How To Write A Good Summary In 11 Simple Steps

Do not index

Are you struggling to craft concise and effective summaries for your research papers or articles? Learning how to write a good summary, especially a research summary, is a valuable skill that can enhance your writing and enable you to produce efficient papers, summaries, and articles with AI. We'll explore practical tips to help you master the art of summarizing complex information effectively.

Unriddle’s tool helps you to read faster & write better. Try our tool for free today.

What Is A Summary?

A summary is a concise distillation of a larger body of work that briefly but thoroughly encapsulates its main ideas and essential points. It is designed to give the reader a clear understanding of the original project without needing to read it fully.

What Is The Purpose Of A Summary?

The purpose of a summary is to provide readers with a succinct overview of important details or interesting information without inserting a personal opinion. A summary gives a brief rundown of the main points of a text or piece of media, like the abstract to a scientific paper, a description of a movie’s plot, or the form of a novel synopsis.

A Suite of AI-Powered Tools for Reading and Writing Efficiency

Unriddle allows you to read faster and write better. Quickly find info in documents, simplify complex topics, take notes, and write with the power of AI. Unriddle is trusted by thousands of researchers and students, from the classroom to the boardroom.

Unriddle generates an AI assistant on top of any document so you can quickly find, summarize, and understand info. No more endless skimming.

Unriddle understands the meaning behind your writing and automatically links you to relevant things you’ve read and written about in the past.

Highlight text and Unriddle will show you the most relevant sources from your library using AI. Never lose a citation again.

Generate text with AI autocomplete to improve and expand your writing, with all suggestions based on the context of what you're working on.

Step into a collaborative workspace where everyone can contribute and chat with the same documents in real-time, and much more!

Read faster & write better — try Unriddle for free today.

How to Write a Summary

TLDR This

SciSummary

Article Summarizer

Best Summary Generator

Can ChatGPT Summarize a PDF

How to Summarize a Paragraph

Sharly AI

Scholarcy AI

Can ChatGPT Read PDF

Quillbot Alternatives

How To Write A Good Summary In 11 Simple Steps

1. Read the text thoroughly

I read the text several times to ensure I understand everything about the author's message. On the first read, I focus simply on reading instead of pausing to take notes.

2. Take notes to identify the main idea

I take notes to identify the main points, themes, or thesis I recognize in the text. To identify this concept, I try to determine the tone and category of the text.

3. Identify the main arguments

I reread the text more carefully to find elements that support those main points.

4. Prepare your draft

I rephrase those sentences on the side of the page or in my notebook. When I note these elements, I consider writing them in my own words and leave out any unimportant details.

5. Write the summary

I start my summary with the author's name and the text's title. For example, I can use some variation of, "According to Martin Somers in 'The Child and the Wolf,'" to introduce the text.

6. Start with an introductory sentence

In academic and formal contexts, summaries typically begin with an introductory sentence that states the work’s title and author.

7. Explain the main points

I identify and elaborate on the main arguments or messages and seek supporting evidence, topic sentences, or thesis statements.

8. Quote the author

Quoting a specific passage from the author may be one of the best ways to explain their main point.

9. Organize your summary to ensure a smooth flow

I use transition words to ensure logical progression from one idea to the next.

10. Conclude the summary

I restate the author's conclusion or last main point to end the summary.

11. Correct and refine

I read the summary out loud and make any necessary corrections. You can have a friend or colleague read your summary to help notice any corrections you may have missed. You can also use Unriddle.AI to refine your summary and make it perfect.

Complete Step-by-Step Guide On How To Use Unriddle's AI Research Tool

Here is a step-by-step guide on how to use Unriddle. I’ve also copied it below :)

From here, it's pretty simple.

Unriddle helps you read, write and learn faster.

Interact with documents via AI so you can quickly find and understand info.

Then start writing in a new Note and Unriddle will show you relevant content from your library as you type.

Get started by uploading a document.

Or read on for the full rundown.

Interact with documents

When you upload a document, Unriddle generates an AI assistant on top of this data.

Click 'New' in the right sidebar and then select 'Upload' to get started.

