How to Write a Conclusion Paragraph for an Essay

Here is an article that best describes how you can write a conclusion paragraph for an essay and more.

When it comes to writing a college essay, you need to present a strong thesis statement and a good introduction. If you can do this comfortably, the next step is to collect information that supports your thesis.

That’s not all. Outlining your essay’s main point as well as writing your body paragraph is also important. And let’s not forget that you need to write a conclusion paragraph before submitting your essay.

You can easily write a conclusion for an essay, but it’s important you know what to do. If your introduction is good, you need to also write a compelling conclusion to make your work unique.

After reading this guide, you will be familiar with how to write a conclusion paragraph for an essay. We will also show you what to include or exclude in a conclusion.

What Is a Conclusion?

A conclusion is the last part of something, the end, finish, or close, according to the dictionary. It could mean more in a different context than we just explain.

There are several meanings for the word “conclusion” but when we talk about writing academic papers, the meaning is quite different. When writing an essay or any other academic writing, a concluding statement refers to the suggestion, opinion, or position arrived at by rational reasoning.

Conclusions are also included in various writing works, especially in articles found online.

Also Read: How to Write A Scholarship Essay

What Is a Good Conclusion?

Although writing a good conclusion is not always easy, there are no strict rules for anyone to write a conclusion. But let’s not forget that there are some basic principles that you should be aware of.

So what are these basic principles to consider when writing a conclusion?

In no time, you will discover what a good conclusion is and how to write one.

How to Write a Good Conclusion?

Since we are discussing how to write a conclusion paragraph for an essay, it’s also important you know how to write a good conclusion.

A conclusion will always come at the end of an essay, so it’s important to understand how to write a good one.

Once you are ready to write your conclusion and end your essay, you need to restate your thesis. The thesis is the central idea of your essay and the readers will expect you to present a good work.

Now once you have restated your thesis in a more understandable way for the reader, you need to repeat your supporting points. Make sure you extract every main point from each of the supporting paragraphs or individual arguments in your essay.

It’s important you understand how to write a good conclusion. Once you can do that, it will be easier to write a conclusion paragraph for an essay.

What Your Conclusion Should Include

Writing a good conclusion should not be your only concern. Apart from restating your thesis and summarizing your main points, have you ever wondered what else a conclusion should have?

Below are certain strategies to end your essay uniquely.

Ask Yourself, So What?

Perhaps you have been in that situation where you were told that the end of an essay should always answer the question, “So What?” or “Why does it Matter”?

It’s important to ask yourself this question before drifting through your thesis. You need to understand this to write a good conclusion paragraph for an essay.

Add Perspective

Now if you notice a fantastic quote in your research and it was excluded from your essay, it can be included in the conclusion.

The section is the perfect place to include any quote that was excluded from your research work. When you put that excluded quote in your conclusion, it makes your work more unique.

Doing this adds texture and specificity to your overall argument.

Let’s say you have written an essay about J.D. Salinger’s Catch in the Rye. You can consider using a quote or quotes from the book.

Assuming your thesis is about J.D. Salinger’s desire to preserve childhood innocence, you need to impress the readers with something unique.

The readers will appreciate your work if you decide to end with a biographer’s statement about Salinger’s point of view on his youth.

Consider the Clincher

Generally, your closing sentence or clincher always comes at the end of an essay. When you think about how to write a good conclusion, always consider the clincher.

Besides knowing how to write a conclusion paragraph for an essay, the readers need to understand your work. Your conclusion should provide what the readers need, and give them a sense of closure.

Your final sentences should end on a positive note, allowing your audience to appreciate your work.

What Your Conclusion Should not Include

There are certain things you should avoid if you want to write a good conclusion paragraph for an essay. So what are the things to exclude from a conclusion?

Firstly, you need to avoid phrases such as “in summary” and “in conclusion” as well as “to sum up”. It’s unwise to add these phrases to your conclusion.

Anyone who understands the language in an essay should be aware that they are already at the end of the essay. There is no need to include those phrases in your conclusion.

Secondly, when writing a short essay, you don’t need to repeat each of your supporting arguments. It will be easy for readers to identify that you copied your work from someone else.

Lastly, try as much as you can to avoid introducing new ideas or evidence, as it will confuse readers.

Also Read: How to Write a Recommendation Letter for a Student

How to Write a Conclusion in Three Easy Steps

Here are simple steps to write a good conclusion. Keep in mind that you need to understand these steps to write a good conclusion paragraph for an essay.

Step 1: You Need to Restate Your Thesis Claim and Evidence

The conclusion of an essay is designed to convince readers that your argument is valid and unique.

Generally, the introduction paragraph shows what you have to prove to the reader and how you are going to do it. The introduction paragraph depicts “Here is what I will prove and how”.

On the other hand, the conclusion paragraph depicts “Here is what I have proved and how I did it”. The conclusion paragraph restates the thesis introduced at the start of the essay.

