How to Write a Paragraph

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This article was co-written by Jake Adams. Jake Adams is a tutor and owner of PCH Tutors, a business in Malibu, California that provides tutoring and learning resources for kindergarten through college, SAT & ACT preparation materials, and private tutoring. college admissions inquiries. With over 11 years of experience as a tutor, Jake is also the CEO of Simplifi EDU – an online tutoring service with the goal of helping customers access a network of excellent tutors in California. Jake holds a bachelor’s degree in international business and marketing from Pepperdine University.

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Practicing how to write paragraphs is essential to possessing good writing skills. Paragraphs will divide large amounts of text and make it easier for readers to absorb the content. They help readers understand the writer’s argument by directing their focus on the main idea or purpose. ^{[1] X Reliable Sources University of North Carpina Writing Center Go to the source} However, knowing how to write a good, well-structured paragraph can be quite challenging. You should proceed to refer to the guide below and learn how to improve your paragraph writing skills to be even better!

Table of Contents

Planning to write a paragraph

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Decide on the main topic of the passage. Before you start writing, you need to understand the main idea of the passage. This is because a paragraph is basically a collection of sentences related to a key topic. ^{[2] X Research Sources} Without a clear topic, your paragraph will lack focus and unity. To be able to identify the correct topic, you should ask yourself the following questions:

What is the problem posed to you? If you are writing a paragraph in response to or answering a specific issue, for example, “You decided to donate money to charity. Which charity would you choose and why?”, or “Describe your best day of the week,” you’ll need to think through them carefully and make sure you mention them directly, rather than straying off topic.
What is the main idea or problem that I need to solve? You should think about the topic that is presented to you or the topic you want to write about and consider the idea or problem related to it. Since paragraphs are usually quite short, you need to focus on the main idea and not go off topic.
Who do I write for? You need to think about the audience to whom you intend to dedicate this passage or essay. What is their level? Are they familiar with the topic at hand, or do they require more explanatory sentences?
If your passage is part of a larger essay, writing an outline will help you identify the main idea or goal of each paragraph.

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Write down any information and ideas relevant to the topic. Once you have a clear idea of what you want to cover in your paragraph, you can begin to organize your thoughts by writing them down in a notebook or word-processing program. You don’t have to write complete sentences, just write down some key words or phrases. Once everything is laid out on paper, you will be able to clearly identify the important elements you need to add to your paragraph, as well as be aware of unnecessary information.

At this point, you will probably spot some gaps in your knowledge and realize that you need to find some facts and figures to support your argument.
It’s best to do your research now so you can gather all the relevant information for the writing stage.

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Determine the structure you want to use for your paragraph. Now that all your thoughts, ideas, data, and facts are laid out in front of you, you should start thinking about the structure you’ll use for the passage. Consider each issue you want to cover and try to arrange them in the right order – this will help your paragraph become more coherent and readable. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

You can also sort chronologically, or write the most important information first, or just make the passage easier and more enjoyable to read – everything depends on the topic and style. of the passage you want to write. ^{[3] X Research Sources}
Once you have decided on the specific order, you can rewrite the problem based on this new structure – this will make the writing process faster and easier to understand.

Write a paragraph

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Write topic sentences . The first sentence of the paragraph should be the topic sentence. The topic sentence is the line that introduces the main idea and point of the paragraph. It should contain the most relevant and important information you want to state about the topic, and from there, summarize your entire paragraph. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Don’t: use obvious factual data as the topic sentence.
Do: start with a unclear idea if you feel stuck, and improve on it once you have completed the passage.