Use this assistant to answer specific questions about the text, summarize content and simplify jargon.

The trick is to be super clear about what you want.

If you're summarizing a research paper, for example, instead of saying “Summarize” or “Summarize this research paper”, say something like “Explain this research paper to me in simple terms. What method did the researchers use? What did they find? Why does it matter?”.

The second prompt will produce a much better overview of the paper because we're giving the AI more hints about what we want.

Automatic relations

Unriddle grasps the context behind each Note and Document in your library and automatically links them based on meaning.

Let's say you have a collection of nuclear physics papers in your library.

When you start writing a note about The Manhattan Project, simply mentioning "The Manhattan Project" will prompt Unriddle to find the connection between this note and the nuclear physics papers.

Even if you didn't explicitly mention the research papers, Unriddle's knowledge of Oppenheimer, his work, and the significant relevance of these papers means it understands the connection and automatically links them together.

In short, Unriddle shows you relevant content from your library at the exact moment you need it, even if you haven't explicitly mentioned it.

Citing your sources

Writing is hard when you have a ton of sources to track.

So we made it easy.

Highlight some text, click ‘Cite’ and you’ll see items from your library that contain information related to the selection of text you just highlighted as determined by our AI.

When you select an item Unriddle inserts a link into highlighted text that, when clicked, takes you to the referenced item.

Writing with AI

Click ‘New’ in the sidebar and hit ‘Note’ to open up a new note.

Here you’ll find all the text formatting options you’re used to and more.

Type ‘++’ to generate text based on the context of what’s already written.

Highlight text and click ‘Ask AI’ to open up the AI menu where you’ll find options to improve, expand, summarize and explain.

You can type custom prompts too!

Finally, you can open any note in a pane on the right side of the screen while interacting with documents. Just click the orange pencil icon at the top of the chat window.

Chat Settings

Adjust the model, temperature and response length in the Setting sidebar.

Click the cog icon in the top right corner of the screen and look for "Chat Settings".

These apply across all documents but you can easily flip between them regardless of settings at the time of upload.

Model: the machine learning model used to generate responses.

Temperature: the amount of creative license you give to the AI.

Max length: the maximum number of words generated in a response.

Got feedback or questions? Send us an email and we'll get back to you within a day.

— Naveed

5 Tips For Writing A Perfect Summary

1. Use Unriddle.AI for a Perfect Summary

To craft an exceptional summary, I always turn to Unriddle AI. This tool is a game-changer for writing amazing summaries quickly and efficiently. It allows me to distill complex information into concise summaries, saving time and effort in the process. The tool helps comprehend and simplify documents, making it a perfect companion for any researcher or student.

2. Find the Main Idea to Create a Strong Summary

One of the first steps in writing an effective summary is identifying the main idea. Distilling the source material down to its most important point helps inform the reader of the text. I find taking notes while reading the original piece helpful in jotting down the key points. This practice aids in outlining the thoughts in an organized manner, ensuring that the summary is clear and focused.

3. Keep it Brief for Maximum Impact

When crafting a summary, it is crucial to keep it brief and to the point. A summary is not a rewrite of the original material but a concise summation of its key points. I aim to limit my summary paragraph to five to eight sentences to maintain clarity and keep the reader engaged. By eliminating redundancies and repetitive text, I create a clear and concise summary.

4. Write Without Judgment for Objectivity

Maintaining objectivity is essential when writing a summary. Rather than injecting personal opinions or critiques, I focus on gathering and condensing the most relevant information from the original text. By rewriting the summary in my own words, I ensure that it is free from bias and accurately represents the source material.

5. Ensure Flow with Transitional Phrases

To enhance the readability of a summary, I make sure that the text flows seamlessly from one point to the next. Transition words are crucial in connecting the sentences and building momentum within the writing. By using appropriate transitions, I can create a summary that is cohesive, engaging, and easy to follow.

Unveiling the Power of AI in Research and Writing

Unriddle generates an AI assistant on top of any document so you can quickly find, summarize, and understand info. No more endless skimming.

Unriddle understands the meaning behind your writing and automatically links you to relevant things you’ve read and written about in the past.

