure our summaries are not too wordy or confusing, we only cover the main ideas or argument presented within a whole text.

It’s best to summarize when you’re contextualizing a topic by letting your readers know about the current, ongoing conversation. By summarizing relevant sources, you’re providing your audience with an overview of what has already been said about this topic to help them understand how you’ll be adding to it. Summarizing material within your paper allows you to:

• Condense key ideas or arguments relevant to your paper
• Simplify the connection between a source and your own writing

How do I summarize?

To approach summarizing a source, try the following steps:

• First make sure you carefully read the original source material to understand it. Like paraphrasing, summarizing effectively requires an accurate understanding of the source material
• Identify all the main ideas from the text. It helps to look for the thesis or overall claim the author is presenting, as well as any important reasons they give to back their claim. Basically, you’re looking for why their argument is what it is
• When you begin your summary, you might use a TAG line. This stands for Title, Author, Genre and allows you to formally introduce the text before you summarize its ideas. An example of a TAG line is: In the article “Stuck on the Streets of San Francisco in a Driverless Car”, Cade Metz reports … TAG lines add a helpful framework for the summary
• Be sure not to include any specific examples, details, or evidence from the text. In summaries, we don’t describe the author’s examples (this would be like rewriting the entire text). Instead, we offer a map of the main idea and major points
• Once you finish writing your summary, check to make sure your summary concisely and accurately captures the author’s main ideas
• Remember to cite!

Examples of summarizing

Here is an example of a writer summarizing a main idea from the source Social Death: Racialized Rightlessness and the Criminalization of the Unprotected by Lisa Marie Cacho in their essay about a Salvadoran poet and her poetry’s relationship to reclaiming identity:

The ambiguity that is scored onto the bodies of Salvadoran migrants creates an impoverished sense of time and freedom by keeping these individuals indefinitely “temporary,” an ephemera that imposes a constant threat against safety and belonging for Salvadorans in the US. This weaponization of time also contributes to the condition of social death that Cacho describes as being prevalent for people of color, and particularly immigrants, in the US. According to Cacho, part of the criminalization of people of color within the US— not based on one’s behavior, but by their appearance— is heightened further by the notion of documentation. The rhetoric surrounding immigration in the US ultimately aims to invalidate those without documentation by using slurs like “illegal” (Cacho).

Note: The writer quotes some key terms, like “temporary” or “illegal” that the author emphasizes in the original source but describes the main ideas of the source in their own words. Note, too, that the summary focuses on the big-picture ideas of the source without mentioning examples that are too specific.

Things to keep in mind when summarizing

Some important things to remain mindful of while summarizing in your assignments are:

• There is no specified length for writing summaries; they may be a few sentences or a few paragraphs depending on your writing project. For most academic essays, a summary of a few sentences to a short paragraph is appropriate. Concision is key
• Do not include your opinions on the topic or the author’s ideas in your summary; your ideas are important, but summary is a genre of writing that requires objectivity
• Do not include specific details or examples from the text—just focus on the big picture ideas

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How to Write a Summary | Guide & Examples

Published on 25 September 2022 by Shona McCombes . Revised on 12 May 2023.

Summarising , or writing a summary, means giving a concise overview of a text’s main points in your own words. A summary is always much shorter than the original text.

There are five key steps that can help you to write a summary:

• Read the text
• Break it down into sections
• Identify the key points in each section
• Write the summary
• Check the summary against the article

Writing a summary does not involve critiquing or analysing the source. You should simply provide an accurate account of the most important information and ideas (without copying any text from the original).

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Table of contents

When to write a summary, step 1: read the text, step 2: break the text down into sections, step 3: identify the key points in each section, step 4: write the summary, step 5: check the summary against the article, frequently asked questions.

There are many situations in which you might have to summarise an article or other source:

• As a stand-alone assignment to show you’ve understood the material
• To keep notes that will help you remember what you’ve read
• To give an overview of other researchers’ work in a literature review

When you’re writing an academic text like an essay , research paper , or dissertation , you’ll integrate sources in a variety of ways. You might use a brief quote to support your point, or paraphrase a few sentences or paragraphs.

But it’s often appropriate to summarize a whole article or chapter if it is especially relevant to your own research, or to provide an overview of a source before you analyse or critique it.

In any case, the goal of summarising is to give your reader a clear understanding of the original source. Follow the five steps outlined below to write a good summary.

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You should read the article more than once to make sure you’ve thoroughly understood it. It’s often effective to read in three stages:

• Scan the article quickly to get a sense of its topic and overall shape.
• Read the article carefully, highlighting important points and taking notes as you read.
• Skim the article again to confirm you’ve understood the key points, and reread any particularly important or difficult passages.

There are some tricks you can use to identify the key points as you read:

• Start by reading the abstract . This already contains the author’s own summary of their work, and it tells you what to expect from the article.
• Pay attention to headings and subheadings . These should give you a good sense of what each part is about.
• Read the introduction and the conclusion together and compare them: What did the author set out to do, and what was the outcome?

To make the text more manageable and understand its sub-points, break it down into smaller sections.

If the text is a scientific paper that follows a standard empirical structure, it is probably already organised into clearly marked sections, usually including an introduction, methods, results, and discussion.

Other types of articles may not be explicitly divided into sections. But most articles and essays will be structured around a series of sub-points or themes.

Now it’s time go through each section and pick out its most important points. What does your reader need to know to understand the overall argument or conclusion of the article?

Keep in mind that a summary does not involve paraphrasing every single paragraph of the article. Your goal is to extract the essential points, leaving out anything that can be considered background information or supplementary detail.

In a scientific article, there are some easy questions you can ask to identify the key points in each part.

If the article takes a different form, you might have to think more carefully about what points are most important for the reader to understand its argument.

In that case, pay particular attention to the thesis statement —the central claim that the author wants us to accept, which usually appears in the introduction—and the topic sentences that signal the main idea of each paragraph.

Now that you know the key points that the article aims to communicate, you need to put them in your own words.

To avoid plagiarism and show you’ve understood the article, it’s essential to properly paraphrase the author’s ideas. Do not copy and paste parts of the article, not even just a sentence or two.

