Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary defines plagiarism as the act of "steal[ing] or purloin[ing] and pass[ing] off as one's own (ideas, writings, etc., of another)" (644). Therefore, plagiarism occurs whenever a someone attempts—intentionally or unintentionally—to present someone else's ideas, wording, and/or phrasing as his/her own. Plagiarism is a serious academic offense and often carries with it serious consequences.  Please know that if I catch you plagiarizing, you will—at the very least—fail this class.

Diana Hacker, editor of The Bedford Handbook, reminds her readers that "[t]hree different acts are considered plagiarism: (1) failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas, (2) failing to enclose borrowed language in quotation marks, and (3) failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own words" (570).

• Failing to Cite: to avoid this type of plagiarism, use parenthetical citations to document direct quotations and to indicate any reference to ideas that come from anyone but you.

  Exception: there is no need to cite common knowledge. To determine whether information constitutes common knowledge, look for that same information in other sources: if you find it in three or more sources, it is likely common knowledge. It is wise, however, to cite your source whenever you're in doubt.

• Failing to Quote: to avoid this type of plagiarism, use quotation marks any time you employ someone else's language—wording or phrasing. Even if you cite your source, failure to employ quotation marks around borrowed language constitutes plagiarism.
  • Original Source: No animal has done more to renew interest in animal intelligence than a beguiling, bilingual bonobo named Kanzi, who has the grammatical abilities of a 2½-year-old child and a taste for movies about cavemen. (Linden qtd. in Hacker 571)
  • Plagiarism: According to Eugene Linden, no animal has done more to renew interest in animal intelligence than a beguiling, bilingual bonobo named Kanzi, who has the grammatical abilities of a 2½-year-old child and a taste for movies about cavemen (57). (Hacker 571-72)
  • Borrowed Language in Quotation Marks (acceptable): According to Eugene Linden, "No animal has done more to renew interest in animal intelligence than a beguiling, bilingual bonobo named Kanzi, who has the grammatical abilities of a 2½-year-old child and a taste for movies about cavemen" (57). (Hacker 572)

• Failing to Use Your Own Words: to avoid this type of plagiarism, completely rephrase the information you glean from the source: do not integrate the author's phrases into your own prose without using quotation marks or merely plug in synonyms and call it good. Many writers find it helpful to attempt a rephrasing without looking at the source material followed by a close scrutiny of the two texts to ensure a successful rephrasing and to ensure an accurate representation of the source information.
  • Original Source: If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal behaviorists. (Davis qtd. in Hacker 572)
  • Unacceptable Borrowing of Phrases: The existence of a signing ape unsettled linguists and startled animal behaviorists (Davis 26). (Hacker 572)
  • Unacceptable Borrowing of Structure: If the presence of a sign-language-using chimp was disturbing for scientists studying language, it was also surprising to scientists studying animal behavior (Davis 26). (Hacker 572)
  • Acceptable Paraphrase: When they learned of an ape's ability to use sign language, both linguists and animal behaviorists were taken by surprise (Davis 26). (Hacker 573)
  • Acceptable Paraphrase: According to Flora Davis, both linguists and animal behaviorists were unprepared for the news that a chimp could communicate with its trainers through sign language (26). (Hacker 573)

Updated: 08.18.07