example of composition essay

Sample Essays

The breadth of Georgetown’s core curriculum means that students are required to write for a wide variety of academic disciplines. Below, we provide some student samples that exhibit the key features the most popular genres. When reading through these essays, we recommend paying attention to their 

1. Structure (How many paragraphs are there? Does the author use headers?) 

2. Argument (Is the author pointing out a problem, and/or proposing a solution?) 

3. Content (Does the argument principally rely on facts, theory, or logic?) and 

4. Style (Does the writer use first person? What is the relationship with the audience?)

Philosophy Paper

• Singer on the Moral Status of Animals

Theology Paper

• Problem of God
• Jewish Civilization
• Sacred Space and Time
• Phenolphthalein in Alkaline Solution

History Paper

• World History

Literature Review

Comparative Analysis 

Policy Brief

• Vaccine Manufacturing

White Paper

Critical Analysis

• Ignatius Seminar

Lessons For English

Types of Composition Writing and Examples

Table of Contents

Composition Writing

Writing is not as easy as talking, there are certain rules for writing good compositions. Creating integrity of meaning and doing good research are some of these rules.

Before starting the composition, it is determined which type will be written and information is collected accordingly so in our article you will learn about composition types and rules firstly.

Types of Composition Writing

Compositions are written in different genres. The purpose of this is to ensure that the subjects described are conveyed to the other party in an appropriate language. Below you will see the different types of compositions.

Description

Narration is the writing of events in a sequential way and there are connections between events, for example, it is a suitable genre to describe what you have experienced in a day.

Exposition is an explanatory type of writing. For example, we can explain an event or a place, the purpose is not to describe it, but to explain what it means, but rather to give information.

Argumentation

Used to describe the compares and contrasts between two situations. If you are writing in this genre, you should explain whatever you are defending, giving logical reasons.

By What Rules Is A Good Essay Written?

Before you write a composition, you should make some planning. You will see the steps you need in the list below.

• First, you need to determine what type of composition you will write.
• Then think about what you’re going to talk about by brainstorming.
• After this process, the main idea and two supporting ideas to support it are selected and these are exemplified, it is an important step as it forms the basis of this composition.
• A standard essay consists of five paragraphs: 1 introductory paragraph, 3 body paragraphs, 1 conclusion paragraph.
• The introductory paragraph is important because the reader either continues to read according to this paragraph or does not therefore, an interesting introduction should be made, and the introduction paragraph gives information about what is described in the composition and an idea is created in the reader’s mind.
• Detailed explanations are made in the development paragraphs, it is made quality with quotations and examples. Development paragraph is frequently used with conjunctions such as “furthermore, moreover, by contrast.
• There must be a link between each paragraph so that your composition is fluent.
• The conclusion paragraph should not be too long, the important points are briefly explained in the last.

Never Forget These When Writing Composition!

Writing a composition is very different from speaking in everyday language.

Before you write, you need to do very deep research.

If you’re writing a composition that specifically wants to provide information, you should make sure the information is correct.

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How to Write a Composition

Last Updated: December 6, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Christopher Taylor, PhD . Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 818,377 times.

You don't have to be a good writer to write well. Writing is a process. By learning to treat writing as a series of small steps instead of a big all-at-once magic trick you have to pull off will make writing a composition much easier and much more fun. You can learn to brainstorm main ideas before you start writing, organize a draft of those main ideas, and revise your composition into a polished essay. See Step 1 for more information.

Composition Template

Pre-Writing

• What is the purpose of the composition?
• What is the topic of the composition?
• What are the length requirements?
• What is the appropriate tone or voice for the composition?
• Is research required? These questions are good for you to ask.
• Pre-writing: gathering your thoughts or research, brainstorming, and planning the compositions
• Writing: actively writing your composition
• Editing: re-reading your paper, adding sentences, cutting unnecessary parts, and proofreading

• Try a timed writing by keeping your pen moving for 10 minutes without stopping. Don't shy away from including your opinions about a particular topic, even if your teacher has warned you from including personal opinions in your paper. This isn't the final draft!

• Write the topic in the center of the paper and draw a circle around it. Say your topic is "Romeo & Juliet" or "The Civil War". Write the phrase on your paper and circle it.
• Around the center circle, write your main ideas or interests about the topic. You might be interested in "Juliet's death," "Mercutio's anger," or "family strife." Write as many main ideas as you're interested in.
• Around each main idea, write more specific points or observations about each more specific topic. Start looking for connections. Are you repeating language or ideas?
• Connect the bubbles with lines where you see related connections. A good composition is organized by main ideas, not organized chronologically or by plot. Use these connections to form your main ideas.
• Don’t worry about coming up with a polished thesis statement or final argument now; that can come later in the process.

• Your thesis statement needs to be debatable. In fact, many thesis statements are structured as the answer to a well-formulated question about the topic. "Romeo & Juliet is an interesting play written by Shakespeare in the 1500s" isn't a thesis statement, because that's not a debatable issue. We don't need you to prove that to us. "Romeo & Juliet features Shakespeare's most tragic character in Juliet" is a lot closer to a debatable point, and could be an answer to a question like, “Who is Shakespeare’s most tragic character?” [4] X Research source
• Your thesis statement needs to be specific. "Romeo & Juliet is a play about making bad choices" isn't as strong a thesis statement as "Shakespeare makes the argument that the inexperience of teenage love is comic and tragic at the same time" is much stronger.
• A good thesis guides the essay. In your thesis, you can sometimes preview the points you'll make in your paper, guiding yourself and the reader: "Shakespeare uses Juliet's death, Mercutio's rage, and the petty arguments of the two principal families to illustrate that the heart and the head are forever disconnected."

Writing a Rough Draft

• Introduction, in which the topic is described, the issue or problem is summarized, and your argument is presented
• Main point paragraph 1, in which you make and support your first supporting argument
• Main point paragraph 2, in which you make and support your second supporting argument
• Main point paragraph 3, in which you make and support your final supporting argument
• Conclusion paragraph, in which you summarize your argument

• Proof includes specific quotes from the book you're writing about, or specific facts about the topic. If you want to talk about Mercutio's temperamental character, you'll need to quote from him, set the scene, and describe him in detail. This is proof that you'll also need to unpack with logic.
• Logic refers to your rationale and your reasoning. Why is Mercutio like this? What are we supposed to notice about the way he talks? Explain your proof to the reader by using logic and you'll have a solid argument with strong evidence.

• Ask how. How is Juliet's death presented to us? How do the other characters react? How is the reader supposed to feel?
• Ask why. Why does Shakespeare kill her? Why not let her live? Why does she have to die? Why would the story not work without her death?

• Only use words and phrases that you have a good command over. Academic vocabulary might sound impressive, but if you don’t fully grasp its meaning, you might muddle the effect of your paper.

• Try writing a rough draft the weekend before it's due, and giving it to your teacher for comments several days before the due date. Take the feedback into consideration and make the necessary changes.

• Moving paragraphs around to get the best possible organization of points, the best "flow"
• Delete whole sentences that are repetitive or that don't work
• Removing any points that don't support your argument

• Think of each main point you're making like a mountain in a mountain range that you're flying over in a helicopter. You can stay above them and fly over them quickly, pointing out their features from far away and giving us a quick flyover tour, or you can drop us down in between them and show us up close, so we see the mountain goats and the rocks and the waterfalls. Which would be a better tour?

Expert Q&A

• Write a point, and expand 2 lines on that particular point. Thanks Helpful 9 Not Helpful 2
• Open source software called Free Mind can help with the pre-writing process. Thanks Helpful 7 Not Helpful 2
• You can always add more circles to your guiding diagram if you think the much you have is not sufficient. Thanks Helpful 5 Not Helpful 3

Tips from our Readers

• Remember to always proofread your composition after you have finished! Small typos like a missed comma or a misspelled word are easy to miss the first time around.
• If you want to outline your composition, try using a mini white board. This makes it easier to erase things and restructure your outline if you need to.
• It's hard to write with distractions, so try to pick a quiet place where you won't be disturbed to work on your assignment.

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.student.unsw.edu.au/writing-your-essay
• ↑ https://www.deakin.edu.au/students/studying/study-support/academic-skills/essay-writing
• ↑ https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/544/01/
• ↑ https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/685/05/
• ↑ https://libguides.newcastle.edu.au/how-to-write-an-essay/essay-structure
• ↑ https://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/write/writing-well/essay.html
• ↑ https://writing.wisc.edu/handbook/grammarpunct/commonerrors/

About This Article

To write a composition, start with a brainstorming session to get your thoughts down on paper. You can create a formal outline during this time, or experiment with bubble exercises and free-writing. Next, create a clear thesis statement to base your composition around. Then, write an introduction, 3 main paragraphs, and a conclusion that summarizes your argument. Read through and revise your content, and don't forget to proofread thoroughly! To learn more about the "rule of 5" and how to back up your statements in a composition, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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187 College Essay Examples for 11 Schools + Expert Analysis

College Admissions , College Essays

The personal statement might just be the hardest part of your college application. Mostly this is because it has the least guidance and is the most open-ended. One way to understand what colleges are looking for when they ask you to write an essay is to check out the essays of students who already got in—college essays that actually worked. After all, they must be among the most successful of this weird literary genre.

In this article, I'll go through general guidelines for what makes great college essays great. I've also compiled an enormous list of 100+ actual sample college essays from 11 different schools. Finally, I'll break down two of these published college essay examples and explain why and how they work. With links to 187 full essays and essay excerpts , this article is a great resource for learning how to craft your own personal college admissions essay!

What Excellent College Essays Have in Common

Even though in many ways these sample college essays are very different from one other, they do share some traits you should try to emulate as you write your own essay.

Visible Signs of Planning

Building out from a narrow, concrete focus. You'll see a similar structure in many of the essays. The author starts with a very detailed story of an event or description of a person or place. After this sense-heavy imagery, the essay expands out to make a broader point about the author, and connects this very memorable experience to the author's present situation, state of mind, newfound understanding, or maturity level.

Knowing how to tell a story. Some of the experiences in these essays are one-of-a-kind. But most deal with the stuff of everyday life. What sets them apart is the way the author approaches the topic: analyzing it for drama and humor, for its moving qualities, for what it says about the author's world, and for how it connects to the author's emotional life.

Stellar Execution

A killer first sentence. You've heard it before, and you'll hear it again: you have to suck the reader in, and the best place to do that is the first sentence. Great first sentences are punchy. They are like cliffhangers, setting up an exciting scene or an unusual situation with an unclear conclusion, in order to make the reader want to know more. Don't take my word for it—check out these 22 first sentences from Stanford applicants and tell me you don't want to read the rest of those essays to find out what happens!

A lively, individual voice. Writing is for readers. In this case, your reader is an admissions officer who has read thousands of essays before yours and will read thousands after. Your goal? Don't bore your reader. Use interesting descriptions, stay away from clichés, include your own offbeat observations—anything that makes this essay sounds like you and not like anyone else.

Technical correctness. No spelling mistakes, no grammar weirdness, no syntax issues, no punctuation snafus—each of these sample college essays has been formatted and proofread perfectly. If this kind of exactness is not your strong suit, you're in luck! All colleges advise applicants to have their essays looked over several times by parents, teachers, mentors, and anyone else who can spot a comma splice. Your essay must be your own work, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with getting help polishing it.

And if you need more guidance, connect with PrepScholar's expert admissions consultants . These expert writers know exactly what college admissions committees look for in an admissions essay and chan help you craft an essay that boosts your chances of getting into your dream school.

Check out PrepScholar's Essay Editing and Coaching progra m for more details!

Links to Full College Essay Examples

Some colleges publish a selection of their favorite accepted college essays that worked, and I've put together a selection of over 100 of these.

Common App Essay Samples

Please note that some of these college essay examples may be responding to prompts that are no longer in use. The current Common App prompts are as follows:

1. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. 2. The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? 3. Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome? 4. Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you? 5. Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. 6. Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?

7. Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

Now, let's get to the good stuff: the list of 187 college essay examples responding to current and past Common App essay prompts. 

Connecticut college.

• 12 Common Application essays from the classes of 2022-2025

Hamilton College

• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2026
• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2022
• 7 Common Application essays from the class of 2018
• 8 Common Application essays from the class of 2012
• 8 Common Application essays from the class of 2007

Johns Hopkins

These essays are answers to past prompts from either the Common Application or the Coalition Application (which Johns Hopkins used to accept).

• 1 Common Application or Coalition Application essay from the class of 2026
• 6 Common Application or Coalition Application essays from the class of 2025
• 6 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2024
• 6 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2023
• 7 Common Application of Universal Application essays from the class of 2022
• 5 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2021
• 7 Common Application or Universal Application essays from the class of 2020

Essay Examples Published by Other Websites

• 2 Common Application essays ( 1st essay , 2nd essay ) from applicants admitted to Columbia

Other Sample College Essays

Here is a collection of essays that are college-specific.

Babson College

• 4 essays (and 1 video response) on "Why Babson" from the class of 2020

Emory University

• 5 essay examples ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ) from the class of 2020 along with analysis from Emory admissions staff on why the essays were exceptional
• 5 more recent essay examples ( 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ) along with analysis from Emory admissions staff on what made these essays stand out

University of Georgia

• 1 “strong essay” sample from 2019
• 1 “strong essay” sample from 2018
• 10 Harvard essays from 2024
• 10 Harvard essays from 2023
• 10 Harvard essays from 2022
• 10 Harvard essays from 2021
• 10 Harvard essays from 2020
• 10 Harvard essays from 2019
• 10 Harvard essays from 2018
• 6 essays from admitted MIT students

Smith College

• 6 "best gift" essays from the class of 2018

Books of College Essays

If you're looking for even more sample college essays, consider purchasing a college essay book. The best of these include dozens of essays that worked and feedback from real admissions officers.

College Essays That Made a Difference —This detailed guide from Princeton Review includes not only successful essays, but also interviews with admissions officers and full student profiles.

50 Successful Harvard Application Essays by the Staff of the Harvard Crimson—A must for anyone aspiring to Harvard .

50 Successful Ivy League Application Essays and 50 Successful Stanford Application Essays by Gen and Kelly Tanabe—For essays from other top schools, check out this venerated series, which is regularly updated with new essays.

Analyzing Great Common App Essays That Worked

I've picked two essays from the examples collected above to examine in more depth so that you can see exactly what makes a successful college essay work. Full credit for these essays goes to the original authors and the schools that published them.

Example 1: "Breaking Into Cars," by Stephen, Johns Hopkins Class of '19 (Common App Essay, 636 words long)

I had never broken into a car before.

We were in Laredo, having just finished our first day at a Habitat for Humanity work site. The Hotchkiss volunteers had already left, off to enjoy some Texas BBQ, leaving me behind with the college kids to clean up. Not until we were stranded did we realize we were locked out of the van.

Someone picked a coat hanger out of the dumpster, handed it to me, and took a few steps back.

"Can you do that thing with a coat hanger to unlock it?"

"Why me?" I thought.

More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window's seal like I'd seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame. Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I'd been in this type of situation before. In fact, I'd been born into this type of situation.

My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally. My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed. "The water's on fire! Clear a hole!" he shouted, tossing me in the lake without warning. While I'm still unconvinced about that particular lesson's practicality, my Dad's overarching message is unequivocally true: much of life is unexpected, and you have to deal with the twists and turns.

