for English Academic Studies (Workshop)
Semester 1, 2011/12
Session 8: Paraphrasing Skills
PolyU HKCC
Session 8: Paraphrasing Skills
The exercises in this worksheet are based on the following selection:
While people enjoy the fun of Halloween, little do they know about its origin.
The festival has its roots in Celtic festival of Samhain, during which people celebrate the
beginning of the darker half of the year. The festival is also closely related to the death
since the ancient Celts believed the boundary between this world and the Otherworld
became thinnest on Samhain. To protect themselves from the wandering evil spirits, the
Celts would put on masks and costumes so as to frighten the harmful spirits away. In a
way, Halloween resembles the Hungry Ghost Festival in traditional Chinese culture.
The Chinese maintain that the gate of hell will be loosened in the seventh month of the
year and the spirits, both good and bad, will pass through to the human world.
Part A: Diagnostic Test
Exercise A1: Read the above selection and circle the letter of the title that best
describes the selection.
A. Halloween and Celtic tradition
B. The origin of Halloween
C. Similarity between Halloween and the Hungry Ghost Festival
Exercise A2: Paraphrase one by one the first three sentences in the paragraph.
1. While people enjoy the fun of Halloween, little do they know about its origin.
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2. The festival has its roots in Celtic festival of Samhain, during which people celebrate
the beginning of the darker half of the year.
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English for Academic Studies (Workshop)
Semester 1, 2011/12
Session 8: Paraphrasing Skills
PolyU HKCC
3. The festival is also closely related to the death since the ancient believed Celts the
boundary between this world and the Otherworld became thinnest on Samhain.
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Part B: Paraphrasing Skills Review
Follow these steps when preparing a paraphrase:
Step 1: Take a few minutes to preview the work.
Step 2: Read the work through the first time. Mark areas (ideas) that seem important.
Step 3: Re-read the important areas (ideas).
Step 4: Take notes on the material. Substitute synonyms into the original work and alter
the sentence structure.
Step 5: Draft a paraphrase. Make sure the paraphrase retains all the ideas of the original
work but is phrased differently from it.
Part C: Concepts Boosting Exercises
Exercise C1: Replace the underlined words with synonyms.
Put your answers in
the space above the underlined words.
1. To protect themselves from the wandering evil spirits, the Celts would put on masks
and costumes so as to frighten the harmful spirits away.
2. In a way, Halloween resembles the Hungry Ghost Festival in traditional Chinese
culture.
The Chinese maintain that the gate of hell will be loosened in the seventh
month of the year and the spirits, both good and bad, will pass through to the human
world.
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English for Academic Studies (Workshop)
Semester 1, 2011/12
Session 8: Paraphrasing Skills
PolyU HKCC
Exercise C2: Paraphrase the last three sentences of the selection.
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