Highlight text and Unriddle will show you the most relevant sources from your library using AI. Never lose a citation again.

Generate text with AI autocomplete to improve and expand your writing, with all suggestions based on the context of what you're working on.

Step into a collaborative workspace where everyone can contribute and chat with the same documents in real-time, and much more!

Read faster & write better — try Unriddle for free today.

Summary Writing Format

Here’s a simple summary writing format that you can follow to create an impactful summary.

Introduction Sentence Begin your summary with an introductory sentence that includes the title of the text, the author's name, and the main point as you understand it.

Paraphrase The Body Remember to write the summary in your own words rather than directly copying the source material. It will showcase your understanding of the content and prevent plagiarism.

Stick to the Original Ideas Keep in mind that a summary should only contain the ideas presented in the original text. Avoid inserting personal opinions, interpretations, or comments into the summary.

Identify Sub-claims Identify the main sub-claims the author uses to defend the text's main point. Organize these sub-claims in a logical order to guide your summary.

Extract Supporting Passages Select three separate passages from the text that you believe support and defend the main point. Ensure to quote these passages accurately and cite them with the author's name and the paragraph number.

Use Source Material Incorporating source material from the text is crucial in creating a solid summary. This practice prepares you for academic writing, where defending claims with supporting evidence is essential.

Concluding Sentence End your summary with a closing sentence that wraps up the text's main point. This sentence should summarize the author's argument concisely.

Examples Of A Summary

1. The Dark Knight

The summary for the 2008 movie The Dark Knight exemplifies a succinct and powerful summary. Despite the brevity, the summary manages to encapsulate the essence of the movie with a focus on the central conflict between the protagonist, Batman, and the antagonist, the Joker.

The summary effectively conveys the high stakes involved in the conflict through the language used to describe the challenges that Batman must overcome, such as "psychological and physical tests." This summary showcases the art of summarizing by omitting specific events and instead concentrating on the core conflict and characters.

2. The Global Warming Threat

The summary of Mark Thunen's work, "The Global Warming Threat," provides an example of a strong summary by effectively outlining the main points of the work. The summary begins with an introduction to the author and his credentials, establishing his authority on the subject.

It then proceeds to summarize the central argument of the work, highlighting the increasing severity of global warming as evidenced by the rising frequency and intensity of natural disasters. The summary also points out the use of statistics and scientific evidence to support Thunen's claims, reinforcing the credibility of the argument. The summary concludes by emphasizing the need for action in response to the threat of global warming.

3. Abstract of a Scientific Research Paper

Another example of a strong summary can be seen in the abstract of a scientific research paper. Scientific abstracts are concise summaries of research papers that provide readers with a quick overview of the study's purpose, methodology, results, and conclusions.

A well-crafted abstract effectively condenses the key points of the research paper into a brief paragraph, allowing readers to understand the main findings and significance of the study without having to read the entire paper. Abstracts serve as a crucial tool for researchers, scholars, and students to quickly assess the relevance of a research study to their work and decide whether to delve deeper into the paper.

Summarize Research Paper

ChatGPT Summarize Text

How to Summarize a Research Article

Can ChatGPT Summarize Articles

Plain Language Summary

How to Get ChatGPT to Read a PDF

Can AI Summarize an Article

How Do You Summarize an Article

Read Faster & Write Better With Unriddle for Free Today

Unriddle is an AI-powered assistant that can help you read faster and write better. Unriddle simplifies complex topics, takes notes, and enhances your writing by understanding its meaning. This tool is widely used by thousands of researchers and students—from classrooms to boardrooms—who need to find, summarize, and comprehend complex information quickly. With Unriddle, you won't have to engage in endless skimming. The AI assistant can help you quickly navigate documents to find your need.

What makes Unriddle stand out is its ability to understand the meaning behind your writing. It automatically links you to relevant concepts you have read or written about. By highlighting text, Unriddle will show you the most appropriate sources from your library using AI. This ensures that you never lose a citation again. You can also generate text with AI autocomplete to improve and expand your writing; all suggestions are context-based. Want to work collaboratively? Unriddle offers a collaborative workspace where everyone can contribute and chat with the same document in real time.