Each sentence you write should support the topic sentence and provide additional information and discussion about the problem or idea it covers. If any of the sentences cannot be directly related to the topic sentence, you should not add them to the paragraph.
Experienced writers can add topic sentences anywhere in the paragraph; it doesn’t have to be in the first line. However, writers new to the profession or unfamiliar with paragraph writing should stick to the principle of writing the topic sentence in the first line, as it will guide you throughout the writing process. ^{[2] X Research Source}
Your topic sentence should not be too broad or too narrow. If the topic sentence is too broad, you won’t be able to fully discuss your ideas in the paragraph. If it’s too narrow, you won’t have enough information to discuss. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

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Add support details. Once you are done and satisfied with your topic sentence, you can start adding any other sentences to the paragraph. This is where your specific, well-structured notes start to work. You should remember to keep the paragraph coherent, which means making it easy to read and understand, and at the same time, each sentence needs to flow together and everything needs to flow. To achieve this, you should strive to write sentences that are simple, clear, and able to express exactly what you want to say. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Use transitions as a bridge to connect two sentences. Transitions will help you compare and contrast sentences, show sequence, cause and effect, emphasize important ideas, and move smoothly from sentence to sentence. Transitions include “moreover”, “actually” and “in addition”. You can also use chronological transitions, such as “first”, “second”, and “third”. ^{[3] X Research Sources}
Supporting sentences are an important part of a paragraph, so you need to use them to provide more evidence to support the topic sentence. Depending on the topic, you can use facts, figures, statistics, and examples, or you can add a few stories, anecdotes, and quotes. You can use any one element as long as they match. ^{[2] X Research Source}
In terms of length, usually, three to five sentences are enough to state the main point and fully support the topic sentence, but this will depend quite a bit on the topic and the length of the essay. you are writing. There is no specific rule on the length of a paragraph. You can write as long as you want as long as it covers the main idea. ^{[3] X Research Sources}^{[5] X Credible Sources University of North Carpina Writing Center Go to Source}

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Write a concluding sentence. The concluding sentence will tie all the issues together. A good concluding sentence will reinforce the idea stated in your topic sentence, but at the same time, it should also include any evidence or argument contained in your supporting sentence. The concluding sentence should clear the reader’s doubts about the accuracy and rationality of the entire passage.

Don’t disagree with your evidence: Regardless of opinion, the entire report is a failure’.’
The conclusion should be clearly stated if it is a transition to the next paragraph: These quotes suggest that the report has a good deal of support, but this does not mean it will make a big difference. TB .

Don’t just rewrite the topic sentence. The concluding sentence should acknowledge the previous discussion and remind the reader of its logic. ^{[6] X Trusted Source University of North Carpina Writing Center Go to Source}
For example, in the passage on the topic “Why is Canada a good place to live?”. The conclusion would be “From all the evidence cited above that Canada provides excellent health care, has a top-notch education system, and maintains the city’s cleanliness and safety at all times, we can conclude that Canada is indeed a place worth living.”

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Determine when to create a new paragraph. Sometimes it can be difficult to tell when a paragraph ends and a new one begins. Fortunately, there are a number of guidelines that you can take to determine when you need to build a new paragraph. The most basic guideline is that every time you start discussing a new idea, you should write another paragraph. The paragraph should not contain more than one main idea. If the proposed idea has many issues or aspects, each aspect should have its own paragraph. ^{[2] X Research Sources}^{[7] X Research Sources}

New paragraphs are also often used whenever you are comparing two issues or presenting each side of an argument separately. For example, if your topic is “Should civil servants receive lower wages?”, you could state an argument in favor of this issue in one paragraph, and write another to explain it. objections. ^{[2] X Research Source}
Paragraphs make writing easier to understand and provide readers with a “short break” between ideas so they can absorb everything they’ve just read. If you feel that the passage you are writing is becoming increasingly complicated, or contains many problems, you should divide it into separate paragraphs. ^{[2] X Research Source}
When writing an essay, the introduction and conclusion need to be written in two separate paragraphs. The opening paragraph should define the purpose of your essay and the problem you hope to achieve, and provide a short outline of the idea and problem it will discuss. The closing paragraph summarizes the information and arguments contained in the essay and outlines the point the essay makes and/or proves. At the same time, it will also introduce new ideas, ideas that can make the reader think about the question the essay presented. ^{[2] X Research Source}
If you are writing a novel, in the dialogue you should start a new paragraph to represent another person’s words. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

Review the text

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Check spelling and grammar errors. Once you’re done, you should re-read your passage two or three times to check for spelling and grammar errors. Misspellings and improper use of grammar will significantly affect the quality of a paragraph, even if it contains good ideas and arguments. When you’re writing, you won’t be able to see any small mistakes, so don’t skip this step, even if you’re in a hurry.

