How to summarize a given passage

In the busy world of today people have little time to read long winding reports and documents. Summaries, on the other hand, are easy to read. They are short and include only information that is relevant.Here are some guidelines for summarizing a passage.
Read the given passage to find out

1. What the passage is about
2. What its tone is
3. What type of writing it is

Find a title for the passage
The title should be a brief statement of the central theme. It should be pointed, not vague.

Read the passage again, as carefully as possible trying to understand every sentence. Since you have already understood the central theme of the passage, it should be easy for you to find out what is important and what is not important.

Anything that is not related to the central theme is irrelevant or superfluous and should not be mentioned the summary.

In the passage the author may have expressed the same idea in different words for emphasis. There is no room for repetition of ideas in a summary.

Examples and illustrations are often easy to dispense with. If you find an example indispensable, it may be included in the summary.

Do not include quotations, metaphors, similes and other figures of speech.

Before you start writing the summary, jot down the important ideas in the passage. Do not copy words and phrases from the passage. As far as possible the summary should be written in your own words.

Summarizing

The summary of a passage is the passage in its shortened form. In a summary, we only express the main ideas. And to keep it short, we must express those ideas in as few words as possible.

What is a good summary?
A good summary must be complete in itself. It must contain all the important information in the passage so that a reader, who doesn't have time to read the original passage, will have no difficulty in understanding what the passage is about.

The summary should be brief, clear and precise. That said, it should not be a number of disjointed simple sentences. You can use linking expressions to connect the ideas.

Give ideas, facts or points in the order in which they are given in the original passage.

If the original passage contains sentences in direct speech, it must be changed into indirect speech in the summary.

The summary must be written in the writer’s own words. As far as possible avoid using the same words that appear in the original passage.

A summary must not contain anything that is not in the original.

How to summarize a given passage?
Read the given passage carefully and try to understand what it means. If you don’t understand it by reading it once, read twice or thrice until you know the details.

Try to find out what the passage is about. Sometimes you will also need to find a suitable title for the summary.

After reading the passage prepare an outline summary containing all the important points.

Prepare your summary with the help of the outline. Do not refer to the original.

If the passage is in poetry, express its ideas in prose.

Learn English Writing

For many ESL students learning to write good English is much more difficult than learning to speak. Even advanced level students face this problem. There are a number of reasons for this:

• Written communication is more formal than spoken communication.
• You have to avoid grammatical or spelling mistakes in written communication.
• Spoken communication, on the other hand, isn’t exactly about grammar: It allows for more grammar mistakes. What’s more, you don’t have to learn spelling to speak.
• People tend to think while writing; not much thought goes into speaking.

The following points can be helpful when considering how to learn English writing skills:

Speaking skills are something that we learn unconsciously. Writing, on the other hand, takes a conscious effort on the part of the learner.

Writing involves the learning of a number of rules and structures.

How to improve one’s writing skills
Good writing skills can be developed with practice. The first thing that you need to do is to learn the grammar rules. Although, you can speak without learning much grammar, you won’t be able to write correct sentences if your knowledge of grammar is poor. So if your job involves a lot of writing, there is no excuse for not learning the rules.

Learn different sentence patterns. These are the basic structures that we use to construct sentences. A basic understanding of the most common sentence patterns will help you to write numerous grammatically correct sentences.

Keep writing. That is true. Your writing skills improve with practice. Therefore, make it a habit to write at least 200 words a day. Keep a diary. In this digital age, blogging is perhaps better than writing a diary. Participate in online forums where people express their ideas in English.

Coherence and transitions

You may have the most convincing ideas in the world. You might have even managed to express them in the most beautiful sentences. However, if these ideas are not properly connected, you will not be able to produce the desired results. Readers should be able to move from one thought to another.

This wouldn’t be possible if you do not use enough connecting devices.

When you provide transitions between ideas, your reader will have no difficulty getting the point.

You can provide transitions between ideas using four techniques: You can, for example, use transitional adverbs; you can repeat keywords or phrases or you can use pronoun reference or parallel form.

Using transitional tags
The most common transitional tags are of course the little conjunctions – and, or, nor, but, so, yet and for. Transitional adverbs are not so simple. Examples are: however, nonetheless, therefore, however, on the other hand etc.