To restate your thesis, here are things you need to do.
Firstly, you need to reread your introduction to recall your paper’s main claim
You need to pay attention to the evidence used to support your thesis throughout your essay
Ensure you use phrases in the past tense such as “as demonstrated”
Lastly, make you reword the thesis and summarize the supporting evidence in your conclusion

Step 2: You Need to Provide New Insight

It’s important to understand how to write a good conclusion paragraph for an essay. What is also important is understanding how to push your ideas one step beyond your thesis.

Presenting an outstanding and unique essay will make readers appreciate your work. After reading your work, readers can easily attest that you have written a good essay.

Bear in mind that the conclusion paragraph should not discuss the idea in detail or even try to propose a new argument. It should only mention that new ideas exist and deserve certain focus in the future.

The new insight you raise in the conclusion should come from the research you have conducted.

Step 3: Create a Personal Connection with the Reader

Now it’s important you include a little detail about yourself when writing a conclusion paragraph. It’s the final step to complete as you write a conclusion paragraph in an essay.

This will help you build a stronger connection with your readers. It will also help readers admire your work.

Generally, formal essay writing avoids first and second-person pronouns like “I” and “you”. The introduction and conclusion paragraphs are the only exceptions to this rule.

Also Read: Motivation Letter for Scholarship Application: PDFs Samples/Guidelines

How Long Should a Conclusion Be?

If you think that there is a universal rule when it comes to the length of a conclusion, you would be surprised to find out that there is none. However, teachers and experienced writers usually recommend keeping things straightforward.

Some would agree that the introduction and conclusion of academic work should be approximately 10% of the entire work.

For instance, if you were assigned a 2,000-word essay, the introduction and conclusion should be 200 words each. In the end, both the introduction and the conclusion should be 400 words combined.

Why do You Need to Know How to Conclude an Essay?

Every essay needs a good conclusion and students also need to understand how to write a conclusion paragraph. A conclusion allows you to include a fantastic quote in your research that was not included in your essay.

It gives you that opportunity to impress your audience as well as demonstrate to the reader why your work is worth it.

How to Conclude Different Types of Essays

There are several types of essays and how you write your conclusion paragraph in an essay depends on what you are working on. We will be showing you how to end different types of essays.

Here are various types of essays and how to end them.

How to End an Argumentative Essay

When it comes to argumentative essays, it’s always about convincing readers of something by involving arguments, logic, facts, as well as emotions.

The conclusion for an argumentative essay has to be persuasive. To engage your audience, you can illustrate a real-life scenario that proves your stance.

Here are some tips on how to make a perfect conclusion in an argumentative essay.

Read the entire essay carefully before you start
Discuss possible implications
Always re-emphasize your ideas

How to End a Compare and Contrast Essay

The compare and contrast essay is always looking at the difference or similarities between two or more people, objects, and phenomena.

So if you are working on a compare and contrast essay, your conclusion should reiterate all the common and distinctive features discussed in the body of the essay.

How to Conclude Descriptive Essays

A descriptive essay aims to present your creativity and writing skills. Descriptive essays allow you to present a scenario with words.

This remains one of the most creative essays, considering it requires showing a story rather than telling one. Since it’s important to know how to write a conclusion paragraph for an essay, it’s also important you know how to write a conclusion for a descriptive essay.

To conclude a descriptive essay, you need to start with a short and simple explanation, showing why you wrote the essay. After that, you should reflect on how your topic affects you as a person.

You should also cover the most important moment of the story in the middle of your conclusion. It will enable readers to understand your work.

How to Conclude an Informative Essay

Informative essays provide certain information and facts to readers. Most people would agree that “Synthesize, don’t summarize” is the perfect technique to conclude an informative essay.

How to End a Narrative Essay

Generally, narrative essays are usually based on storytelling. A narrative essay aims to share interesting stories in specific details.

Here is how you can end a narrative essay.

The conclusion for such a paper should simply end the story and avoid concluding on a hasty cliffhanger.

How to Write a Conclusion for a Lab Report

Here is something that focuses on experiments. A lab report describes the flow of a specific experiment conducted by a student.

A lab report’s conclusion should reflect the outcome of the experiments. To write a good conclusion for a lab report, here are a few tips.

Ensure you restate the goals of your experiment
Describe the methods used in the process
Make sure you include the results of the experiment and analyse your final data
End your conclusion with a simple and clear statement on whether or not the experiment was successful

Conclusion

We have shown you how to write a conclusion paragraph for an essay and what a good conclusion is. I believe you are already familiar with how many words your introduction and conclusion should have depending on the essay assigned to you.

Knowing how to write a conclusion for different types of essays is essential as well as knowing what to include or exclude in a conclusion.

How to Write a Conclusion Paragraph for an Essay

What Is a Conclusion?

What Is a Good Conclusion?

How to Write a Good Conclusion?