Mastering Main Ideas: Quick Tips for Summarizing Written Text in 2025

Are you preparing for the PTE Academic Writing "Summarize Written Text" task or similar summary tasks for IELTS and TOEFL? In 2025, strong reading comprehension skills are more crucial than ever. Global exam updates and digital assessment trends increasingly focus on your ability to find main ideas quickly and summarize them clearly. Whether you're aiming for a top score or just want to communicate better in English, mastering the skill of extracting and summarizing main ideas is essential. This guide will give you practical, research-backed strategies to identify main ideas, avoid common mistakes, and write high-scoring summaries-plus real examples and practice tips.

Why Is Finding the Main Idea So Important for PTE, IELTS, and TOEFL?

The ability to identify and summarize the main idea is tested across all major English proficiency exams:

PTE Academic: "Summarize Written Text" (SWT) tasks require you to condense a paragraph or passage into one sentence capturing the core argument.
IELTS: Reading and writing tasks regularly ask for summary, gist, or heading-matching responses.
TOEFL: Reading "gist" and writing integrated tasks focus on extracting main points and filtering out details.

Scoring criteria across these exams emphasize:

Task fulfillment (Did you actually summarize the main idea?)
Content selection (Did you avoid minor details/examples?)
Grammar and wording (Is your English clear, correct, and concise?)

If you struggle to find the main idea, you risk missing the point, writing off-topic, or including too much "noise"-all of which hurt your score.

What Is the Main Idea? How Is It Different From Supporting Details?

Understanding the Main Idea

The main idea is the author's central argument, thesis, or core message in the text. It's the answer to the question:

"What is the writer trying to say or prove in this passage?"

Think of it as the summary statement you would give to a friend who doesn't have time to read the whole thing.

Supporting Details and Examples

These are the facts, data, stories, or explanations the author uses to illustrate or prove the main idea-but they are not the core idea themselves.

Example:

Paragraph:
"Over the past decade, renewable energy sources like solar and wind have become more affordable and accessible worldwide. For example, the cost of solar panels fell by 80%, while global wind capacity tripled. These advances are driven by technological innovation and government policies that encourage clean energy."

Main idea: Renewable energy sources have become more affordable and accessible worldwide because of innovation and supportive policies.

Supporting details: The cost of solar panels; wind capacity tripled; technological innovation; government policies.

How to Quickly Identify the Main Idea in a Written Text

1. Skim the Text Strategically

Research shows that skimming helps you get the gist without reading every single word. Here's how experts recommend skimming for main ideas ([Sources 2, 3, 4, 5, 9]):

Read the introduction carefully.
For each paragraph, focus on the first and last sentence.
These are often topic sentences and summary sentences respectively.
Notice repeated words, ideas, or themes.
If a specific phrase or concept is mentioned several times, it's probably important.
Skip over excessive examples, dates, or background details-unless the summary task specifically requires them.

2. Ask Yourself: What Is the Author Arguing or Explaining?

After skimming, pause and answer in your own words:

"What's the central point, claim, or explanation in this text?"

Start with a short phrase, then expand it if necessary.

3. Distinguish Main Ideas from Minor Details and Examples

Main Idea: The general statement or claim made by the author.
Details/examples: Numbers, anecdotes, quotes, specific dates, or lists that support the main idea.
Do not include most details or lists in your summary unless necessary!

Pro Tip: The main idea can often stand alone. If your summary sentence sounds awkward or incomplete without a detail, double-check if the detail is crucial.

4. Look for Repeated Themes or Keywords

If you see certain concepts or words appear multiple times across the text, it's a clue to the main theme.
Underline, circle, or highlight them as you read.

5. Practice with Short Paragraphs

Read a short passage (3-5 sentences)
Cover it and ask: "What's the primary message?"
Write one sentence that expresses that idea (optionally, add a key subordinate point if necessary).

Exam-Ready Strategies: Main Idea Extraction for SWT in 2025

Where Are Main Ideas Most Often Found?

In textbooks/journal articles/general passages:

First sentence of the paragraph: Usually the topic/claim.
Last sentence of the paragraph: May sum up or restate the main point.
Titles, subheadings: Give context or global main idea.
Introduction/Conclusion paragraphs: State the overall thesis.

Caution: Not all texts follow this pattern, but in PTE Academic and similar tests, they often do.

Practice Example

Passage:
"Plastic pollution in oceans has become a worldwide environmental crisis, threatening marine life and disrupting food chains. While recent international agreements aim to address the issue, lack of enforcement and funding limits their effectiveness."

What is the main idea?

What information is detail/support/example?

Answer:

Main idea: Plastic pollution is a global environmental crisis that current international solutions do not adequately address.
Details/examples: Threatens marine life, disrupts food chains, agreements exist but are not effectively enforced.

Write a summary sentence based only on the main idea.

How to Write a Powerful Summary Sentence for SWT

Your Summarize Written Text (SWT) response in PTE Academic, and your summaries for IELTS/TOEFL, must:

Express the main idea (and, if needed, the most essential supporting point)
Be one sentence only (in PTE Academic)
Paraphrase, don't copy large parts of the text
Avoid listing multiple facts or examples
Use clear and grammatically correct English

Formula for a Strong SWT Summary Sentence

[Main argument], [appropriate connector/transition], [key cause, result, or secondary point-if essential].

Example

Original paragraph:
"Social media has radically changed the way people interact and share information. Despite its benefits, such as connecting relatives across continents, it has also been linked to negative mental health outcomes in teenagers."

Summary sentence:
Social media has transformed human interaction, but it has also led to negative mental health effects among teenagers.