Living in my family, days rarely unfolded as planned. A bit overlooked, a little pushed around, I learned to roll with reality, negotiate a quick deal, and give the improbable a try. I don't sweat the small stuff, and I definitely don't expect perfect fairness. So what if our dining room table only has six chairs for seven people? Someone learns the importance of punctuality every night.

But more than punctuality and a special affinity for musical chairs, my family life has taught me to thrive in situations over which I have no power. Growing up, I never controlled my older siblings, but I learned how to thwart their attempts to control me. I forged alliances, and realigned them as necessary. Sometimes, I was the poor, defenseless little brother; sometimes I was the omniscient elder. Different things to different people, as the situation demanded. I learned to adapt.

Back then, these techniques were merely reactions undertaken to ensure my survival. But one day this fall, Dr. Hicks, our Head of School, asked me a question that he hoped all seniors would reflect on throughout the year: "How can I participate in a thing I do not govern, in the company of people I did not choose?"

The question caught me off guard, much like the question posed to me in Laredo. Then, I realized I knew the answer. I knew why the coat hanger had been handed to me.

Growing up as the middle child in my family, I was a vital participant in a thing I did not govern, in the company of people I did not choose. It's family. It's society. And often, it's chaos. You participate by letting go of the small stuff, not expecting order and perfection, and facing the unexpected with confidence, optimism, and preparedness. My family experience taught me to face a serendipitous world with confidence.

What Makes This Essay Tick?

It's very helpful to take writing apart in order to see just how it accomplishes its objectives. Stephen's essay is very effective. Let's find out why!

An Opening Line That Draws You In

In just eight words, we get: scene-setting (he is standing next to a car about to break in), the idea of crossing a boundary (he is maybe about to do an illegal thing for the first time), and a cliffhanger (we are thinking: is he going to get caught? Is he headed for a life of crime? Is he about to be scared straight?).

Great, Detailed Opening Story

More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window's seal like I'd seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame.

It's the details that really make this small experience come alive. Notice how whenever he can, Stephen uses a more specific, descriptive word in place of a more generic one. The volunteers aren't going to get food or dinner; they're going for "Texas BBQ." The coat hanger comes from "a dumpster." Stephen doesn't just move the coat hanger—he "jiggles" it.

Details also help us visualize the emotions of the people in the scene. The person who hands Stephen the coat hanger isn't just uncomfortable or nervous; he "takes a few steps back"—a description of movement that conveys feelings. Finally, the detail of actual speech makes the scene pop. Instead of writing that the other guy asked him to unlock the van, Stephen has the guy actually say his own words in a way that sounds like a teenager talking.

Turning a Specific Incident Into a Deeper Insight

Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I'd been in this type of situation before. In fact, I'd been born into this type of situation.

Stephen makes the locked car experience a meaningful illustration of how he has learned to be resourceful and ready for anything, and he also makes this turn from the specific to the broad through an elegant play on the two meanings of the word "click."

Using Concrete Examples When Making Abstract Claims

My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally.

"Unpredictability and chaos" are very abstract, not easily visualized concepts. They could also mean any number of things—violence, abandonment, poverty, mental instability. By instantly following up with highly finite and unambiguous illustrations like "family of seven" and "siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing," Stephen grounds the abstraction in something that is easy to picture: a large, noisy family.

Using Small Bits of Humor and Casual Word Choice

My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed.

Obviously, knowing how to clean burning oil is not high on the list of things every 9-year-old needs to know. To emphasize this, Stephen uses sarcasm by bringing up a situation that is clearly over-the-top: "in case my aircraft carrier should ever get torpedoed."

The humor also feels relaxed. Part of this is because he introduces it with the colloquial phrase "you know," so it sounds like he is talking to us in person. This approach also diffuses the potential discomfort of the reader with his father's strictness—since he is making jokes about it, clearly he is OK. Notice, though, that this doesn't occur very much in the essay. This helps keep the tone meaningful and serious rather than flippant.

An Ending That Stretches the Insight Into the Future

But one day this fall, Dr. Hicks, our Head of School, asked me a question that he hoped all seniors would reflect on throughout the year: "How can I participate in a thing I do not govern, in the company of people I did not choose?"

The ending of the essay reveals that Stephen's life has been one long preparation for the future. He has emerged from chaos and his dad's approach to parenting as a person who can thrive in a world that he can't control.

This connection of past experience to current maturity and self-knowledge is a key element in all successful personal essays. Colleges are very much looking for mature, self-aware applicants. These are the qualities of successful college students, who will be able to navigate the independence college classes require and the responsibility and quasi-adulthood of college life.

What Could This Essay Do Even Better?

Even the best essays aren't perfect, and even the world's greatest writers will tell you that writing is never "finished"—just "due." So what would we tweak in this essay if we could?

Replace some of the clichéd language. Stephen uses handy phrases like "twists and turns" and "don't sweat the small stuff" as a kind of shorthand for explaining his relationship to chaos and unpredictability. But using too many of these ready-made expressions runs the risk of clouding out your own voice and replacing it with something expected and boring.

Use another example from recent life. Stephen's first example (breaking into the van in Laredo) is a great illustration of being resourceful in an unexpected situation. But his essay also emphasizes that he "learned to adapt" by being "different things to different people." It would be great to see how this plays out outside his family, either in the situation in Laredo or another context.

Example 2: By Renner Kwittken, Tufts Class of '23 (Common App Essay, 645 words long)

My first dream job was to be a pickle truck driver. I saw it in my favorite book, Richard Scarry's "Cars and Trucks and Things That Go," and for some reason, I was absolutely obsessed with the idea of driving a giant pickle. Much to the discontent of my younger sister, I insisted that my parents read us that book as many nights as possible so we could find goldbug, a small little golden bug, on every page. I would imagine the wonderful life I would have: being a pig driving a giant pickle truck across the country, chasing and finding goldbug. I then moved on to wanting to be a Lego Master. Then an architect. Then a surgeon.

Then I discovered a real goldbug: gold nanoparticles that can reprogram macrophages to assist in killing tumors, produce clear images of them without sacrificing the subject, and heat them to obliteration.

Suddenly the destination of my pickle was clear.

I quickly became enveloped by the world of nanomedicine; I scoured articles about liposomes, polymeric micelles, dendrimers, targeting ligands, and self-assembling nanoparticles, all conquering cancer in some exotic way. Completely absorbed, I set out to find a mentor to dive even deeper into these topics. After several rejections, I was immensely grateful to receive an invitation to work alongside Dr. Sangeeta Ray at Johns Hopkins.

In the lab, Dr. Ray encouraged a great amount of autonomy to design and implement my own procedures. I chose to attack a problem that affects the entire field of nanomedicine: nanoparticles consistently fail to translate from animal studies into clinical trials. Jumping off recent literature, I set out to see if a pre-dose of a common chemotherapeutic could enhance nanoparticle delivery in aggressive prostate cancer, creating three novel constructs based on three different linear polymers, each using fluorescent dye (although no gold, sorry goldbug!). Though using radioactive isotopes like Gallium and Yttrium would have been incredible, as a 17-year-old, I unfortunately wasn't allowed in the same room as these radioactive materials (even though I took a Geiger counter to a pair of shoes and found them to be slightly dangerous).

I hadn't expected my hypothesis to work, as the research project would have ideally been led across two full years. Yet while there are still many optimizations and revisions to be done, I was thrilled to find -- with completely new nanoparticles that may one day mean future trials will use particles with the initials "RK-1" -- thatcyclophosphamide did indeed increase nanoparticle delivery to the tumor in a statistically significant way.

A secondary, unexpected research project was living alone in Baltimore, a new city to me, surrounded by people much older than I. Even with moving frequently between hotels, AirBnB's, and students' apartments, I strangely reveled in the freedom I had to enjoy my surroundings and form new friendships with graduate school students from the lab. We explored The Inner Harbor at night, attended a concert together one weekend, and even got to watch the Orioles lose (to nobody's surprise). Ironically, it's through these new friendships I discovered something unexpected: what I truly love is sharing research. Whether in a presentation or in a casual conversation, making others interested in science is perhaps more exciting to me than the research itself. This solidified a new pursuit to angle my love for writing towards illuminating science in ways people can understand, adding value to a society that can certainly benefit from more scientific literacy.

It seems fitting that my goals are still transforming: in Scarry's book, there is not just one goldbug, there is one on every page. With each new experience, I'm learning that it isn't the goldbug itself, but rather the act of searching for the goldbugs that will encourage, shape, and refine my ever-evolving passions. Regardless of the goldbug I seek -- I know my pickle truck has just begun its journey.

Renner takes a somewhat different approach than Stephen, but their essay is just as detailed and engaging. Let's go through some of the strengths of this essay.

One Clear Governing Metaphor

This essay is ultimately about two things: Renner’s dreams and future career goals, and Renner’s philosophy on goal-setting and achieving one’s dreams.

But instead of listing off all the amazing things they’ve done to pursue their dream of working in nanomedicine, Renner tells a powerful, unique story instead. To set up the narrative, Renner opens the essay by connecting their experiences with goal-setting and dream-chasing all the way back to a memorable childhood experience:

This lighthearted–but relevant!--story about the moment when Renner first developed a passion for a specific career (“finding the goldbug”) provides an anchor point for the rest of the essay. As Renner pivots to describing their current dreams and goals–working in nanomedicine–the metaphor of “finding the goldbug” is reflected in Renner’s experiments, rejections, and new discoveries.

Though Renner tells multiple stories about their quest to “find the goldbug,” or, in other words, pursue their passion, each story is connected by a unifying theme; namely, that as we search and grow over time, our goals will transform…and that’s okay! By the end of the essay, Renner uses the metaphor of “finding the goldbug” to reiterate the relevance of the opening story:

While the earlier parts of the essay convey Renner’s core message by showing, the final, concluding paragraph sums up Renner’s insights by telling. By briefly and clearly stating the relevance of the goldbug metaphor to their own philosophy on goals and dreams, Renner demonstrates their creativity, insight, and eagerness to grow and evolve as the journey continues into college.

An Engaging, Individual Voice

This essay uses many techniques that make Renner sound genuine and make the reader feel like we already know them.

Technique #1: humor. Notice Renner's gentle and relaxed humor that lightly mocks their younger self's grand ambitions (this is different from the more sarcastic kind of humor used by Stephen in the first essay—you could never mistake one writer for the other).

My first dream job was to be a pickle truck driver.

I would imagine the wonderful life I would have: being a pig driving a giant pickle truck across the country, chasing and finding goldbug. I then moved on to wanting to be a Lego Master. Then an architect. Then a surgeon.

Renner gives a great example of how to use humor to your advantage in college essays. You don’t want to come off as too self-deprecating or sarcastic, but telling a lightheartedly humorous story about your younger self that also showcases how you’ve grown and changed over time can set the right tone for your entire essay.

Technique #2: intentional, eye-catching structure. The second technique is the way Renner uses a unique structure to bolster the tone and themes of their essay . The structure of your essay can have a major impact on how your ideas come across…so it’s important to give it just as much thought as the content of your essay!

For instance, Renner does a great job of using one-line paragraphs to create dramatic emphasis and to make clear transitions from one phase of the story to the next:

Suddenly the destination of my pickle car was clear.

Not only does the one-liner above signal that Renner is moving into a new phase of the narrative (their nanoparticle research experiences), it also tells the reader that this is a big moment in Renner’s story. It’s clear that Renner made a major discovery that changed the course of their goal pursuit and dream-chasing. Through structure, Renner conveys excitement and entices the reader to keep pushing forward to the next part of the story.

Technique #3: playing with syntax. The third technique is to use sentences of varying length, syntax, and structure. Most of the essay's written in standard English and uses grammatically correct sentences. However, at key moments, Renner emphasizes that the reader needs to sit up and pay attention by switching to short, colloquial, differently punctuated, and sometimes fragmented sentences.

Even with moving frequently between hotels, AirBnB's, and students' apartments, I strangely reveled in the freedom I had to enjoy my surroundings and form new friendships with graduate school students from the lab. We explored The Inner Harbor at night, attended a concert together one weekend, and even got to watch the Orioles lose (to nobody's surprise). Ironically, it's through these new friendships I discovered something unexpected: what I truly love is sharing research.

In the examples above, Renner switches adeptly between long, flowing sentences and quippy, telegraphic ones. At the same time, Renner uses these different sentence lengths intentionally. As they describe their experiences in new places, they use longer sentences to immerse the reader in the sights, smells, and sounds of those experiences. And when it’s time to get a big, key idea across, Renner switches to a short, punchy sentence to stop the reader in their tracks.

The varying syntax and sentence lengths pull the reader into the narrative and set up crucial “aha” moments when it’s most important…which is a surefire way to make any college essay stand out.

Renner's essay is very strong, but there are still a few little things that could be improved.

Connecting the research experiences to the theme of “finding the goldbug.”  The essay begins and ends with Renner’s connection to the idea of “finding the goldbug.” And while this metaphor is deftly tied into the essay’s intro and conclusion, it isn’t entirely clear what Renner’s big findings were during the research experiences that are described in the middle of the essay. It would be great to add a sentence or two stating what Renner’s big takeaways (or “goldbugs”) were from these experiences, which add more cohesion to the essay as a whole.

Give more details about discovering the world of nanomedicine. It makes sense that Renner wants to get into the details of their big research experiences as quickly as possible. After all, these are the details that show Renner’s dedication to nanomedicine! But a smoother transition from the opening pickle car/goldbug story to Renner’s “real goldbug” of nanoparticles would help the reader understand why nanoparticles became Renner’s goldbug. Finding out why Renner is so motivated to study nanomedicine–and perhaps what put them on to this field of study–would help readers fully understand why Renner chose this path in the first place.

4 Essential Tips for Writing Your Own Essay

How can you use this discussion to better your own college essay? Here are some suggestions for ways to use this resource effectively.

#1: Get Help From the Experts

Getting your college applications together takes a lot of work and can be pretty intimidatin g. Essays are even more important than ever now that admissions processes are changing and schools are going test-optional and removing diversity standards thanks to new Supreme Court rulings .  If you want certified expert help that really makes a difference, get started with  PrepScholar’s Essay Editing and Coaching program. Our program can help you put together an incredible essay from idea to completion so that your application stands out from the crowd. We've helped students get into the best colleges in the United States, including Harvard, Stanford, and Yale.  If you're ready to take the next step and boost your odds of getting into your dream school, connect with our experts today .

#2: Read Other Essays to Get Ideas for Your Own

As you go through the essays we've compiled for you above, ask yourself the following questions:

• Can you explain to yourself (or someone else!) why the opening sentence works well?
• Look for the essay's detailed personal anecdote. What senses is the author describing? Can you easily picture the scene in your mind's eye?
• Find the place where this anecdote bridges into a larger insight about the author. How does the essay connect the two? How does the anecdote work as an example of the author's characteristic, trait, or skill?
• Check out the essay's tone. If it's funny, can you find the places where the humor comes from? If it's sad and moving, can you find the imagery and description of feelings that make you moved? If it's serious, can you see how word choice adds to this tone?

