When I first started learning English, I thought summarising meant just cutting out the “boring” parts. Big mistake. My teacher once handed back a summary I’d written of a short article. She’d underlined half of it and written: “This is still a copy, not a summary.”
Ouch. But she was right.
Writing summaries in English is different from just shortening a text. It’s about pulling out the core, rephrasing it clearly, and leaving out everything that’s not essential. It’s a skill that saves you time, sharpens your thinking, and makes you sound smarter in class, at work, or in exams like IELTS or TOEFL.
Here’s how to do it well — without all the fluff.
Step 1: Read Twice – Once for the Vibe, Once for the Details
You can’t summarise what you don’t understand. So first, read the whole text normally. Don’t highlight anything. Just get the general idea.
Then read it again, but this time actively look for:
- The main argument or point
- Key facts or examples that support it
- The author’s tone (neutral, critical, persuasive?)
A common mistake is to start underlining on the first read. That leads to picking up unimportant details because you don’t yet know what’s central. Trust me, I’ve done it a hundred times.
Step 2: Separate the Main Ideas from the “Nice-to-Know” Stuff
Most texts have a single core message. Everything else is decoration: examples, anecdotes, statistics, or extra explanations.
For example, take this paragraph:
“Solar energy is becoming increasingly popular. In Germany, for instance, solar panels now cover over 2 million rooftops. This shift has reduced household electricity bills by an average of 15%.”
The main idea is: Solar energy is growing because it saves money. The Germany example and the 15% figure are supports, not the core.
Quick Exercise
Try this: take any short news article and cross out every sentence that could be removed without losing the main point. The sentences you keep? Those become your summary’s skeleton.
Step 3: Rewrite in Your Own Words
This is the hardest part for learners. You understand the idea, but your brain wants to copy the original phrasing.
Fight it.
Close the original text. Then write down what you remember — in your own English. It doesn’t have to be fancy. Short, simple sentences work best. If you need to check a fact, okay, but avoid looking at the original structure.
Here’s a before-and-after from one of my students:
Original:
“The study concluded that regular exercise, especially aerobic activity, significantly improves cognitive function in older adults.”
Student’s first attempt (too close):
“The study said that regular exercise, especially aerobic activity, greatly improves thinking ability in older people.”
Better version (her own words):
“According to the research, older adults who exercise often — especially with activities that raise their heart rate — think better.”
Notice the second version changes the sentence structure and uses different vocabulary. That’s the goal.
Step 4: Keep It Short – Really Short
A summary should be about 25–30% of the original length. For a 200-word paragraph, aim for 50–60 words. For a 500-word article, around 150 words.
If you’re over that, ask yourself: “Does this sentence add something new, or is it just padding?”
A good summary feels tight. Every word earns its place.
How to cut ruthlessly:
- Remove adjectives and adverbs unless they carry meaning.
- Replace long phrases with short ones (“due to the fact that” → “because”).
- Combine two sentences into one.
Common Mistakes That Make Summaries Weak
- Starting with “This article talks about…” – Just say what it says.
- Including your opinion – Summaries are neutral. Save your thoughts for the discussion.
- Using the same sentence order as the original – Rearrange it to show you truly understood.
- Forgetting to state the source – A good summary often starts with “According to [author]…” or “The text explains that…”.
One Schema to Visualise the Process
Here’s a simple flow of how to go from a long text to a short summary. It shows the four stages we just covered.
Grasp the whole, then find the core
Ignore examples & details
Close the original, write from memory
Remove every extra word
Your Turn – Practice Right Now
Take any paragraph from this article (yes, this one). Write a one-sentence summary of it. Then check: does it include the main point? Is it in your own words? Is it shorter than 30 words?
Do that twice a week, and I promise your summarising will get faster and more natural.
And if you want to see how your English level stacks up overall — not just writing, but reading, listening, and speaking too — try the free test at English Measure. It takes just a few minutes, and you’ll know exactly where to focus next.
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