CHAPTER 3

HOW TO WRITE A
CONCLUDING PARAGRAPH

1
THE CONCLUDING PARAGRAPH:
The concluding paragraph is the last paragraph of an essay, and it is shorter than the other
paragraphs. It generally has 4 to 6 sentences. It is of utmost importance that NEW IDEAS SHOULD NOT BE
GIVEN IN THIS PARAGRAPH. IT IS ONLY TO CLOSE OUR ESSAY. SO, JUST SUMMARIZE WHAT BODY
PARAGRAPHS SAY.

PARAPHRASED THESIS

(Message of the thesis statement is repeated

with different wording.)

A BRIEF SUMMARY OF BODY PARAGRAPHS' CONTENT

FINAL THOUGHT (The writers opinion/ suggestion/ prediction/ warning about the topic)

Examples:
1. Essay Prompt: What are the advantages of being famous?
Introduction Paragraph
People have many wishes in their lives, and they try hard to reach these wishes.
Nowadays, it seems that fame is very desirable for many people. Fame seems to appeal everyone
due to its attraction and glamour. For this reason, a lot of people wish to be famous even for a day
in their lives. Although fame comes with some difficulties, these people focus more on the
advantages of being famous. Earning a lot of money and being the center of attention are the two
advantages of being famous.

Concluding Paragraph
In brief, the most significant benefits of being famous are having a good financial
condition and getting a lot of attention. In my opinion, it is normal for people to enjoy being
famous as everybody likes living in luxury and being the dear of fans, but the most important
question is whether it is worth it or not.

2. Essay Prompt: What are the benefits of travel?

Introduction Paragraph
One of the greatest philosophers, Augustine said, “The world is a book and those who do
not travel read only one page.” It is a well- known fact that experiences of travel can provide a
person a lot of benefits. Not only the traveler, but also an entire country benefits from travel or
tourism activities. Obviously, travelling has benefits for the people who travel and for the
country’s economy.

Concluding Paragraph
In conclusion, travel is useful for both people and businesses. Domestic and international
travel will give rise to people who are more equipped and qualified and also economies can
improve and become stronger. I think, in addition to being fun, travel is important especially in the
globalized world.

2
 How to Write A Good Concluding Paragraph
1. Using Synonyms or Antonyms
Let’s analyse a sample concluding paragraph. You can use synonyms or antonyms to restate a thesis
statement.

Example 1:
Essay Prompt: Why do young people join gangs?

Thesis Statement:
The two reasons why young people join gangs are psychological comfort and violence.

Concluding Paragraph:
In conclusion, because of mental relief and brutality young people are pushed towards gangs.

signal word restatement of thesis statement

Most cities have gangs which are made up of young people, teenagers, even children. They don’t make
these choices most of the time. I believe that it is the environment that encourages, and even

signal word expressing final thought

forces them to be part of gangs. It is our society and government’s responsibility to lead them to
better options and a better future.

(Word count:72)

Please pay attention to the use of synonyms in the example above. The writer uses the words
mental relief for psychological comfort and brutality instead of violence. The writer uses the
structure I believe to present his final thought

3
Example 2: Let’s analyse another concluding paragraph.

Essay Prompt:

What are the disadvantages of working for the same company during your entire career?

Thesis Statement: The two main disadvantages of working for the same company all your life
are lack of enthusiasm and not improving your skills.

Concluding Paragraph:
To conclude, although you can have some benefits when you work at the same place for a long

signal word restatement of thesis statement

time, you have to think of the disadvantages such as demotivation and lack of improvement in your
skills. Nowadays, working for the same company for more than ten years is not even considered
positive in many areas of work. To my way of thinking, people should make a new start in their

signal word expressing final thought

careers if they feel they are in a monotonous working environment.

Once again, please focus on the use of synonyms in the example above. The writer uses the words
demotivation for lack of enthusiasm and unimproved skills instead of not improving skills. The
writer uses the structure To my way of thinking to present his final thought.

4
2. Changing Word Forms

You can also change word forms to restate the thesis statement.

Essay Prompt: Why do you think teenagers use violence against one another?

Thesis Statement: The two significant reasons why teenagers use violence against one another are
witnessing violence and easy access to drugs and alcohol.

Concluding Paragraph:
In conclusion, since young people witness violence and have an easy access to drugs and alcohol,

signal word restatement of thesis statement

they become violent. Therefore, governments should urgently take action to resolve this issue.

I think that it is necessary to raise teenagers’ awareness because violence does not resolve any

signal word expressing final thought

conflict but only complicates things further.

