12 Paragraphs ~ Topic Sentences

Answer the questions in this quick quiz before you read the chapter:

What Is a Paragraph?

Let’s begin by defining the concept of the paragraph. A paragraph is a group of sentences that present, develop, and support a single idea. Some paragraphs are long; some paragraphs are short. There is no rule for exact length of paragraphs or number of sentences in a paragraph. One guideline is to have your paragraph take up two-thirds to three-fourths of a page, but paragraphs can be shorter or longer than that. In an essay, each new paragraph is indented; this helps your reader to see that you are shifting to a new topic.

In academic writing, we often combine paragraphs into a longer essay. The main idea of each paragraph supports the thesis of the essay.

Often, to help guide readers, the main idea of the paragraph is clearly expressed in a topic sentence.

Topic Sentences

The job of the topic sentence is to control the development and flow of the information contained in the paragraph. The topic sentence takes control of the more general topic of the paragraph and shapes it in the way that you choose to present it to your readers. Here is an example:

Additional state budget funding must be allocated to subsidize affordable housing initiatives.

What is the general topic here? What is the more focused, specific idea that the paragraph will address?

Additional state budget funding must be allocated to subsidize affordable housing initiatives.

The general topic (in bold type) is “affordable housing initiatives;” the more focused idea (in italics) is that “additional state budget funding must be allocated.”

Think about some places where you might commonly find general topics presented with more focus, perhaps in news stories, textbooks, or speeches. The topic of a news story might be a deadly forest fire that’s burning out of control, while the focus of the topic might be about careless humans. The topic of a chapter from a medical text might be phlebotomy (the practice of drawing blood from a patient), while the focus of a section of that chapter might be about safe disposal of used needles. Maybe the topic of a persuasive speech is organic produce, while the focus of the speech is about the importance of supporting local organic farms.

Most topics are big and broad, so they require more focus to provide a narrower view of the subject. Topic sentences provide focus in a paragraph; thesis statements provide focus in an essay. This narrower and more focused view also often tries to persuade the reader to see things from the writer’s perspective.

Note: The presentation of topics in an academic essay differs from the presentation of topics in a speech. Beginning speech writers often use obvious verbal signposts to announce main ideas, transitional moments, or concluding thoughts. On the other hand, academic writers use different kinds of signposts.

For example, in a speech for ENGL 085 or another class, you might say, “First, I will explain . . .” or “The first topic I will cover . . .” or “Next, I will tell you about . . .” or “In conclusion, as I have demonstrated . . . .”  These methods for announcing a topic may be common and accepted practices in some college speech classes, but they do not suit the expectations of your audience for an academic essay. With an oral presentation, the audience can’t see how the speech will unfold, but with written text, readers can see the size and shape of the document that they’re reading, so they don’t need as much help navigating.

Here’s an example:

Speech-like announcement of a topic: First, I will explain that while it’s a common belief that use of cell phones causes lower levels of concentration and focus, cell phone use does have a place in the classroom and smart phones should be considered a valuable educational tool.

Essay-like presentation of a topic: While it’s a common belief that the use of cell phones causes lower levels of concentration and focus, cell phone use does have a place in the classroom, and smart phones should be considered a valuable educational tool.

Notice that this is a stronger position statement than this: “I think that cell phones are valuable.”

Tip: In a written college essay, try not to use transitions such as “In this essay, I will…,” “I believe that…,” or “In conclusion, my main idea is….” This is called “writing about writing,” and many professors feel that this weakens your writing. Instead, the preferred method is to state your idea or opinion directly. One way to do this in paragraphs is to use an explicit topic sentence.

Placement of  Explicit Topic Sentences

A topic sentence can be at the beginning, in the middle, or at the end of a paragraph. Placing your topic sentence at or near the beginning of a paragraph is one good strategy. When you announce a topic clearly and early on in a paragraph, your readers are likely to understand your idea and to make the connections that you want them to make. This helps your readers relax because they don’t have to “hunt” for the main idea of the paragraph. However, it might be boring to structure every paragraph exactly the same way. For variety, you can also place topic sentences in the middle or at the end of your paragraph – it’s your choice as the author.

Implicit Topic Sentences

Sometimes, authors choose not to include an explicit topic sentence in every paragraph. Implicit topic sentences work especially well in narrative paragraphs or other kinds of creative writing. In stories, for example, you do not need to explicitly state the main idea of each paragraph. In long academic essays, we often have two or three closely-related paragraphs that need just one topic sentence to introduce them, so not every paragraph will have an explicit topic sentence.

There are also times when your main idea will be obvious enough without having to state your topic sentence directly. If you’re not sure about whether or not an implied topic is working in a paragraph, write an explicit topic sentence for the paragraph. Read the paragraph with and without your new explicit topic. Does addition of the explicit topic improve the clarity of the paragraph or essay? Share your writing with a some classmates or a writing tutor to get some second opinions. If you are not sure, ask your instructors about their preferences for your essays.

Characteristics of a Good Topic Sentence

A good topic sentence will:

• Announce the topic and the more focused ideas of the paragraph
• Present an idea or ideas that are clear and easy to understand
• Provide unity to the paragraph (so it’s clear how all supporting ideas relate)
• Omit supporting details
• Engage the reader

There’s no right order in the writing process for identifying or writing the topic sentence of a paragraph. Some writers begin drafting a paragraph with a main idea already in mind and then decide how to support it. Others begin writing about details, examples, or quotations from sources that they feel somehow relate to what they want to say, writing for a while before deciding what the main idea is. Most writers rely on a variety of strategies that they have developed through trial and error. So don’t let the lack of a main idea hold you back from getting out what you want to say. Pre-write and draft for a while, and a main idea will surely emerge.

Portions of the above chapter were modified from “Writing Paragraphs” from The Word on College Reading and Writing by Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear, which is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.