The best way to do this is to put the article aside and write out your own understanding of the author’s key points.

Examples of article summaries

Let’s take a look at an example. Below, we summarise this article , which scientifically investigates the old saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’.

An article summary like the above would be appropriate for a stand-alone summary assignment. However, you’ll often want to give an even more concise summary of an article.

For example, in a literature review or research paper, you may want to briefly summarize this study as part of a wider discussion of various sources. In this case, we can boil our summary down even further to include only the most relevant information.

Citing the source you’re summarizing

When including a summary as part of a larger text, it’s essential to properly cite the source you’re summarizing. The exact format depends on your citation style , but it usually includes an in-text citation and a full reference at the end of your paper.

You can easily create your citations and references in APA or MLA using our free citation generators.

APA Citation Generator MLA Citation Generator

Finally, read through the article once more to ensure that:

• You’ve accurately represented the author’s work
• You haven’t missed any essential information
• The phrasing is not too similar to any sentences in the original.

If you’re summarising many articles as part of your own work, it may be a good idea to use a plagiarism checker to double-check that your text is completely original and properly cited. Just be sure to use one that’s safe and reliable.

A summary is a short overview of the main points of an article or other source, written entirely in your own words.

Save yourself some time with the free summariser.

A summary is always much shorter than the original text. The length of a summary can range from just a few sentences to several paragraphs; it depends on the length of the article you’re summarising, and on the purpose of the summary.

With the summariser tool you can easily adjust the length of your summary.

You might have to write a summary of a source:

• As a stand-alone assignment to prove you understand the material
• For your own use, to keep notes on your reading
• To provide an overview of other researchers’ work in a literature review
• In a paper , to summarise or introduce a relevant study

To avoid plagiarism when summarising an article or other source, follow these two rules:

• Write the summary entirely in your own words by   paraphrasing the author’s ideas.
• Reference the source with an in-text citation and a full reference so your reader can easily find the original text.

An abstract concisely explains all the key points of an academic text such as a thesis , dissertation or journal article. It should summarise the whole text, not just introduce it.

An abstract is a type of summary , but summaries are also written elsewhere in academic writing . For example, you might summarise a source in a paper , in a literature review , or as a standalone assignment.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

McCombes, S. (2023, May 12). How to Write a Summary | Guide & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 9 June 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/working-sources/how-to-write-a-summary/

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Writing a Summary

• About this Guide
• What Is a Summary?
• Getting Started
• Components of a Summary Essay

Further Reading

This article provides additional guidance for writing an abstract:

Leggett, T. (2018). Getting to the Heart of the Matter: How to Write an Abstract.  Radiologic Technology ,  89 (4), 416–418.

Common Attributes of a Summary

The dos of summaries:.

Whether you are writing an essay that is completely a summary, or the summary is one small component of a different style of writing, every summary that you write should include:

• The name of the author
• The title of the work
• The main ideas of the work
• Definitions of key terms

Summary essays specifically should also include:

• An introduction paragraph
• A strong thesis statement that focuses on the main idea or purpose of the work
• Body paragraphs that support that thesis
• A conclusion paragraph that ties it all together

The DON'Ts of Summaries:

Summaries should not:

• Go into excessive details beyond the main ideas in the work
• Use examples, illustrations, or personal stories
• Include opinions about what you are summarizing
• Include lengthy quotes from the text
• Include phrases like "This work is about" or other awkward phrasing
• << Previous: Getting Started
• Next: Examples >>
• Last Updated: May 22, 2023 10:46 AM
• URL: https://library.tiffin.edu/summary

Summary Definition, Types & Examples

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Mary Firestone has a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. Firestone has experience as an instructor for English, English Composition, Advanced Composition, Contemporary World Literature, Contemporary Literature, and Creative Writing. She has taught at a variety of schools such as Ottawa University Online, Rasmussen College, Excelsior College, and Southern New Hampshire University.

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Table of Contents

What is a summary, how long is a summary, what does summarize mean, summary examples, lesson summary, let's summarize, the purpose of summarizing.

Imagine your friend notices you reading a novel and asks what the novel is about. In order to answer your friend, you would provide a summary of the novel highlighting its main points. The summary you provide to your friend will help them make an informed decision about whether or not they too might be interested in reading the novel.

Pick a Novel

Pick a novel that you would like to read. This must be a novel you have not previously read, and must be approved by your teacher.

Provide A Summary

Once you have finished reading the novel, type up a summary of the novel. Your summary must be no more than two paragraphs of four to five sentences each. Use the following to guide what you include in your summary:

• Who is the author of the novel?
• What are the main events of the novel?
• Which characters are involved in these events?
• Where and when does the novel take place?

Don't Forget

Remember, a summary should not include any personal opinions. Thus, your summary should not include your opinions regarding whether or not you liked the novel, only the facts of the novel.

What is a summary example?

A summary is a shortened account of the main ideas in which few supporting details are provided. They are used to draw the interest of the reader or prepare the reader for an analysis that is to follow. Summaries can be most often found at the end of a passage or book, though sometimes appear at the beginning of a research paper.

Is a summary short or long?

Summaries can be either short or long depending on what is being written.

Traditional summaries, such as those found in the back of a novel, are usually 1-2 pages at the most. Brief summaries, such as an abstract, are preferred in research papers and are between 200-400 words.

How do we write a summary?

There is a process to ensure that your summary is both effective and interesting.

1. Read through your main text

2. Identify the main ideas in your article while you write by creating a list.

3. Write in your own words in the article. This will help prevent plagiarism.

4. Keep the summary short, unbiased, and ensure your writing flows well from idea to idea.

5. Review your summary by comparing it to the main work. Paraphrase, check for spelling and grammar, and ensure there is not any plagiarism happening.

A summary is a short statement that summarizes or informs the audience of the main ideas of a longer piece of writing. Essentially, the summary is a short version of a longer text. The size of a summary can vary based on the type of writing, but most often they are no longer than a page. Summaries can be found at the end of a piece of literature, such as on the back cover of a book. They are used to give an overview of what happens in the writing and review the main themes. This lesson will continue to explore what summary writing is, types of summaries, and examples of summaries.