Please focus on the use of word forms in the example above. The writer uses the words witness (v)
for witnessing (n) and access (v) instead of access (n). The writer uses the structure I think to
present his final thought.

5
EXERCISE 1: Restate the thesis statements below with different wording for concluding paragraphs.

1. Putting on weight and increasing risk of diabetes are two important drawbacks of sleeping too much.

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. The two main causes of traffic in Istanbul are that there are too many cars and not enough roads.

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. The major reasons why people follow fashion are impressing others and proving identity.

__________________________________________________________________________________

4. The two main reasons why people smoke a lot are depression and financial problems.

__________________________________________________________________________________

5. The two major drawbacks of living in a town are insufficient job opportunities and bad health service.

_________________________________________________________________________________

6
EXERCISE 2: Read the concluding sentences below and write final thoughts for them.

You can start with the following transition signals:

In my opinion, It seems to me that, It is my firm belief that,

To my mind, I think that, To my way of thinking,

1. In conclusion, putting on weight and increasing risk of diabetes are two important drawbacks of
sleeping too much.

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. Taking everything into consideration, the two main causes of traffic in Istanbul are that there are
too many cars but not enough roads.

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. All things considered, the major reasons why people follow fashion are impressing others and
proving identity.

__________________________________________________________________________________

4. To sum up, the two main reasons why people smoke a lot are depression and financial problems.

__________________________________________________________________________________

5. All in all, the two major drawbacks of living in a town are insufficient job opportunities and bad
health service.

__________________________________________________________________________________

7
EXERCISE 3: Analyze the sample introductions below and write concluding paragraphs for them.

A Good Teacher

In the past, teachers only needed to be strong. A teacher was a powerful figure, and
the most important thing was to let the students know that he was powerful. However,
over the last thirty years, the relationship between student and teacher has changed,

and the skills a teacher needs are now very different. Today a good teacher has to be patient and
helpful.

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

8
 Traffic Accidents

Did you know that more than one million people died last year in traffic accidents? Eighty per cent of
road traffic deaths occurred in middle-income countries. Most of these countries are located in the
African region. In Europe, the number of accidents drops significantly. In Germany and Greece about
3000 people died but in Turkey the number is 7500. Why are there so many fatal accidents in Turkey?
The two major causes of traffic accidents in our country are being drunk and ignoring traffic rules.

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

9
 Being Famous

People have many wishes in their lives, and they try hard to reach these wishes. Nowadays,
one of those wishes is to become famous for many people. Fame appeals to everyone due to its
attraction and glamour. Although fame comes with some difficulties, these people focus more on the
advantages of being famous. Earning a lot of money and being the center of attention are the two
advantages of being famous.

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

10
EXERCISE 4: Analyze the sample essay below and discuss the strong and weak points of
it with your partner.
Finding the Best University
It is a common knowledge that education plays an important role in people’s lives. Since their
childhood everybody has been looking for the best schools and the teachers to receive a good
education. The pinnacle of education is to have a university degree. However, not every university
may meet people’s expectations. In order to state that they are a graduate of a good university, there
should be some requirements to be met. A good university should have qualified teachers and social
facilities for students.

First of all, a good university must have qualified teachers for each course. To begin with,
qualified teachers should have effective teaching skills in their subjects. Without these skills, it will be
difficult for the teacher to transfer his/her knowledge to the students, and it will be challenging for
the students as well to receive the information or to enjoy the lessons. If students lose their interests
towards the lesson, they may have attendance problems, which may cause failure. Moreover, the
teacher should have a personality that matches with being a good teacher, which means that a
teacher should be kind, supportive and understanding to his/her students. Otherwise,
communication and trust issues can occur. This affects students’ success in their educational lives.
Therefore, qualified teachers are one of the most important parts of a good university.

Another quality of a good university is having social facilities for students. Firstly, there must
be enough sports centres and cafes for students to spend their free time with their friends. Since
students spend most of their time studying at school, they need a place to rest and chat with their
friends at the cafes in the campus. Students sometimes need to get over their stress by spending
time in a sports centre. If there is a good sports centre in the campus, students can play basketball,
do yoga, run, and all of this can reduce their stress. Secondly, student clubs are the best way of
socializing and making new friends. In such clubs, students will have a chance to meet other students
from different departments and they will also learn from each other. To illustrate, they can exchange
information and broaden their horizons in terms of both academic and social aspects. Thus, besides
qualified teachers, a good university should provide social opportunities to its students.

In conclusion, universities should support the learning process with qualified teachers and
many social facilities, as they are places where students spend the most important stage of their
lives. Students should become familiar with all these characteristics so that they can choose a good
university, which will affect their future.

11
12
13