The use of the conjunctions and and but come naturally to most writers.

However, the question whether you can begin a sentence with a conjunction may still arise. Of course, the initial conjunction is a sign that the sentence should have been connected to the previous sentence. However, in many cases, the initial conjunction is a powerful device that calls attention to the sentence. If that is what you want, then you don’t have to connect the two clauses. However, if you begin every one of your sentences with a conjunction, the result can be disastrous.

Here is a list of common transitional adverbs.

Addition
Also, again, and, and then, equally important, besides, first, further, in addition, furthermore, finally, last, in the first place, next, second, too

Comparison
Also, similarly, likewise, in the same way

Concession
Of course, naturally, granted,

Contrast
Although, at the same time, yet, and yet,  but at the same time, even so, despite that, even though, however, for all that, in contrast, instead, in spite of, nevertheless, notwithstanding, on the other hand, on the contrary, otherwise, still, regardless, though, yet

Repetition of keywords and phrases

By repeating keywords and phrases, you can create a powerful cohesive effect. Be careful, though; too much repetition can create a ludicrous effect.

Of course, repetition isn’t desirable. However, if it is used correctly, it will make your prose more interesting. The key is finding that word or phrase that is crucial for the reader’s comprehension of the passage. By repeating this word / phrase, you can leave a powerful impact on the reader. Just make sure that you do not overdo it.

Read the sentence given below. It is a quote from Abraham Lincoln.

‘You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.’

This sentence is a classic example of the power of repetition.

Repetition can be employed to connect both sentences and paragraphs.

Pronoun reference
Pronouns avoid the repetition of ideas. They connect ideas because they almost always refer to a noun or noun phrase in the previous sentence.

You can use a pronoun to refer to a noun. The pronouns this, that, these and those can be used to refer to entire sentences.

Make sure that all pronouns have clear references. This is necessary to avoid ambiguity.

Parallelism
Parallelism is the deliberate repetition of phrases or even clauses of the same kind. This is a powerful technique. Inexperienced writers often assume that they cannot repeat the same phrase or clause structures. But that is a wrong assumption. Parallelism within the sentence is highly desirable.

Vary the sentence patterns. For example, you should consider writing a compound sentence after a complex sentence or simple sentence. You should use different types of linking words. All of these techniques add variety to your writing. You must still ensure that every sentence you write has a parallel structure.

Rules of parellelism

Unskillful writers do not always follow the rules of parallelism. They are worried that if they repeat clauses and phrases of the same kind, their writing will be monotonous. That is not true. Of course, you are not supposed to fill your paragraphs with the same kind of sentence patterns. You must still strive to ensure that structures used within the sentence are parallel in structure.

So, for example, if you are creating a list, make sure that all items in the list have the same grammatical property. You can’t create a list consisting of nouns and adjectives. You have to choose either adjectives or nouns.

Incorrect: I like Cathie because she is beautiful, kind and intelligence. (Here we use two adjectives and one noun.)
Correct: I like Cathie because she is beautiful, kind and intelligent. (Here we use three adjectives.)
Correct: I admire Cathie for her beauty, intelligence and kindness. (Here we use three nouns.)

Incorrect: Formerly, science subjects were taught by the textbook method, while now the laboratory method is used.
Correct: Formerly, science subjects were taught by the textbook method; now they are taught by the laboratory method.

By this principle, if an article or a preposition applies to all the items in a list, it should be used only before the first item. Or you can repeat it before each item.

Incorrect: The robin sings in summer, winter, spring and in autumn.
Correct: The robin sings in summer, winter, spring and autumn.
Correct: The robin sings in summer, in winter, in spring and in autumn.

Rules for writing numbers

While writing numbers, sometimes we use figures or digits and sometimes we write out the number in words. Here is a quick overview of the rules for writing numbers.

Small numbers

Numbers smaller than ten should be spelled out.

• Two birds were sitting on a branch. (NOT ‘2 birds were sitting on a branch.’)

Two-word numbers should be expressed in figures. Examples are: 24, 32, 56 etc.

• I got only 35 marks in English. (More natural than I got only thirty-five marks in English.)