What Does a Summary Look Like?

A summary should be an excerpt of writing that is written in either sentence or paragraph form, depending on the size of the main literature or type of writing. It is important to only include the main ideas, while in the case of books, not necessarily giving away the entire plot. The aim of a summary is to draw the reader's interest or to recap the important events in a work. Keeping the summary concise will give the reader the information they need the most, without any fluff.

There is a process that writers should use while drafting a summary in order for it to be most helpful to the reader. Some steps to follow include:

1. Thoroughly read through the main text.

2. Identify the main ideas in the article. It may be helpful to create a list of main thoughts while writing if a summary will be required.

3. Draw from your memory to write the summary. This will help prevent plagiarism, and all will allow you to simply rephrase the main ideas in the summary. Separate your own words from the original text by creating a list of source material that was used.

4. The first sentence of the summary should be a thesis that describes what the summary will be about. Continue writing methodically, following the usual rules of creating a paragraph with good flow. Keep the summary short and unbiased,

5. Review your summary by comparing it to the main work. The two articles should have different phrasing but the same meaning. The summary should be short enough to convey only the main points, with a few supporting details at most.

What is Summary Writing? - Conventions of Summary Writing

To write a good summary, the author has a few tools and mechanics that they can follow to deliver an effective overview of the work. In the beginning of the summary, the author can contextualize the source by using language to give the source purpose within the work. The writer should establish the main point in the summary, then support that point with information from the source. Introduce the source and give a reason why that source is used within the article. For example,

In his 1963 "I Have A Dream" speech, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. articulates his vision for a world of freedom and opportunity for people of color.

The source is introduced here through the use of an author tag , a useful tool to write effective summaries as it cites the source material while describing the main idea of the source, which may be about the Civil Rights Movement in this case. The general format for an author tag is author's name + a reporting verb+ a quote (if present) or paraphrase. A reporting verb is a word that expresses a manner of speaking, such as "articulates."

Finally, the author of a summary should remember to keep the summary short and avoid using too many specific details. A summary is meant to recap the important points of a piece, not restate the entire analysis.

Why Are Summaries Written?

Summaries can be written for a variety of reasons. A summary can be found at the end of a novel, the beginning or end of a news article, and even at the end of this lesson. The purpose can vary based on the written information or the writing style being used. Purposes for writing a summary include:

• A novelist has just finished their masterpiece, but they want to get the reader's attention to read it thoroughly. They create a summary to establish the main storyline while leaving out specific details to appetize the reader to explore further.
• A student is asked to describe what happened in a historical document. They read over the source material and decide that a summary is a concise way to present the information. They give the main ideas of the document to present the information to the class in an easy-to-understand manner.
• A lesson writer has just completed their research on how to write a summary. They have written a detailed lesson on the process, but need to make sure that students understand the important points. They decide to include a bulleted list of the important takeaways from the lesson to concisely explain the principal information.

Types of Summaries

Summaries are not limited to sentences, paragraphs, and bullet points at the end of an article. Some other types of summaries include:

• Abstract : A short description of what is to come, usually at the beginning of an article, before the introduction. They are very small, usually no longer than 150-200 words, and they are written in paragraph form. They prepare the reader for more detailed information and analysis and help them decide whether they want to keep reading or not.
• Epitome: Sometimes referred to as another word for abstract, an epitome gives the most important information while providing little other detail.
• Synopsis: Another form of a summary that gives the full narrative of a piece. They are typically between 500-1000 words, no longer than two pages. It is helpful to add in the emotions or reactions of people within the writing to keep the writing interesting. The synopsis is most often used in novel writing.
• Abridgment: Yet another form of abstract, abridgment condenses ideas down to simplify the style and structure of a piece of writing.

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• 0:01 What Is a Summary?
• 0:55 Writing Summaries
• 1:44 Summary Example
• 3:19 Lesson Summary

A summary's length can vary based on the style of the summary being written. A traditional summary is normally about one page in length, but it can exceed that standard. Ideally, a summary should not be longer than two pages because there is too much information being provided, which may deter the reader from continuing. However, sometimes an even shorter summary may be beneficial to the type of writing being used.

A brief summary , such as an abstract or an epitome, is shorter than the traditional summary as the name suggests. These may vary in size from a couple of sentences to a couple of paragraphs and should not exceed one page in length. They are most often no more than 200-400 words. Brief summaries contain only the most important information to prepare the reader for what is to come.

To summarize means to shorten something. Within the context of writing and literature, it means to give a short and modestly detailed description of what is written about within the main article, or what has been said in a source. To summarize, only include the main topic of the article, then discuss the main ideas found within the source.

The way a summary is written depends on the type of writing. For example, a research paper may find an abstract at the beginning of the document more beneficial than a summary at the end of the work. A novel, conversely, may want to only enthuse the reader before they purchase the book and not give away any detail before the story actually begins. The following sections will show how summaries can be used within the context of different styles of writing.

What Is a Summary of a Book?

The summary of a book or story explains the overarching narrative of the book without giving away too much detail. An example of summary can be found with J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring :

From reading the summary of this book, the reader can surmise:

• A great evil lurks in Middle-Earth, where the story is set.
• The man villain is named Sauron and he rules a dark land.
• A Ring of Power is the item that both sides desire and can be detrimental to the outcome of the story if it falls into the wrong hands.
• Two Hobbits and a small group in their company must go on a grand adventure to destroy the Ring of Power, which will enable Sauron to commit destructive acts in Middle-Earth.

What Is Summary of a Passage?

Summarizing a passage is much like summarizing a novel. The main difference is that the summary is of a lot less material, as a passage usually is no more than a chapter. The information is more specific and can be more detailed to describe what is actually happening. Examining a chapter from the 'Fellowship of the Ring, a brief passage summary can be written. For example:

• Summary: In this chapter, Bilbo recalls his journey which took place in The Hobbit and looks ahead to his next adventure. Knowing that the road is long, he must follow it to get what he desires. The path will lead to others, and he will decide which way to go at a later time.

