Summarizing 10

What is summarizing?

Summarising is the retelling of the important parts of a passage in a much shorter form.
Why summarize?
- To make sure you have understood something.
- To explain the sense of passage to someone else.
- To review texts for examinations.
What does a good summary include?
- A good summary includes the main ideas and the major supporting points.
- A good summary does not include minor details, repeated details, or the reader’s opinions.

Summarizing sentences

Summarize sentence by taking out the unnecessary words. Use summary words to take the
place of groups of words about the same topics. Keep only the words which tell the main point of
the sentence. Use a few words as possible.
Example: The tall cowboy out the saddle on his horse, untied him from the fence, waved goodbye
and rode off into the sunset.
Summary: the cowboy left.

Exercise 1

Summarize these sentences. Work with another student.

1. In Natasha’s library you can find mysteries, novels, biographies, travel books, how-to manuals,
science fiction thrillers, and reference books.
Summary:

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2. With her new credit card, Yoko bought groceries at the supermarket, shoes at the department
store, and new set of tires for her sports car at the auto supply store.
Summary:

3. During the summer along the Charles River in Boston, you can go rollerblading, running biking,
or sailing, or you can have a picnic, listen to a concert, or watch a movie.
Summary:

Summarizing paragraphs

A paragraph summary should be as short as possible, but it must be a complete sentence.

The summary of a paragraph is the main ideas of the paragraph. Often (but not always), the main
idea is found in the topic sentence.

Step 1. Read the paragraph all the way through to be sure you understand it.
Step 2. Check to see if the paragraph contains a topic sentence.
- If the paragraph has a topic sentence, does it state the main idea of the paragraph? If
so, you can use the topic sentence as the summary.
- If the topic sentence is not a good statement of the main idea, write a summary which
states the main idea.
Step 3. Take out unnecessary words.

Exercise 2

Summarize each of the following paragraphs. Use a few words as possible. Work with
another student.

1. Tunnels are dug in types of materials varying from soft clay to hard rock. The method of
tunnel construction depends on such factors as the ground conditions, the ground water
conditions, the length and diameter of the tunnel drive, the depth of the tunnel, the logistics
of supporting the tunnel excavation, the final use and shape of the tunnel and appropriate
risk management. There are three basic types of tunnel construction in common use: Cut-

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 and-cover tunnel, constructed in a shallow trench and then covered over; Bored tunnel,
constructed in situ, without removing the ground above. They are usually of circular or
horseshoe cross-section; immersed tube tunnel, sunk into a body of water and laid on or
buried just under its bed.
Source: https://www.omicsonline.org/conferences-list/types-of-tunnels-construction-
Methods
Summary:

2. Employment of civil engineers is projected to grow 8 percent through 2024, about as fast as
the average for all occupations. As infrastructure continues to age, civil engineers will be
needed to manage projects to rebuild bridges, repair roads, and upgrade levees and dams as
well as airports and buildings. A growing population leading to increasing urbanization
means that new water systems will be required while, at the same time, aging, existing water
systems must be maintained to reduce or eliminate leaks. In addition, more waste treatment
plants will be needed to help clean the nation’s waterways. Civil engineers will continue to
play a key part in all of this work. The work of civil engineers will be needed for renewable-
energy projects. Often, getting permits for many of these projects takes years, and civil
engineers play a key part in the process. Thus, as these new projects gain approval, civil
engineers will be further involved in overseeing the construction of structures such as wind
farms and solar arrays. Although states continue to face financial challenges and may have
difficulty funding all of their projects that need attention, some of the projects that have been
delayed will ultimately have to be completed in order to build and maintain critical
infrastructure, and to protect the public and the environment.
Source : https://collegegrad.com/careers/civil-engineers
Summary:

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 Summarizing short passages
Step 1. Read the passage all the way through.
Step 2. Go back to the beginning and underline the topic sentence in each paragraph. If
you cannot a find topic sentence, write a short summary of the paragraph.
Step 3. Put the sentences from the paragraphs together. Connect them with signals words
or other connecting words. (Remember; signal words and connecting words tie ideas
together. Example: and, but, however, first, nest, then, because.)

Exercise 3

Summarize this short passage. Work with another student. When you finished, compare your
work with another pair of students.

Civil engineering is arguably the oldest engineering discipline. It deals with the built
environment and can be dated to the first time someone placed a roof over his or her head or laid a
tree trunk across a river to make it easier to get across.
The built environment encompasses much of what defines modern civilization. Buildings
and bridges are often the first constructions that come to mind, as they are the most conspicuous
creations of structural engineering, one of civil engineering's major sub-disciplines. Roads,
railroads, subway systems, and airports are designed by transportation engineers, another category
of civil engineering. And then there are the less visible creations of civil engineers. Every time you
open a water faucet, you expect water to come out, without thinking that civil engineers made it
possible. New York City has one of the world’s most impressive water supply systems, receiving
billions of gallons of high-quality water from the Catskills over one hundred miles away. Similarly,
not many people seem to worry about what happens to the water after it has served its purposes.
The old civil engineering discipline of sanitary engineering has evolved into modern environmental
engineering of such significance that most academic departments have changed their names to civil
and environmental engineering.
These few examples illustrate that civil engineers do a lot more than design buildings and
bridges. They can be found in the aerospace industry, designing jetliners and space stations; in the
automotive industry, perfecting the load-carrying capacity of a chassis and improving the
crashworthiness of bumpers and doors; and they can be found in the ship building industry, the

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power industry, and many other industries wherever constructed facilities are involved. And they
plan and oversee the construction of these facilities as construction managers.
Civil engineering is an exciting profession because at the end of the day you can see the
results of your work, whether this is a completed bridge, a high-rise building, a subway station, or
a hydroelectric dam.
Source : https://collegegrad.com/careers/civil-engineers

Write one sentence to summarize each paragraph.

Paragraph 1:

Paragraph 2:

Paragraph 3:

Now tile the sentences together to make one short paragraph. Write the final summary below.
Use only the words which are absolutely necessary.

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