According to the University of Michigan, "Patchwriting happens when you rephrase a portion of source material, but your language remains too close to the vocabulary and/or sentence structure of the original text."
This is a technique most common among college students and journalists.
It’s may not be plagiarism, but it’s not original writing either.
The term was coined by writing professor Rebecca Moore Howard. In a 1993 article, she proposed the following definition:
"Copying from a source text and then deleting some words, altering grammatical structures, or plugging in one-for-one synonym-substitutes."
"Patchwriting is a failed attempt at paraphrasing," she goes on to say. "Rather than copying a statement word for word, the writer is rearranging phrases, using synonyms and changing tenses, but is relying too heavily on the vocabulary and syntax of the source material. It’s a form of intellectual dishonesty."
All writers at one time or the other have run out of original creative thoughts and content.
According to an article "Beyond Plagiarism: Best Practices for the Responsible Use of Sources" ( https://www.beyondplagiarism.sweetland.lsa.umich.edu/for-students/using-sources/patchwriting-as-a-technique/)
"While not appropriate for a final draft, patchwriting can be part of the process to help you to better understand your source material. Noticing where you have the most difficulty putting the original argument into your own words can point you to concepts that you might need to look up."
Many other sources say patchwriting has its uses and can be helpful to students, readers and writers who want to understand a text or content better.
Rebecca Howard's book, Standing in the Shadow of Giants: Plagiarists, Authors, Collaborators talks about plagiarism and patchwriting in detail. Howard says in her book that we need to utilise patchwriting as a positive learning strategy, not necessarily as the only way to utilise source texts but as a legitimate approach in of itself.
To read more on her arguments and to learn more about patchwriting please visit
https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/words-were-watching-patchwriting