This summary, though not necessarily traditional, has condensed the ideas of the article down and simplified the meaning for the reader. If the description is interesting, the reader will continue reading through the chapter.

Summaries are a great way to begin or conclude writing because they describe the main themes of the article in simple terms. This can be valuable to the reader because it helps them determine whether they want to invest more time into reading. Summarizing should give consideration to the following information:

• To summarize or to write a summary means to shorten a piece of writing and give the main ideas of a piece of writing. They can be in sentence or paragraph form.
• There is a helpful process that writers can follow to create a summary. It begins during the writing of the main article.
• Author tags are just one of many tools to create an effective summary. They introduce source material by giving the name of the author, followed by a reporting verb , then the quote or a paraphrase of their work.
• Summaries can be written for a number of reasons, but that depends on the type of writing being conducted. Novelists may want an ending summary, while researchers prefer abstracts .
• There are many types of summaries, including abstracts, epitomes , synopsis , and abridgement .
• Summaries can vary in length. A normal summary is 1-2 pages at most, while a brief summary is usually no more than 1-2 paragraphs.

Video Transcript

A summary is a condensed version of an original text, usually a full article or book. Summaries are usually around a paragraph long, and may even be a few paragraphs long depending on the length of the work being condensed.

Summaries are used in variety of situations. For example, you might want to summarize only the main points of a meeting with a co-worker because you're running late for another meeting. Or, let's say you want to introduce a complex design idea. You could begin by summarizing what your design would accomplish, to give key people an overall sense of your plan without overwhelming them. Students might summarize an article for a class, or when preparing and writing research papers, annotated bibliographies and essays. Abstracts and legal brief are also types of summaries.

Writing Summaries

Another thing that might be difficult, especially when summarizing controversial material, is to leave your opinion out. Why? Because summaries contain only the source's ideas, and nothing more. Stating your opinion would not be summarizing that source. When using a summary in an essay or research paper, include an in-text citation to give credit to the original source.

If you should use opinions, what should you use? You should use your own words when writing summaries as much as possible. You can't avoid using names of people and places of course, but it's important to phrase the main points of the source in your own way. You might also want to include an occasional brief quote. Summaries aren't outlines. They're complete paragraphs with fully formed sentences.

Summary Example

Let's say you've just read Suzanne Collins' novel The Hunger Games and want to tell someone what it's about. You would most likely begin with Katniss (the main character) and share the most important points of the novel in some logical sequence. You might even include the setting and the overall goal of the games.

If you did this in writing, you would have created a summary of the novel. It might look something like this:

Sixteen year-old Katniss Everdeen lives in Panem, a nation of the future that includes the former United States. Panem is made up of Districts, and each one is oppressively controlled by the Capitol, whose leaders watch the citizens' every move. Each year the Capitol holds the Hunger Games and two representatives are chosen from each district to participate. The games are a fight to the death and are designed to demoralize the people. Katniss volunteers to go in place of her little sister whose name was originally chosen by random drawing. Katniss demonstrates heroism in her struggles to survive during the games, and with help she defeats the more experienced players and wins the Hunger Games.

'But,' you might say, 'You didn't even mention Peeta!' (For those who aren't familiar with the Hunger Games , he's the second representative from Katniss's District and her eventual love interest). A summary will inevitably leave out a lot of details, even ones that might seem very important. Your job when writing a summary is to determine what is the essential information about the work or event you're summarizing. Remember, when you think summary, think 'essence.'

A summary is a shortened version of a text, generally an article or book. Of course, you can also summarize other things, like meeting notes, project details, even lessons on how to write summaries. They are usually a paragraph long, though they can be longer, depending on the length of the source material.

Summaries should be written in your own words but should not include your opinions. Be sure to use proper citation when using summaries and essays or research papers. Lastly, remember summaries are complete paragraphs, not outlines.

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Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student  and  professional  papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication). These differences mostly extend to the title page and running head. Crucially, citation practices do not differ between the two styles of paper.

However, for your convenience, we have provided two versions of our APA 7 sample paper below: one in  student style and one in  professional  style.

Note: For accessibility purposes, we have used "Track Changes" to make comments along the margins of these samples. Those authored by [AF] denote explanations of formatting and [AWC] denote directions for writing and citing in APA 7. 

APA 7 Student Paper:

Apa 7 professional paper:.

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How to Write a Research Summary: Comprehensive Student Guide

With a Juris Bachelor's degree and a decade of legal practice, Darious Davson excels in creating compelling and authoritative academic papers in Law and Ethics. His work is a testament to his profound knowledge of the legal system and commitment to upholding ethical writing practices. So, this experienced paper writer is your top-tier pick!

A research summary is a short version of a long research paper. It stresses the important points of the original work and introduces the reader to the main results of the work. Hence, the reader can quickly grasp the main idea and conclusion without reading the document. We created this guide to simplify writing a well-researched summary. So, let us explain things simply and clearly.

What is a Research Summary, and Why Is It Important?

Let's start with some basic terminology. A research summary is the short form of the research paper that covers the major aspects of a major research project. It covers the research's main ideas, techniques, findings, and conclusions. The summary is central in that it enables other people to effortlessly understand the essentials of your writing in a short time.

So, what is a research summary? Now you know the answer. Abstracts can help decide whether the full research paper is relevant to their needs. Furthermore, these social channels are frequently used to share the research findings with a general audience who may not have time or need to read the full paper.

When to Write a Summary?

Your research summary should be written after you have completed your research. This is critical because you must be able to present your research findings concisely without leaving anything out. Summaries can be needed when academic materials are being assessed, like in college assignments or science periodicals.

They are effective when submitting research grants or presenting your work at conferences. By summarising your research clearly and concisely, you enable your audience to grasp the information more easily and quickly. This way, your readers will be able to perceive the value of your work and engage with it on a deeper level. As you can see, writing a research paper summary is not rocket science.

Formatting Guidelines for Research Paper Summaries

Properly formatting your research summary is a key point of readability and professionalism. It guarantees that the flow of your summary is kept to the standard of academic writing. Just stick to these rules:

• Use a clear, readable font like Times New Roman or Arial, size 12.
• Set margins to 1 inch on all sides.
• Keep the summary to one page, or about 250-300 words.
• Use double spacing to enhance readability.
• Align your text to the left; this makes it easier to read.
• Include a concise title at the top of your summary.

