paragraph

(noun)

A passage in a text about a subject that is different from that of the preceding text, marked by commencing on a new line, with the first line sometimes being indented.

Related Terms

Examples of paragraph in the following topics:

  • Approaches to Your Introductory Paragraph

  • Approaches to Your Body Paragraphs

  • Approaches to Your Concluding Paragraph

  • Topic Sentences

    • Each paragraph is a self-contained portion of your argument.
    • Usually, paragraphs will end by connecting their claim to the larger argument or by setting up the claim that the next paragraph will contain.
    • Paragraphs should be used to develop one idea at a time.
    • Every paragraph of your argument should begin with a topic sentence that tells the reader what the paragraph will address—that is, what that paragraph's claim is.
    • You needn't say directly, "This paragraph is about ..."

  • Approaches to Your Body Paragraphs

    • A powerful argument depends on solidly and appropriately constructed body paragraphs.
    • You'll also have transition sentences that link the paragraphs together, and they can appear at the end or beginning of each paragraph.
    • This type of paragraph explains why something happened.
    • This type of paragraph can show the reader why you're proposing your thesis.
    • When you've written each body paragraph, look them over to check for variety in your presentation styles, strength of argument, logical paragraph positioning, and overall readability.

  • Transitions, Signal Phrases, and Pointing Words

    • Using transitions will make your writing easier to understand by providing connections between paragraphs or between sentences within a paragraph.
    • The word "though" in the second topic sentence lets the reader know that the pattern explained in the first paragraph is going to change in the second paragraph.
    • A paragraph's concluding sentence also offers an excellent opportunity to begin the transition to the next paragraph—to wrap up one idea and hint at the next.
    • Here, you're relying on the point you've just proven in this paragraph to serve as a springboard for the next paragraph's main idea.
    • The purpose of a transitional paragraph is to summarize the information in the previous paragraph, and to tell your reader how it is related to the information in the next paragraph.

  • MLA: Block Quotations

    • A typical quotation is enclosed in double quotation marks and is part of a sentence within a paragraph of your paper.
    • However, if you want to quote more than four lines of prose (or three lines of verse) from a source, you should format the excerpt as a block quotation, rather than as a regular quotation within the text of a paragraph.
    • For example, if you wanted to quote the entire first paragraph of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, you would begin that quotation on its own line and format it as follows:
    • The first line of the excerpt should not be further indented, unless you are quoting multiple paragraphs—in which case the first line of each quoted paragraph should be further indented 0.25 inches.

  • APA: Block Quotations

    • A typical quotation is enclosed in double quotation marks and is part of a sentence within a paragraph of your paper.
    • However, if you want to quote more than 40 words from a source, you should format the excerpt as a block quotation, rather than as a regular quotation within the text of a paragraph.
    • For example, if you wanted to quote the entire first paragraph of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, you would begin that quotation on its own line and format it as follows:
    • The entire block quotation should be indented from the left margin the same distance as the first lines of your paragraphs (and the first line should not be further indented).
    • And as with series and lists, to better visually distinguish a block quotation from the surrounding text, be sure to leave an extra (blank) line between the last line of the block quotation and the first line of the following paragraph.

  • Step 5: Revising

    • Does each paragraph build off of what was developed in the previous one?
    • Is every sentence relevant to the claim made in the paragraph?
    • Does the information in this paragraph logically lead to the next one?
    • Is the transition to the next paragraph smooth and easy to follow?
    • Is there a sense of artistry, of mastery, to this last paragraph or set of paragraphs?

  • Chicago/Turabian: Block Quotations

    • A typical quotation is enclosed in double quotation marks and is part of a sentence within a paragraph of your paper.
    • However, if a quotation takes up more than five lines in your paper, you should format it as a block quotation rather than as a regular quotation within the text of a paragraph.
    • Each line of the block quotation should be indented from the left margin the same distance as the first lines of your regular body paragraphs.
    • And as with series and lists, to better visually distinguish a block quotation from the surrounding text, be sure to leave an extra (blank) line between the last line of the block quotation and the first line of the following paragraph.