Common Mistakes in Main Idea Summarization (And How to Avoid Them)

1. Including Too Many Details or Examples

Mistake: "The passage says solar panel costs fell by 80%, wind capacity tripled, and governments supported clean energy."
Fix: Focus on the main idea: "Renewable energy is now more affordable and accessible due to innovation and supportive policies."

2. Copying Sentences Directly

Mistake: "Plastic pollution in oceans has become a worldwide environmental crisis, threatening marine life and disrupting food chains." (Copied)
Fix: Paraphrase: "Plastic pollution represents a global crisis that current solutions fail to adequately address."

3. Missing the Main Argument

Mistake: Including only an example or explanation, not the central claim.

4. Writing More Than One Sentence

Mistake: "Social media changed how people talk. It also causes mental health problems."
Fix: "Social media changed human communication, but it is also linked to mental health problems."

5. Being Too Vague or Overly General

Mistake: "There are problems in the world."
Fix: "Plastic pollution is a worldwide crisis inadequately resolved by current policies."

Advanced Tips: Main Idea Identification for Challenging or Complex Texts

1. Ask "Why did the writer mention this?"

If a sentence contains a date, study, or story, ask how it relates to the author's overall claim.

2. Look for 'Signal Words' Indicating Argument or Emphasis

Words like however, although, in summary, overall, therefore, as a result often signal important points.

3. Beware of Distractors

Sometimes an author leads with an example, then gives the main argument at the end.
Pay attention to concluding sentences too.

4. Differentiate Between Contrasts and Concessions

If an author presents both positive and negative aspects, focus on what conclusion or position they finally take.

Model Answers and Sample Practice for Main Idea Summarization

Sample 1: Short Paragraph

Text:
"The increased use of electric vehicles has reduced urban air pollution in many cities. However, the transition faces challenges, including high costs and limited charging infrastructure."

Main idea: Electric vehicles are reducing air pollution, but adoption is slowed by cost and infrastructure limits.
Model SWT sentence: While electric vehicles decrease urban air pollution, widespread adoption remains hampered by high costs and limited charging points.

Sample 2: Academic Article Excerpt

Text:
"Recent studies indicate that frequent formative assessment not only improves student engagement but also leads to significantly higher long-term retention, suggesting that schools should prioritize such methods over traditional summative exams."

Main idea: Formative assessments are more effective than traditional exams for long-term student learning.
Model SWT sentence: Frequent formative assessments enhance both student engagement and long-term retention, making them preferable to traditional summative exams in educational practice.

Metacognitive Reading Strategies: The 2025 Advantage

Modern research (Source 9) shows that top scorers on PTE, IELTS, and TOEFL:

Regularly monitor their comprehension ("Do I understand what I'm reading?").
Pause to underline or note important points while reading (even mentally, on a screen).
Quickly check: "If I had to explain this text in one sentence, what would it be?"

Studies find: Strategies like underlining, self-checks, and summarizing in your own words strongly predict reading achievement across global exam-takers.

Practice Plan: Building Main Idea Skills Over Time

Step 1: Daily Short Practice

Choose a paragraph from a news site, textbook, or exam prep passage.
Skim it, then summarize the main idea in one sentence without copying.
Compare with the original and adjust.

Step 2: Weekly Focused Review

Once a week, pick 2-3 complex passages and time yourself.
Use the strategy: Intro/first sentence, last sentence, repeated words.
Write your summary and get feedback (with tools like Essay Tutor).

Step 3: Simulate Exam Conditions

Use a timer (e.g., 10 minutes per SWT task).
Practice writing a summary without looking back.
Immediately check your answer and note what you missed.

How Can Essay Tutor Help You Master Main Ideas and Summarization?

At Essay Tutor, you can:

Get instant feedback on your summary sentences: Catch grammar, phrasing, and content selection errors.
See which parts of your summary answer hit the main idea and which bring in unnecessary details.
Use AI-powered improvement suggestions to rephrase your summaries more concisely and effectively.
Track your progress: Notice improvement in both language and main idea focus through regular practice.

Pro Tip: After writing your summary, paste it into Essay Tutor to find out if you actually summarized the main idea-or if you accidentally included off-topic or detailed information.

Frequently Asked Questions about Main Idea Summarization

How can I prepare for PTE Academic Writing "Summarize Written Text"?

Practice skimming and identifying main ideas with short texts daily.
Focus on paraphrasing rather than copying.
Use Essay Tutor for instant evaluation and suggested improvements.

What are some common IELTS writing mistakes in summary tasks?

Including too many specific examples
Writing more than one sentence
Ignoring the task instruction to summarize only the main idea

How can I improve my TOEFL "gist" summary skills?

Practice with varied texts (academic, opinion, reports)
Identify keywords and repeated phrases
Check your summaries for completeness, focus, and language

2025 Recap: Main Idea Mastery-Your Key to Summarizing Success

Mastering the skill of finding main ideas for Summarize Written Text (and similar summary tasks) will boost your scores and confidence across PTE Academic, IELTS, and TOEFL.
Remember:

Skim for structure: Focus on intro, first/last sentences, and repeated themes.
Stay focused: Summarize main arguments, not minor details or lists.
Practice regularly: Build habits of mental "highlighting" and concise phrasing.
Get feedback: Use Essay Tutor to confirm and improve your main idea summaries.

Start practicing today:
Try writing summary sentences on various texts and let Essay Tutor help you refine, correct, and perfect your summarizing skills. With every practice session, you're one step closer to mastery-and a top score on your next English exam!

Ready to become a main idea master? Log on to study.essaytutor.app for instant feedback and smarter summarizing today!