These guidelines help you build a good summary and help your audience understand your writing. A well-formatted summary allows readers to concentrate on the content, not the arrangement, making your research more effective. So, always try to learn how to summarize a research paper correctly.

Types of Research Paper Summaries

How to Write a Research Summary – Typical Steps

A research summary comprises several steps to produce an understandable and concise article. The summary systematically breaks down the research into bite-size pieces that allow the audience to grasp the study's core aspects. This helps preserve the authenticity and nature of the original research work in a way that is easy to understand.

Read the Text

Reading a research paper before you can start the summary is very important. Begin by reading the whole document thoroughly to get an understanding of the main issues and the objectives of the document. Look for the introductory and concluding paragraphs, which usually contain the major ideas and conclusions. Following this first reading, try to read through the text two or three more times to take a closer look at the research methods, data analysis, and some of the specific findings.

Here is how to write a research summary. Remembering the authors' key phrases and technical words is crucial – these words are like the foundation for understanding the research context accurately. So, master research paper summary writing every day!

Break the Text Down Into Sections

So, the next step is to split it into the logical parts of the paper. This part of the thesis is built around the main issues of the research: the research problem, the methodology, the findings, and the conclusions. This section should be assessed individually and about the overall research to determine the significance of each part.

Spend some time looking for the main idea in each part and trying to understand how they all come together to tell the research story. This process enables readers to comprehend the text better and organize the research summary meaningfully. Segmenting the text so that all key information is present in the summary and that the summarized work accurately represents the research makes this goal possible. Are you not ready to write on your own? Just say, “Write my essay for me!” We are always ready to assist!

Identify the Key Points in Each Section

The key points in each section are identified to create a powerful summary. This is the process of isolating the key details of utmost significance to the findings and the research objectives. So, stick to this research paper summary structure guide:

By identifying these main ideas, you can be certain that the summary covers the essence of the research, presenting a clear and concise version of the original paper. Now, you know how to write a research summary.

Write the Summary

The research summary is written to combine the main points you selected into a single but comprehensive paragraph. First, the main subject of the research will be set down, as well as its goals. A brief outline of the methodology will follow this to provide an overview of the study results. Last, the crucial results are indicated; only those data directly related to the research purpose.

Discuss the results of this study, and write the final remarks and the summary of the original paper. It is important to stay objective and avoid giving personal views or understanding. So, summarizing a research paper effectively is not that difficult.

Check the Summary Against the Article

Now that you have your summary, you must see if it matches the original article. This comparison makes sure that the summary is in line with the research and that any significant information is not left out or interpretation is not misplaced. Check if the summary keeps the original focus, especially concerning the research aims and outcomes. Here is how to write a research summary correctly.

Writing an effective research paper summary is paramount. Ensure there are no technical term errors and avoid personal interpretations or unnecessary details. This verification might involve reading more than once, concentrating on details such as precision, completeness, and readability. Besides, check out our latest article on mastering the research paper format for students!

Crucial Writing Tips to Follow

To write a good research summary, you must grasp the research content and know the skills that make a summary useful and interesting. Following several writing guidelines will ensure that your conclusion is relevant and brief. As a result, your summary will serve its purpose as a valuable academic tool.

Understand the Assignment

Summarizing research findings is crucial. Before submitting your summary, you should grasp all the assignment requirements. The purpose and the specific requirements are the first steps to figuring out your writing focus and approach. Here is what you should understand:

• Length: Check the required length to ensure your summary meets the guidelines.
• Format: Understand the formatting requirements, including font type, size, and margin specifications.
• Deadline: Know your deadline to manage your time effectively.

Knowledge of these elements helps you firmly establish the basis of your writing. It is a very helpful tool because it structures your work according to the needs of your assignment and ensures that the content of your summary is to the point and at the expected level. Here is how to write a research summary properly.

Identify Key Points

It is important to say that identifying the key points in the research may be the most vital part of writing a research summary. First, scrutinize the original article thoroughly, highlighting the central ideas and major findings. Be meticulous while working on the thesis statement because it is a core part of the paper and represents the essay's main idea. It is also essential to comprehend the methodology since the results are interpreted within the context of the methodology.

Use different research paper summary techniques. While emphasizing the data that directly reinforces the research findings, do not forget to include the results irrelevant to the main conclusion. Ensure you mention the talks about the effects and limitations of the obtained results. A powerful summary focuses on these important aspects.

Paraphrase Succinctly

The skill of paraphrasing is crucial for a research paper. According to the University of Connecticut, this process involves reformulating the original text to create a summary with the same meaning as the original but only in clear and short words. When paraphrasing, try to avoid using too many difficult words and expressions, but at the same time, do not let the main terms of the text and the results escape your attention.

Here is how to write a summary. Use synonyms and reword sentences to produce a text that is not a copy of the original. This prevents plagiarism and makes the content friendly and understandable to audiences of diverse backgrounds.

Focus on Structure

Do you need more research paper summary guidelines? Ok! The structure of a research summarization should allow the reader to read through it effortlessly and easily understand its contents. Begin by presenting an introduction that provides context by mentioning the research subject, purpose, and significance. Besides, you can always start with a proper research summary example. Every part should be presented one after the other, and the story should continue to the end using transitions that will aid the reader in following the summary easily.

Highlight the Significance and Implications

Here is what you should learn before checking research paper summary examples. Research summaries must always be written to highlight the importance of research and its wider implications. This emphasis facilitates readers to perceive how the study is important and related to the field. So, here is what you should do:

• Describe how the findings contribute to existing knowledge.
• Suggest how the results can be applied in real-world settings.
• Indicate potential directions for further investigation.
• Discuss how the study advances theoretical frameworks or concepts.

And stick to the research paper summary format. This will ensure that your summary reflects the research's outcomes and gives them a central role. It will also help strengthen your summary and make it more interesting and informative, directly linking the study to the wider field context.

