How to Write a Strong Conclusion for Your Essay

Last updated: November 2019

Ever wondered how to conclude an essay?

For some students, it’s far from the most challenging part of essay writing. They find it more challenging to choose a good topic for an essay, state a thesis, or write a clear essay outline. But our reader Emily has knocked spots off them all when asked to share tips on how to write a conclusion for your essay to impress teachers and help you get an A!

Don’t worry, Emily, you are not alone.

A concluding sentence of your essay isn’t less but sometimes even more challenging to write than its introduction. Our writers know it firsthand, so they give consent graciously to share the ultimate guide on conclusion definition, conclusion paragraph outline, conclusion examples, and expert tips on how to how to write a conclusion for a research paper.

So, keep on reading to master the art of writing essay conclusions once and for all.

What is an Essay Conclusion?

Conclusion definition is simple:

It’s the last paragraph of your essay or any other college pager, summarizing its thesis and arguments. It helps readers see why your essay should matter to them.

Why you need to know how to end an essay:

A conclusion provides closure and drives the main points of your essay one last time. It’s the chance to impress and give readers an understanding of why your paper matters. In other words, your essay conclusion should answer the question, “So what?”

• Give the audience something to think about after they finish reading your essay.
• A conclusion should give completeness to your paper. Ending it on a positive note would be a good practice.

It’s not about introducing new ideas but summing up your writing. The goal is to restate the thesis, summarize the essay’s body, and leave readers with a final impression.

Key aspects to remember:

1. A strong essay conclusion restates, not rewrites your thesis from the introduction.
2. A strong essay conclusion consists of three sentences minimum.
3. It concludes thoughts, not presents new ideas.

Example source: Purdue OWL

So, here’s how to write a conclusion for your essay.

The Purpose of a Conclusion Paragraph

Any academic paper needs a good conclusion, just like a book. The right conclusion paragraph can fix the situation and explain everything competently, spoil the impression and confuse the readers. Different research papers may also have different rules about writing such a paragraph, so it is essential to understand the basis for the need for a conclusion. To understand how to write a concluding paragraph, you need to understand its basics:

• such a conclusion is necessary to summarize both the thesis of the paper and the arguments presented and to evoke more emotions in the readers;
• it allows emphasizing specific ideas to evoke the right impression in the readers;
• in this paragraph, sometimes one can add his/her own impressions to conclude the paper with personal experiences.

At the same time, writing a conclusion should not be accompanied by summarizing information not discussed in your research paper. That is, you should use only the data you have already given. You can only work with the paragraph to further emphasize or rephrase various points. You cannot introduce a new argument here because that would be a critical error.

It is also important to realize that conclusion styles can be different. You can use first-person pronouns in part of the research papers. This will help you make a personal connection with the reader and add extra emotional coloring. Even by the rules, you can do this because it is one of the two exceptions in a formal essay. The first one is also the introduction.

How to write the conclusion of an essay, you should build the right structure. With the last paragraph, you can change the readers’ attitude towards your thesis if you give them additional food for thought. This place can be safely used for a new angle of your research paper. Try to add a new topic or a new idea that could make readers think about everything that has been written before.

Conclusion Paragraph Outline

The number of sentences in your conclusion will depend on how many paragraphs (statements) you have in the essay.

Conclusion paragraph outline:

1) A conclusion starter:

• It’s the sentence restaining a thesis of your essay. So, if you wonder how to start a conclusion, rephrase your thesis statement and write it first.

2) A summary of the main parts of an essay:

• Here you’ll have 2-3 sentences wrapping up the arguments of your essay. Explain how they fit together.

3) A concluding sentence:

• It’s a final sentence of your essay, providing a sense of closure and connecting readers back to the introduction.

Here goes a standard structure with conclusion examples for you to understand how to conclude an essay:

Sentence #1: restate the thesis by making the same point with other words (paraphrase).

~ Example:

• Thesis: “Dogs are better pets than cats.”
• Paraphrased: “Dogs make the best pets in the world.”

Sentence #2-4: review your arguments; summarize them by paraphrasing how you proved the thesis.

~ Example:

• “Dogs are cleaner, better at showing affection, and ultimately easier to train.”

Sentence #5: connect back to the essay hook and relate your closing statement to the opening one; transit to human nature to impress a reader and give them food for thought.

~ Example:

• “Change your life for the better – go get a dog.”