One-word numbers can be spelled out. Examples are: eleven, thirteen, twenty, thirty etc.

When writing large number we often use commas.

• There are 746,372 voters in this constituency.

The period is used as a decimal separator. Example: 10.5

The International Systems of Units (SI) does not recommend the use of commas or periods.
SI recommends that a space should be used to separate groups of three digits.

• He earns $1 500 000 a year.

You cannot begin a sentence with a numeral.

• Write ‘Twenty years ago…’ (NOT 20 years ago…)

Sometimes you will have to change the structure of the sentence to remove the numeral from the beginning.

• Write ‘They sold 400,000 copies on the first day’ instead of ‘400,000 copies were sold on the first day.’

Centuries should be spelled out.

• In the nineteenth century

But some writers also use a combination of numbers and letters. Example: 19th century

Percentages

In a less formal style, you can use the symbol %. In formal writing, you should spell the percentage out.

• She got 96% marks. (Informal)
• She got 96 percent marks. (Formal)

The rules of capitalization

The rules of capitalization in English can be quite confusing. Most students understand that they should begin a sentence with a capital letter. They also understand that proper nouns (e.g. Mark, Mary) should be capitalized.

However, the most common mistakes occur with national adjectives and the names of languages.

If you find the rules of capitalization confusing, this article will be helpful to you.

• Capitalize ‘I’
• Capitalize the names of countries. Examples: Japan, America, Russia
• Capitalize national nouns and adjectives. Examples: Chinese, Russian, French, British
• Capitalize the first letter of the first word in a sentence or question.
• Capitalize proper nouns (i.e. the names of people). Examples: John, Mary, Annie
• Do not capitalize common nouns. Examples: boy, tree, flower, butterfly
• Capitalize the names of institutions, organizations etc.
• Capitalize the names of festivals. Examples: Id, Diwali, Easter, Christmas

Study the examples given below.

• He went to university.

University is a common noun and hence we do not capitalize it.

• He went to Oxford University. (NOT He went to oxford university.)

The names of universities, organizations, institutions, mountains, deserts and rivers are capitalized. Note that when you write the name of a university or an organization, all words in the name begin with capital letters.

Examples

• British Broadcasting Corporation (NOT British broadcasting corporation)
• United Nations Organization (NOT United nations organization)

Notes
In British English, the article ‘the’ is not normally used before the names of universities, public buildings or organizations. However, in American English, ‘the’ is more often used in such cases.

• He studied at the Harvard University. (US)

Correct the mistakes in the following sentences.

1. He introduced me to mary, his wife.

2. I don’t understand french, but I can speak a little spanish.

3. They went skiing in the alps.

4. She bought a new Car for her birthday.

5. Peter comes from new england.









































Answers

1. He introduced me to Mary, his wife.

2. I don’t understand French, but I can speak a little Spanish.

3. They went skiing in the Alps.

4. She bought a new car for her birthday.

5. Peter comes from New England.

Mixed constructions

A sentence must have two parts – the subject and the predicate.

The subject is what the sentence is about and the predicate is what we are going to say about the subject.

If the sentence is to make complete sense, we have to put the two parts together in reasonable ways.

Problems with the adverb clause
When we write a sentence the subject normally goes at the beginning. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule.

Consider the following sentence.

• Sweet are the uses of adversity.

Here the real subject ‘the uses of adversity’ goes at the end of the sentence which begins with an adjective. But as we have already said, this is an exception rather than the rule and we most often begin simple sentences with subjects.

A simple sentence has just one clause. A complex sentence, on the other hand, may have two or more clauses (one independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses).

A complex sentence can begin with a subordinate adverb clause.

But note that an adverb clause can’t act as a noun; it can’t be a subject. It can merely modify a verb, an adjective or another adverb in the main clause.

A prepositional phrase, too, cannot act as the subject of an independent clause. It can begin a sentence, but it can’t act as the subject.

Study the examples given below.

• Incorrect: In his attempt to win the election broke several rules about pre-poll publicity.
• Correct: In his attempt to win the election, the candidate broke several rules about pre-poll publicity.
• Correct: The candidate’s attempt to win the election broke several rules about pre-poll publicity.