Review and Revise

Last but not least, in writing a research summary is the revision and review of the document. This is a crucial step in summarizing, as it helps avoid inaccuracies, ambiguities, and lengthy sentences. First, read your abstract carefully to determine whether it reflects the original research without too much detail. Proofread for all the grammatical issues or phrases that can be misleading to the reader.

Besides, know all the tips for writing a research paper summary. Complying with the correct use of technical terms and formatting guidelines, if any, is essential. Ask a friend or a mentor to edit your summary; a new set of eyes can bring a new perspective and reveal things you would not have noticed.

Writing a Standout Summary: Things to Avoid

While writing a research summary, it's important to watch out for common pitfalls that can erode its quality and effectiveness. These errors will make your summary clearer and have the desired impact. Therefore, paying attention to them will help you summarize the research work precisely and accurately.

Plagiarism is a vital matter to consider when preparing any academic writing, particularly research summaries. It is the act of copying or taking someone else's ideas and expressions and presenting them as one's work without permission or acknowledgement. To avoid plagiarism, ensure that you paraphrase the original text by expressing the ideas in your own words and that the original sentence is unchanged.

So, find a good research summary example. Correct citation of the direct quotations and key concepts borrowed from the source material is also crucial. Utilizing plagiarism detection software may provide a means to verify that your work is plagiarism-free. Knowing and respecting intellectual property rights can safeguard academic integrity and stimulate in-depth knowledge and the true presentation of results.

Excessive Detail

The most common error while writing a summary is including too many details. In this case, a summary will be the most important part of the research, where the researcher only has to pay attention to the objectives, methodology, key outcomes, and conclusions. Avoid the temptation to wade into the pool of minor details and complex data that do not contribute to an overall understanding of the research's main outcomes.

Rather than mixing the two, it is appropriate to find a balance between economy and fullness by considering the details essential for the reader to grasp the significance and impact of the research. Maintaining the brevity and focus of the summary makes it easier to read. It ensures that it is useful to the audience, who may not need or want a superficial amount of detail. Here is how to write a good summary!

Biased Interpretation

Interpretation may be biased, and this can distort factual comprehension. It is seen as a situation when personal opinion or judgment interferes with the presentation of research results. Here is what you need to do:

• Avoid Personal Opinions: Keep interpretations neutral and based on the data.
• Stick to the Facts: Refer directly to the research for support.
• Use Neutral Language: Avoid emotionally charged or suggestive language.

It is essential to be as objective as possible, concentrating only on what the research data and results demonstrate. This method certifies the accuracy of the summary, which reflects the research without being distorted by personal views or external influences. Just stick to the research summary format.

Misrepresentation of Results

Incorrect misinformation in a research summary can grossly skew the perception of the research and its validity. This mistake could be made if the summary is skewed, important data is omitted, or the results are out of context. So, it is mandatory always to portray the research findings accurately and completely. Ensure that the data mentioned in the summary is the same as the data and conclusions of the research article.

Here is how to write a good summary. We should not jump to conclusions unsupported by the original research or leave out the negative results that are important in inferring the whole study's outcome. Accuracy and fidelity in data reproduction make the summary a trustworthy and credible source for academic and professional settings, thus ensuring the research is an authentic and ethical representation.

Incomplete Coverage

Now, you know how to write a summary. An incomplete summary is worthless because it fails to present all the information crucial to learning about the research. This problem can originate from the lack of detail regarding the important results, the failure to describe the research context, or the omission of the implications and limitations of the study. Besides, find a good research summary template for practicing.

The utmost attention should be paid to systematically presenting all research components, including hypothesis, methodology, results, and conclusions. Also, emphasize any limitations or boundaries of the research that make your topic area more effective. In addition to the above, this detail-oriented approach goes beyond the mere credibility of the summary.

What is the purpose of a research paper summary?

You must concisely overview a research study's main ideas, findings, and implications.

How long should a research paper summary be?

It should be about one page long, between 250 and 300 words. However, ask your professor first.

What are the key differences between summarizing and paraphrasing?

Summarizing involves condensing a large amount of information into a brief overview. Paraphrasing is rewording a specific text or idea without significantly shortening it.

How can I ensure objectivity and conciseness in a research paper summary?

You should stick to the facts, use neutral language, and highlight essential points of your research.

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A researcher fired by OpenAI published a 165-page essay on what to expect from AI in the next decade. We asked GPT-4 to summarize it.

• Fired researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner published a 165-page essay on the future of AI.
• Aschenbrenner's treatise discusses rapid AI progress, security implications, and societal impact.
• Here's what GPT-4 thinks about Aschenbrenner's predictions.

Over the past few months, several employees have left OpenAI , citing concerns about the company's commitment to safety.

Besides making pithy exit announcements on X, they haven't said much about why they're worried about OpenAI's approach to development — or the future of AI.

That is, until earlier this week, when Leopold Aschenbrenner, a researcher fired from OpenAI in April, published his thoughts on the AI revolution in an epic 165-page treatise.

Aschenbrenner worked on OpenAI's super alignment team — which was tasked with mitigated AI risks. Aschenbrenner said OpenAI fired him for leaking information about the company's readiness for artificial general intelligence .

For his part, Aschenbrenner said the information he shared was "totally normal" and that OpenAI may have just been looking for a reason to fire him. He was one of several employees who refused to sign a letter calling for CEO Sam Altman's return after the board briefly ousted Altman last year.

Aschenbrenner's essay doesn't appear to include sensitive details about OpenAI. Instead, as Aschenbrenner writes on the dedication page, it's based on "publicly available information, my own ideas, general field knowledge, or SF gossip."

Business Insider uploaded the tract to OpenAI's GPT-4 model . We asked it to summarize the work and relay the most significant takeaways. We also gently requested that the bot keep its summary clear and concise.

Here's ChatGPT's 57-word summary of Aschenbrenner's essay

ChatGPT distilled the essay into 57 words that outlined Aschenbrenner's views on the evolution of AI.

"Leopold Aschenbrenner's essay discusses the transformative potential of artificial general intelligence (AGI) and superintelligence, and forecasts significant advancements in AI technology in the near future. Aschenbrenner, formerly associated with OpenAI, outlines how the progression from current AI models like GPT-4 to AGI could occur much faster than anticipated, based on trends in computational power and algorithmic efficiency."

