Plagiarism in writing isn’t always as obvious as copying and pasting someone’s entire blog post. Sometimes it’s subtle. Sometimes it’s accidental. But no matter how it happens, plagiarism can harm your credibility, damage your reputation, and even lead to legal trouble.
Whether you’re writing website content, blog posts, social media captions, or emails, it’s your responsibility to understand what plagiarism really looks like — and how to avoid it.
This simple guide breaks down:
- What plagiarism is (and isn’t),
- Common mistakes writers make,
- And the practical steps you can take to stay safe, honest, and original in your writing.
According to Merriam-Webster, the definition is:
transitive verb
: to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own : use (another’s production) without crediting the source
intransitive verb
: to commit literary theft : present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source
In other words, you are using someone else’s words as yours, even though they are not your words. Now, that is just plain shameful, don’t you agree? Now, I will agree; it is not easy to not plagiarize sometimes. That is because there are multiple ways you can plagiarize. And in some cases, you may not even recognize you are doing it.
Ways You Can Plagiarize in Writing
While no one seems to agree on how many different ways you can be caught plagiarizing, the common ways are anywhere from four to ten, depending on how you search in your browser and the results you see.
According to the Katie Murrell Library at Lindsey Wilson College, they summarize eight common types that are described in their chart below.
What Can I Do to Avoid Plagiarism
I use Grammarly. While I try very hard to stop plagiarizing when writing, I am sure I miss a lot. Grammarly helps to keep me honest.
Plagiarism in Writing Can Be Too Easy
There are steps you can take to avoid plagiarism. These steps are the ones I follow.
- First, I am very, very careful when I am doing my research. I use the most current information I can get on the internet, starting with that content published within the last year. You can also search Google for current content as recent as the past hour. (I’m not sure about other search engines) In addition, you can lock down your searches by past month, past week, and past 24 hours.
- You don’t want to rush your research. This first step of your writing project takes time, effort, and carefulness. Take lots of notes, and make sure to give credit where it is due. These days, it is so much easier to take digital notes. One resource I have found to be helpful is Google Keep.
- Another way to avoid plagiarism is to be conscientious about doing your own work. Sure, copying and pasting may be quick and easy, but it is risky and not worth it.
- Fourth, I mentioned that you need to give credit to the person it belongs to. That means if you get information from a book, magazine, website, graphics, and more, you need to cite where you got that information.
- Finally, you need to understand the best way to paraphrase. The UCLA Library says this: “Simply using synonyms or scrambling an author’s words and phrases and then using these “rewrites” uncredited in your work is plagiarism, plain and simple. Good paraphrasing requires that you genuinely understand the original source, that you are genuinely using your own words to summarize a point or concept, and that you insert in quotes any unique words or phrases you use from the original source. Good paraphrasing also requires that you cite the original source. Anything less and you veer into the dangerous territory of plagiarism.”
Final Words
So, what am I saying here? Plagiarizing when writing is severe and can have harmful consequences. There is the Grammarly Instant Plagiarism Check. Other tools like Copyscape can help you, also. The greatest thing you can do to avoid plagiarizing when writing is to be careful. If you don’t know for sure whether you should or shouldn’t cite your resources, then, by all means, err on the side of caution and cite your sources.
🖋️ Written by Pam Lokker, Borlok Virtual Assistants
📅 Published on 9/9/2025
Pam Lokker, founder of Borlok Virtual Assistants, LLC, is a seasoned SEO content specialist with a passion for SEO, AI, IT, and cybersecurity. She combines cutting-edge technology with compelling storytelling to help small businesses and startups increase visibility, establish trust, and connect with their target audiences.
She is also the creator of Pam’s Insightful Pen and AI Content Visionary.