Make a note whenever you find an essay or part of an essay that you think was particularly well-written, and think about what you like about it . Is it funny? Does it help you really get to know the writer? Does it show what makes the writer unique? Once you have your list, keep it next to you while writing your essay to remind yourself to try and use those same techniques in your own essay.

#3: Find Your "A-Ha!" Moment

All of these essays rely on connecting with the reader through a heartfelt, highly descriptive scene from the author's life. It can either be very dramatic (did you survive a plane crash?) or it can be completely mundane (did you finally beat your dad at Scrabble?). Either way, it should be personal and revealing about you, your personality, and the way you are now that you are entering the adult world.

Check out essays by authors like John Jeremiah Sullivan , Leslie Jamison , Hanif Abdurraqib , and Esmé Weijun Wang to get more examples of how to craft a compelling personal narrative.

#4: Start Early, Revise Often

Let me level with you: the best writing isn't writing at all. It's rewriting. And in order to have time to rewrite, you have to start way before the application deadline. My advice is to write your first draft at least two months before your applications are due.

Let it sit for a few days untouched. Then come back to it with fresh eyes and think critically about what you've written. What's extra? What's missing? What is in the wrong place? What doesn't make sense? Don't be afraid to take it apart and rearrange sections. Do this several times over, and your essay will be much better for it!

For more editing tips, check out a style guide like Dreyer's English or Eats, Shoots & Leaves .

What's Next?

Still not sure which colleges you want to apply to? Our experts will show you how to make a college list that will help you choose a college that's right for you.

Interested in learning more about college essays? Check out our detailed breakdown of exactly how personal statements work in an application , some suggestions on what to avoid when writing your essay , and our guide to writing about your extracurricular activities .

Working on the rest of your application? Read what admissions officers wish applicants knew before applying .

The recommendations in this post are based solely on our knowledge and experience. If you purchase an item through one of our links PrepScholar may receive a commission.

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Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

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Composition Writing Examples

Composition refers to any creative work, such as a short story, essay, poem, research paper etc. In this post, we have added the top 25 composition writing examples.

Composition Writing Example #1

Essay on my family (250+ words).

Family is the place where you learn your first lesson in life. Your family members are the only assets that will remain with you forever. Whatever the circumstances, family members are always there for each other to support us. Good values and good morals are always taught in a family.

In the family, we are prepared to respect our elders and love younger ones. We learn lessons consistently from our family, about honesty, dependability, kindness and so on. Although I am a student in my final year, my family always treats me like a child but always provides us with a sensation of so much love and care. My family is the best family for me. I live in a nuclear family of four members.

My father is a teacher. He is the man who heads and leads our family. My mother is a housewife as well as a beautician. She is a lovely woman. My mother is everything to me. She is the one who understands me best and most closely. My grandmother is the cutest person of all.

I love my family because they are the jewels of my life. They work hard so that we can get anything we desire makes me love and respect my parents considerably more. We play games every night and discuss various topics to spend quality time together. I give deep respect and pay the highest regard to my family not just because they are my family, but for their unmatched and incredible sacrifices for me.

Composition Writing Example #2

STORY – The Blue Jackal

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A jackal one night got into a washerman’s house to steal some food. By chance, he fell into the washerman’s vat which was full of blue water. Somehow he got out of the pot but he was dyed blue. He looked very strange. He returned to the forest. No animat could recognize him. All the animals were afraid They made him their king.

The sun went down. After nightfall, the jackals howled as usual. The blue jackal could not along with the other jackals. He howled at the top of his voice. Then all the animals had no difficulty in knowing what their king really was. The tiger came and tore him to pieces.

Moral: You can fool some people for some time, but not all people for all the time.

Composition Writing Example #3

Essay on christmas (250 words).

Christmas is one of the most famous and light-hearted festivals which is celebrated across the world by billions of people. People of the Christian religion celebrate Christmas to remember the great works of Jesus Christ. 25th December is celebrated as Christmas Day across the world. Christians celebrate Christmas Day as the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ of Bethlehem was a spiritual leader and prophet whose teachings structure the premise of their religion.

Christmas Day is celebrated every year with great joy, happiness and enthusiasm. Everyone whether they are poor or rich gets together and partakes in this celebration with lots of activities. On this day people decorate their houses with candles, lights, balloons etc. People decorate Christmas trees on this day in their homes or a public square. They decorate Christmas trees with small electric lights of various colours, gift items, balloons, flowers, and other materials. After that, the Christmas tree looks very appealing and wonderful.

People follow popular customs including exchanging gifts, decorating Christmas trees, attending church, sharing meals with family and friends and, obviously, trusting that Santa Claus will arrive. Children eagerly wait for Christmas day very anxiously as they get lots of beautiful gifts and chocolates. In most cases, the fat person in the family dressed up as Santa Clause with a bell in his hand which attract kids and they get lots of beautiful gifts and chocolates from Santa Clause. 25th December, Christmas Day, has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1870.

Composition Writing Example #4

Essay on health is wealth (250+ words).

The greatest wealth is our own health. A healthy body can earn great wealth but, a wealthy person cannot earn great health. We live in a fast-moving world where individuals have no time for themselves. Most part of their life withers away in search of materialistic wealth in order to outshine others but, along the way, they lose their health.

Recent studies have shown that the increased stress of the present speedy life is leading to various medical conditions. Major among those are heart and neurological problems. Good health assists an individual to keep a positive attitude toward work and life in general. Wealth matters, but, is not as important as health.

Spending lots of money on junk food in five-star hotels or on other entertainment sources like watching films for a day and so on has no advantages other than self-satisfaction. Being physically and mentally healthy helps an individual to be socially and financially healthy as well. A healthy person can earn lots of money however an unhealthy person cannot because of a lack of motivation, interest, and concentration level.

Money is the source to carry on with a healthy life however good health is the source of living a happy and peaceful life. So, everyone should take many precautions in maintaining good health. Everyone should be away from bad habits and unhealthy lifestyles. Being healthy isn’t only the condition of being free of disease, ailment, or injury but also being happy physically, mentally, socially, intellectually, and financially. Good health is an actual necessity of happy life and the greatest gift from nature.

Composition Writing Example #5

STORY – The Wolf and the lamb

There was a wolf. He was very wicked. He killed smaller animals for nothing. One day he was very hungry and moved about in the forest for prey but found none. This made him thirsty. He went to a stream to drink water.

To his great joy, he for a lamb drinking water. He wanted to kill the lamb and eat her up. He went to the lamb and said, “why do you muddle my water ?” The lamb said, “What do you say, Sir? The water runs from you to me. How can I muddle your water?” The wolf angrily said, “Do you argue with me? You scolded me a year ago.”

The lamb said, “Fine indeed. I was not born a year ago.” The wolf said, “Then it was your father who scolded me. I will not let you go.”

Saying this, the wolf fell upon the poor Jamb and ate her up.

Moral: A bad fellow has always an excuse for his misdeed.

Composition Writing Example #6

Essay on balanced diet (250+ words).

A diet that contains all kinds of necessary ingredients in almost the required quantity is called the “Balanced Diet”. A Balanced diet is one that helps to maintain or improve overall health. We should consume a balanced diet consisting of essential nutrition: liquids, adequate proteins, essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and calories. We must eat fresh fruits, salad, green leafy vegetables, milk, egg, yoghurt, etc. on time in order to maintain a healthy body.

Among the minerals, we require chiefly iron, calcium, sodium, potassium, and small quantities of iodine, copper, etc. They are found in green vegetables and most fruits, Vitamins have a number of kinds like A, B, C, D, etc. Vitamin A is found in fish oil, butter, carrot, papaya, etc., and Vitamin B is found in green leafy vegetables, wheat grain, etc. Vitamin C is found in green chilli, green vegetables, amla, lemon, and citric fruits. Vitamin D is found in the first oil, butter, and rays of the sun. We also need Vitamins E and K for our health. Milk is perhaps the only single item that can be called a balanced diet in itself.

Animal protein is found in meats, poultry, and fish. The white of an egg also contains protein. Another kind of protein is found in milk (casein), cheese, curd, pulses, soybean, dry fruits, etc. Fat is found in butter, pork, coconut, all edible oils, cod liver oil, the yolk of an egg, etc. We should drink more water at least 7-8 glasses of water. A healthy body also needs some daily physical activities, proper rest and sleep neatness, a healthy environment, fresh air, and water, personal hygiene, etc.

Composition Writing Example #7

Essay on science and technology (250+ words).

In a fast-changing world, the fate of the country can be moulded through our ability to harness modern science and technology, which is a road to boost the development programs of the country. Rapid technological advances have reduced the dependency on natural resources or the factors in proportion to it.

Man is performing precisely by machines with a regular improvement in his work because of quick technological changes by virtue of scientific advancement all around the world. We have accomplished desired scientific and technological advancement and have succeeded in boosting various important international activities like information and telecommunication, television, meteorological services, medical advancement, industrial development, nuclear research, Space Research Oceanographic Research, etc.

Over the years a strong science and technology infrastructure base has been established for giving modern shape to world industries. It covers a chain of laboratories, specialized centres, various academic and research institutes, training centres, and useful development programs, which continuously provide skill, technically trained manpower, and technological support to industries for better execution. Science has advanced a great deal in the field of medical care. New technology has given a compelling medical care framework at a reasonable cost. Medical research has been carried out, broadly on nutrition, tuberculosis, reproduction, child care, leprosy, drugs, communicable diseases, cholera, and malaria, which has an extremely certain result.

If we look at the global scenario, the modern world is moving exceptionally fast. There are rapid scientific and technological changes that are occurring in a steady progression. Our country, as a global competitor, in the race of becoming a world power, needs to accomplish more in the area of Science and Technology emphasizing it as its foremost national priority in order to accomplish its objective.

Composition Writing Example #8

Essay on co-education (250+ words).

Co-education is a system of education in which boys and girls study together in a common school or college. Co-education was not prevalent in ancient times. It is a groundbreaking thought. Co-education is exceptionally practical. The number of schools required is less. The strength of the teaching staff is diminished. The government spends less money on infrastructure and laboratories. The balance of money so saved is spent on better maintenance of schools and colleges, which facilitates the students for better study.

The parents supported the case for adequate education for the children irrespective of their sex. The countrymen realized that the boys and girls have to move together and shoulder to shoulder in every walk of life in the free world. They started educating their children in co-educational institutions. That is the reason why the students of co-educational institutions do better in every walk of their life.

It is useful in producing a sensation of solidarity and a feeling of equivalent obligation among boys and girls. When young boys and girls come closer to each other, they take more care in understanding each other. That helps in creating a friendly atmosphere between the two. The boys and the girls partake in their joint exercises consistently in schools and universities.

If we want that our country ought to sparkle, we need to bring young boys and young girls together for making a power of working hands in the country, which can give a compelling reaction for greatness by accelerating the advancement in every one of the fields.

Composition Writing Example #9

Essay on education (250 words).

There are two basic purposes behind education. The first is to free people from ignorance, superstition, bad habits, and many wrong ideas. Secondly, to provide the citizens of a country with some skill or special kind of knowledge that would enable them to earn a decent living. In a highly populated country like India education is a must for both the purposes mentioned. First, there must be a hundred per cent literacy if the so-called democracy that the constitution guarantees for its citizens is to have any true meaning.

Only educated citizens can utilize democratic rights usefully. But as the population of this country rises by leaps and bounds, mere knowledge for its own sake will not suffice. People, educated people, must learn to produce things that are in daily demand. We need more technicians, more carpenters, more well-informed farmers and cultivators, and more skilled workers of different categories who can increase the goods and services they demand which are constantly rising.

There should be close coordination between producers of necessary goods and educational planners. Turning out graduates from colleges and universities would not help things because such ordinary graduates are not employable in industries. Colleges, universities, and other seats of higher education must train young men and women who are able to show tangible results in the form of useful goods needed by society. Such education alone can exorcise the spectre of unemployment that is stalking the country today and is at the root of all its serious troubles.

Composition Writing Example #10

Essay on save environment (250 words).

Environment means a healthy natural balance in the air, water, animals, plants, and other natural resources. The environment influences the existence and development of an organism. Pollution is the process of creating the environment dirty by adding harmful substances thereto. Owing to indiscriminate industrialization man has created a polluted environment. He has continuously tampered with nature which led to a threat to the sustenance of mankind.

The constant more in the world population is the main reason for environmental pollution. More population means more industry. Factories release toxic gases into the air, and filthy poisonous waters from factories and mills For also released into the waters of rivers; trees are cut down for fuel and other commercial purposes, or for procuring land for building houses. This results in a fall in the supply of oxygen that the trees provide With the felling of trees animals and birds also lose their shelter and this destroys the balance in the ecology.

To prevent these hazards from endangering human, animal, and plant life measures should be taken before the situation goes out of control. More trees should be planted. Anti-pollution scientific methods should be devised, so that toxic gases and poisonous effluents are not released by factories and mills into the air and water respectively. Cutting down trees should be made punishable by law. Poaching and hunting of animals for monetary gain and recreation should also be stopped. Finally, from early life, people should be so educated that they become aware of the vital importance of a healthy, natural, and toxic-free environment.

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Composition Writing Example #11

Essay on cleanliness (230+ words).

There is truth in the common saying: “Cleanliness is next to godliness.” Cleanliness is a great virtue. It makes a man healthy and happy. The healthy habit of cleanliness should be formed from childhood in our everyday routine. A clean environment keeps us free from pollution. Cleanliness comes out of a taste for decency.

Cleanliness is of two types—cleanliness of body and cleanliness of mind. Cleanliness of the body makes for physical health. Health is an impossibility without bodily cleanliness. The disease is the handmaid of dirt. The germs of disease breed and multiply in the dirt. Epidemic diseases like cholera and typhoid which often sweep over villages and towns and take a heavy toll on life are the result of dirty habits and the surroundings of the people.

Cleanliness of the mind is as necessary as that of the body for self-respect. No one loves and respects a man if he is not clean in mind-free from impure desires, and evil thoughts. Mental cleanliness makes for one’s success in any sphere of life. The effects of cleanliness are great. It contributes to the character of a noble personality not only with clean clothes but also with clean ideas, clean thoughts, and clean ways of life. In every walk of life, it is necessary to maintain cleanliness in body and mind as well as indoors and outdoors. Cleanliness is truly next to godliness. All should cultivate it.

Composition Writing Example #12

STORY – The stag and the hunter

One day a stag was thirsty. He went to drink water in a pool. The water in the pool was very clear. The Slag saw his own image in the pool. He was charmed to see his own horns. They were fine to look at. So he admired them much. But he was sorry to see his thin legs.

They were very ugly to look at. All of a sudden a hunter came up there with his hounds. The stag was afraid. He began to run away. His legs carried him as fast as they could. But his horns got entangled with the creepers in the bushes. He was unable to run away. The hunter came up there and killed him. His charming horns were the cause of his death.

Moral: Handsome is that handsome does.

Composition Writing Example #13

Essay on water pollution (250+ words).

According to the World Health Organization, any foreign matter either natural or other sources which contaminates and pollutes the water or the water supply making it harmful to human and aquatic life is termed water pollution. Household detergents and wastes pollute water bodies. When detergents and fertilizers containing phosphates are discharged into water, it promotes the growth of algae. Drilling oil under the sea may prove dangerous for marine life.