ChatGPT then offered four key takeaways from Aschenbrenner's essay

Rapid Progress in AI

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"Aschenbrenner argues that AI development is accelerating at an unprecedented rate. He predicts that by 2027, AI models could reach the capabilities of human AI researchers and engineers, potentially leading to an intelligence explosion where AI surpasses human intelligence."

Economic and Security Implications

"The essay highlights the immense economic and security implications of these advancements. Aschenbrenner points out that trillions of dollars are being invested into developing the infrastructure needed to support these AI systems, such as GPUs, data centers, and power generation. He also emphasizes the critical need for securing these technologies to prevent misuse, particularly by state actors like the CCP."

Technical and Ethical Challenges

"Technical and Ethical Challenges: The essay discusses the significant challenges in controlling AI systems smarter than humans, referring to this as the "superalignment" problem. Managing this will be crucial to prevent catastrophic outcomes."

Predictions and Societal Impact

"Aschenbrenner suggests that few people truly understand the scale of change that AI is about to bring. He discusses the potential for AI to reshape industries, enhance national security, and pose new ethical and governance challenges."

There's more.

As Aschenbrenner wrote, there are probably only a few hundred people, most of them in AI labs in San Francisco, who have "situational awareness" about the industry. These people will likely have the best insight into how AI will reshape the years ahead.

Aschenbrenner, as one of them, seems to believe AI will assume a critical role in national security.

We followed up our original prompt by asking ChatGPT to summarize the predictions Aschenbrenner made in his essay.

Here's how ChatGPT broke it down.

• AGI by 2027: "Aschenbrenner predicts that artificial general intelligence (AGI) is strikingly plausible by 2027, highlighting the rapid progress from GPT-2 to GPT-4, which saw AI models advancing from preschool-level to smart high-schooler abilities in just four years. He expects a similar leap in the next few years based on consistent improvements in compute and algorithmic efficiency."
• Superintelligence Following AGI: "Post-AGI, the author anticipates an "intelligence explosion," where AI rapidly advances from human-level to superhuman capabilities. This transition is expected to be fueled by AI's ability to automate and accelerate its own research and development."
• Trillion-Dollar AI Clusters: "Economically, Aschenbrenner suggests that the AI sector will see an increase in investment into trillion-dollar compute clusters as corporations and governments prepare for the implications of AGI and superintelligence."
• National and Global Security Dynamics: "There are predictions about intense national security measures being enacted to manage and control AI developments. The competition, particularly with the Chinese government, could intensify, possibly leading to an 'all-out war' if not managed properly."
• Superalignment Challenges: "One of the most critical predictions is the struggle with 'superalignment' — the challenge of keeping superintelligent AI aligned with human values and interests. This problem is anticipated to be one of the central hurdles as AI reaches and surpasses human intelligence levels."
• Societal and Economic Transformations: "Aschenbrenner expects AI to have a profound impact on society and the economy, potentially leading to a restructuring of industries and the job market due to AI's capability to perform tasks currently managed by humans."
• The Project Involvement by the US Government: "Predictions include the US government becoming significantly involved in AI development by around 2027-2028 through a dedicated AGI project, likely due to the strategic importance of AI technology."
• Technological Mobilization: "He anticipates a mobilization of technological and industrial resources similar to historical wartime efforts, focusing on AI and its supporting infrastructure as a priority for national policy."

Here's the full prompt we used:

Role: Act as an editor. Task: Read the attached essay about former OpenAI researcher Leopold Aschenbrenner. Instructions: Summarize the essay, highlighting the most significant takeaways. Focus on key contributions, research areas, and any notable impacts on the field. Ensure the summary is concise yet comprehensive, providing a clear understanding of Aschenbrenner's work and influence.

Watch: What is ChatGPT, and should we be afraid of AI chatbots?

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Text Summarizer

A text summarizer is an online tool that wraps up a text to a specified short length. It condenses a long article to main points. The need for text summarizers is increasing day by day, because of time constraints.

People are looking for shortcut methods to learn ideas in lesser time. Even text summarizers are helping them to decide whether a book, a research paper, or an article is worth reading or not. 

Oxford defines summary as:

“ a short statement that gives only the main points of something, not the details. ”

Approaches in auto summarization:

Mainly two approaches have been developed over time for summarizing a long text into a shorter one.

Extraction Summarization:

This approach entails the method to extract keywords and phrases from sentences and then joining them to produce a compact meaningful summary.

Abstractive Summarization:

In this summary generator, algorithms are developed in such a way to reproduce a long text into a shorter one by NLP. It retains its meaning but changes the structure of sentences.

How does this text summarizer work?

Trained by machine learning,  Paraphraser.io text summarizer uses the concept of abstractive summarization to summarize a book, an article, or a research paper. 

This summarize tool uses NLP to create novel sentences and generates a summary in which the main idea remains intact. It is an advanced-level tool that uses AI for its work. Therefore, the summary produced by this article summarizer tool appears to be flawless and inflow.

How to use our text summarizer?

Our summarizing tool is the best because it is simple to use and efficient also.

• Insert the text (article, research paper, book extract) into the text area.
• Or upload your content.
• Click the “ Summarize ” Button. 
• You can also toggle other features by selecting show bullets, best line, ranked base, and summary length.

Important features of this text summarizer:

The features that give this text summarizer an advantage over others are given below.

Control summarization:

This is the best feature of this summary tool because it gives you the freedom to choose the length of your summarized text.

It depends upon the circumstances, sometimes you want to create a long summary and sometimes a shorter one is enough. This summary generator tool gives you the choice to summarize your text according to your needs.

Bullet points formation:

When you want to analyze your text, you can use our text summarizer to create bullet points. This summarizer tool can help you in creating PowerPoint slides and presentations. 

Rating of the text:

It’s a full-pack feature that gives you the whole ranking of your text. This summary maker provides the best line, best sentence, and general ranking of your text according to its optimization.

Free usage:

Our text summarizer has free usage and can be used whenever it is needed. You can instantly use it without giving any login.

