A good summary fits the allowed length and still reads as one piece of writing. Trim in the right order, then join the points the way the passage does.
This is the final skill from summary and synthesis. It assumes you have already chosen your points, merged repeats and paraphrased without changing meaning.
In what order should I trim?
Cut the least meaning first. Work down this list until you fit the limit.
- Examples and illustrations.
- Adjectives, adverbs and phrases of emphasis, such as 非常 and 十分.
- Repeated linking phrases, such as writing 由于……因此 when one of them is enough.
- Long names, replaced by a shorter form the reader will still recognise.
- Only then, the weakest of the central points.
Steps 1 to 4 save characters without changing what the summary says.
Worked example
Here is an original first draft from a passage about a school bus service. The task allows 40 characters.
由于学校附近的道路在早上非常拥挤，学校十分积极地推出了校车服务，结果家长们送孩子上学的时间大大缩短了，交通也变得畅通多了。
That draft is 57 Chinese characters, so it is 17 over. Trim in order.
| Step | Change | Count after |
|---|---|---|
| Start | Draft as written | 57 |
| 2 | Delete 十分积极地, 非常, 大大 and 多了 | 46 |
| 3 | Delete 由于 (keep 结果 to show the result) | 44 |
| 4 | Shorten 学校附近的道路在早上 to 学校附近早上道路, drop 们, 了 and 也变得 | 36 |
The trimmed sentence is: 学校附近早上道路拥挤，学校推出校车服务，结果家长送孩子上学的时间缩短，交通畅通。That is 36 characters, under the limit, and the cause, action and two results are still in order.
Count again after every cut. Trimming by eye often leaves you a few characters over, or removes a point by accident.
The mistake: right points, no logic
The common slip is to put correct points side by side with nothing joining them. Each sentence is true, but the reader cannot tell which caused which.
Take the bus passage above.
| Version | Summary | Problem |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong | 道路拥挤。学校推出校车。时间缩短。交通畅通。 | Four correct facts, but no cause and result shown |
| Right | 道路拥挤，学校因此推出校车，结果时间缩短、交通畅通。 | The same facts, joined in the passage’s order |
The wrong version is not over length. It loses marks because the passage was a chain of cause and effect, and the summary does not show the chain.
A logic check in three questions
Read your finished summary once more and ask these.
- Does it follow the passage’s order, or has a result ended up before its cause?
- Does each linking word match the passage, for example 因此 for result and 但是 for contrast?
- Could a reader who has not seen the passage understand who or what each sentence is about?
If the answer to the third is no, a pronoun or a short noun is missing. Add the noun and cut a detail elsewhere to pay for it.
Check yourself
The limit is 40 characters. Trim this original draft so it fits, then check the logic.
村里的老人们非常担心年轻人全部都去城市工作，因此村里举办了许多次学习活动，让年轻人明白回乡创业同样是很好的选择。
Answer
Count the draft: it is 53 characters, so 13 must go. Cut in order. Step 2: delete 非常, 全部, 许多次 and 了. Step 4: 老人们 becomes 老人, and 年轻人 after 让 becomes 他们.
Trimmed: 老人担心年轻人都去城市工作，村里因此举办活动，让他们明白回乡创业也是选择。That is 34 characters.
Logic check: worry comes first, the response follows with 因此, and the aim comes last. The order matches the original, so the summary passes.
What to study next
Now test all four skills together in the summary practice set, and record any repeat slips in the mistake log and paper-error review.
If you want a teacher to watch you trim a real draft and explain each cut, see online one-to-one Chinese tuition.