Water pollution may severely affect human, plant, and animal life. When contaminated water is consumed, the pathogens enter the human body. It may cause various water-borne diseases such as typhoid, cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, and jaundice. Metals such as lead, mercury, and cadmium dissolved in water may cause several diseases if they enter the human body. When water contaminated with cadmium was consumed by the Japanese, they were affected by a disease called Itai-Itai.

Similarly, a disease known as Minamata affected the Japanese after they consumed fish that had a large concentration of mercury. When phosphorus and nitrates from fertilizers are disposed of in water bodies, they promote the growth of algae. The presence of algae in water bodies in a large number reduces the amount of dissolved oxygen in water resulting in the death of fish and other water organisms. Thermal pollution increases the temperature of the water which in turn reduces the level of oxygen in the water. This results in the death of many species of fish. Measures should be taken to prevent water pollution before the situation goes out of control. Anti-pollution scientific methods should be devised.

Composition Writing Example #14

Essay on child labour (250+ words).

Child labour has been quite a problem down the ages. Child labour means the labour done by children below the age of eighteen. Employing little boys and girls not only saves money but also helps the employer avoid labour unrest. Young boys and girls can be paid lesser wages and they do not form unions to realize demands for higher pay.

The types of work children have to do are many and various. In tea stalls and small hotels, they clean the utensils, mop the floors and serve at the table. In garages, they wash the cars, buses, and lorries. The female children serve as maid-servants in various families. Though child labour is a cruel practice it saves many families from starvation. The income of the adult members of these families is not sufficient even for their hand-to-mouth living. If the children do not work to supplement their income, the families will have to starve. So simply banning the use of child labour one could not solve the problem.

In recent times the government of India has become aware of the evils of the system. But it can be hard to do away with it all of a sudden. Abolition of the employment of child labour must be preceded by a process of improving the economic condition of the families concerned. Proper methods should be adopted so that the children are educated and not sent to workplaces that destroy both the body and the soul of these unfortunate creatures.

Composition Writing Example #15

Essay on my hobby (250 words).

A hobby is voluntary work done in leisure with pleasure. There are many fashionable hobbies such as stamp-collecting, coin-collecting, photography, etc. But my favourite hobby is gardening. I started it when I was only ten. I have a small plot of land beside our house. There I cultivate gardening. I spend one hour every day gardening. Back from the morning walk, I go to my garden with a spade and a waterful bucket. I dig up the soil, trim the plants, and water them. I also spray insecticides and apply fertilizers.

When I see the plants swaying in the wind, my heart leaps in joy. I experience heavenly pleasure as I see them grow day by day. I have chosen this hobby because it gives me not only joy but also enough physical exercise to keep my body fit.

I face some problems in cultivating gardening. Entellus often eat up flowers and destroy the plants, though I am at pains to scare them away. Gardening brings me both joy and health. Every afternoon I work for an hour in my garden and watch the buds come up and the branches nod in the breeze. Although a hobby is a source of pleasure and not of profit, my hobby combines the two. My mother looks upon it very kindly, as a part of my garden serves as a kitchen garden. A hobby is an index to a man’s character and I believe my hobby reflects my character.

Composition Writing Example #16

Essay on my ambition in life (200 words).

Ambition is a goal or objective to achieve in life. In order to succeed in life, one must have a goal. An aimless man is like a ship without a compass. So, I have to select an ambition in my life. Very soon I shall be a citizen of my country. I shall have some duties to society and my country. I must perform them. I think no country can prosper without education. So, my ambition in life is to spread education. Any noble work needs money.

So, after completing my graduation I shall join my father’s business. Business is the best source of earning money. I shall spend a large part of my profit on spreading education and treatment for the poor and sick villagers. I shall set it up. schools for children. I shall start night schools for the adults to make them literate. I shall set up a library. Books on various subjects will be issued without any subscription. I shall open training centres for young boys and girls to provide them with jobs. I do not know how far my ambition will be successful. But I shall try my best.

Composition Writing Example #17

Essay on value of time (250 words).

There is a saying, “Time and tide wait for none. The value of time is very great. We can regain lost money and lost health. But lost time is gone forever. So, we should know the use of time. We should remember that we cannot recall the time that is gone. We can stop the clock but we cannot stop the time. And so we must make the best use of every moment. This knowledge and habit of proper use of time are the secrets of success.

Our life is short. But time passes swiftly. Our life is made of moments. So, to lose a moment is to waste a valuable part of life. By making the right use of the time we can do a lot. We should avail ourselves of every opportunity. If we do not know the use of time our life becomes miserable. We should know that a stitch in time saves nine. Idle time is said to be a thief of time.

If we idle away our time, our appointed work will suffer and success will be hard to achieve. Time lost is lost forever. We are born to do a lot of work. Great men realize it. They never lose a moment. Gandhiji always used to keep a watch to watch his time. He who performs his duties punctually prospers in life positively. What can be done today should not be put off for tomorrow. We should not say ‘later’, we should do ‘now’.

Composition Writing Example #18

Essay on value of trees (250+ words).

Trees are of great importance in our everyday life. They provide us with thatch for huts, timber for buildings and furniture, firewood, food like fruits, honey, etc., and medicine. We are dependent on trees for our very existence on earth. They produce oxygen which keeps us alive. They also absorb carbon-di-oxide exhaled by us and thereby help to create a pollution-free atmosphere. Trees help to prevent the erosion of soil and floods.

Both the urban and rural people gain advantages from growing more trees. The former enjoys a pollution-free atmosphere and the latter gets fruits, fuel, goods of economic importance, and medicines. Road-side trees are planted to beautify the roads and purify the air. Trees supply fresh air to reduce pollution in urban areas and help in rural economic growth. It is important to note that 33% of the land is required as forests in any country to maintain ecological balance. Hence we must take utmost care to grow more trees and stop deforestation. Trees give men shelter and shade. They protect wildlife. Trees help men fight against environmental pollution.

So we all must grow more trees and stop deforestation. We must care for trees for our own sake. We should not forget that the great scientist Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose proved that trees are living beings. The festival, Vano-Mahotsav is observed every year during the rainy season. Thousands of saplings are planted on the occasion. More and more areas are brought under forest cover and people are taught “Plant trees and save a life.”

Composition Writing Example #19

STORY – The honest woodcutter

Once a poor woodcutter was cutting down a tree by the side of a river. Accidentally his axe slipped into the water. Losing his axe, the poor man sat down and wept. A god heard him cry and came out of the river to help him. He heard the poor man’s story, dived into the stream, and soon came out holding in his hand a gold axe. “Is this the axe that you lost ?” He asked. “No, my axe was not so beautiful as this, replied the poor woodcutter.

The god dived into the water again and brought up a silver axe. The poor man would not take this one either and said that it was not his. So the god went into the river for the third time and brought up the iron axe the man had lost. This the man received with great joy. The god was pleased that the woodcutter was honest. He gave him the silver and the gold axes as a reward in addition to the one iron.

Moral: Honesty is always rewarded.

Composition Writing Example #20

Essay on morning walk (250 words).

Morning walk and early rising go hand in hand. One who wants to go for a morning walk has to get up early. A morning walk is a healthy habit. It removes the physical lethargy caused by the night’s sleep, helps in the circulation of blood, and makes one healthy. It is good exercise after a long night’s rest and provides us with fresh oxygen from the cool morning air. It gives a good start to a man’s whole day’s work. He can finish a large amount of his work before others get out of bed. He need not hurry over any part of his work.

A morning walk enables a man to have closer contact with nature. He can see the calm, quiet and complete beauty of nature- the beauty he cannot see by day. A morning walk provides independent exercise. He need not go to the gymnasium for exercise. Morning walk, like early rising, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Even doctors advise their patients to have a morning walk daily, as a remedy for various types of physical ailments, especially diabetes. Moreover, a morning walk is certainly a good start for the whole day’s work. During our walk in the morning, we come into greater and closer contact with nature. A morning walk is advantageous as an independent exercise. If anyone wants to ensure proper care of his or her health, he or she can undertake a morning walk as it is very simple as well as beneficial.

Composition Writing Example #21

Essay on science (250 words).

Science is a great boon to human civilization. All signs of Progress in civilization have been made possible by science. Science has made our life easy and comfortable. It has given us electric fans, and lights. fans cool us, lights remove darkness. Lift, washing machine, etc. save our labour. Car, train, bus, and aircraft have made our travel speedy and comfortable. The computer has taken the excess load off our brains. Science has given us life-saving medicine. Surgery can do something miraculous. Space flight is another wonder of science.

Thus through the gifts of science, the man who had once lived in the cave has now landed on the science of the moon is a blessing to us. But it is a curse at the same time. Science has given us speed but has taken away our emotions. It has made our machine. The introduction of the mobile phone has destroyed the art of letter writing. Science has made war more dreadful by inventing sophisticated weapons. Peace has become scarce. Yet there are some abuses of science. It has given us the frightful nuclear weapons that can destroy the whole world.

But who is responsible for making Science a curse? Certainly, it is the evil intention of a few scientists and malignant politicians. We can use fire for cooking our food or burning other’s houses. It is not the fault of fire, but of its users. Likewise, man is responsible for the uses and abuses of science. But science cannot be blamed for this.

Composition Writing Example #22

Essay on noise pollution (250+ words).

Any unwanted loud sound which causes stress and irritation can be termed noise pollution. Of late, sound or noise pollution has adversely affected our normal life in a major way. It is chasing us in almost every step. In schools, colleges, offices, and even hospitals we have an explosion of deafening sound. The main sources of noise pollution are Means of transport, the Use of loudspeakers, the Industrial sector, and the Celebration of festivals and wedding ceremonies. We are almost deafened by the blaring mikes or the record players which are often played in full volume.

Secondly, we have noise pollution caused by various groups of people shouting out their slogans or impatient automobiles always honking their horns. During some social and religious festivals, crackers are burst indiscriminately. Noise pollution can have serious effects on human health. It may cause impairment of hearing and can cause sleep disruption. People who are frequently subjected to a high level of noise pollution may suffer from hypertension, depression, and panic attacks. It may lead to an abnormal increase in heartbeat and heart palpitation. It can also cause migraine headaches, nausea, and dizziness.

Some Measures to Minimise Noise Pollution are Prohibiting the blowing of horns, The use of loudspeakers should be banned, Airports should be located away from residential areas, and People should restrain themselves from lighting firecrackers. In recent times laws have been passed to take effective steps to control sound pollution. People must also be made aware of the dangers of noise pollution.

Composition Writing Example #23

STORY – A Greedy Dog

One day a dog stole a morsel of meat from a butcher’s shop. He was very glad to have it and thought of a hearty meal at home that evening. With the piece of meat in his mouth, he proceeded towards his home. On his way home he had to cross a river. There was a narrow plank across it. As he was going across the plank, he looked down and saw his own image reflected in the water. He took it for another dog with a bigger piece of meat.

“Ah, there is another dog with a bigger piece of meat !” he said to himself and added, “If can take that piece of meat away from him, I shall have a hearty meal also in the morning. | must have that piece at any cost.”

So thinking, he rushed at his own shadow to catch at the piece of meat reflected in the water, Instantly, he fell down into the river and lost his own piece of meat. Thus, being led by greed, he had to lose what he already had.

Moral: Grasp all, lose all

Composition Writing Example #24

Essay on television (250+ words).

Television is one of the many wonders of modern science and technology. It was invented in England by the Scottish scientist J.N. Baird in 1928 and the British Broadcasting Corporation was the first to broadcast television images in 1929. Previously the radio helped us hear things from far and near and spread information and knowledge from one corner of the globe to another. But all this was done through sound only. But television combined visual images with sound.

Today we can watch games, shows, and song and dance programs from all corners of the world while sitting in our own homes. TV can be used for educating the masses, for bringing to us the latest pieces of information audio-visually, and can provide us with all kinds of entertainment even in colour.

But as in all things, too much televiewing may prove harmful. TV provides visual images but the televiewer has a limited choice of programs. He has to adjust himself to the scheduled programs of a particular television channel. But as for the book, a reader’s imagination plays a vital role. He can freely read a book which is a personal activity and it cannot be shared with others at the same time. In many cases, the habit of watching TV has an adverse effect on the study habits of the young. When we read books, we have to use our intelligence and imagination. But in most cases, TV watching is a passive thing. It may dull our imagination and intelligence.

Composition Writing Example #25

Essay on newspaper (250+ words).

The Newspaper is the mirror of the world. Modern life cannot be imagined without newspapers. A newspaper is a regular source of important news from home and abroad. It represents the current and living history of the world. Newspapers are of various kinds dailies, weeklies, bi-weeklies, monthlies, etc. The main function of a daily paper is to publish news of general interest while the others mostly contain literary pieces and articles on important topics.

Nowadays every newspaper has some special sections dealing with politics, everyday problems, off-beat news, business, sports, editorial page, feature pages, etc. So, the newspaper is one of the most powerful organs for the dissemination of news and views among the public. It plays a very important role in educating people and guiding them along the right path. If it wants to it can fight social evil successfully. A newspaper can also do us much harm. Used wrongly it can create hatred and enmity between man and man, section and section, nation and nation.

Sometimes it publishes baseless reports or stories to create deliberate confusion in the minds of gullible people. A newspaper is as powerful as any potent weapon. It can be used for both good and evil. Much depends on the outlook and motive of the people who are at the helm of the paper. It shapes Public opinion. It can mislead people with false and fabricated news. The newspaper should give impartial and correct pieces of information. It must not feed false news.

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English 101

• Types of Written Compositions
• Choosing a Topic
• Thesis Statement
• Writing Process
• MLA Citation

What is A Composition

Narrative Essay (Telling a Story)

Novels, short stories, novellas, poetry, and biographies can all fall in the narrative writing style. A narrative composition is when the writer tells a story about a real-life experience. This appears to be an easy task, but the narrative composition challenges students to think and write about themselves which can be difficult for some. One of the goals of a narrative composition is  to involve the reader by making the story as vivid as possible. Because narrative compositions are usually written in the first person, it helps engage the reader. “I” sentences give readers a feeling of being part of the story.  Moreover, a well-crafted narrative composition will answer the question "What happens next" and build towards drawing a conclusion or making a personal statement such as teaching a lesson.  

Key Points:

• A person tells a story or event.
• Has characters and dialogue.
• Has definite and logical beginnings, intervals, and endings.
• Often has situations like actions, motivational events, and disputes or conflicts with their eventual solutions.

Examples of When You Would Use Persuasive Writing:

• Short stories
• Autobiographies or biographies
• Oral histories

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” said Jaelyn.

“You never used to be such a girl!” retorted Orin, pushing open the door.

Reluctantly, Jaelyn followed.

This is a narrative because it’s telling a story. There are different characters conversing, and a plot is unravelling.

https://www.time4writing.com/writing-resources/types-of-essays/

https://owlcation.com/humanities/Four-Types-of-Writing

Descriptive Composition (Painting a Picture)

A cousin of the narrative composition, a descriptive composition  paints a picture with words. A writer might describe with vivid, concrete, and precise words a person, place, object, or a even memory of special significance. However, this type of composition is not description for description’s sake. The descriptive composition strives to communicate a deeper meaning through the description such as proving a thesis or claim. In a descriptive composition, general guideline is that the writer should show, not tell, through the use of colorful words and sensory details. The best descriptive compositions appeal to the reader’s five senses, with a result that is highly expressive.

