paraphrase

plural paraphrases

1. countableuncountableA restatement of a text in different words, often to clarify meaning or from memory rather than verbatim.

   close paraphrase

   2 more examples

   Near-synonym: paraphrasis

   The article included a brief paraphrase of the speech.

   Synonyms: paraphrasis

2. ScotlandcountableuncountableOne of a certain number of Scripture passages turned into verse for use in the service of praise.

present singular third person paraphrases · participle present paraphrasing · participle past paraphrased · past paraphrased

1. ambitransitiveTo restate something as, or to compose a paraphrase. To repeat a written or spoken phrase/quote using different words, often in a simpler and shorter form, or sometimes in a humorous context.

   She asked the student to paraphrase the passage.

   1 more example

   Adult-literacy scores have also dropped: Nearly 30 percent of American adults cannot paraphrase or make inferences from a multipage text. In 2017, that number was less than 20 percent.

   2026 July 8, Rose Horowitch, “The End of Reading Is Here”, in Jeffrey Goldberg, editor, The Atlantic, Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Monthly Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 08 Jul 2026