In the incorrect sentence given above, a prepositional phrase was used in the place of a subject.

A clause needs just one subject, but sometimes we incorrectly write sentences which actually have two subjects in a situation that calls for just one.

• Incorrect: The new automated answering machine we began to use it in the fall.
• Correct: We began to use the new automated answering machine in the fall.

Sentences: simple and compound

There are mainly three kinds of sentences in English: simple, complex and compound.

Simple sentence
A simple sentence consists of just one clause. Examples are given below.

• The dog barks.
• The kettle boils.
• Birds live in nests.
• The boys are singing.

In its simplest form, a simple sentence consists of a subject and a verb.

We can add more meaning to the sentence by including qualifiers, objects, complements etc.

• Sitting on a branch, the monkey gibbered.
• The little girl was carrying a basket on her head.

Compound sentence
A compound sentence is made up of two or more independent clauses.

• The boys sang and the girls danced.

This compound sentence consists of two simple clauses connected by the coordinating conjunction and.

Another example is given below.

• Men may come and men may go, but I go on forever.

This compound sentence consists of three independent clauses.

We make compound sentences by joining independent clauses with the help of coordinating conjunctions.

More examples of compound sentences are given below.

• You may watch TV or you can go out to play.
• You should either sit quietly or go out.
• The old man could neither see nor hear.
• He took the test several times but he couldn't pass.
• He is famous, yet he is very humble.
• She was angry, still she kept her cool.
• The thieves not only robbed the man of his possessions, but also inflicted injuries on him.

Notes

The words however, therefore and nevertheless are not conjunctions. They cannot be used to connect two independent clauses.

• My car broke down on the way; therefore, I hired a taxi. (NOT My car broke down on the way, therefore I hired a taxi.)
• He lost all his money; nevertheless, he is cheerful.

Two independent clauses need to be connected with a coordinating conjunction or separated with a full stop or a semicolon.

Most common idiomatic expressions in English

The English language is full of idiomatic expressions. While it is nearly impossible to learn all of these expressions, you should be familiar with the most important ones. Here is a list of the most widely used idiomatic expressions in English.

A penny for your thoughts

This expression is another way of asking what somebody is thinking.

Add insult to injury

To add insult to injury is to make a bad situation worse.

A hot potato

A hot potato is a topic or an issue that is widely discussed.

Once in a blue moon

If something happens once in a blue moon it happens very rarely.

Caught between two stools

When you are caught between two stools, you have difficulty choosing between two alternatives.

See eye to eye

When two people see eye to eye, they agree on something.

Hear it on the grapevine

To hear it on the grapevine is to hear a rumor.

Miss the boat

To miss the boat is to miss your chance at something.

Kill two birds with one stone

To kill two birds with one stone is to do two profitable things at the same time.

On the ball

When you are on the ball, you understand the situation very well.

Cut corners

To cut corners is to do something badly to save money.

Costs and arm and a leg

If something costs and arm and a leg, it is very expensive.

Sit on the fence

When you sit on the fence, you don’t make a decision.

Expressions with speak

Here is a list of idiomatic expressions using the word speak. Each expression is followed by its meaning or definition. Example sentences are also given.

Broadly speaking / generally speaking

This expression is used when you talk about something in general.

• Generally speaking, people are nice when you are nice to them.

no…to speak of

This is used for saying that something is not important.

• She has no experience to speak of.

Not on speaking terms

When you are not on speaking terms with another person, you are very angry with them and won’t talk to them.

• He and his wife are not on speaking terms.

Speak for itself

If something speaks for itself, it is clearly so good.

• Her success as a writer speaks for itself.

Speak for yourself

Use this expression to suggest that your opinion is different from that of others.

• ‘No one wants to go to the theater tonight.’ ‘Speak for yourself! I do.’

Speaking of

This expression is used to introduce something new.

• Speaking of money, have you paid the utility bill?

Speak your mind

To speak your mind is to say what you think even if it hurts or offends others.

• I like her because she speaks her mind.
• She was a strong-willed woman who always spoke her mind.

Speak volumes

If something speaks volumes it provides a lot of information.

• His silence on the issue speaks volumes.