Key Points :

• It is often poetic in nature
• It describes places, people, events, situations, or locations in a highly-detailed manner.
• The author visualizes what he or she sees, hears, tastes, smells, and feels.

When You Would Use Descriptive Writing:

• Journal or diary writing
• Nature writing
• Descriptive passages in fiction

Example: 

The old car slowly chugged down the street like the caboose of a steam engine train. The car goes up the hill it goes Ka boom , kachunk. The car is old and weathered with rust covering the entire body like cancer consuming its victim. Wheels and tires wobble like a drunk bum on his way home from the bar. Hub caps are gone along with all the mirrors and extras on the car. Black smoke flows out the rotten tail pips like the smoke out of and old cobb pipe.  ~© Jace Oeleis 2005~ (Source: English 120-Descriptive Paragraph)

This is descriptive writing because the paragraph uses vivid and descriptive words and phrases such as adjectives, adverbs, action verbs, figures of speech, etc. to describe an old car.

Expository Composition (Stating Just the Facts)

Expository writing's main purpose is to explain. The expository composition  is an informative piece of writing that presents a balanced analysis of a topic. In an expository composition, the writer explains or defines a topic, using facts, statistics, and examples. Expository writing encompasses a wide range of essay variations, such as the comparison and contrast essay, the cause and effect essay, and the “how to” or process essay. An expository composition is one of the most common types of writing. You always see it in textbooks and how-to articles. Because expository compositions are based on facts and not personal feelings, writers avoid imparting their emotions or using the first person point-of-view.

• Usually explains something in a process.
• Is often equipped with facts and figures.
• Is usually in a logical order and sequence.

When You Would Use Expository Writing:

• Textbook writing.
• How-to articles.
• News stories (not including opinion or editorial pieces).
• Business, technical, or scientific writing.

Many people associate the taste of pumpkins with fall. In October, companies from Starbucks to McDonalds roll out their pumpkin-flavored lattes and desserts. Here is how to make an easy pumpkin pie using only five ingredients. First, make sure you have all of the ingredients.

This writing is expository because it is  explaining  how to make a pumpkin pie.

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Essay Writing

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

This resource begins with a general description of essay writing and moves to a discussion of common essay genres students may encounter across the curriculum. The four genres of essays (description, narration, exposition, and argumentation) are common paper assignments you may encounter in your writing classes. Although these genres, also known as the modes of discourse, have been criticized by some composition scholars, the Purdue OWL recognizes the wide spread use of these genres and students’ need to understand and produce these types of essays. We hope these resources will help.

The essay is a commonly assigned form of writing that every student will encounter while in academia. Therefore, it is wise for the student to become capable and comfortable with this type of writing early on in her training.

Essays can be a rewarding and challenging type of writing and are often assigned either to be done in class, which requires previous planning and practice (and a bit of creativity) on the part of the student, or as homework, which likewise demands a certain amount of preparation. Many poorly crafted essays have been produced on account of a lack of preparation and confidence. However, students can avoid the discomfort often associated with essay writing by understanding some common genres.

Before delving into its various genres, let’s begin with a basic definition of the essay.

What is an essay?

Though the word essay has come to be understood as a type of writing in Modern English, its origins provide us with some useful insights. The word comes into the English language through the French influence on Middle English; tracing it back further, we find that the French form of the word comes from the Latin verb exigere , which means "to examine, test, or (literally) to drive out." Through the excavation of this ancient word, we are able to unearth the essence of the academic essay: to encourage students to test or examine their ideas concerning a particular topic.

Essays are shorter pieces of writing that often require the student to hone a number of skills such as close reading, analysis, comparison and contrast, persuasion, conciseness, clarity, and exposition. As is evidenced by this list of attributes, there is much to be gained by the student who strives to succeed at essay writing.

The purpose of an essay is to encourage students to develop ideas and concepts in their writing with the direction of little more than their own thoughts (it may be helpful to view the essay as the converse of a research paper). Therefore, essays are (by nature) concise and require clarity in purpose and direction. This means that there is no room for the student’s thoughts to wander or stray from his or her purpose; the writing must be deliberate and interesting.

This handout should help students become familiar and comfortable with the process of essay composition through the introduction of some common essay genres.

This handout includes a brief introduction to the following genres of essay writing:

• Expository essays
• Descriptive essays
• Narrative essays
• Argumentative (Persuasive) essays

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How to Write an Essay

Use the links below to jump directly to any section of this guide:

Essay Writing Fundamentals

How to prepare to write an essay, how to edit an essay, how to share and publish your essays, how to get essay writing help, how to find essay writing inspiration, resources for teaching essay writing.

Essays, short prose compositions on a particular theme or topic, are the bread and butter of academic life. You write them in class, for homework, and on standardized tests to show what you know. Unlike other kinds of academic writing (like the research paper) and creative writing (like short stories and poems), essays allow you to develop your original thoughts on a prompt or question. Essays come in many varieties: they can be expository (fleshing out an idea or claim), descriptive, (explaining a person, place, or thing), narrative (relating a personal experience), or persuasive (attempting to win over a reader). This guide is a collection of dozens of links about academic essay writing that we have researched, categorized, and annotated in order to help you improve your essay writing. 

Essays are different from other forms of writing; in turn, there are different kinds of essays. This section contains general resources for getting to know the essay and its variants. These resources introduce and define the essay as a genre, and will teach you what to expect from essay-based assessments.

Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab

One of the most trusted academic writing sites, Purdue OWL provides a concise introduction to the four most common types of academic essays.

"The Essay: History and Definition" (ThoughtCo)

This snappy article from ThoughtCo talks about the origins of the essay and different kinds of essays you might be asked to write. 

"What Is An Essay?" Video Lecture (Coursera)

The University of California at Irvine's free video lecture, available on Coursera, tells  you everything you need to know about the essay.

Wikipedia Article on the "Essay"

Wikipedia's article on the essay is comprehensive, providing both English-language and global perspectives on the essay form. Learn about the essay's history, forms, and styles.

"Understanding College and Academic Writing" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

This list of common academic writing assignments (including types of essay prompts) will help you know what to expect from essay-based assessments.

Before you start writing your essay, you need to figure out who you're writing for (audience), what you're writing about (topic/theme), and what you're going to say (argument and thesis). This section contains links to handouts, chapters, videos and more to help you prepare to write an essay.

How to Identify Your Audience

"Audience" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This handout provides questions you can ask yourself to determine the audience for an academic writing assignment. It also suggests strategies for fitting your paper to your intended audience.

"Purpose, Audience, Tone, and Content" (Univ. of Minnesota Libraries)

This extensive book chapter from Writing for Success , available online through Minnesota Libraries Publishing, is followed by exercises to try out your new pre-writing skills.

"Determining Audience" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

This guide from a community college's writing center shows you how to know your audience, and how to incorporate that knowledge in your thesis statement.

"Know Your Audience" ( Paper Rater Blog)

This short blog post uses examples to show how implied audiences for essays differ. It reminds you to think of your instructor as an observer, who will know only the information you pass along.

How to Choose a Theme or Topic

"Research Tutorial: Developing Your Topic" (YouTube)

Take a look at this short video tutorial from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to understand the basics of developing a writing topic.

"How to Choose a Paper Topic" (WikiHow)

This simple, step-by-step guide (with pictures!) walks you through choosing a paper topic. It starts with a detailed description of brainstorming and ends with strategies to refine your broad topic.

"How to Read an Assignment: Moving From Assignment to Topic" (Harvard College Writing Center)

Did your teacher give you a prompt or other instructions? This guide helps you understand the relationship between an essay assignment and your essay's topic.

"Guidelines for Choosing a Topic" (CliffsNotes)

This study guide from CliffsNotes both discusses how to choose a topic and makes a useful distinction between "topic" and "thesis."

How to Come Up with an Argument

"Argument" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

Not sure what "argument" means in the context of academic writing? This page from the University of North Carolina is a good place to start.

"The Essay Guide: Finding an Argument" (Study Hub)

This handout explains why it's important to have an argument when beginning your essay, and provides tools to help you choose a viable argument.

"Writing a Thesis and Making an Argument" (University of Iowa)

This page from the University of Iowa's Writing Center contains exercises through which you can develop and refine your argument and thesis statement.

"Developing a Thesis" (Harvard College Writing Center)

This page from Harvard's Writing Center collates some helpful dos and don'ts of argumentative writing, from steps in constructing a thesis to avoiding vague and confrontational thesis statements.

"Suggestions for Developing Argumentative Essays" (Berkeley Student Learning Center)

This page offers concrete suggestions for each stage of the essay writing process, from topic selection to drafting and editing. 

How to Outline your Essay

"Outlines" (Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill via YouTube)

This short video tutorial from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shows how to group your ideas into paragraphs or sections to begin the outlining process.

"Essay Outline" (Univ. of Washington Tacoma)

This two-page handout by a university professor simply defines the parts of an essay and then organizes them into an example outline.

"Types of Outlines and Samples" (Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab)

Purdue OWL gives examples of diverse outline strategies on this page, including the alphanumeric, full sentence, and decimal styles. 

"Outlining" (Harvard College Writing Center)

Once you have an argument, according to this handout, there are only three steps in the outline process: generalizing, ordering, and putting it all together. Then you're ready to write!

"Writing Essays" (Plymouth Univ.)

This packet, part of Plymouth University's Learning Development series, contains descriptions and diagrams relating to the outlining process.

"How to Write A Good Argumentative Essay: Logical Structure" (Criticalthinkingtutorials.com via YouTube)

This longer video tutorial gives an overview of how to structure your essay in order to support your argument or thesis. It is part of a longer course on academic writing hosted on Udemy.

Now that you've chosen and refined your topic and created an outline, use these resources to complete the writing process. Most essays contain introductions (which articulate your thesis statement), body paragraphs, and conclusions. Transitions facilitate the flow from one paragraph to the next so that support for your thesis builds throughout the essay. Sources and citations show where you got the evidence to support your thesis, which ensures that you avoid plagiarism. 

How to Write an Introduction

"Introductions" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page identifies the role of the introduction in any successful paper, suggests strategies for writing introductions, and warns against less effective introductions.

"How to Write A Good Introduction" (Michigan State Writing Center)

Beginning with the most common missteps in writing introductions, this guide condenses the essentials of introduction composition into seven points.

"The Introductory Paragraph" (ThoughtCo)

This blog post from academic advisor and college enrollment counselor Grace Fleming focuses on ways to grab your reader's attention at the beginning of your essay.

"Introductions and Conclusions" (Univ. of Toronto)

This guide from the University of Toronto gives advice that applies to writing both introductions and conclusions, including dos and don'ts.

"How to Write Better Essays: No One Does Introductions Properly" ( The Guardian )

This news article interviews UK professors on student essay writing; they point to introductions as the area that needs the most improvement.

How to Write a Thesis Statement

"Writing an Effective Thesis Statement" (YouTube)

This short, simple video tutorial from a college composition instructor at Tulsa Community College explains what a thesis statement is and what it does. 

"Thesis Statement: Four Steps to a Great Essay" (YouTube)

This fantastic tutorial walks you through drafting a thesis, using an essay prompt on Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter as an example.

"How to Write a Thesis Statement" (WikiHow)

This step-by-step guide (with pictures!) walks you through coming up with, writing, and editing a thesis statement. It invites you think of your statement as a "working thesis" that can change.

"How to Write a Thesis Statement" (Univ. of Indiana Bloomington)

Ask yourself the questions on this page, part of Indiana Bloomington's Writing Tutorial Services, when you're writing and refining your thesis statement.

"Writing Tips: Thesis Statements" (Univ. of Illinois Center for Writing Studies)

This page gives plentiful examples of good to great thesis statements, and offers questions to ask yourself when formulating a thesis statement.

How to Write Body Paragraphs

"Body Paragraph" (Brightstorm)

This module of a free online course introduces you to the components of a body paragraph. These include the topic sentence, information, evidence, and analysis.

"Strong Body Paragraphs" (Washington Univ.)

This handout from Washington's Writing and Research Center offers in-depth descriptions of the parts of a successful body paragraph.

"Guide to Paragraph Structure" (Deakin Univ.)

This handout is notable for color-coding example body paragraphs to help you identify the functions various sentences perform.

"Writing Body Paragraphs" (Univ. of Minnesota Libraries)

The exercises in this section of Writing for Success  will help you practice writing good body paragraphs. It includes guidance on selecting primary support for your thesis.

"The Writing Process—Body Paragraphs" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

The information and exercises on this page will familiarize you with outlining and writing body paragraphs, and includes links to more information on topic sentences and transitions.

"The Five-Paragraph Essay" (ThoughtCo)

This blog post discusses body paragraphs in the context of one of the most common academic essay types in secondary schools.

How to Use Transitions

"Transitions" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill explains what a transition is, and how to know if you need to improve your transitions.

"Using Transitions Effectively" (Washington Univ.)

This handout defines transitions, offers tips for using them, and contains a useful list of common transitional words and phrases grouped by function.

"Transitions" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

This page compares paragraphs without transitions to paragraphs with transitions, and in doing so shows how important these connective words and phrases are.

"Transitions in Academic Essays" (Scribbr)

This page lists four techniques that will help you make sure your reader follows your train of thought, including grouping similar information and using transition words.

"Transitions" (El Paso Community College)

This handout shows example transitions within paragraphs for context, and explains how transitions improve your essay's flow and voice.

"Make Your Paragraphs Flow to Improve Writing" (ThoughtCo)

This blog post, another from academic advisor and college enrollment counselor Grace Fleming, talks about transitions and other strategies to improve your essay's overall flow.

"Transition Words" (smartwords.org)

This handy word bank will help you find transition words when you're feeling stuck. It's grouped by the transition's function, whether that is to show agreement, opposition, condition, or consequence.

How to Write a Conclusion

"Parts of An Essay: Conclusions" (Brightstorm)

This module of a free online course explains how to conclude an academic essay. It suggests thinking about the "3Rs": return to hook, restate your thesis, and relate to the reader.

"Essay Conclusions" (Univ. of Maryland University College)

This overview of the academic essay conclusion contains helpful examples and links to further resources for writing good conclusions.

"How to End An Essay" (WikiHow)

This step-by-step guide (with pictures!) by an English Ph.D. walks you through writing a conclusion, from brainstorming to ending with a flourish.

"Ending the Essay: Conclusions" (Harvard College Writing Center)

This page collates useful strategies for writing an effective conclusion, and reminds you to "close the discussion without closing it off" to further conversation.

How to Include Sources and Citations

"Research and Citation Resources" (Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab)

Purdue OWL streamlines information about the three most common referencing styles (MLA, Chicago, and APA) and provides examples of how to cite different resources in each system.

EasyBib: Free Bibliography Generator

This online tool allows you to input information about your source and automatically generate citations in any style. Be sure to select your resource type before clicking the "cite it" button.

CitationMachine

Like EasyBib, this online tool allows you to input information about your source and automatically generate citations in any style. 