Finally, combine all sentences to the improved and expanded essay conclusion. Based on the above examples, it might look as follows:

• “There is no doubt that dogs make the best pets in the world. They provide a cleaner environment for your home, are not afraid to show their feelings, and can be trained to do a variety of tricks and jobs. Every second that goes by, you are missing out on happiness. Get out of your chair and make a positive difference in your life – go get a dog!”

Also, you will need a transition word to make readers understand you are going to conclude an essay. The most common are “In conclusion..,” “To sum up,” and “As previously stated…,” but don’t use them! (If you don’t want to drive your teacher nuts, of course.)

Try “So…” instead. Or, visit the web page of the University of Richmond’s Writing Center to find more transitional words for a concluding sentence of your essay.

Bang!

You’ve been hit by the structure of essay conclusions.

And now:

Top Strategies to Use for Writing Essay Conclusions

Here are the most effective strategies to use when writing a conclusion sentence of your college paper. Also you can use our essay maker for stundetns.

Echo

Paraphrase the essay introduction to bring a full-circle to readers. Ending an essay with the same scenario might help to prove your point and create a better understanding.

Example (source):

Introduction:

• “From the parking lot, I could see the towers of the castle of the Magic Kingdom standing stately against the blue sky. To the right, the tall peak of The Matterhorn rose even higher. From the left, I could hear the jungle sounds of Adventureland. As I entered the gate, Main Street stretched before me with its quaint shops evoking an old-fashioned small town so charming it could never have existed. I was entranced. Disneyland may have been built for children, but it brings out the child in adults.”

Echo-conclusion:

• “I thought I would spend a few hours at Disneyland, but here I was at 1:00 A.M., closing time, leaving the front gates with the now dark towers of the Magic Kingdom behind me. I could see tired children, toddling along and struggling to keep their eyes open as best they could. Others slept in their parents’ arms as we waited for the parking lot tram that would take us to our cars. My forty-year-old feet ached, and I felt a bit sad to think that in a couple of days I would be leaving California, my vacation over, to go back to my desk. But then I smiled to think that for at least a day I felt ten years old again.”

Prediction

Try looking to the future for emphasizing the importance of your essay and give readers food for thought. “When” and “if” are power words to support your points in this strategy for essay conclusions.

Example:

• “Physical punishment can be a useful method of discipline. However it should be the last choice for parents. If we want to build a world with less violence we must begin at home, and we must teach our children to be responsible.”

Step-up

You might want to amplify the main point of an essay or put it in a different perspective for setting a larger context when you write my term paper. That would help readers gain a new vision on the topic and bring ideas altogether to create a new but related meaning.

Examples (source):

• “Finally, I feel that we cannot generalize about children or adults being better learners. It depends on the situation and the motivation of the person, and the level of enthusiasm he or she has for learning.”
• “Society would be healthier if more people took part in sports of all kinds. We should continue to try to prevent accidents and injuries. However, we should also ensure that sports are challenging, exciting, and, above all, fun.”

How to Conclude an Essay So It Wouldn’t Fail

With all of the above, you feel like a guru who writes cool persuasive essays and narratives, don’t you? The structure and strategies are clear, and nothing can stop you on the way toward high grades for college papers. Go for it!

But first, a warning:

When writing a strong essay conclusion, be sure to avoid these teeny-tiny pitfalls able to sink your paper despite it was legen… wait for it…dary!

1. Don’t write any new information. Your essay conclusion is about summarizing the thesis and statements.
2. Don’t share personal thoughts unless you write a first-person opinion piece.
3. Don’t restate each and all the details. You have body paragraphs for that.
4. Don’t just restate the thesis if you can provide some further – not new! – sophistication to original ideas.
5. Don’t write lousy words in the conclusion, but use concise language instead.

Long Story Short…

Your essay needs a conclusion to drive the main points and give an understanding of why it matters. Writing a strong concluding sentence might be challenging, but a clear structure, together with several strategies to operate, provide you a room to work. Paying for a research paper can be a great way to ensure that your essay is well-written and properly structured, giving you the best chance of success.

To end an essay like a boss, consider its type and audience. A conclusion is your last chance to impress readers and give them something to think about, so do your best to summarize statements and answer a “So what?” question the audience might have after reading your paper.

So, now you’ve got the answer on how to write a conclusion. Ready to conclude an essay like a boss? If still in doubt, ask our writers for write my essay help. 😉