Plagiarism is...

"To use another person's ideas or expressions in your writing without acknowledging the source is to plagiarize. Plagiarism, then, constitutes intellectual theft..."

• What is the penalty for plagiarism?

"Plagiarism...often carries severe penalties, ranging from failure in a course to expulsion from school."

• Do I have to cite every fact?

"If you have any doubt about whether or not you are committing plagiarism, cite your source or sources."

• What if I put someone else's ideas in my own words?

"A writer who fails to give appropriate acknowledgment when repeating another's wording or particularly apt term, paraphrasing another's argument, or presenting another's line of thinking is guilty of plagiarism"

• Why does plagiarism matter?

Careers and reputations have been damaged by findings of plagiarism. Journalists have been fired from the Chicago Sun-Times, and the Wall Street Journal, among others. A Harvard psychiatrist resigned after a finding of plagiarism against him. Art Buchwald sued Paramount Pictures (and won) over the idea for the plot of Coming to America.