Modern Language Association Handbook (MLA)

Here, you'll find the definitive and up-to-date record of MLA referencing rules. Order through the link above, or check to see if your library has a copy.

Chicago Manual of Style

Here, you'll find the definitive and up-to-date record of Chicago referencing rules. You can take a look at the table of contents, then choose to subscribe or start a free trial.

How to Avoid Plagiarism

"What is Plagiarism?" (plagiarism.org)

This nonprofit website contains numerous resources for identifying and avoiding plagiarism, and reminds you that even common activities like copying images from another website to your own site may constitute plagiarism.

"Plagiarism" (University of Oxford)

This interactive page from the University of Oxford helps you check for plagiarism in your work, making it clear how to avoid citing another person's work without full acknowledgement.

"Avoiding Plagiarism" (MIT Comparative Media Studies)

This quick guide explains what plagiarism is, what its consequences are, and how to avoid it. It starts by defining three words—quotation, paraphrase, and summary—that all constitute citation.

"Harvard Guide to Using Sources" (Harvard Extension School)

This comprehensive website from Harvard brings together articles, videos, and handouts about referencing, citation, and plagiarism. 

Grammarly contains tons of helpful grammar and writing resources, including a free tool to automatically scan your essay to check for close affinities to published work. 

Noplag is another popular online tool that automatically scans your essay to check for signs of plagiarism. Simply copy and paste your essay into the box and click "start checking."

Once you've written your essay, you'll want to edit (improve content), proofread (check for spelling and grammar mistakes), and finalize your work until you're ready to hand it in. This section brings together tips and resources for navigating the editing process. 

"Writing a First Draft" (Academic Help)

This is an introduction to the drafting process from the site Academic Help, with tips for getting your ideas on paper before editing begins.

"Editing and Proofreading" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page provides general strategies for revising your writing. They've intentionally left seven errors in the handout, to give you practice in spotting them.

"How to Proofread Effectively" (ThoughtCo)

This article from ThoughtCo, along with those linked at the bottom, help describe common mistakes to check for when proofreading.

"7 Simple Edits That Make Your Writing 100% More Powerful" (SmartBlogger)

This blog post emphasizes the importance of powerful, concise language, and reminds you that even your personal writing heroes create clunky first drafts.

"Editing Tips for Effective Writing" (Univ. of Pennsylvania)

On this page from Penn's International Relations department, you'll find tips for effective prose, errors to watch out for, and reminders about formatting.

"Editing the Essay" (Harvard College Writing Center)

This article, the first of two parts, gives you applicable strategies for the editing process. It suggests reading your essay aloud, removing any jargon, and being unafraid to remove even "dazzling" sentences that don't belong.

"Guide to Editing and Proofreading" (Oxford Learning Institute)

This handout from Oxford covers the basics of editing and proofreading, and reminds you that neither task should be rushed. 

In addition to plagiarism-checkers, Grammarly has a plug-in for your web browser that checks your writing for common mistakes.

After you've prepared, written, and edited your essay, you might want to share it outside the classroom. This section alerts you to print and web opportunities to share your essays with the wider world, from online writing communities and blogs to published journals geared toward young writers.

Sharing Your Essays Online

Go Teen Writers

Go Teen Writers is an online community for writers aged 13 - 19. It was founded by Stephanie Morrill, an author of contemporary young adult novels. 

Tumblr is a blogging website where you can share your writing and interact with other writers online. It's easy to add photos, links, audio, and video components.

Writersky provides an online platform for publishing and reading other youth writers' work. Its current content is mostly devoted to fiction.

Publishing Your Essays Online

This teen literary journal publishes in print, on the web, and (more frequently), on a blog. It is committed to ensuring that "teens see their authentic experience reflected on its pages."

The Matador Review

This youth writing platform celebrates "alternative," unconventional writing. The link above will take you directly to the site's "submissions" page.

Teen Ink has a website, monthly newsprint magazine, and quarterly poetry magazine promoting the work of young writers.

The largest online reading platform, Wattpad enables you to publish your work and read others' work. Its inline commenting feature allows you to share thoughts as you read along.

Publishing Your Essays in Print

Canvas Teen Literary Journal

This quarterly literary magazine is published for young writers by young writers. They accept many kinds of writing, including essays.

The Claremont Review

This biannual international magazine, first published in 1992, publishes poetry, essays, and short stories from writers aged 13 - 19.

Skipping Stones

This young writers magazine, founded in 1988, celebrates themes relating to ecological and cultural diversity. It publishes poems, photos, articles, and stories.

The Telling Room

This nonprofit writing center based in Maine publishes children's work on their website and in book form. The link above directs you to the site's submissions page.

Essay Contests

Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards

This prestigious international writing contest for students in grades 7 - 12 has been committed to "supporting the future of creativity since 1923."

Society of Professional Journalists High School Essay Contest

An annual essay contest on the theme of journalism and media, the Society of Professional Journalists High School Essay Contest awards scholarships up to $1,000.

National YoungArts Foundation

Here, you'll find information on a government-sponsored writing competition for writers aged 15 - 18. The foundation welcomes submissions of creative nonfiction, novels, scripts, poetry, short story and spoken word.

Signet Classics Student Scholarship Essay Contest

With prompts on a different literary work each year, this competition from Signet Classics awards college scholarships up to $1,000.

"The Ultimate Guide to High School Essay Contests" (CollegeVine)

See this handy guide from CollegeVine for a list of more competitions you can enter with your academic essay, from the National Council of Teachers of English Achievement Awards to the National High School Essay Contest by the U.S. Institute of Peace.

Whether you're struggling to write academic essays or you think you're a pro, there are workshops and online tools that can help you become an even better writer. Even the most seasoned writers encounter writer's block, so be proactive and look through our curated list of resources to combat this common frustration.

Online Essay-writing Classes and Workshops

"Getting Started with Essay Writing" (Coursera)

Coursera offers lots of free, high-quality online classes taught by college professors. Here's one example, taught by instructors from the University of California Irvine.

"Writing and English" (Brightstorm)

Brightstorm's free video lectures are easy to navigate by topic. This unit on the parts of an essay features content on the essay hook, thesis, supporting evidence, and more.

"How to Write an Essay" (EdX)

EdX is another open online university course website with several two- to five-week courses on the essay. This one is geared toward English language learners.

Writer's Digest University

This renowned writers' website offers online workshops and interactive tutorials. The courses offered cover everything from how to get started through how to get published.

Writing.com

Signing up for this online writer's community gives you access to helpful resources as well as an international community of writers.

How to Overcome Writer's Block

"Symptoms and Cures for Writer's Block" (Purdue OWL)

Purdue OWL offers a list of signs you might have writer's block, along with ways to overcome it. Consider trying out some "invention strategies" or ways to curb writing anxiety.

"Overcoming Writer's Block: Three Tips" ( The Guardian )

These tips, geared toward academic writing specifically, are practical and effective. The authors advocate setting realistic goals, creating dedicated writing time, and participating in social writing.

"Writing Tips: Strategies for Overcoming Writer's Block" (Univ. of Illinois)

This page from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Center for Writing Studies acquaints you with strategies that do and do not work to overcome writer's block.

"Writer's Block" (Univ. of Toronto)

Ask yourself the questions on this page; if the answer is "yes," try out some of the article's strategies. Each question is accompanied by at least two possible solutions.

If you have essays to write but are short on ideas, this section's links to prompts, example student essays, and celebrated essays by professional writers might help. You'll find writing prompts from a variety of sources, student essays to inspire you, and a number of essay writing collections.

Essay Writing Prompts

"50 Argumentative Essay Topics" (ThoughtCo)

Take a look at this list and the others ThoughtCo has curated for different kinds of essays. As the author notes, "a number of these topics are controversial and that's the point."

"401 Prompts for Argumentative Writing" ( New York Times )

This list (and the linked lists to persuasive and narrative writing prompts), besides being impressive in length, is put together by actual high school English teachers.

"SAT Sample Essay Prompts" (College Board)

If you're a student in the U.S., your classroom essay prompts are likely modeled on the prompts in U.S. college entrance exams. Take a look at these official examples from the SAT.

"Popular College Application Essay Topics" (Princeton Review)

This page from the Princeton Review dissects recent Common Application essay topics and discusses strategies for answering them.

Example Student Essays

"501 Writing Prompts" (DePaul Univ.)

This nearly 200-page packet, compiled by the LearningExpress Skill Builder in Focus Writing Team, is stuffed with writing prompts, example essays, and commentary.

"Topics in English" (Kibin)

Kibin is a for-pay essay help website, but its example essays (organized by topic) are available for free. You'll find essays on everything from  A Christmas Carol  to perseverance.

"Student Writing Models" (Thoughtful Learning)

Thoughtful Learning, a website that offers a variety of teaching materials, provides sample student essays on various topics and organizes them by grade level.

"Five-Paragraph Essay" (ThoughtCo)

In this blog post by a former professor of English and rhetoric, ThoughtCo brings together examples of five-paragraph essays and commentary on the form.

The Best Essay Writing Collections

The Best American Essays of the Century by Joyce Carol Oates (Amazon)

This collection of American essays spanning the twentieth century was compiled by award winning author and Princeton professor Joyce Carol Oates.

The Best American Essays 2017 by Leslie Jamison (Amazon)

Leslie Jamison, the celebrated author of essay collection  The Empathy Exams , collects recent, high-profile essays into a single volume.

The Art of the Personal Essay by Phillip Lopate (Amazon)

Documentary writer Phillip Lopate curates this historical overview of the personal essay's development, from the classical era to the present.

The White Album by Joan Didion (Amazon)

This seminal essay collection was authored by one of the most acclaimed personal essayists of all time, American journalist Joan Didion.

Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace (Amazon)

Read this famous essay collection by David Foster Wallace, who is known for his experimentation with the essay form. He pushed the boundaries of personal essay, reportage, and political polemic.

"50 Successful Harvard Application Essays" (Staff of the The Harvard Crimson )

If you're looking for examples of exceptional college application essays, this volume from Harvard's daily student newspaper is one of the best collections on the market.

Are you an instructor looking for the best resources for teaching essay writing? This section contains resources for developing in-class activities and student homework assignments. You'll find content from both well-known university writing centers and online writing labs.

Essay Writing Classroom Activities for Students

"In-class Writing Exercises" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page lists exercises related to brainstorming, organizing, drafting, and revising. It also contains suggestions for how to implement the suggested exercises.

"Teaching with Writing" (Univ. of Minnesota Center for Writing)

Instructions and encouragement for using "freewriting," one-minute papers, logbooks, and other write-to-learn activities in the classroom can be found here.

"Writing Worksheets" (Berkeley Student Learning Center)

Berkeley offers this bank of writing worksheets to use in class. They are nested under headings for "Prewriting," "Revision," "Research Papers" and more.

"Using Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism" (DePaul University)

Use these activities and worksheets from DePaul's Teaching Commons when instructing students on proper academic citation practices.

Essay Writing Homework Activities for Students

"Grammar and Punctuation Exercises" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

These five interactive online activities allow students to practice editing and proofreading. They'll hone their skills in correcting comma splices and run-ons, identifying fragments, using correct pronoun agreement, and comma usage.

"Student Interactives" (Read Write Think)

Read Write Think hosts interactive tools, games, and videos for developing writing skills. They can practice organizing and summarizing, writing poetry, and developing lines of inquiry and analysis.

This free website offers writing and grammar activities for all grade levels. The lessons are designed to be used both for large classes and smaller groups.

"Writing Activities and Lessons for Every Grade" (Education World)

Education World's page on writing activities and lessons links you to more free, online resources for learning how to "W.R.I.T.E.": write, revise, inform, think, and edit.

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Essay – examples & model answers | B2 First (FCE)

FCE Essay Examples:  Topic (Environment) 

Example exam task:.

Example Answer (Grade: 3)

Example answer:.

I think that my country has problems with pollution to the environment like all other countries. This problem is normal for Russia. We have big problems with transport because there are too much cars in our country. And because of that we have problems with atmospeer, air in my city and in all Russia is really dirty and sometimes I can’t make a sigh because it smells around me and of course around that cars on the road. I’ve heard about tradition of one country. They don’t go anywhere by car one day a month or a year, they just use bycicle or their feet. I think it could be very good if we had a tradition like that.

So, what about the rivers and the seas? Yeah, there are some really good and clean rivers and seas where you can go, but there are not many of them. Once I saw the river OB in my city, it was about two years ago but I stil remember that in some places it was not blue, it was green or purple I didn’t really understand because it had different colours.

I don’t know what should we do. Maybe we should just open our eyes and look what we did. But Russian people don’t care about the world around them many people care only about themselves an that’s all.

So, the best idea is look around and try to do something good for our planet and for us and our children.

FCE, CAE, CPE

Practice, write & improve, examiners comments & grade:.

Example Answer (Grade: 3-4)

To begin with pollution and damage to the environment is the most serious and difficult problem for countries of all over the world. Scientists of different countries predict a global ecocatastrophe if people won’t change their attitude to our planet.

First of all a huge damage to the environment brings a transport. People can’t imagine their living without cars, buses, trains, ships and planes. But it’s an open secret that one of disadvantage of these accustomed things is harmful exhaust. Needless to say that use of environment friendly engines helps us to save atmosphere from pollution.

In addition to this our rivers and seas are in not less danger situation. It’s a fact of common knowledge that numerous factories and plants pour off their waste to ponds. Obviously that cleaning manufacturing water helps to avoid extinction of ocean residents.

Apart from this I’m inclined to believe that every person can and must contribute to solving this important problem. Doing a little steps for protection our environment every day we will be able to save our Earth. And it’s a task of each of us.

Model Answer (Grade: 5)

DEVELOPMENT VS ENVIRONMENT

If we surf the web looking for pollution and environmental catastrophes, we will find out that every country in the world suffers them. This is a natural consequence of the struggle between development and environment.

If a country decided to live isolated from the rest of the world, living on what it can naturally grow and produce, it surely wouldn’t be highly polluted. But we all want exotic food and technological items from all over the world, so we have to pay the price.

Investing on electrical transport would benefit the environment a lot. Even more if this electricity came from a natural source of energy like wind, rivers and solar boards. It’s difficult to achieve this because petrol companies will fight against these actions.

We also have to take care of our rivers and seas. We all have heard about factories throwing highly toxic substances to rivers, without minimizing their poisoning effects. A really strict law should be applied to fine these factories and make them change their policy.

But what about ourselves? We also can do a lot! If, when possible, we bought larger packs of food, we would be producing less rubbish. And this is only an example!

FCE Essay Examples: Topic (Fashion) 

In today’s world, the fashion industry has a strong importance in people’s lives. The fashion industry say to the society what to wear and creates new types of clothes all the time.

Some people claim that the fashion industry has a bad effect on people’s lives, they say that the fashion industry creates clothes that the society has to wear. Furthermore, the clothes’ price is extremely high and people, who can’t afford it, should not be in the society.

In the other hand, the fashion industry guide the people to be in a good appearance, because, nowadays, the appearance of the person is more important than the person itself.

In my opinion, the fashion industry doesn’t has a bad influence on people’s lives. It’s something which was created to help people what to wear.

Example Answer (Grade: 4)

Fashion industry is very a discussed subject nowadays: they create and design new clothes everyday in order to satisfy some people needs.