Make sure that each sentence has a subject and remember to capitalize proper nouns. Also, if you are writing in English, you should also remember to choose the verb that matches the subject and use the same tense for the entire paragraph.
Use a dictionary to check the spelling of words you don’t know, don’t assume everything you write is absolutely correct.
Review your paragraph’s punctuation, remember to use commas, colons, semicolons, and parentheses correctly.

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Check the coherence and style of the paragraph. Not only does your writing need to stand out from a professional point of view, but it also needs to be clear and fluent. You can do this by varying the length and form of your sentences through the use of transitions and a variety of vocabulary. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Don’t: use long words or “rare words”.
Do: use common synonyms to change spelling instead of repeating the same word over and over again.

The point of the essay needs to be consistent throughout the passage, and of course, throughout the essay. For example, if you are writing in the first person (such as “I believe…”), you should not change into the passive voice midway (“the matter is assumed…”).
However, you should also avoid opening every sentence with “I think…” or “I think…”. Change the form of your sentences, as this will keep your readers interested and help your passage flow more smoothly.
For beginners, it’s best to use short, to the point sentences that clearly state your point. Long, disjointed sentences quickly become incoherent or have grammatical errors, so you should avoid using them until you have more experience in writing.

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Consider the completeness of the passage. Once you have reread the passage and corrected the grammar or style mistakes, you should review it again to determine if it is complete. You should read the passage objectively and decide if it fully supports and develops the topic sentence, or needs some additional information or evidence to support your claim. . ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Don’t: fixate on minor mistakes when you haven’t finished your essay.
Do: clarify the problem before moving forward.

If you feel as if the main point in the topic sentence has been fully supported and developed by other content throughout the paragraph, your paragraph is complete. However, if any important aspect of the topic remains unexplored or if the passage is shorter than three sentences, you need to add more information. ^{[3] X Research Sources}
On the other hand, you may find that your paragraph is too long and contains redundant or messy content, you should edit it so that only the most relevant information remains.
If you feel that every piece of content is essential to your point, but the paragraph is still too long, you should consider breaking it down into smaller, more specific paragraphs.

Advice

A paragraph should include:
- Topic sentence
- Support sentence
- Concluding sentence
When reading a book, you should observe how the text is divided. If you learn about it through experience, you will be able to divide your writing into the appropriate sections just by feeling.
There are no clear rules governing the length of a paragraph. Instead, you should remember to interrupt it naturally. Each paragraph should contain a main idea and any other elements that can further support it.
Always remember to indent before starting a new paragraph. According to the standard style in English, you should indent about 1 cm, for Vietnamese, you can indent about 1 or 2 boxes (if you use a notebook with a grid).
Even the most well-prepared text can be devalued by typos and grammatical errors. You should use a spell checker or have someone proofread your writing if you feel unsure about anything.
If you’re writing dialogue, every time a character talks, you should start with a new paragraph.
The secret lies in:
- Consistency: Possess a single idea and articulate the theme.
- Order: The way you arrange your sentences makes it easier for your readers to understand.
- Coherence: The quality that makes your writing easy to understand. Sentences need to be linked together.
- Completeness: Every sentence used in the passage should convey the complete message.
Adjust your writing to fit your purpose. Just like when you are choosing clothes for different events and climates, your writing style needs to fit your purpose.

Warning

If this is a class assignment, don’t wait until the last moment to do it. You should give yourself more time to plan and write down each paragraph. This method will help improve the quality of your work.

Steps

Planning to write a paragraph

Write a paragraph

Review the text

Advice

Warning

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