How to write a summary of an article in your own words.

Read once, then read with a pen

Miami University’s writing center suggests reading the article quickly once to get its general meaning, noting the headings and the opening and closing sentences. Then reread and mark what each paragraph “says” (its content) and what it “does” (its job in the argument, such as giving evidence or answering an objection).

The “does” notes are what keep a summary from becoming a list of facts. A paragraph that only gives an example can often be reduced to a few words or dropped.

Outline the argument, then draft without the original

From your notes, write the main divisions of the argument in a few lines. Miami’s handout then suggests starting with a one-sentence summary of the author’s main argument and expanding it gradually. Randolph University’s library guide asks you to state the main ideas and the most important details that support them.

Drafting from your outline rather than the article, with the text out of sight, makes it harder to copy its sentences. Looking back afterwards is for checking, not for borrowing.

A fictional example

Imagine a fictional article, “Why we stopped using the shared inbox”, by Dana Reyes. Its notes read: paragraph 1 says the inbox hid who was answering, and does set up the problem; paragraph 2 gives two missed replies, and does give evidence; paragraph 3 proposes assigning each message an owner, and does state the solution; paragraph 4 admits it needs weekly upkeep, and does state a limit.

Summary: “In ‘Why we stopped using the shared inbox’, Dana Reyes argues that a shared inbox hides who is responsible for each reply, and proposes giving every message a named owner. The article says the approach needs weekly upkeep.” Her two examples are left out. The summary also does not say whether the proposal is a good idea; that would be your opinion.

Keep your opinion and the author’s words out

If you need to respond to the article, write that in a separate paragraph or section and label it as your view.

• Name the author and the title in the first sentence, as Miami’s handout advises.
• Use your own words. Miami recommends quotation marks and a citation when you borrow a string of three or more words from the original.
• Do not critique or analyse; Randolph’s guide says to express the underlying meaning without doing so.
• Use phrases such as “the author argues” now and then so the reader knows whose view this is.

Decide how long it should be

Guides disagree, so there is no single right length. Randolph’s guide says about one third the length of the original; Miami’s targets roughly 150 to 250 words. Check whether your teacher, editor or reader gave a limit, and use that first.

When you have no limit, ask what the reader will do with the summary. Someone deciding whether to read the article needs the main claim and a hint of the evidence. Someone who will never read it needs more of the reasoning.

Check against the original

This checklist is our suggested routine built from the guidance above. It does not replace reading the original when a decision depends on it. If an AI tool wrote your first draft, use the separate guide on checking an AI summary against its source.

• Does each statement appear in the article, with the same strength? “May” is not “will”.
• Are the numbers, names and dates exactly as the article gives them?
• Is anything in the summary your own addition or opinion?
• Is the main argument still there if you read only your first sentence?
• Have you used the author’s phrases without quotation marks?

Use this next

• Check an AI summary against its source
• Write a meeting recap without inventing decisions
• An editing checklist for your next article