There are many people who claim that the fashion industry is important and good for society. According to them, this industry design beautiful clothes and thanks to that every person can wear shirts, trousers or any acessory which is on today’s fashion.

On the other hand, the fashion industry in some people opinion, controls the market of clothes and because of that they can’t wear what they want to. In addition, the industry can increase the price of clothes, forcing people who don’t want to be “oldfashioned” to buy and pay a large amount of money to keep “beautiful”.

In my opinion, we can’t let the fashion industry decide what we must or musn’t wear. We shouldn’t judge people for its appearance,because that is not important. We must wear whatever we like, want and feel confortable with.

The society we live today is characterised by technology in constant development, fast speed processes, information travelling and getting to people at a blink of an eye and a complex web of social networking. In this context, the fashion industry is becoming increasingly important and having a more and more paramount role in our lives.

On one hand, the fashion industry is undeniably a source of profit and income. It hires millions of people all over the world and generates millions of dollars every year. Furthermore, such profitable business is also believed to be able to spread and make known the culture of a people, encouraging and enhancing a better understanding of each other.

Nevertheless, for those who are neither impressed nor motivated by numbers and figures, the fashion industry is seen as one which segregates people, isolating those who not fit their laws and commands. It is stated that people place too much importance on appearance and the material, world, sadly true, and the fashion industry just spurs on such situation. Moreover, not only are the costs of fashion item unrealistically high, it is thought to be a money better spent on more pressing issues, such as poverty and hunger.

I do believe that the fashion industry, as it is today, has a harmful effect, because it values a minority of people in detriment to the majority. However, it has such a wide reach that, it put into a good use, it can save lives.

FCE Essay Examples: Topic (Languages) 

“There are more reasons to learn a foreign language than to pass a test”

Everything around us revolves around language(s), it is the most important thing in our lives. Society would just not function without it. They are It is our future and I would personaly love to learn as many as I possibly can.

Not everything in life is done because it is necessary. Learning a new language can be a lot of fun. Many people only do it as a hoby, or their knowledge is something that brings them pride and pleasure.

Secondly, we have people who do it simply to challenge themselves. Truly I believe that having a great outcome that stems from your hard work and dedication to learn something new is a wonderful way to challenge prove your ability to yourself and others. Then there is travelling. It is very important to be able to understand and have a conversation with someone abroad, unless you would like to get lost or worse.

To conclude, I think that learning a new language is an amazing thing no matter why you do it. It is always better to do things out of enjoyment, but even if you do it for a test, that knowledge will always be useful.

Learning a a foreign languages is very important nowadays. English, in particular, is essential because it allows is spoken all over the world. That’s the reason why we start studying it from the age of six years old. Going abroad and being able to speak to native people is very satisfying and that’s why I want to improve my knowledge about foreign languages.

I decided to take this exam to know how high my level of English is, but also because I need this certification to go abroad next summer. I really want to come back to Cornwall, an amazing region in the South-West of England. I’ve been there twice with my family, but now I want to go alone. Only being there to England I can really improve my English comprehension and speaking skills.

Fortunately I can will have some English lessons which taught in English at university and I can’t wait for it because it will be an interesting challenge for me. Studying foreign languages is essential to live and to travel. It isn’t simple and I surely have to challenge myself everyday, but the result is so satisfying that we I can’t do without it.

FCE Essay Example: Topic (History) 

A very common topic that is being discussed nowadays is wether schools should teach subjects that some may consider useless later in life. A clear example is history, since it is quite difficult to learn and does not help us in day-to-day activities.

However, many people do not realize the importance of it or that it affects our lives today. For example, our political system would not be this way if it weren’t for the Ancient Greeks, numerous politicians and wars who helped shape democracy and our constitution. Yet it is still thought that it’s useless.

In addition, it is very important that we never forget about our past since we must know where we were standing years ago. Moreover, there are some things, such as World War II, that we have to remember to prevent them from happening again. We should also know where we we were standing a century ago: our origins, our identity. The more you learn about your ethnicity, the better.

All in all, I think that it is extremely important to learn about one’s own country’s history. Anyone who gets the chance to do this should not waste it, since they are very fortunate to have this opportunity

Would you pass B2 First (FCE)?

How to Use Exemplification in Writing

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• An Introduction to Punctuation
• Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia
• M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester
• B.A., English, State University of New York

In composition , example (or exemplification ) is a method of paragraph or essay development by which a writer clarifies, explains, or justifies a point through narrative or informative details .

"The best way to reveal a problem, phenomenon, or social circumstance," says William Ruehlmann, "is to illustrate it with a single, specific instance." ("Stalking the Feature Story", 1978). The etymology comes from the Latin, "to take out".

Examples and Observations

• "I argue that there is a sense of belonging, a sense of national/cultural identity that differentiates one people from others. Let me look at Vietnamese students studying in Australia as an example. . . . " (Le Ha Phan, "Teaching English as an International Language: Identity, Resistance, and Negotiation". Multilingual Matters, 2008)
• "Illustrations affected me more strongly than reality; a picture of falling snow, for example, whether in black-and-white line drawing or blurry four-color reproduction, moves me more than any actual storm ." (John Updike, "Self-Consciousness", 1989)
• "Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer ." (Dave Barry)
• "There are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we know. The keeping of bees, for instance, is a very slight interference ." (Henry David Thoreau, "Paradise (to Be) Regained." "Democratic Review", Nov. 1843)
• ensure that you use specific and relevant examples;
• include multiple examples to make your point; and
• provide an effective argument "

Functions and Methods "Because examples are so important for clarification, adding interest, and persuasion , writers rely on them all the time, even when they use other patterns of development. Thus, you will see examples in essays developed largely with cause-and-effect analysis, process analysis , comparison-contrast , and other patterns or combinations of patterns. Say, for instance, that you are using cause-and-effect analysis to explain why sexually active teenagers often do not use birth control. Once you note that teenagers may not always understand when and how pregnancy can occur, you can illustrate with an example you read of a 15-year-old who became pregnant because she thought she was 'safe' since it was her first sexual experience. "Regardless of your purpose for using exemplification, your examples will support, clarify, or explain a generalization , which is a statement of something that is typically true in your own life or in a broader context." (Barbara Fine Clouse, "Patterns for a Purpose". McGraw-Hill, 2003) "Whether example is a supporting mode or the dominant technique, you need to (W.J. Kelly, "Strategy and Structure". Allyn & Bacon, 1999)

Examples of Superstitions "Many superstitions are so widespread and so old that they must have risen from a depth of the human mind that is indifferent to race or creed. Orthodox Jews place a charm on their door-posts; so do (or did) the Chinese. Some peoples of Middle Europe believe that when a man sneezes, his soul, for that moment, is absent from his body, and they hasten to bless him, lest the soul should be seized by the Devil. How did the Melanesians come by the same idea? Superstition seems to have a link with somebody of belief that far antedates the religions we know — religions which have no place for such comforting little ceremonies and charities." (Robertson Davies, "A Few Kind Words for Superstition." Newsweek, Nov. 20, 1978)

Mementos "In the small, shabby apartment there were mementos of other places, other things. There was, for example , a child's day bed folded up in a corner of the living room. Toys — if you opened the closet door too quickly — fell on your head. Tiny scuffed white shoes were still hiding — one of them, anyhow — under the headboard of the bed. Small worn dresses, ripped, faded or in good repair, hung on nails in a small back room." (Alice Walker, "Meridian". Harcourt Brace, 1976)

Memories of Autumn in England "Soon it will be the endless evenings, fraught with old, thin memories of Bovril and Sooty, wet streets, lighting-up time, tentative girlfriends gone away to university, beer and colds, waiting outside Halfords for the number 29 bus, melancholy nights with headlights making patterns on the bedroom wall. Autumn is a Sunday evening indefinitely expended. It is the season of the provinces, bedsits in Sheffield, Cardiff sea-mists, raincoats and station platforms, desolation and loss." (Michael Bywater, "The Chronicles of Bargepole". Jonathan Cape, 1992)

The Lighter Side of Examples "It is an important and popular fact that things are not always what they seem. For instance , on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much — the wheel, New York, wars and so on — whilst all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man — for precisely the same reasons." (Douglas Adams, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". Pan, 1979)

• Exemplum in Rhetoric
• Postposition (Grammar)
• What Is an Anecdote?
• Learn How to Use Illustration in Rhetoric and Composition
• What Is Personification?
• Definition and Examples of Science Writing
• A Guide to All Types of Narration, With Examples
• What Is A Parable
• What Does It Mean to Be a Writer?
• Definition and Examples of Lexicography
• Bombast in Speech and Writing
• Indirect Speech Definition and Examples
• Verb of Perception
• lexicographer
• Collaborative Writing
• Letter Writing - Definition and Examples

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Examples: Edited Papers

Need editing and proofreading services, persuasive writing guide: techniques & examples.

Are you a student who needs to write persuasive essays? Or are you someone who works in a field that requires you to persuade people to take action or convince them about something? In both cases, you might benefit from learning what persuasive writing is and how to use it for success.  

In this article, we explore the definition of persuasive writing and get some persuasive writing tips to improve your writing style. 

Need persuasive writing support? Explore our editing services. Learn more

What is persuasive writing? 

Persuasive writing is a style of writing that focuses on convincing the reader to agree with a specific opinion or point of view or take a particular action. This form of writing is common in advertising, essays , opinion pieces, and speeches. 

It enables the writer to take a clear stand on a given topic. Once the writer takes a stance, they state their opinion and set the tone for the rest of the content. The persuasive writing style relies on logical reasoning and facts (data, statistics, expert opinions, anecdotes, etc.) to ensure the argument sounds believable and cogent.

Elements of persuasive writing

To achieve the chief goal of persuasive writing, which is convincing the reader to accept a given viewpoint, your content should have certain key elements for adequate impact. 

Let us discuss these elements:

• Convey a strong opinion or idea: Content that follows the persuasive style of writing requires the writer to state their opinions, thoughts, or ideas clearly.
• Establish the writer’s authority: Content in this form enables the writer to establish their credibility and authority. For example, writers express strong opinions and viewpoints through persuasive essays.
• Appeal to the readers: When done right, readers engage heavily with such content since it creates a positive impact at a significant level.
• Present logical arguments: This form of writing involves adding logical statements and arguments that support and strengthen the writer’s viewpoint. 
• Place facts within the content: When a content piece is fact-driven, it makes for a great persuasive writing example. This is because statistics, data, and expert opinions lend authenticity to it. 
• State opposing views and arguments: Such content acknowledges and discusses opposing views to negate or nullify them and influence the readers’ views.
• Strong word choice: Persuasive writing requires the use of expressive, powerful, and stirring words that make readers believe in an idea or urge them to act in a specific manner.

Examples of persuasive writing

In this section, let us study some examples of persuasive writing.

• Persuasive speech: In the following example, it is evident that the writer aims to encourage people to take action by contributing through donations.

“Imagine a world where everyone has access to clean water. A world where children can go to school without worrying about hunger. A world where people can live their lives free from disease. This is the world we can create by supporting organizations that work to end poverty and inequality.”

“By donating to our organization, you are making a direct impact on the lives of people in need. Your contribution will help provide essential resources, such as food, shelter, and healthcare, to those who are struggling. Together, we can build a more just and equitable world.”

• A persuasive letter to a friend: In the following example, the writer describes their experience of visiting New York. 

“I had the best time visiting New York last summer. The food was amazing, the people were friendly, and there were so many things to do. You should definitely check out the Statue of Liberty. I’m sure you’ll love it as much as I did. You should visit New York this year!”

Benefits of persuasive writing

Persuasive writing is a powerful tool that can be used to influence readers, change opinions and attitudes, and prompt action. The benefits of employing this writing style can bring about several favorable changes to your content. 

Let us discuss some key advantages of employing this writing style:

• Critical thinking enhancement: Persuasive writing requires you to analyze information, evaluate arguments, and offer logical reasoning for every idea expressed in a writeup. This can enhance your critical thinking skills.
• Enhanced communication skills: As a writer, you can connect with your audiences through such writing. Improvement in communication is an important plus, particularly in professional and educational settings where convincing your audience is critical.
• Confidence and personal growth: Persuasive essays can boost your confidence and help you develop your ability to articulate your thoughts and beliefs well.
• Decision-making support: Persuasive writing can provide readers with valuable information and different perspectives, helping them make informed decisions.

Techniques to enhance persuasive writing

By now, it is clear that persuasive writing is highly useful in various settings. However, without persuasive writing tips and techniques, it might seem challenging to employ this writing style with flair. 

So here are some persuasive writing techniques that you can use to ensure your content engages its audience and compels them to change their minds or take action. 

• Organized writing: The writing should be organized to make it easy for the reader to follow every point. Arguments should have a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a strong conclusion.
• Compelling expressions: Expert writers often use rhetorical devices such as repetition, rhetorical questions, and parallelism to emphasize their points.
• Emotional appeal: While facts are crucial here, appealing to the reader’s emotions can be highly effective. Writers often use emotional language or stories to connect with the reader on a personal level.
• Multiple perspectives: Discussing and addressing opposing viewpoints strengthens the argument. By acknowledging and refuting counterarguments, you can show that you have considered multiple perspectives.
• Call to action: Persuasive writing accompanied by a call to action is crucial in many cases, particularly when you seek a financial commitment from the readers in response to the idea presented.

Importance of persuasive writing

The persuasive style of writing creates a deep impact on the reader when it is done correctly. Educators, motivational speakers, advertisers, politicians, and many others use it in everyday communication to influence and inspire their audiences. 

Students frequently use it to write argumentative essays , and they can benefit from learning how to write in a persuasive style. 

Let us quickly understand the importance of persuasive writing: 

• Improves decision-making abilities
• Builds credibility and trust
• Drives business success
• Strengthens critical thinking
• Encourages engagement and action
• Enhances communication skills
• Promotes knowledge sharing
• Empowers advocacy and social change

Common mistakes in persuasive writing and how to avoid them

Convincing your audience to accept a point of view or think in a specific way is quite tough. When you add the complexity of communicating your message to multiple entities or stakeholders, the problem increases manifold. 

In such cases, persuasive writing can come to your rescue. However, to ensure it is effective, you must steer clear of certain common mistakes. Here are some things you should avoid:

• Making vague or unclear opening statements, arguments, or thesis statements
• Offering insufficient or unreliable evidence to support your arguments and claims
• Ignoring or dismissing counterarguments, leaving matters unaddressed 
• Relying too much on emotional appeals or ideas
• Employing a disorganized structure to convey your message 
• Using an inconsistent or inappropriate tone
• Generalizing and making sweeping statements
• Failing to include a clear call to action  
• Using technical, complex terminology or jargon and overly complex language

Persuasive writing prompts

Here is a list of sample persuasive writing prompts that you can study to independently write prompts:

General 

• Should schools offer longer school days?
• Is technology harmful or beneficial to society?
• Should animals be kept in zoos?

Social issues

• What are the benefits of diversity?
• Should there be a minimum wage?
• Is social media harmful to mental health?
• Are standardized tests effective in measuring student learning?
• Is homework beneficial or harmful to students?
• Are online classes as effective as traditional classroom instruction?

Personal experiences

• What is the most important value in your life?
• What is your biggest regret?
• What is your greatest achievement?