Users of text summarizer:

A text summarizer helps students to condense difficult concepts by summarizing them. They get the know-how of complex articles and books. Moreover, manual summarizing can be very time-consuming. They use a text summarizer to solve their assignments in lesser time.

Journalists:

Journalists can get help from our text summarizer as they have to communicate an incident or an event. Giving thorough news is not valuable as compared to quick headliners. So, they can use this summarizing tool to inform people about daily happenings.

Writers often have to face the difficulty of creating unique content either blogs or guest posts. They can only produce exceptional content if they know the gist of the whole story.

While getting ideas from different sources, they can use our text summarizer to skim out the necessary information. This information is incorporated into what they are writing.

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Masks Strongly Recommended but Not Required in Maryland, Starting Immediately

Due to the downward trend in respiratory viruses in Maryland, masking is no longer required but remains strongly recommended in Johns Hopkins Medicine clinical locations in Maryland. Read more .

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COVID-19 Vaccine: What You Need to Know

The COVID-19 vaccine is very good at preventing serious illness, hospitalization and death. Because the virus that causes COVID-19 continues to change, vaccines are updated to help fight the disease. It is important to check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 vaccine information for the latest details. (Posted 11/22/23)

What is the COVID-19 vaccine?

The COVID-19 vaccine lessens the severity of COVID-19 by teaching the immune system to recognize and fight the virus that causes the disease.

For fall/winter 2023–2024, the updated COVID-19 vaccine is based on the XBB.1.5 variant. The updated vaccine is made by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Novavax. This season, only one shot of the vaccine is needed for most people, and there are no boosters. (People who are immunocompromised or ages 6 months to 4 years may need more than one 2023–2024 vaccine.)

How is the 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccine different from previous COVID-19 vaccines?

The 2023–2024 COVID-19 vaccine targets XBB.1.5, a subvariant of Omicron. While none of the variants currently circulating are exact matches to the vaccine, they are all closely related to the XBB.1.5 strain. Studies show that the updated vaccine is effective against the  variants currently causing the majority of COVID-19 cases  in the U.S.

Who should get a COVID-19 vaccine?

Because the 2023–2024 vaccine is effective for recent strains of COVID-19, it is recommended that everyone stay up to date with this vaccine. Previous vaccines or boosters were not developed to target the more recent strains. For 2023–2024, the CDC recommends:

• Everyone age 5 and older receive one shot of the updated vaccine.
• Children ages 6 months to 4 years may need more than one shot to be up to date.
• People who are moderately or severely immunocompromised may need more than one shot.

You can review the full recommendations on the CDC’s Stay Up to Date with COVID-19 Vaccines webpage . Be sure to talk to your primary care doctor or pediatrician if you are unsure about vaccine recommendations.

What are the side effects of the COVID-19 vaccine?

Side effects vary and may last one to three days. Common side effects are:

• Soreness at the injection site

COVID-19 Vaccine and Pregnancy

COVID-19 vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are safe and recommended for people who are pregnant or lactating, as well as for those r intending to become pregnant.

People who are pregnant or were recently pregnant are at a greater risk for severe COVID-19. Having a severe case of COVID-19 while pregnant is linked to a higher risk of pre-term birth and stillbirth and might increase the risk of other pregnancy complications.

What should parents know about the COVID-19 vaccine and children?

The CDC recommends the 2023–2024 vaccine for adolescents and teenagers ages 12 and older, and for children ages 6 months through 11 years.

• Children age 5 and older need one shot of the updated vaccine.

Children are less likely to become seriously ill from COVID-19 than adults, although serious illness can happen. Speak with your pediatrician if you have questions about having your child vaccinated.

If I recently had COVID-19, do I need a 2023–2024 vaccine?

If you recently had COVID-19, the CDC recommends waiting about three months before getting this updated vaccine. If you encounter the virus again, having the updated vaccine will:

• Lessen your risk of severe disease that could require hospitalization
• Reduce the chance that you infect someone else with COVID-19
• Help keep you protected from currently circulating COVID-19 variants

How long should I wait to get this vaccine if I recently had an earlier version of a COVID-19 vaccine or booster?

People age 5 years and older should wait at least two months after getting the last dose of any COVID-19 vaccine before receiving the 2023–2024 vaccine,  according to CDC guidance .

Is natural immunity better than a vaccine?

Natural immunity is the antibody protection your body creates against a germ once you’ve been infected with it. Natural immunity to the virus that causes COVID-19 is no better than vaccine-acquired immunity, and it comes with far greater risks. Studies show that natural immunity to the virus weakens over time and does so faster than immunity provided by COVID-19 vaccination.

Do I need a COVID-19 booster?

The 2023–2024 vaccine is a one-shot vaccine for most people, and there is no booster this season. (People who are immunocompromised or ages 6 months to 4 years may need more than one 2023–2024 vaccine.)

The FDA calls this an updated vaccine (not a “booster” like previous shots) because it builds a new immune response to variants that are currently circulating. This change reflects the current approach of treating COVID-19 similarly to the flu, with preventive measures such as an annual vaccination.

When should I get a COVID-19 vaccine?

Like the flu and other respiratory diseases, COVID-19 tends to be more active in the fall and winter, so getting a vaccine in the fall is recommended.

How quickly does the COVID-19 vaccine become effective?

It usually takes about two weeks for the vaccine to become effective. The CDC website provides more information on how the COVID-19 vaccines work .

How long does the COVID-19 vaccine last?

Studies suggest that COVID-19 vaccines are most effective during the first three months after vaccination.

Is it safe to get a flu and COVID-19 vaccine at the same time?

Yes, it safe to get both shots at the same time. Keep in mind that each has similar side effects and you may experience side effects from both.

Is the COVID-19 vaccine safe?

Yes. COVID-19 vaccines approved by the FDA meet rigorous testing criteria and are safe and effective at preventing serious illness, hospitalization and death. Millions of people have received the vaccines, and the CDC continues to monitor their safety and effectiveness as well as rare adverse events.

Where can I get a COVID-19 vaccine?

The COVID-19 vaccine is available at pharmacies. See vaccines.gov to find a convenient location.

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