Current events

• Is artificial intelligence a threat to humanity?
• Should there be stricter regulations on social media companies?
• What are the consequences of global warming?

Persuasive writing can make you an influential communicator. By recognizing the power it wields and using it to skillfully convey your message to the intended audience, you can change the minds of not only individuals but also diverse groups. 

For documents that matter, like college admissions essays, you should opt for professional editing and proofreading . You can also benefit from editing and proofreading services for various other documents. PaperTrue, a leading SaaS-based solutions provider, offers artificial intelligence-assisted editing and proofreading. Talk to our team to learn more about our products.  

Want to continue reading? Here are some other articles for you:

• Structure of an Essay: 5 Tips to Write an Outstanding Essay
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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of transition words in persuasive writing, why is persuasive writing considered nonfiction, why does persuasive writing sound powerful, what is the purpose of using rhetorical questions in persuasive writing.

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Adjectives are vital in adding depth, detail, and description to the words we use. But what exactly is an adjective? This blog will delve into the function of adjectives, their various types, and how they enhance the quality of your academic writing. This guide will clarify what an adjective is and how you can use it effectively. Read on to learn more.

What is an Adjective? Examples and Definition

In its simplest form, an adjective is a word that describes or modifies a noun or pronoun. Adjectives provide more information about the object, person, or thing being referred to. They answer questions like “What kind?” “Which one?” “How many?” and “How much?”

Consider the sentence: "The beautiful garden bloomed in spring." Here, the word “beautiful” is the adjective, modifying the noun “garden” by giving it a descriptive quality.

Different Types of Adjectives

Adjectives aren’t limited to just describing how something looks; they can also convey other important qualities. Let's explore the different types of adjectives and their functions.

1. Descriptive Adjectives

The most common type of adjective is the descriptive adjective. These provide specific details about a noun or pronoun. Descriptive adjectives describe characteristics like size, shape, colour, and more.

Example: The tall man walked into the room. She wore a red dress.

In these examples, “tall” and “red” give more information about the man and the dress, respectively.

2. Quantitative Adjectives

Quantitative adjectives provide information about the quantity of a noun, usually answering the question “How much?” or “How many?” These are often used when discussing numbers, amounts, or degrees.

Example: There are seven apples in the basket. I have enough time to complete the project.

In both cases, the adjectives “seven” and “enough” refer to quantity.

3. Demonstrative Adjectives

Demonstrative adjectives point to specific nouns and answer the question “Which one?” These adjectives are this, that, these, and those. They are used to indicate proximity or distance in space or time.

Example: This book is interesting. Those shoes are too expensive.

In these examples, “this” refers to a nearby book, while “those” points to shoes that are more distant.

4. Possessive Adjectives

Possessive adjectives show ownership or possession. Common examples include my, your, his, her, our, their, and its.

Example: My car is parked outside. Their house is at the end of the street.

Here, “my” and “their” indicate who owns the car and house, respectively.

5. Interrogative Adjectives

Interrogative adjectives are used to ask questions about nouns. The most commonly used interrogative adjectives are which, what, and whose.

Example: Which subject do you prefer? Whose pen is this?

In these sentences, the adjectives “which” and “whose” are asking for more information about the subject and the pen.

Degrees of Adjectives

When using adjectives, it’s essential to understand their degrees, as these help convey varying intensities of description. There are three main degrees of adjectives: positive, comparative, and superlative.

1. Positive Degree

The positive degree of an adjective simply describes a noun without making any comparison.

Example: The cake is sweet. He is a good teacher.

In these examples, “sweet” and “good” are in their simplest form and do not compare anything.

2. Comparative Degree

The comparative degree is used when comparing two things. Usually, you add “-er” to short adjectives or precede longer adjectives with “more.”

Example: The second test was easier than the first. She is more intelligent than her classmates.

3. Superlative Degree

The superlative degree compares more than two items, indicating the highest degree of quality. For short adjectives, you typically add “-est,” while for longer adjectives, you use “most.”

Example: This is the fastest car I’ve ever driven. He is the most talented player on the team.

Importance of Adjectives in Academic Writing

Adjectives are essential for clear and precise academic writing. They add detail and specificity, helping your reader grasp complex ideas, concepts, or phenomena with clarity. In academic contexts, adjectives are crucial when describing research findings, theoretical frameworks, or methodologies. Whether you're discussing statistical data, explaining the characteristics of a population, or analysing results, adjectives can help refine your arguments and convey a more accurate picture.

Consider the difference between these two academic sentences:

The study observed changes in behaviour. The study observed significant, positive changes in behaviour.

In the second sentence, the adjectives “significant” and “positive” provide crucial information, clarifying the nature and impact of the changes. This additional detail enhances the academic precision, making your argument more credible and easier to understand.

Adjectives are a fundamental part of speech, providing critical information about the nouns and pronouns they describe. From adding detail to creating comparisons, adjectives enrich your writing by giving it depth and clarity. Understanding the types of adjectives and how to use them effectively will enhance your communication, making your writing more engaging and precise.

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Beyond Plagiarism

Best Practices for the Responsible Use of Sources

Patchwriting as a Technique

I’m trying to paraphrase, but i can’t get far enough from the original language to make it my own. what can i do.

Paraphrasing can be difficult when you’re struggling to understand what a source is saying in the first place. Authors (and you, too!) spend a lot of time carefully choosing the words that they use, but sometimes unfamiliar jargon (the technical terms used in a particular field) can make it hard for you to respond to the original text. Learning academic jargon is just like becoming fluent in a foreign language: you might need to practice using new vocabulary and sentence structures in order to become comfortable with communicating in a new way.

Patchwriting happens when you rephrase a portion of source material, but your language remains too close to the vocabulary and/or sentence structure of the original text. All patchwriting is a kind of paraphrase, but successful paraphrase is not patchwritten.

If you use patchwriting in the final draft of an essay, your teachers will likely see this as an act of plagiarism since you are not directly quoting the original author or successfully using paraphrase or summary to put the author’s ideas into your own words. But patchwriting can have its place in the early stages of note-taking: it can be a useful step in the process of becoming fluent in the language of a particular field or subject, as long as the patchwriting does not remain in your final draft.

So where and when is patchwriting useful?

Let’s say you encounter the following quotation while doing research on the role of women in early 20th century college athletics:

“The logic of separate spheres easily applied to athletics, where physical differences required separate activities. At college the goals of the womanly woman and the manly man included physical fitness. Advocacy of physical exercise took hold during the first generation [of female college students, 1860s-1880], with doctors and educators observing both the dyspeptic tendencies of the young educated male and the chronic weakness of the female participant.”

Solomon, Barbara Miller.  In the Company of Educated Women: A History of Women and Higher Education in America.  New Haven, CT, Yale University Press, 1985, p. 103.

Paraphrase Attempt 1:

Mid-19th century society used physical differences to justify dividing activities into gender-specific separate spheres. Even though college men and women were both encouraged to exercise, the exercises they were to perform were divided because of these sex differences. This was because experts wanted to make sure that college education did not weaken the bodies of students who needed to be properly manly men, and womanly women after their school days were over.

If this paraphrase was in your final draft, you’d have a lot of problems. First of all, the language is too close to the original text without any quotations or citations–phrases like “separate spheres” and “manly men, and womanly women” are taken directly from the original text without attribution, while others like “manly, not sickly, young men” are technically not plagiarized, but they are a little too close to the original text. Text in red in the paragraph above is language that is much too close to the language of the original text. This is a classic example of patchwriting, where unfamiliar terminology (“separate spheres”) is borrowed from the original text.

But if this is the case, why are we talking about patchwriting in the first place?

While not appropriate for a final draft, patchwriting can be part of the process to help you to better understand your source material. Noticing where you have the most difficulty putting the original argument into your own words can point you to concepts that you might need to look up. In this example, you might need to do some research to understand what the “logic of separate spheres” really means. See Module II: Finding Sources if you need help figuring out where to look for this kind of definition.

Logic of separate spheres refers to one of the central ideals of 19th century American culture: that women and men had distinct (separate) physical, mental, and emotional capabilities that corresponded to the assignment of different social roles. Men were seen as best suited for public life and women for private, or domestic, activities.

If we go back to our paraphrase, we can see that this patchwriting is an attempt to figure out what these “separate spheres” are in terms of the argument that the original author is making. Here, patchwriting is being used to help you better understand the original text.

Now that you’ve clarified what these terms mean, you need to figure out what is really important about the original text for the argument you’re making. Doing so is important because even a short quotation can be used to support several different kinds of arguments in your own essay. Your act of patchwriting can help you identify the different components you noticed in the original author’s argument.

You could break down the author’s argument using the author’s original language, but in this case, it’s difficult for you because the author’s original argument is too full of jargon. Your patchwritten paraphrase attempt can make it easier to distill the most important parts of the author’s argument.

Now let’s look at your patchwritten paraphrase sentence by sentence:

Sentence 1) Mid-19th century society used physical differences to justify dividing activities into gender-specific separate spheres.

Sentence 2) Even though college men and women were both encouraged to exercise, the exercises they were to perform were divided because of these sex differences.

Sentence 3) This was because experts wanted to make sure that college education did not weaken the bodies of students who needed to be properly manly men, and womanly women after their school days were over.

For the sake of this exercise, let’s say you want to emphasize the point made in Sentence 2 in order to support the following argument: women were encouraged to be involved in an athletic culture, but football was seen as a sport that was too aggressive for women to play.

Once you’ve figured this out, return to the original source to see if a simple quotation would serve you. In this case, none of the three sentences in the original quote would provide all the information you want to offer, so you’re going to have to turn to paraphrase.

Let’s turn your patchwriting into paraphrase, using what you know about how you want to use this information and what you know about the importance of citing sources.

Paraphrase attempt 2:

Historian Barbara Miller Solomon has argued that exercise was seen as an important part of a mid-19th century college curriculum for both men and women, but cultural ideas about masculinity and femininity meant that each group was using exercise to achieve different roles in society (103).

As you can see, patchwriting helped us to identify unfamiliar jargon (“separate spheres”), determine what the original source was trying to say (cultural ideas about masculinity and femininity that determined different roles in society) and identify what part of the original source text we wanted to use to support our argument.

(Solomon 103)

Sometimes you might need to paraphrase the same passage several times, as we did here, to get away from the original language and sentence structure of the original.

Make sure that any paraphrase is always cited so that your reader can go back to the original source text if she wants to learn more about the author’s argument.

There are a lot of debates around the usefulness of patchwriting, and we’ve drawn our argument from scholars and researchers who see it as a potentially productive step in your writing process.

If you want to learn more about patchwriting, check out this video by Rebecca Moore Howard , the scholar who developed this concept.

Note: If you don’t see the video, allow Flash to run.

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• How to write an expository essay

How to Write an Expository Essay | Structure, Tips & Examples

Published on July 14, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

“Expository” means “intended to explain or describe something.” An expository essay provides a clear, focused explanation of a particular topic, process, or set of ideas. It doesn’t set out to prove a point, just to give a balanced view of its subject matter.

Expository essays are usually short assignments intended to test your composition skills or your understanding of a subject. They tend to involve less research and original arguments than argumentative essays .

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Table of contents

When should you write an expository essay, how to approach an expository essay, introducing your essay, writing the body paragraphs, concluding your essay, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about expository essays.

In school and university, you might have to write expository essays as in-class exercises, exam questions, or coursework assignments.

Sometimes it won’t be directly stated that the assignment is an expository essay, but there are certain keywords that imply expository writing is required. Consider the prompts below.

The word “explain” here is the clue: An essay responding to this prompt should provide an explanation of this historical process—not necessarily an original argument about it.

Sometimes you’ll be asked to define a particular term or concept. This means more than just copying down the dictionary definition; you’ll be expected to explore different ideas surrounding the term, as this prompt emphasizes.

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An expository essay should take an objective approach: It isn’t about your personal opinions or experiences. Instead, your goal is to provide an informative and balanced explanation of your topic. Avoid using the first or second person (“I” or “you”).

The structure of your expository essay will vary according to the scope of your assignment and the demands of your topic. It’s worthwhile to plan out your structure before you start, using an essay outline .

A common structure for a short expository essay consists of five paragraphs: An introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

Like all essays, an expository essay begins with an introduction . This serves to hook the reader’s interest, briefly introduce your topic, and provide a thesis statement summarizing what you’re going to say about it.

Hover over different parts of the example below to see how a typical introduction works.

In many ways, the invention of the printing press marked the end of the Middle Ages. The medieval period in Europe is often remembered as a time of intellectual and political stagnation. Prior to the Renaissance, the average person had very limited access to books and was unlikely to be literate. The invention of the printing press in the 15th century allowed for much less restricted circulation of information in Europe, paving the way for the Reformation.

The body of your essay is where you cover your topic in depth. It often consists of three paragraphs, but may be more for a longer essay. This is where you present the details of the process, idea or topic you’re explaining.

It’s important to make sure each paragraph covers its own clearly defined topic, introduced with a topic sentence . Different topics (all related to the overall subject matter of the essay) should be presented in a logical order, with clear transitions between paragraphs.

Hover over different parts of the example paragraph below to see how a body paragraph is constructed.

The invention of the printing press in 1440 changed this situation dramatically. Johannes Gutenberg, who had worked as a goldsmith, used his knowledge of metals in the design of the press. He made his type from an alloy of lead, tin, and antimony, whose durability allowed for the reliable production of high-quality books. This new technology allowed texts to be reproduced and disseminated on a much larger scale than was previously possible. The Gutenberg Bible appeared in the 1450s, and a large number of printing presses sprang up across the continent in the following decades. Gutenberg’s invention rapidly transformed cultural production in Europe; among other things, it would lead to the Protestant Reformation.

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The conclusion of an expository essay serves to summarize the topic under discussion. It should not present any new information or evidence, but should instead focus on reinforcing the points made so far. Essentially, your conclusion is there to round off the essay in an engaging way.

Hover over different parts of the example below to see how a conclusion works.

The invention of the printing press was important not only in terms of its immediate cultural and economic effects, but also in terms of its major impact on politics and religion across Europe. In the century following the invention of the printing press, the relatively stationary intellectual atmosphere of the Middle Ages gave way to the social upheavals of the Reformation and the Renaissance. A single technological innovation had contributed to the total reshaping of the continent.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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An expository essay is a broad form that varies in length according to the scope of the assignment.

Expository essays are often assigned as a writing exercise or as part of an exam, in which case a five-paragraph essay of around 800 words may be appropriate.

You’ll usually be given guidelines regarding length; if you’re not sure, ask.

An expository essay is a common assignment in high-school and university composition classes. It might be assigned as coursework, in class, or as part of an exam.

Sometimes you might not be told explicitly to write an expository essay. Look out for prompts containing keywords like “explain” and “define.” An expository essay is usually the right response to these prompts.

An argumentative essay tends to be a longer essay involving independent research, and aims to make an original argument about a topic. Its thesis statement makes a contentious claim that must be supported in an objective, evidence-based way.

An expository essay also aims to be objective, but it doesn’t have to make an original argument. Rather, it aims to explain something (e.g., a process or idea) in a clear, concise way. Expository essays are often shorter assignments and rely less on research.

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